V-Flyer

In August last year we signed up to VA Amex. When I logged into our main FC account there was a Companion Flight qualification notice. I was under the impression that this would be added on the anniversary of opening but it had been added on 1 June. There does not seem to be any mention of Econ to PE upgrade notice on the account even though we have obviously spent large lol. Do we have to book a flight before 1 June 2017 or lose the voucher? If we book a PE ticket can the voucher be used for the companion to get PE? Could someone please explain in simple terms for me - thank you.

We have just booked UC tickets for next year - could we have just bought one and used the companion voucher - if so I am a bit miffed as we could have saved 90,000 miles

The companion reward is added to your account as soon as (or not long after) you've spent the required amount on your card. Hence why you've already got it.

The PE upgrade voucher, on the other hand, only appears on your card anniversary, provided you've spent enough to qualify. So that should appear this month.

However: the companion reward, unfortunately, can only be used in conjunction with a cash fare - and not just any cash fare. In UC you can only use it with the most expensive J fare, rendering it useless to most leisure travellers (it's basically aimed at business travellers who need, and can afford, fully flexible tickets). In Economy & PE you can use it in conjunction with a broader range of fare buckets but still not the cheapest.

The PE upgrade voucher is far more useful to leisure travelers but can only be used to upgrade from an Economy miles reward booking, not a cash one.

So in essence the two vouchers can't be used together, and in your case assuming you booked your UC tickets using miles, the companion voucher wouldn't have been valid.

And finally yes, you must book within 12 months of the date the vouchers appear in your account - although the actual flights could be up to another 11 months after that.

Hope that helps. It's a bit of a minefield.

Gumshoe thank you for taking the time to answer my question and also,explaining that I can't use the rewards vouchers at the same time.

Sorry to drag up an old thread, but seemed best to use the search rather than start a new one.

I'm also confused, I was just awarded my Companion flight today.

I've had a look online at some H Class PE fares that were coming in at around £1k for Delhi for next year. If I went ahead with it and booked it, does there also need to be P availability to get the Companion ticket?

Yes there does Col

Thanks, I thought these were generally regarded as being pretty useless, but it doesn't seem like too bad a deal to me or am I missing someone?

Looked at similar dates for Vegas, and its £1300 for a H fare, there is P availability, and I presume I still have to pay £400 taxes on the Companion? £1700 for two people for Premium doesn't seem like too bad a deal or is there some other catch I'm missing?

Looking at it, it seems virtually useless for any kind of Upper Class usage as they only work with a J fare!

Yep you're correct re: Premium redemptions, you'll still have to pay the taxes but as you say £1700 ain't bad, £850 each assuming you play it that way!

Upper Class usage has changed, it's now any fare class besides Z that can be used. And with I class fares oftentimes coming in at only £3-400 more than a Z, it can prove very good value. (Especially as with I class fares comes the chauffeur transfer and 200 TPs each way)

Oh that's very useful to know. I was reading Head for Points which was updated in April but only mentioned J Class fares for Upper, if you can use an I Class then we will almost certainly be doing that

Much as I love headforpoints, its coverage of all things VS is poor (and, sadly, often inaccurate). It's unashamedly BA-focused.

But yes, amidst all the (deservedly) negative publicity surrounding the new website and changes to Flying Club, there have been some genuine enhancements to things like Companion Rewards and Miles Plus Money which have slipped under the radar somewhat.

Thanks for all your help guys. Just need to start the hunt for those G's again!

So just to confirm, is it official that companion vouchers can be used against I, C, D and J fares? The website t&cs still say J only : http://www.virginatlantic.com/gb/en/foo ... -card.html

If that's the case then it really is an excellent enhancement they should be shouting about!

Curious, that seems to contradict the companion reward flights page!
https://www.virginatlantic.com/gb/en/fl ... ewardseat1

You can save a seat onboard for a friend when you buy a full adult ticket in all booking classes, except for our lowest price tickets (N, O, V) in Economy, (K) in Premium Economy and (Z) in Upper Class.

Hang on I'm more confused than ever...the link you provided SimplyJones talks about a companion seat using miles when purchasing a full fare ticket, not using the companion voucher....this seems to be two different things.

As far as I've always known the companion voucher is exactly the same as a normal one, but there's just no cost of miles. I don't think they are two separate things. Might be one of those things to call up about.

I have to be honest I had no idea there was such a think as a Companion Reward without the credit card spend, so I've learnt something new myself!

Sorry to bring this old thread up again, but does anyone yet know for sure if the companion voucher can be used on UC fares other than Z?

The contradiction in the various T&Cs on the VS site still exist, unless they are treating credit card companion vouchers as different from regular miles-based Companion Rewards.