united fare structure
 

i need help. i recently book a multi destination tkt on ua, hnl sin nrt hnl. when i booked the tkt, the fare was $994.40, and tax and fees $110.10. i booked this tkt because i need the $994 pqd.

just now, i cked my iti/receipt and see that my fare is $450, and taxes/fees $654.50. so, my pqd has been reduced by more than fifty percent. i will need to book another tkt to make up the difference.

so, my question is, did i misinterpret the fare on united.com when i booked the tkt? is united not being honest when they tell you what the fare structure is?

i called the 1k res. number and got no help. i cancelled the res.

united might be aloha with me.

I feel the same way about fee structure on UA. I never really know how many PQDs I will earn until they actually post, which is after I travel. I am in pretty good shape for keeping 1K status for another year by end of 2014, but I have bought some business class tkts that earn 1.5 PQMs and cost a bit more. I have not had good luck with upgrades so i only book a sure thing.

So are you not showing up in BKK next month? Was hoping to have dinner.

The new MP program is very confusing. We have Business Class tickets booked to Lima in November. I will be interested to see how those get credited. If you figure this out, Kuranosuke, let the rest of us know!

I don't think you misinterpreted. I just finished an international trip yesterday that I booked in May. I looked at the reservation confirmation e-mail I received immediately upon booking, and it lists the fare as $2,431 and the taxes as $176.90. In contrast, the e-ticket receipt that arrived a few hours later after the reservation was ticketed lists the airfare as $1,915 and the taxes and fees as $692.90. The difference is an "international surcharge" of $516 itemized on the e-ticket receipt.

Only one of four segments has posted at this point, so I can't tell how this will actually accrue to my account yet...and unfortunately, it looks like I may have to chase credit for the Lufthansa segments, so it might be awhile. The one segment that has posted shows PQDs of over half the $1915 amount, though, so I'm really not sure what to expect at this point and am holding out hope it might be based on the higher amount. But it's definitely confusing...

Kathie, we flew to Lima on discounted business class ("P") last month, and here's how ours posted:

Total base miles: 8,409 (Chicago-Houston-Lima, Lima-Newark-Chicago)

Redeemable miles: 21,021 (base + fare class bonus of 50% of base + 1K bonus of 100% of base)

Premier qualifying miles: 12,612 (base + fare class bonus of 50%)

Premier qualifying dollars: $1,551 (this matches my e-ticket receipt, which shows fare of $1,550 and taxes of $117.74)

Hopefully, that gives you some indication for your trip.

Thanks, ms_go, that is helpful.

It's actually pretty well spelled out int he Mileage Plus page. Basics are: Carrier imposed surcharges count towards PQD; taxes don't.


Will I earn award miles for the taxes and fees paid on a ticket?
No. You will earn award miles only on the base fare plus carrier-imposed surcharges paid, but not on any government-imposed taxes and fees.


The changes are also only for flights purchased or taken after March 1 2015.

newtome, the postings above are about tickets purchased and flown this year, not after March 1, 2015. Some of us here are UA elites (1K and platinum, gold) and are wondering if our spend this year will requalify us for the same elite level for 2015. I, personally, am confident that I will maintain my 1K status, with about 125k miles and minimum $12k spend. But I eagerly await each and every mile/$ to appear in my FF account.

Elite frequent fliers are well aware of the changes coming March of 2015. I'm still not sure if I'm very excited about the new program. I'll no doubt be earning a lot fewer miles. I typically "spend" my miles for holiday travel in international first class. I just hope I can accumulate the miles I need for that travel!

Here's the list from my upcoming Bangkok ticket. I can see how kuranosuke gets confused. I won't really know what I earn out of all of these taxes and fees until the final PQD posts to my account.

Airfare
U S customs user fee
US immigration user fee
US APHIS user fee (what is this?)
US federal transportation tax
September 11 security fee
Japan passenger service facility fee
Thailand passenger service charge
International surcharge
US passenger facility charge

Any ideas which ones will be added to my PQD?

If it works as stated on the Mileage Plus page, it should be "airfare" + "international surcharge." The others (US, Japan, Thailand taxes and fees) would not be included in PQD.

My return flight from Frankfurt should post today or tomorrow, and when it does, I should be able to tell whether (or not) the international surcharge is included in PQD for that trip. My only other international ticket this year, to Peru, did not have an international surcharge itemized on the e-receipt. The PQD corresponded to the "airfare" amount and did not include any of the eight other line items for US/Peru taxes and fees.

Thanks ms_go. The international surcharge is a large amount, so I would love to have it be included in the PQD.

Italy has a raft of charges and fees! My goodness! I just had a look at my ORD-VCE, FCO-ORD ticket and the list is astounding. The base airfare wasn't all that expensive! Haha

thanks for all your comments. my point is that the exact amt of pqd to be credited to your acct should be shown when you book your tkt, not after you received the iti/rec., or after you complete your travel. why doesn't ua show it upfront, they know what it is. another case in point:

booked hnl-nrt-hnl fare at booking $885($85 tax/fees)
after booking, receipt shows: airfare $400, tax/fees/surcharge $455. couldn't ua show this upfront before i booked the tkt?

Good question! They absolutely should divulge the PQD amount. Is part of that $455 the international surcharge? That fee s/be included in PQD if ms_go is correct.

It sounds like the international surcharge will get credited as PQD - but you are quite right it should say it upfront.

Hi, my return flight posted this afternoon, and the international surcharge is included in the PQDs. I'm still a little short of the total PQDs I am expecting for this trip because two Lufthansa intra-European flights haven't posted yet, but the transatlantic flights have accounted for over 90 percent of the "airfare" + "international surcharge" amount.

So back to your original example, I'm going to guess--based on my own test case--that your original purchase had a surcharge of $544, so that plus the base fare would result in PQDs of $994. I'd call the Mileage Plus service desk to confirm that info, though, rather than reservations. I've found that some reservation agents don't really know the MP accrual rules all that well. And, I agree, this could definitely be clearer at time of purchase!

just checked my acct from a recent asia trip, and indeed, msgo was spot on. thanks all.