Flexperks Points Being Devalued January 1, 2018
This post is a friendly reminder that Flexperks points will only be worth 1.5 cents a piece starting Sunday (12/31/17). Make sure you burn whatever points you have left before then if you want to get closer to 2 cents per point. Even if you don’t have a particular flight you need booked right now you can still take advantage.
How to Get Max Value From Your Flexperks Points
A few months ago I wrote about booking a flight I had no intention of using in order to max out the value of my Flexperks. The gist of it is that you book a refundable flight to somewhere that is as close to 2 cents per point you can and then you cancel the flight for travel credit. This works for Southwest and Alaska airlines. You do need to call in to book Southwest flights (888-229-8864).
Flexperks points’ value works in buckets so if you have 20,000 points you need to find a flight near $400. If you have 30,000 points you need to find a flight near $600. For every increase of 10,000 points you have you get $200 more in flight values.
After 2-3 days you can cancel with the airline and they will give you a travel voucher that lasts for 12 months. Don’t cancel earlier than 2 days or the Flexperks points will be refunded. DO NOT do this if you can not use the travel vouchers in the next 12 months. Using $300 down the road is better than letting $400 disappear because you were trying to max out your value.
Also remember the $25 in airline credit that you get with Flexperks bookings. Purchase a $25 gift card from the airline you book with on the day of your original travel. Then call Flexperks a week or so later and ask for the credit!
The Changes Are Not All Bad
If you don’t think you will be able to use the travel voucher within the next 12 months then hold onto your points. The changes are not entirely bad. They do allow you to use every point you have instead of being regulated to buckets.
In the past you needed at least 20,000 points to do a redemption. That made these points kind of a pain. Now you will be able to use whatever you have towards your flight at 1.5 cents a piece. So if you have 10,000 points you don’t need to earn 10,000 more, you can just redeem those and get $150 off a flight. There will be no more orphaned points or breakage in this system.
Conclusion
If you have at least 20,000 Flexperk points and you plan on taking at least $400 worth of flights on Alaska or Southwest in the next 12 months then make sure to book your tickets today. Tomorrow those same points will only get you a $300 flight.
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for sw airlines if the travel fund/voucher is good for 1 yr by certain date (let’s say 12/30), do i have to travel by 12/30/18? or need to book by 12/30/18 for a future travel dates? TIA
I am pretty sure the travel would need to be completed by the expiration date.
thx mark, thought to DC; does alaska airlines allow to book the travel fund by the exp. date for a a future travel dates some time in 2019, right?
I am not sure about that one – they don’t specify in their terms. Maybe try them on twitter?
https://www.alaskaair.com/content/gifts-and-products/gift-cards-certificates/credit-cert-terms