COVID has turned the world of loyalty programs upside down with almost all customers on the verge of losing their valuable status. An industrial disaster that did not happen, the airlines abounded in exceptional measures in order to keep their frequent customers and thus invest on the recovery.
The principle of the blank year in 2020.
Most airlines have adopted the same response: a blank year. In other words, nothing happened in 2020. To put it simply, it doesn’t matter if you flew or not, you will leave in 2021 with the status you had at the beginning of the requalification period in 2020.
Example: as a member of the SAS Eurobonus program (qualification from November to October) I started 2020 with Diamond status. I was well on my way to keeping it in theory, in practice with the sudden stop of the flights I only accumulated the points necessary to obtain a gold (I was missing a trip for the diamond). But as of November 1, 2020 my Diamond was maintained for the 2020-2021 period and, of course, my qualifying point balance reset to zero. But it would have been the same if I had not flown at all.
But some programs have specificities that have led to different interpretations of this principle of the blank year. This is the case of Flying Blue, the program of Air France, KLM and some other airlines that offers a rollover.
Blank year and rollover
What is rollover?
The rollover is a device that allows a client who has more XP than necessary to obtain or maintain a status to transfer the excess XP to the next year to start with a credit of points to conquer a new status.
Example. A customer ends a year with 400 XP. It needs 300 to maintain its platinum status. He will therefore start with his platinum status + a balance of 100XP from the beginning (so no longer 300 XP to accumulate but 200 during the next period).
At one point I had 1500 XP on my flying blue account. This means mathematically the guarantee of maintaining my platinum status for 5 years (and therefore at the end a lifetime status but that’s another subject).
If at TravelGuys we find that Flying Blue is far from being an uncritical program, we are unanimous in recognizing that the rollover is one of the most beautiful innovations that has been brought to it for ages and that makes it really different from other programs.
Many Flying Blue members were therefore concerned about how the rollover would work with the blank year.
In fact, in a program that does not practice rollover, the principle of the blank year is simple: they act as if you had not flown (thus withdrawing the qualifying miles/points acquired) and they maintain your status.
But what about the application of the blank year in a program that practices rollover? Indeed the “reset” seems unfair for those who had attacked 2020 with a credit of points.
When we see the numerous questions from our readers on the subject, it is clear that Air France’s strategy in this area has been poorly explained. Maybe because it is too complicated.
Flying Blue’s hesitations
In April, Air France announced the principle of a blank year for 2020. A clear and consistent measure, but many customers were upset about the reset of the counters. Why ?
Imagine three platinum customers.
- the 1st starts his requalification period with 0XP and acquires 270XP (300XP are needed to keep his status). The 270 XP are taken away and he remains platinum.
- the 2nd one also starts at 0XP but does not fly during the year. No XP is taken from him and he remains platinum.
- the 3rd one benefits from the rollover and starts his period with 200XP. It does not fly. The 200 XP are taken from him and he remains platinum.
Clients were moved by two things:
- There would be “discrimination” between clients 1 and 2. The system does not sufficiently value the client who has flown compared to the client who has not.
- Customer 3 feels cheated because the 200XP is not strictly speaking due to his activity during the period but to the transfer from the previous year. In the context of a blank year he feels like his rollover is being “stolen”.
Taking these criticisms into account, Flying Blue is backtracking and announcing that 2020 will be a truly “free” year.
2020 a free year on Flying Blue. Really?
As we wrote at the time.
“When Air France-KLM announced the measures on its post-crisis COVID-19 frequent flyer program, things were clear: maintaining status would still involve a deduction of miles, for members who had met the qualifying criteria.
An unfair situation: those who flew a lot in 2019 and early 2020 would not have obtained any advantage since their XP of requalification would have been deducted normally, while those who had not flown much or at all would have had their status maintained until 2022! Ugly.
The group has therefore re-established a normal situation: no deduction in case of requalification! So this time it is a real blank year, the requalification will be “free” whatever the number of XP in the bank.”
If you read the comments at the end of the article, things are anything but clear to customers.
“Unfortunately, reclassification is not “free”.
The point is not settled and you can become dithyrambic again because the situation remains grotesque as you indicated a few months ago…
Take the case of a Platinum qualification at the end of December 2019 with the necessary 300 XP.
I’m flying in 2020 with maximum preference for AF/KLM. I will reach 295 or 305 XP at the end of December 2020… they will either credit me 5 XP to keep the Platinum in 2021 or take away 300 XP and leave me 5 XP for the next qualification period…
Bottom line, compared to the person who was in the same situation as me at the end of 2019 and will not have traveled in 2020… it’s unfair or grotesque (as you prefer)
Feel free to pick up your article and your fight!
Thank you in advance“
Air France’s clarification
The promise being beautiful but the reality more difficult to understand. Due to the influx of emails from our readers, we decided to contact the airline directly and they responded promptly (but if anyone from Flying Blue comes by and wants to respond directly to the customer comments on the previous article).
Here is the airline’s position.
– all clients with a qualification period ending between March 2020 and February 2021 have or will have their status maintained
So far nothing new under the sun. What interests our readers is under what conditions.
– for those customers, we guarantee to keep at least the same XP surplus as at the beginning of their qualification period (i.e. from March 2019 to February 2020, i.e. before the crisis)
Then things are clearer, at least on paper. Clearer does not mean that it will please everyone but just that we understand better.
According to our understanding
– Application of the principle of the blank year: 2020 did not exist. You didn’t fly, the accumulated XP disappears and the status is maintained.
– Retention of past period rollover: customers who started 2020 with a rollover from 2019 retain it. So, if I understand correctly:
Ex : A platinum customer starts 2020 with 200XP of rollover and flies for 50XP. His platinum status would therefore be maintained, he is being stripped of 50XP but will start 2021 with his 200XP of rollover from 2019.
Ex : On the other hand, for two customers who start 2020 with little or no rollover, the one who has acquired 250XP and the one who has acquired 10XP will be at the same point in 2021. And the one who will have acquired 250XP by flying will be able – as our readers told us – to say that his “investment” was not rewarded (even if we do not think that the absence of flights of the other is the fruit of a strategy but the result of the constraints of the moment).
However, this summer, customers who were able to fly benefited from the Double Miles / Double XP promotion from July 13 to December 31.
This second situation is a priori a bit disappointing for the customers even if we will see later that it is quite logical.
One last case may, however, be interesting for a few rare clients: those who had a big rollover at the beginning of 2020 and who, in addition, managed to maintain their status by flying.
Ex: A platinum customer starts 2020 with a rollover of 200XP. He flies for 105 XP. He ends up with 305 XP. We will take away the 100XP needed to maintain his status but he will keep his rollover from 2019 + his rollover from 2020 so he will start 2021 with 205XP instead of 5 in the previous system.
Clients in the latter situation are certainly rare, but from our perspective they are among those most interested in the subject.
So things seem clear and we will be vigilant as to how things will work out in practice. Not having had the opportunity to fly on Air France between January and March, 100% of my XP are from the rollover, so I will check that on 31/12 (end of my requalification period) my balance remains unchanged as it should if things work as announced.
[UPDATE: 2020 of course counts towards the years needed to achieve Platinum For Life status].
Bottom line: Flying Blue practices the blank year like everyone else and gives a boost to “very frequent flyers
What can we learn from all this (provided that things happen as described to us).
1°) Flying Blue practices a “blank year” like everyone else.
By “like everyone else” we mean that the status is maintained and that the XP earned in 2020 will be deducted from the account. So yes, the one who has flown a lot in 2020 will feel disadvantaged compared to the one who has not flown or has flown little. But that’s how everyone did it and if there is an exception that we missed, please mention it.
This is the principle of the blank year: you pretend that nothing happened.
So yes, not everyone will like it, but it’s all in line with industry practice during this exceptional period.
Could we have envisaged maintaining the status without withdrawing the XP acquired in 2020? Yes. But in this case, it would mean leaving the principle of the “white year”, which consists of totally neutralizing 2020. And this is compensated by the measures concerning the rollover.
2°) Flying Blue gives a boost to its “big customers”
We told you that the rollover was one of the charms of Flying Blue and for good reason: it’s a dream feature for all those who fly a lot, do “more than their status” every year and don’t want it to be for nothing.
For those there the maintenance of the rollover resulting from 2019 added to the possible rollover resulting from 2020 is a real plus which will be appreciated considering that in certain configurations it will be even more favorable than the normal operation of the fidelity program “except exceptional measures”.
Let’s add that for most of the people concerned by the case 1°) with a big XP balance in 2020, given the context, most of the XP of 2020 will have been except exception a gain of the 2019 rollover so they won’t lose that much.
It is a bonus for the best customers and the most loyal passengers based on their history.
What about you? Are you statisfied with this? Are there any remaining grey areas?
Photo : Flying Blue Card by Antonio Salaverry via Shutterstock
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