How to stop your Qantas Points Expiring

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While many members of Qantas Frequent Flyer are aware that they need to keep ‘earning and burning’ to prevent their Qantas Points Expiring. On the other hand, it still pops up in the media – someone has logged into their account, and the points have gone.

In this post, I will look at the rules around expiring points, how you can keep them active, and look at what you can do if they have already expired.

When do Qantas Points Expire?

According to rules, you need to have some activity on your account (either earn or spend), at least once every 18 months. If you don’t, you risk losing the lot.

Qantas defines the expiration policy of points in Section 9.2.2 of the Terms and Conditions.

9.2.2 All Points held in a Qantas Frequent Flyer account will expire at midnight Sydney, Australia time at the end of the 18th consecutive month for which the Member has not earned Points or Status Credits or redeemed Points (excluding any transfer of Points to or from an Eligible Family Member and excluding any transfer of Points from Qantas Business Rewards).

The important thing is that it does not need to be from flying. What is important is that you do keep points coming in or going out.

Fortunately, Qantas has many partners that can allow you to earn points.  And, if you’ve received the warning email, you may want the points to be posting pretty smartly to your account.

Family transfers and a warning

The terms and conditions spell out the family transfers do not count for activity. However, one trick you can use is to transfer points out of an account that is not used much, into another active account. For example, children may have accounts that only earn Qantas Points every now and then. You could move these points into a parent’s account, where they can be kept in a more active account.

But make sure you don’t transfer them to an account that is itself about to expire. So, if you transfer a bunch of points into an account that was about to hit 18 months of inactivity, they would end up expiring as well.

So for example, if you were on 17 months of no activity and transferred 100,000 points into your account from another family member, the points would be set to expire a month later. Not only would the points originally in the account expire – the 100,000 points you just transferred would expire as well.

Keeping activity ticking over

Qantas has a wide range of earning partners. It is always worth keeping an eye on the Qantas Points website to view any new partners that come up.

Fly

Probably the most obvious option is to actually fly. And not surprisingly, flying Qantas is often the most rewarding way. Pretty much any paid booking is eligible for points when flying on a Qantas aircraft and flight number. Just make sure that your frequent flyer number is attached to the booking.

The situation with partner airlines is a bit different. While there are a number of partner airlines, they sell a number of fares that don’t offer any Frequent Flyer points. These are often the most deeply discounted economy fares, but you do need to pay attention to the actual fare you are paying for.

Credit Cards

There a whole range of credit cards you can link to your Qantas Frequent Flyer account. There are many options, with the big banks and American Express offering cards that earn Qantas Points.

These cards will generally transfer points to Qantas once a month, and these transfers count as activity

Woolworths Rewards

If you have a Woolworths Rewards Card, you can elect to earn Qantas Points in place of the $10 discount. If you do this, Woolworths will give you 1,000 Qantas Points for every 2,000 Woolworths Rewards points you earn.

This works best if you can take advantage of bonus offers, otherwise you will need to spend $2,000 at retailers that participate in Woolworths Rewards for those 1,000 points.

Hotels

Qantas has partnered with a wide range of hotels both within Australia and overseas. If you stay at one of these hotels, you should check whether you can earn Qantas Points for the stay. While some rates may not earn points, it is always worth asking when you check-in.

Rental Cars

Another option for travellers is rental cars. Qantas partners with Avis and Budget, and while they may not get you a lot of points, they do keep your account going.

In my experience, there are often good weekend deals around, so it may not be that expensive.

Other options

There is a wide range of other points earning opportunities. The Qantas Online Mall,  for example, awards points when shopping at online retailers. During promotional periods this could be as much as 10 Qantas Points per dollar or more.

My Points are Expiring Soon

Earning point options

While there are a lot of ways of earning points, they can take time to turn up in your account. What happens if you need points urgently? For example, you may have just received an email from Qantas that your points are about to expire.

There are some earn partners that generally credit points quite quickly. These include:

  • Qantas wine which offers points on purchasing wine and gourmet foods. Many cases of wine have bonus points, and points often credit within a few days.
  • Join the Hoyts Rewards, and earn points at the movies. These are said to post quickly.

Redeeming Points

The other way to keep your points alive is to actually use some. You may not be ready to book a flight, but there are other options. Now, while the other options may not be the best way to use points, if the keep your points active, it may just be a small price to pay.

Gift Cards

One option is to buy a low-value gift card. You can buy gift cards for as little as $25 in the Qantas Store.  Doing so will take around 4,000 Points or so.

Sure, it may not be the best use of points, but if it can keep your points balance alive then it is a reasonable option.

Get a new card

It’s probably not the most obvious option, but you can request a new membership card. Qantas charges 1,000 points or $10 for a replacement card, so you can call up, order a replacement card and pay 1,000 points.

My Points have already expired

So, what happens if your points have already been expired? There are a number of anecdotes around that suggest that Qantas may offer you a Points Challenge. Under the challenge, you will be asked to earn a certain number of points in a certain time period. If you meet the requirements of the challenge, you can get the points back.

As examples, people have reported being asked to earn 2,500 Qantas Points from at least two partners within six months.

So, if you find yourself in this position, get on the phone to Qantas and see if they can offer you anything. As there is usually a time limit on achieving the required earn, make sure you choose partners that credit points promptly to your account.

Final Words

In order to keep your Qantas Points alive, you need to earn or redeem points at least once in any 18 month period. With the wide range of partners available, this need not require flying.

If they have already expired, then get onto Qantas to see if they can offer help. While they don’t normally reinstate points straight up, they have been known to offer a challenge.

 

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About Author

Mark is the founder of FlyStayPoints, and caught the travel bug early in life. He discovered the benefits of travel loyalty programs in 2001, and is always learning how they can make travel better. While work takes him between Perth and Melbourne, he is always plotting his next adventure.