Inactive American Airlines AAdvantage program members may have received an email this week advising them that, given their lack of activity in the program, their account may be destined for permanent closure.
The program’s terms and conditions outline that inactivity permits account closure, but it has not been enforced for some time; it is more common to see points expire than your account be destined for closure.Fort Worth-based American Airlines’ actions this year are due to a back-of-house cleaning and a purge of the 115 million AAdvantage members who have been dormant for many years and have not accrued miles through any source. A Loyalty Lobby report even alluded to the fact that some members are inactive in accruing points as they could be deceasedSign up now
On the contrary, both members and the airline need to acknowledge that American Airlines encourages you to sign up for AAdvantage at every opportunity, which includes:
During the booking stage
At check-in
On board
In the airline lounge
Opening an airline credit cardTerms and conditions
Closure of accounts is a new enforcement strategy from the oneworld carrier that will follow through to the terms and conditions agreed to by members, which will see the airline delete accounts in a dormant status. The terms and agreements set out areAmerican Airlines reserves the right to terminate your AAdvantage® account for inactivity.
Your account may be deemed inactive and terminated without notice if:
(i) you have not had any mileage earning or redeeming activity for at least 36 consecutive months, which may include not meeting the 24-Month Qualifying Activity Requirement (as defined in Part H.1 of the “General Terms” Section);(ii) your AAdvantage® account has a current balance of zero miles;
(iii) you do not have an AAdvantage® co-branded credit card open and in good standing associated with your account;
(iv) you do not respond to repeated communication attempts regarding the status of your account; or(v) you do not have any lifetime benefits (such as Million Miler™ or Lifetime AirPass) or an active AAdvantage® Status.
With respect to new AAdvantage® accounts (i.e., those created within the prior twenty-four months), American Airlines reserves the right to terminate such accounts that do not have any mileage earning or redeeming activity for 12 months.American Airlines has sent out a mass email to all accounts with inactivity for the last several years, meaning they would have a zero mileage balance as all miles would have expired. Inactive members have also been told their account will be closed within a month unless action is taken to keep the account ‘alive.’ So, if you’re now scrambling for ideas on how to keep your AAdvantage account active, Simple Flying has outlined five easy steps to keep your name in the game:Probably the most logical way to earn AAdvantage points is to have a reservation before the September 25 deadline. Traveling with American Airlines before late September will result in AAdvantage points accrued on your journey being credited to your AAdvantage account. This is enough to ensure your account remains active. If you don’t have plans before next month, don’t worry; our next step will allow you to remain a member. Earning AAdvantage miles can be on partner carriers within the oneworld alliance, which include:Trans-border
Short-haul international
Long-haul international
It is worth noting that these bookings must be on American Airlines-operated flights on an American Airlines ticket to be eligible to retain your AAdvantage account. Bookings with other Oneworld carriers are not eligibTwo major US banks offer the opportunity to earn miles while you spend. Both banks have AAdvantage credit cards in their product range, which allows frequent fliers to earn miles on their everyday purchases. If you hold one of these credit cards but don’t use it, get out and about in the months of August and September to start accruing miles. Bank partners include:
Bank
Credit card
Citi
American Airlines AAdvantage MileUp Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select MasteAAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard Barclaycard Arrival World Mastercard
Your points must be added to your account before September 25 to remain eligible for your AAdvantage to remain active