Is Aeroplan insane?2 min read

Aeroplan has just introduced a couple of rather dramatic changes to their program. For those you not familiar with Aeroplan its Air Canada’s frequent flyer program and designed to be a tool to keep people flying Air Canada. Today they introduce 2 changes:

1/ Expiry on Aeroplan Miles

Points now expire after 7 years and all existing points earned before Jan/2007 will expire Dec 31, 2013.

2/ Automatic Closure of inactive accounts

Accounts not earning points are automatically closed. It appears you need to earn at least 1 point per year or your account will be closed.

If you miles expire or you’re account closes you have to pay $30 + $0.01 per point to get them back.

Frequent Flyers programs can be a sort of ‘golden handcuff’ for travelers. Once you start building up points you want to stick with that company to get maximum value, even if the airline provides absolutely horrible service. I’m surprised that Air Canada would want to risk loosing these customers over something as stupid as point expiry. I would expect that many points are never redeemed or redeemed once for a big family vacation which may not be possible with this new system.

The other group of effected customers is the infrequent flyers that doesn’t fly regularly and will loose their accounts under this program. This seems to open again open Air Canada to competitors without unclear business advantage. Does it really cost so much to keep Aeroplan accounts open per year? Wouldn’t they want to keep the account open so that they could send them spam from partners?

Aeroplan also implies that the changes were required to provide additional reward flights to customers. I’m not sure I see the connection and a couple of checks for flights I had planned for Dec/2006 and July/2007 are not showing additional flights available. I had checked the same flights 2 weeks ago.

Overall a fairly confusing change for a program designed to improve customer loyalty.

6 Responses

  1. I used to be a frequent corprate traveller with Air Canada, flying about 50 times per year. I had built up a large number of Aeroplan Reward Miles. I recently wanted to get a flight to Montego Bay for a friends wedding and attempted to redeam my points for the first time. I had Non. As my account was Idle for a perioid of 12 months, they stole all my points. As my corprate travel will be once again very substancial for the next 2 years, rest assured, Air Canada will not get one more dime from me! Their point reward program to keep customer loyalty has done the opposite in my case. I’ll be spending my 100k with West Jet this time.
    Simon Curran (Former Air Canada Customer)

  3. Aeroplan Devistated My Life;

    It’s been 4 months now, and I’m finally able to compose myself enough to update my last rant.
    It turns out, I was unable to escort my beloved girlfriend, that I planned on marrying and having a family with, to her friends wedding in Jamaica. I was about a thousand dollars short, and I was very worried about her visiting that country, as was her family.
    If my points were still redeemable, I would have been with her, mainly to ensure she returned safely.
    Unable to enter into details at this time, she tragically died while there, at the age of 30, and devastated so many who knew and loved her.
    Laying no blame on Aeroplan, I for one, will always despise their antics, and never again will my beloveds family, friends, acquaintances, band members, or myself, ever be the same.

    Simn Curran

  5. Hey,nice post. Aero plan has announced a couple of rather dramatic changes to their program.
    1/ Expiry on Aero plan Miles
    2/ Automatic Closure of inactive accounts
    If you miles expire or you’re account closes you have to pay $30 + $0.01 per point to get them back.

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