Just under a month ago Iberia ran a promotion offering 9,000 bonus Avios for every ticket booked, up to 90,000 bonus Avios. Even cheap domestic tickets qualified, so many of us booked 10 one-way tickets from Malaga to Madrid for under $300, in hopes of getting 90,000 Avios.
What truly made this promotion crazy is that they awarded miles shortly after booking rather than after flying, and told people that they didn’t have to take the flights to earn the bonus.
Not surprisingly, they had quite a situation on their hands. I speculated that they’d honor the promotion but would make it difficult on people, and that’s exactly what they did.
Existing Iberia Plus members (mostly) got Avios quickly
Those of us who were existing Iberia Plus members did quite well in this promotion. For the most part, the bonus Avios posted within a couple of weeks, which is just slightly longer than the promised timeline. Tiffany and I both had existing Iberia Plus accounts, and our Avios posted within a couple of weeks.
New Iberia Plus members (mostly) had issues
While those of us with existing accounts did pretty well, the same can’t be said for those with new accounts.
Iberia Plus claimed there was a lot of fraud with the promotion, with people setting up multiple accounts in the names of people who don’t exist. So they locked new accounts, and emailed those members asking them to send copies of their identity documents. I actually think that’s fair on their part, since I do believe this was a major issue. The terms of the promotion were very generous, and we can’t blame them for enforcing them.
They also said that those new members who took advantage of the promotion should attach copies of any tickets purchased during the promotion period. James wrote about his experience trying to get his account unlocked.
Ford was in the same situation, as he had just signed up for Iberia Plus for the promotion (or let’s be honest, I signed him up). 😉
So I figured I’d provide an update on Ford’s situation, since I imagine many of you are in a similar situation:
- On June 22 he bought 10 tickets
- On July 5 he received an email asking him to send in a copy of his passport and tickets in order to unlock his account; he responded to that immediately with the requested documentation
- On July 16 (yesterday) he received an email from Iberia informing him that his account was unlocked, and saying that in regards to the Iberia Plus promotion they have “sent the information to the relevant department for the awarding of the promotional Avios,” and that if the promotion is correct he should see the Avios credited to his account in “the following week”
- On July 17 (today) all the bonus Avios posted correctly
He actually only received 81,000 Avios rather than 90,000 Avios, but that’s because one ticket accidentally wasn’t issued, so Iberia did everything correctly here.
While we’ve heard stories of Iberia trying to deny the bonus Avios to some members for all kinds of reasons (including “booking inconsistencies”), our experience has been positive. I got my Avios without doing anything, and Ford got his Avios by sending them just a single email.
Try to be patient
A lot of people still ask me every day what they should do since they haven’t received their Avios yet. Assuming you’re going through a similar process to Ford, I’d recommend just being patient. I totally agree Iberia isn’t living up to their end of the bargain in terms of the timeline, though they are honoring the promotion for many, and I’m sure they have way more demand than they can handle right now. So I highly recommend just being patient and letting them process things.
You’ll drive yourself crazy trying to contact them since you’re unlikely to get through to anyone, and if you do get through to someone, chances are they won’t be empowered to actually help with your situation. So if you don’t mind holding off a bit, I’d give it a few more days, or even another week or two, as I imagine they’re dealing with a lot of people.
Again, ideally it wouldn’t be that way, but that’s my advice based on minimizing the amount of time you spend on this, as well as minimizing frustration.
In Ford’s case, he was dealing with the same situation as most new members, and we spent a total of five minutes sending a single email, and more or less forgot about it, since we figured there was no benefit to being actively involved. Fortunately his Avios have now posted.
To those who are new Iberia Plus members, what is your experience with getting promotional Avios to post?
Are you sitting down?
Ready for this?
I *still* don't have my Iberia points.
Yesterday, I wrote to them, for the 8th time or so, more peeved than I've been before: "It's been three months since I've made my flight purchases. It's been one month since I've heard from you. There are only 2.5 months left before these promotional Avios, which I still have not received, are set to expire. Can I please get an...
Are you sitting down?
Ready for this?
I *still* don't have my Iberia points.
Yesterday, I wrote to them, for the 8th time or so, more peeved than I've been before: "It's been three months since I've made my flight purchases. It's been one month since I've heard from you. There are only 2.5 months left before these promotional Avios, which I still have not received, are set to expire. Can I please get an update? I'm stunned it's taken 3 months figure out for my account!!! What on Earth takes 3 months to settle in regards to this promotional Avios?"
Today, I got a response: "In relation with the 9,000 Avios campaign for flights booked on iberia.com, we have reviewed your request and the information you supplied. We have sent the information to the relevant department for the awarding of the promotional Avios, since the information in your bookings is correct, you should see these credit in your account very shortly, but given the high volume of requests of this same nature that we are having right now, it will take a few more days."
UN
BE
LIEVE
ABLE
Is anyone else still waiting for their points to post? I had an iberia account months prior to the promotion and booked on the correct site, but my points still haven't posted. I emailed twice, but still haven't received anything. I messaged them on twitter but they indicated they are not able to look into the matter and provided me a phone number to their call center in Spain, which when i called was only available in Spanish. Any help is welcome and appreciated!
Yes, the answer almost same, as well as at me.
Got my points, have tried for a week online and calling, Im giving up! Its not worth my time, the website is SO user unfriendly ,time consuming and archaic. Calls go unanswered, wrong information, or they just hang up on me.
I am still waiting for bonus Avios to post. I have sent several emails since July 4th with my passport and tickets and still have not even received a response? Anyone else? It is getting close to the July 31st deadline.
I am still waiting for the bonus Avios. I sent an email on Jul 5th; received a response from them on Jul 15th saying the points will be deposited in a week if all the documents are correct.
Hi I was wondering if anyone has had any luck booking Qantas business through Iberia with their Avios.
Specifically I’m looking at SYD – PVG. There is availability on Qantas, but not on Iberia for the same date/flight. Is there a work around to this? Can this be address by calling the call centre to book?
Got mine!!
Persistence though, was denied several times with IB stating documents didn’t match but I was relentless with follow up!! IB site is sooo hard to use, but I did switch to Firefox and started getting some openings, trying WAS -LIM next year
Still waiting. I received two emails in response to what I sent. One is the documents received email, and another message apologizing for the delay. Should do anything else or just continue to wait? I sent my email on July 7th.
OK, I'm out!
I opened a new account and booked flights without problems then waited like everyone else. The account was locked but I used the OMAT workaround via the app to gain access. The flights were showing but no avios. My CC had also been charged. Eventually I received the email requesting documentation so I duly sent it off plus copies of the tix that they were also requesting (really, couldn't they have...
OK, I'm out!
I opened a new account and booked flights without problems then waited like everyone else. The account was locked but I used the OMAT workaround via the app to gain access. The flights were showing but no avios. My CC had also been charged. Eventually I received the email requesting documentation so I duly sent it off plus copies of the tix that they were also requesting (really, couldn't they have just looked in their computer). They ultimately replied there was a discrepancy between my new IPlus details and my passport? I phoned and after waiting got a helpful person who determined what she thought the issue was but wouldn't tell me exactly and said she'd put a note in the file but I had to resend all the documentation and tell them I had spoken with customer service on the phone who said it was ok. Did all that, same email came back but this time with an offer to cancel and refund tickets. My attempts to phone or email after that were fruitless. In light of the reality that I would only be using the avios on partner flights in Asia/Pacific, which I knew would be a difficult process, i figured it was already too hard so I caved and opted for the cancellation. Needless to say, I was once again asked to send copies of my tickets (seriously?) but despite this, the refunds are still not showing on my cc although I have no doubt they will manana!
I am not worried about not having the flights or the avios, it was always one of those fun, iffy opportunities that would have been great if it worked but not life or death if it didn't. More interesting to me is that the so called discrepancy issue still exists so that if I wanted to buy another ticket with Iberia there still will be whatever problem they think exists between my passport and the IPlus details. In reality as someone else mentioned, whose problem was around the date of birth, I think mine maybe the inclusion of a middle name in the passport but not in my IPlus application. Regardless of the avios promotion, they have now just kicked an entirely new problem into the future while simultaneously creating an entire customer service experience that does nothing to make me want to fly with them at all which clearly they don't care about anyway.
Help! Still have not received my Avios. Is anyone else waiting??
Purchased on June 24th
Sent in requested info on July 4th (and about 5 more emails)
Have not receive any sort or reply from Iberia
Every time I called, the phones were down.
I can't find an answer to this question so maybe someone here can help. If you book a mixed cabin award on Iberia where the long haul flight is in business and the connecting flight is in economy, can you call and upgrade the economy portion with avios if it becomes available at a later date?
Just tried it now and it worked. No special actions. Just opened Safari and searched. LAX-LAS 9/11-9/12 and it properly calculated to 11k + $20.20.
Leaving this here for posterity as I'd been greatly helped by this post!
So I JUST managed to book on the Iberia website, redemption of Partner Award (CX) on non Iberia sectors using the promotional 90k miles! I'd previously been experiencing similar errors to other users like @Anthony B, @Dave where selecting Partner flights turned up the Error message: "An error has occurred. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to please try again...
Leaving this here for posterity as I'd been greatly helped by this post!
So I JUST managed to book on the Iberia website, redemption of Partner Award (CX) on non Iberia sectors using the promotional 90k miles! I'd previously been experiencing similar errors to other users like @Anthony B, @Dave where selecting Partner flights turned up the Error message: "An error has occurred. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to please try again after a few minutes. If the error persists please contact us."
But today, 20 July 9:50pm HKT instead of getting that error message, i managed to view the Avios needed for the chosen availability and then proceeded to book! No issues whether Economy, Business, or mix of both.
In case this is a fluke and the Iberia IT systems have not been fixed yet, these are some of the things that I did that might help:
- Clear your cache
- Use Firefox instead of Chrome (got all the error msgs on Chrome)
- When searching for availability, if you get prompted to enter the CAPTCHA to prove you're not a robot, chances are higher that the search is happening "correctly" (robot prompt did not appear when i got the error msgs)
Good luck to all!
I have not heard back from Iberia even though I emailed them twice to inquire about the bonus points, once on July 7 and July 17. On both occasions I received a confirmation email with the subject "Correct Email Reception". Is anyone else having issues getting a response? I've had my iberia account open since January 2018. Should I just call them to inquire?
My points have finally posted but cannot price/book any flight which is not Iberia. Is the only solution to call the hotline? I sent IB a message on Twitter but have not received any answer (yet). Thanks!
Wife never got her points. She calls today and they wanted passport and flights with record locator. Strange thing was I printed all the flights with record locators from the Iberia site. Scanned and emailed to them today, along with my Chase bank statement showing she paid with her Reserve card. My concern is there will no longer be Bus. Class seats when points finally show up. Her account had been set up in March...
Wife never got her points. She calls today and they wanted passport and flights with record locator. Strange thing was I printed all the flights with record locators from the Iberia site. Scanned and emailed to them today, along with my Chase bank statement showing she paid with her Reserve card. My concern is there will no longer be Bus. Class seats when points finally show up. Her account had been set up in March of this year so it was not specific to this promotion and we moved 1000 avios to her account to be sure it was active. Hopefully they will move quickly on this.
Sent passport for own + spouse account two days ago, got account verification success e-mail yesterday, thenreceived 45,000 avios per acccount today (for 5 flights/acct). Like others, I am unable to price out or book any itineraries involving non-Iberia metal (any partner at all). Is calling Iberia bypassing this? Looks like they're trying to make this as difficult as possible to redeem.
Sent passport copy and all 10 tickets requested on 4 July , got my 90000 on 18 July.
Thanks Sam. Hoping!
I previously had an Iberia Plus account so got my Avios back on 7/3 or so.
My wife signed up for an account during the promotion and got her Avios today after sending in the form and documents on 7/4. Was able to book us both in business from Madrid to Boston next May!
@Jp - was told by phone reps that Avios should be deposited by end of this week if not already, so I would wait until maybe Friday or Saturday before taking action.
Update on my people:
-Sister got 54k today;
-Mom got the remaining 63k today;
-Dad has had no progress on either the refund or avios
My sister and mom have been trying to plan a European adventure, so I'll use theirs for that. My dad...I have no clue.
Still have not received any emails from Iberia (besides the one on July 4th to send in documentation which I did) and have not received Avios. Anyone else?
@ George Thanks, I guess I'll have to keep wishing for other partner airlines to be bookable as well...
@Michael BA
@ SAM G and @ George did you book a BA flight or another partner flight?
@Sam G Me too! Called the 442036843774 call center and they were able to book a partner award for me. Got my remaining 81000 Avios this morning.... Merry Christmas!
My 90,000 points posted this morning but getting the same error message when I try to book a return flight on AA from LAX to SYD!
I received 81,000 avios yesterday, emailed them back, today they responded they are still working on some missing flights and now I already see missing 9000 avios + 200 welcome bonus.
Both on my own and daughter's accounts, both new ones, both went through ID check + etickets sent on July 4. Email with unlock status + new PIN sent to us both last Thursday morning US ET, first batch of points (81k) posted yesterday, the remainder today.
Originally received the email that I wouldn't receive the points due to "inconsistencies" but received a 'success!' email yesterday and both mine and my boyfriend's points posted. I was also receiving the error message when trying to book anything (and still am, even Iberia flights). I called Iberia to make reservations and though it took over an hour, I successfully booked business class from ORD to MAD on BA!
Lucky, any update on not being able to book partner flights on Iberia? I have called several times and emailed. No response from Iberia.
As others point out, you can only book Iberia legs using the promotional Avios miles. Any itinerary including partner airlines returns an error message.
Weird on mine
Iberia first told me not to honor the 9k deal but offer me free cancellation of all tickets in the email.
Then yesterday I got 81k avios
My wife has a new account and had about the same timeline as ford she ended up getting 81k instead of the 90k, which sucks because the redemption we were looking at was 89k...
I got all of my points so I figure that $273 + $208(taxes) + 8000 Chase points transferred is still a great deal for first class CPH to LON on BA... There may have been better redemptions but we probably won't get another chance to fly in first
For my family members:
-my sister received the same emails as Ford, but hasn’t received her avios yet;
-my mom received the “verify” email, then today, received an email telling her that she earned 27k avios; I double-checked and she had ten tickets issued, so I need to check;
-my dad was asked to verify and outright rejected. He decided he wanted a refund.
Idk. I appreciate the logistical challenges of the promotion, but that was on Iberia, not us, to handle.
Round two.....
Call 3 - the operator insisted I need to speak to British Airways and kindly transferred me... HUCA....
Call 4 - SUCCESS ! Took around 20 mins with a lot of holding but he got there in the end - no mentions of any restrictions on booking BA
In case you didn't see on FT - the best number seems to be in the UK (24hrs) +442036843774 - say "Iberia plus booking" when the prompt asks why you are calling
@James
I got my Avios today in an account opened for the promotion. My original PIN did not work, so just used the forgot PIN and they reset it quickly and I could see 90,200 Avios in my account
Make it stop.
I had a legacy account and points posted about a week ago. We dithered around a bit but tonight we finally booked FCO-MAD-JFK x2 in business class for 98000 points (8000 transferred in from BAEC). Points transferred instantly, it was ticketed immediately and we chose seats with ease. 25 euro fee for changes or refund up to 24 hours before departure.
I’m not really sure how to properly thank you, Lucky.
Wow. Well done and many, many thanks.
I read the terms and conditions of the original offer (can't remember which blog) and it stated specifically that only Iberia Metal and had to be booked before Dec 31.
So did not bother with the promotion - and now am regretting it. rats
90000 posted this morning for both me and my husband and we have already booked business class tickets from Quito to Madrid for 85000 each.
@Ben Holz
Jealous much eh lol
My account was opened in March of 2017 and my AVIOS still hasn’t posted yet
Any advice?
Got avios this morning. :)
Same ticketing issue as others. Attempt to book partner award that shows availability (both on the partner's site as well as on another oneworld carrier for the same partner.) Get error message. Tried multiple itineraries on partner. Same issue. That said, over a week ago, doing the same process (before the avios posted) I received no errors (but couldn't buy the tix as avios had not posted.)
Avios posted today for myself and my friend. Booked 2 J tickets MEX-MAD (ORD or LAX would have been better than MEX, but finding 2 J together for our date range was impossible).
If you're willing to position, there is quite a bit of availability out of MEX (85k Avios rt on off peak dates). Kind of a pain, but for $300 in tickets, plus $270 taxes/fees, plus positioning costs to MEX. On the...
Avios posted today for myself and my friend. Booked 2 J tickets MEX-MAD (ORD or LAX would have been better than MEX, but finding 2 J together for our date range was impossible).
If you're willing to position, there is quite a bit of availability out of MEX (85k Avios rt on off peak dates). Kind of a pain, but for $300 in tickets, plus $270 taxes/fees, plus positioning costs to MEX. On the plus side, gave myself a couple day on either end to explore Mexico City, new destination for me. Thanks Lucky!
Even when it shows availability I get a message, "An error has occurred. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to please try again after a few minutes. If the error persists please contact us."
I've gotten the same message from multiple servers in three different cities in three different states in the US.
Iberia needs to be sued.
i just got the email about "sent the information to the relevant department for the awarding of the promotional Avios" today so i hope my avios should post this week hopefully tomorrow
Success at last, also as of this morning, for the 2 new accounts I opened during the promotion (both with legit passports).
Booked a R/T LAX-MAD in J for next spring on Iberia.com with one batch of miles (space is evaporating but I was just able to piece something together for 1).
Now trying to do LAX-JFK r/t in F this fall on AA (with my SO's Avios plus 6k UR I just transferred), but...
Success at last, also as of this morning, for the 2 new accounts I opened during the promotion (both with legit passports).
Booked a R/T LAX-MAD in J for next spring on Iberia.com with one batch of miles (space is evaporating but I was just able to piece something together for 1).
Now trying to do LAX-JFK r/t in F this fall on AA (with my SO's Avios plus 6k UR I just transferred), but phone rep not seeing the availability AA.com shows, and website is erroring out. So close...
90k posted this morning for me. 0k for my girlfriend so far. No luck on partner redemption attempts unless I pick economy. As soon as I pick business, it gives me the error. Not quite set on my plans yet, but hope things clear up soon.
I bet BA is trying absolutely everything they can to prevent redemptions on their metal. This whole promotion situation is Iberia’s mess to clean up...
@Matt
It wasn't too hard to find availability at the time. Quote a bit has evaporated. However, I just did a quick search on that route and I still see some biz availability on sporadic dates.
Example Peak Dates: Oct 29, Oct 31.
Example Off Peak Date: Nov 5.
I wasn’t an old account and I’ve got nothing so far. Called, said couldn’t do anything over the phone, last Tuesday. Sent e-mail. Nothing yet. Booked 10 tickets on 6/23 fuck them
Got my Avios this morning and booked r/t business class tickets to Morrocco through MAD from JFK for 2019. Now all the hassle was worth it.
I am getting the same error online
Called in - first rep said I needed to add the passengers as beneficiaries so I did that
Second rep could see the seats but then put me on hold to calculate the taxes and never came back
Someone got told on FT they have a tech issue which will be resolved in 2hrs but I am v sceptical as I have access to an IB account that didn't take part in the promo and that is calculating the price just fine.... hope you can clarify Ben !
@lucky,
You should use the miles to review their new A350 from JFK!
To those who only received some of their 90K Avios: After speaking with an Iberia Plus representative, they said they can not resolve the issue over the phone. They suggest emailing your itineraries along with a brief description to [email protected] with your Iberia Plus number in the subject. The representative said issues should now be addressed within 24-96 hours.
Did anyone accidentally receive extra avios?
I opened a new account for the promo and bought 10 cheap tickets. I got my account unlocked pretty quickly and was asked for supporting documentation. I sent it in and then got an email asking to send the bookings instead of the e-tickets (no "inconsistencies" email). I was then notified that I would receive my avios shortly, and actually received them the next day (7/14). I proceeded...
Did anyone accidentally receive extra avios?
I opened a new account for the promo and bought 10 cheap tickets. I got my account unlocked pretty quickly and was asked for supporting documentation. I sent it in and then got an email asking to send the bookings instead of the e-tickets (no "inconsistencies" email). I was then notified that I would receive my avios shortly, and actually received them the next day (7/14). I proceeded to use them to book RT BOS-MAD in business class.
Fast forward to this morning when I wake up and see Iberia's mass email stating that my account has been unlocked and I will receive the avios shortly. I logged into my account and saw an additional 90,000 avios! Do I dare try to spend them? I feel like I won a double-lottery!
My observations: anything non Iberia gets error-ed, even routing through BA. I get errors every time unless I can complete a full Iberia route. Has to be a manual block in their system. No way every other metal is being blocked than their own.
@Chucky. unfortunately you may want to hold your respect for Iberia until you have successfully booked and maybe even after you have flown.
I just got an email saying the avios miles had posted! Huge respect to Iberia for honoring this one and I will give them future business out of it.
Thank you for the alert on this Lucky! It pays to be a regular OMAAT reader.
@Lucky @James Quick question Gentlemen - Are you concerned about using the Avios for a trip scheduled after the 10 tickets we booked and don't use? For instance, is there any risk that Iberia will cancel the award ticket booked in Feb if we don't show up for our 10 flights in say Jan? Or are you just booking something BEFORE the 10 tickets you purchased? Thoughts? Thanks.
and quick update, my wife's avios just posted, but it is the 81k, like several others mentioned. I sent all 10 receipts back to clasica email address with the request for the additional 9k. We shall see if/when that get to this......
@NickTan. WOW! How did you find LAX-MAD RT Business???? Dates? That is one of my favorite Business experiences. I flew it in 2016 for the UEFA Euro Cup.
@Hunter Flogel, I had the same problem but called the Iberia line and they booked me on BA one way with no call center charge. I was on hold for max 5mins and they were very calm and helpful considering the circumstances!
@ Lucky Definitely want to know about this as I am planning to book on AA metal.
Posted today! 5 emails later! I too can't seem to find any partner availability - just Iberia - or I find iberia mixed but errors when trying to price out.
Looks like Iberia is only allowing redemption booking on Iberia metal specific to these 90K avios. Does anyone remember them confirming (during the promotion parade) that these avios will be eligible to be redeemed on partner airlines also. Seems like a forced trip to Spain is the only option to redeem this. Lucky ..any thoughts?
@ Peter -- That's definitely not supposed to be the case. Partner redemptions should be fine. Looking into this now, hmmm...
I was able to book Iberia, LAX-MAD, RT in Business successfully. My bonus Avios posted early though as I was an existing member and I went in one day before it hit the main blogs.
I had the same experience, and my avios just posted this morning. I had all but given up on it working!
@Richmond_Surrey - You may be right, can't hurt to email, but at this point if I can get a useful redemption that is worth $1,000 or more to me I am going to take it and close the books on this deal. The apparent limits on partner redemptions are my biggest concern, I had no intention of using the bonus miles on Iberia metal and I am not willing to/through Spain just to get "something"....
@Richmond_Surrey - You may be right, can't hurt to email, but at this point if I can get a useful redemption that is worth $1,000 or more to me I am going to take it and close the books on this deal. The apparent limits on partner redemptions are my biggest concern, I had no intention of using the bonus miles on Iberia metal and I am not willing to/through Spain just to get "something".
Getting value from these deals requires three steps - getting the miles, getting a redemption ticket that is useful, flying the ticket. I am still at Step One but it's been challenging enough that I want to move through steps two and three as quickly as possible now and move on.
I just got an email that they posted and I went online and see that they have. Trying to book something and found flights, but keep getting "An error has occurred" message. Will keep trying.
i got mine posted for 81k. but i'm having issues logging into my account. Also debating on how I want to use these miles. I can transfer 4k form my CSR and do 5x trips down to FL (visiting fam) or can transfer 19k from CSR and book to HKG in Y.
Does anyone have a list of partners you can book one way awards with,
I'm having trouble booking partner awards also. I hope this get's fixed.
@Another Steve, you should complain about missing avios. After all you paid for the tickets and fulfilled requirements. I'm missing 9000 avios, I sent email about a week ago and only got standard confirmation of receipt and second email apologising for delay.
Anyone who booked 10 flights on the same day (or almost) doesn't deserve the Avios.
It didn't take a genius to work out that was likely to cause trouble from the outset.
Points posted for both my wife and I today.
I note it doesn't seem that partner awards are available? They appear, but when you click "View" there is always an error message, except for Iberia operated flights :(
Still a great deal, but not why I took it.
@Elijah it's because of people like you that we can't get good things *smh*
So my 3 year old personal account has received nothing but my wife's newly created account received the 90K today. I can search a flight on either account, however, when I attempt to chose the flight and hit "View" my wife's account shows the following error, "An error has occurred. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to please try again after a few minutes. If the error persists please contact us." Choosing the...
So my 3 year old personal account has received nothing but my wife's newly created account received the 90K today. I can search a flight on either account, however, when I attempt to chose the flight and hit "View" my wife's account shows the following error, "An error has occurred. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask you to please try again after a few minutes. If the error persists please contact us." Choosing the same flight in my account and then clicking "View" shows me the required number of Avios and cash. I get the impression that her account is not completely unlocked... I sent an email to Iberia.
@Carter - yep, that probably explains it. My old account was credited the full 90K despite booking all flights on same day, so obviously new accounts seem subject to different rules than old. In retrospect it would’ve been smarter to book different days; c’est la vie...
Got 180,000. Have two passports, one in Australian and in Geilge. Happy days everyone.
I have exactly the same timeline as Ford, but luckily got the full 90k Avios.
Thank you for leading me to this promotion!
Booked round trip for 2 people in Biz from Chicago to Madrid next July, for 200k miles. Those 200k were 180k I got in the promotion for the two of us... plus 10k from each of our part sign up bonuses on Iberia visa card!
@George
It looks like they aren't posting the points where folks booked multiple flights for the same date. For example, I have 8 flights on various dates, and then 2 flights on the same date (one from Bilbao to Madrid and the other from Santander to Madrid). I received 81,000 Avios. I spoke with someone else who had 7 flights on various dates and then 3 flights all booked on the same date. He received...
@George
It looks like they aren't posting the points where folks booked multiple flights for the same date. For example, I have 8 flights on various dates, and then 2 flights on the same date (one from Bilbao to Madrid and the other from Santander to Madrid). I received 81,000 Avios. I spoke with someone else who had 7 flights on various dates and then 3 flights all booked on the same date. He received 72,000 Avios.
You said you have 9,000 Avios credited despite booking 10 flights. Hopefully you didn't book 10 flights all for the same day?
My 90,000 Avios all posted today. But I can't use them to book any OneWorld partners. Trying to book BA flights and I keep getting an error. If I try to book on Iberia metal, it works, but Iberia doesn't really fly anywhere near me.
Just got my 90K points a few minutes ago! No rush to find award space; I'll wait a few months and book a vacation to Spain in late 2019.
I had a similar experience. I was denied after signing up for a new account the day of the promo. I sent them a strongly worded letter detailing why what they were doing was illegal and documented it with quotes from their twitter account and program rules they released (using blog excerpts). I received an email this morning notifying me they were going to credit and they credited 8 of the 10 flights I booked....
I had a similar experience. I was denied after signing up for a new account the day of the promo. I sent them a strongly worded letter detailing why what they were doing was illegal and documented it with quotes from their twitter account and program rules they released (using blog excerpts). I received an email this morning notifying me they were going to credit and they credited 8 of the 10 flights I booked. I double booked 2 days so I assume they only credited 9,000 for 1 day.
My wife’s new account only had 9000 avios credited despite booking 10 flights. She just got an email saying “your 9000 avios have arrived”. Do other people’s emails specify the number of avios that showed up in their account? For ex for people who got 81000, did you get an email saying “your 81000 avios have arrived”?
@John. One of the new accounts that I opened received the "document does not match email." I looked very carefully at the account (it had been frozen, but I unlocked it by resetting the password though the phone app). It turns out I had entered the wrong birth date. I edited the information and then resent the documents and that account was credited with the avios this morning. Good luck
@Lucky and @James - I had the opposite result this morning, I received an email saying my document didn't match my new account! I see no possible way this is true, and I've reviewed the booked flights to make sure everything matches. I still can't access my account to see what possible information could be wrong. Any recommendations for next steps?
Just received my bonus as well. My wife purchased 10 flights and got the full 90k. I did 5 and got 45K.
Was locked out of our accounts, requested new pin thru app, worked on app but not on computer. Changed browser from Google Chrome to Firefox and it worked and allowed me to change my pin!!! Happy Days!!!!!!
Now the fun part.... finding space
I managed a workaround for anyone who has been given a temporary pin by email but still locked out of their account.
1. Select 'Forgot Pin' on the Iberia App only
2. Use that pin that will be emailed to you to log in with the App.
3. Change pin on the App.
4. This allowed me to log in on desktop.
Happy to say I have received all 90,000 Avios and already redeemed some.
Certainly one of the weirder miles promotions I can remember!
New member...sent them passport details as requested and resent last week when I got no response.
Got account unlock email this morning and 90k points a couple of hours later.
My wife opened a new account during the promotion and was able to unlock her account today, although she has not received any e-mails from Iberia telling her that. The Avios have not posted yet.
Lucky,
Thank you for the updates on this promotion! On 7/4 Iberia requested information to confirm my account. I have sent several emails with the requested information and still have received no response from Iberia.
Can you please check if you are able to use the newly posted points on partner awards? Since my points posted, I get an error message every time I try to price or book a partner award. Iberia metal works just fine. When I call Iberia call center they say they cant see any availability for any of the partner award flights that I ask for (and I know there is availability on those flights).
...Can you please check if you are able to use the newly posted points on partner awards? Since my points posted, I get an error message every time I try to price or book a partner award. Iberia metal works just fine. When I call Iberia call center they say they cant see any availability for any of the partner award flights that I ask for (and I know there is availability on those flights).
Looks to me like they are trying to restrict use to Iberia metal only - which is totally contrary to the terms of the promotion.
Points posted today, and booked the Madrid biz class round trip I had my eye on! All 90k posted to my wife's account, but only 81k to mine for some reason.
New account. I got the "points will be awarded shortly" on 7/13. Yesterday (7/16) I got a second email asking for my passport copy again. I submitted what they asked and the email from 7/13.
90K was posted this morning!
my 90K posted this morning! Thanks Ben!
On July 4th i received an Email that my email and been received. Then on 11th came another email from IB+ apologising for the delay in processing as they were swamped with inquiries.
I have access to my account since i unlocked it via app but still no avios have been posted.
I had one account for my wife, and one for myself. All 10 tickets issued for both accounts, and I sent all the tickets to Iberia as requested...but only was credited for 81,000 in my account and my wife was only credited 27,000. I am not going to bother trying for more, just going to take what I have and try to get a reasonable value redemption for them. One thing that Iberia has shown...
I had one account for my wife, and one for myself. All 10 tickets issued for both accounts, and I sent all the tickets to Iberia as requested...but only was credited for 81,000 in my account and my wife was only credited 27,000. I am not going to bother trying for more, just going to take what I have and try to get a reasonable value redemption for them. One thing that Iberia has shown in the past 4 weeks is that communication is not a strength for them. Overall, can't complain about the deal, still should be able to save a few hundred dollars when all is said and done (assuming I can get a ticket issued and flown).
Received that "confirmation and unlock" email last Thursday. Points have still not posted. Any suggestions?
My wife and I both got ours today as well - just within the last two hours as I checked first thing this morning. Both of our accounts followed almost the exact same timeline as Ford's did. Looks like this gamble paid off! ^J
I only got 81,000 avios but have 10 flights in my account. Seems like this is a common issue.
My wife's have not posted yet, but she did get a note they should post "soon". Mine posted (as an old account holder) within the 2 weeks. I booked 2 one ways from MAD-ORD in biz class for June 2019. As I wait to book our 2 return tix in biz with her points as soon as they post, I have notice an increase in the price in miles for biz class tickets. I paid...
My wife's have not posted yet, but she did get a note they should post "soon". Mine posted (as an old account holder) within the 2 weeks. I booked 2 one ways from MAD-ORD in biz class for June 2019. As I wait to book our 2 return tix in biz with her points as soon as they post, I have notice an increase in the price in miles for biz class tickets. I paid 41,500 for each of us on the departure, but when I shop now, the return is 50k..... Still reasonable, but I am curious if they are slightly devaluing the avios with the market flooding......
Roundtrip booked between Sao Paulo x Madrid
85000 avios + taxes
Amazing deal!
@ Ben - yes I've been entering it without the IB number. Did Ford receive two emails yesterday, one unlocking the account (with a temporary pin) and the other advising that they had received the documents and would forward it to the correct department?
I haven't been able to access my account for about 4 days.
I called IB today and they said all IB Plus staff are overloaded with calls so to...
@ Ben - yes I've been entering it without the IB number. Did Ford receive two emails yesterday, one unlocking the account (with a temporary pin) and the other advising that they had received the documents and would forward it to the correct department?
I haven't been able to access my account for about 4 days.
I called IB today and they said all IB Plus staff are overloaded with calls so to call back in a few days to unlock.
I just want to unlock the account, spend the Avios and move on with my life!
Well, well, well aren't you the lucky ones then. Have fun being permanently banned from Iberia when you don't take those flights as you should be.
New account. My 90.000 avios posted today! Awesome!
Lucky - one of my accounts just posted too! My wife's still hasn't... they claimed she had a duplicate account and changed her Iberia Plus # so it no longer matches the Iberia Plus # she used when booking the tickets... Do you think I should just give up on hers or wait it out? Thanks!
@ Lucky I received a similar email as Ford and my Avios just posted! However, I also only received 81,000 Avios despite all 10 tickets being issued. Is it worth fighting that one or should I just be happy with what I've got?
@James I'd wait a couple of days and if it still doesn't work call IB. The agent attending me yesterday was relatively kind and patient in explaining what I had to do.
Got my Avios, but completely unable to find a routing that shows availability. Anyone have better luck?
Same thing here, account unlocked yesterday and this morning my 90k are in my account!
I was sent the same email yesterday with a new pin to access my account. The new pin, and the old pin do not work so I cannot access my account to see if the Avios have posted, on desktop or the app. Any suggestions?
@ James -- Did you enter the Iberia Plus number without the "IB" in front? At first made the mistake of entering the whole thing and the PIN, and got an error message. But it worked when I entered just the numeric part.
It wasn't until yesterday that I succeeded in making my email reach iberia. For some reason every time I sent the email I got an automated response saying "failure email reception" apparently you just had to write your IB card number and nothing else, otherwise it'd come as an error (at least in my case).
Didn't partake, but curious to see the success rate of actually using the Avios now. The miles market has now been flooded but availability hasn't changed and the Avios expire. Good luck to everyone, though.