Hi,
There's a few discussions several years back regarding booking flights/hotels in advance then getting a refund after the bonus point is credited.
There seems to be some people saying they will apply negative points once the refund has been applied? Does it mean the sign up bonus points will be removed or is it just the points for the spend itself?
Any suggestions what carrier/hotels can be used to do this easily?
Thanks
So if you don't close the account then they will claw back the points earnt on the refunded amount but not the bonus points? But if you close it straight after receiving refund then they can't deduct the points back, is that what you mean?
Also what are the implications of using an overseas payment processor? As in I will lose on the currency conversion rate? For payment: AUD->foreign currency then for refund: foreign currency->AUD?
Yes that is what I mean, most cards charge 3% foreign fee whether is it paid in a different currency or if it is charged in AUD but processed overseas
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/wiki/australian_sites_that_char…
Maybe expedia would be a good option? They also have an option on their website to choose by hotel that are fully refundable.
@Purkulator: hey OP this might help.
i've used Qantas Hotels this year and didn't get charged the overseas transaction fee by my credit card. and this was for an international hotel, not a domestic one. for Qantas hotels they take the payment upfront, even for fully refundable payments. so that might help you meet the spend requirement on the credit card.
i know for booking.com or Agoda, expedia etc… they sometimes just hold the card details and don't actually charge it until maybe 1 week before your stay, so that doesn't help if you need to meet the credit card spend requirement by a certain date.
hey mate thanks for the tip. I actually used expedia with good success so far..charged straight away and full refund with no fees up until a week before depending on hotel you choose. But good to know other options!!
hey mate thanks for sharing, i'll note expedia for any my future purchases. Agoda and booking.com i know definitely do attract the international transaction fee.
i'm curious what you do after you get the bonus. because even when they refund you, it ends up being a credit balance on your card, so you still have to eventually spend the money before you close the card. so what do you spend it on? that's why i'm not sure if its better to just get gift cards from coles or woolies because at least that way you get to keep the funds and not deal with the refund.
you can request to get the funds transferred to your bank account after you close or you can have it to pay off part of your balance and then when payment is due you just pay the remaining balance before/after closing? I am still in the process of doing this
I have had this “happen” a few times now, wait for bonus points and then have to refund accom.
I’ve never stuck around long enough to have them claw back any points, but it would only be the spend points not the bonus points.
If you refund $1000 and spent $2000 the following month you’d only receive points for $1000 spend if that makes sense.
I wouldn’t recommend doing this anyway, booking.com often use an overseas payment processor even if you pay in AUD on the Aus website, so don’t suggest you do it anyway
But I wait for refund to land and then close the account after that