Southwest Backtracks Companion Pass
The other day Southwest suddenly changed their terms to exclude hotel points transfers from counting towards their very popular Companion Pass. Now, it seems like the backlash from their lack of notice has made the company reconsider.
Hotel points transfer WILL count towards the pass until March 31, 2017. Here is the company’s statement:
As we began the New Year on January 1, we took the opportunity to close a loophole in our Rapid Rewards Companion Pass terms and conditions related to transferred points from our Partners. This was an effort intended to clarify qualification requirements for Companion Pass, one of the best benefits in travel, as well as to protect the integrity and value of the Rapid Rewards program.
In doing so, we updated our terms and conditions which now clearly state that points transferred from hotel and car loyalty programs, and e-Rewards, e-Miles, Valued Opinions and Diners Club will no longer count toward qualification for a Companion Pass. Members will continue to earn toward Companion Pass benefits through paid flights flown on Southwest, Points earned through spend with Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards credit cards, and base points earned through transactions with Rapid Rewards partners.
Many of you have reached out to us since then, and we greatly appreciate your honest and candid feedback. Because we are a Company that values our Customers and believes in doing the right thing, we are offering a limited window for Customers to earn toward Companion Pass by transferring their loyalty points from these Partners.
To that end, points converted from the above mentioned programs will count towards a Companion Pass until March 31, 2017. This is a hard deadline and we will not be able to make any exceptions beyond March 31. If you have points with these Partners that you wanted to transfer, please do not wait. Make the transfer before the deadline.
We appreciate all of our Customers and look forward to seeing you onboard very soon!
For more information, see this: The Points Guy post.
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[…] lot of people took advantage of Marriott’s Flights and Nights package last year in order to get the Companion Pass before that loophole expired. I imagine a lot of you are still sitting on that 7 night […]
[…] As the holiday season rolled on, many of us thought that we had collectively dodged a bullet. No changes were made. Then, as we woke up on January 1 to transfer our points, the bad news was announced. Hotel points transfers would no longer count towards the Companion Pass! No notice. Ouch! Thankfully Southwest heard our complaints and temporarily re-opened a window for transfers to count. […]
I gave up on the pass. On Tue, I spent a bunch of rapid rewards points and Starwood points on a trip, and now barely have enough points for the pass
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I second that.. We should be thanking them.. Folks who were cursing them in first place should eat their words now…
Yea, way to go ….. Now we should be THANKING bloggers for helping with this. Thanks Shawn!!!
Dot had anything to do with it?