Booking someone ELSE & SWA Rapid Rewards Points with the RR Visa

[MommyBryn]

I'm a SWA newbie. We got the RR Visa with the 2 roundtrip flights. It's under my name and DH is an authorized user. Anyway...when I had to book DH a flight recently, it wouldn't let me book his flight under my RR account, so I had to make him his own. (not a big deal, I will transfer the points in the end) I still used our RR Visa. We're supposed to get 2x points on flights, I believe, but the Visa is linked to MY RR account. Will we still get the extra points on the flight since I used a different RR account that the Visa isn't linked to?

In the end it's not the end of the world if we don't, since we didn't plan on flying SWA originally but just did since prices were comparable but we'd get points through SWA...and wouldn't have received points on the other airline anyway. But it would be cool if we did.

Normally I can milk rewards cards for all their worth. (we never carry a balance and make sure we can already afford what we buy so they are a great deal for us) But considering we don't fly much outside of Disney, I'm still trying to figure this one out.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Although your DH is an authorized user of the credit card all of the points you accumulate by using the credit card will be logged under your RR acct number. The only way he could use the points you accumulate is to transfer the points from your RR account to his RR account and there is a fee to do this. I am not sure what the cost is you can look on the RR site.

 

[MommyBryn]

Although your DH is an authorized user of the credit card all of the points you accumulate by using the credit card will be logged under your RR acct number. The only way he could use the points you accumulate is to transfer the points from your RR account to his RR account and there is a fee to do this. I am not sure what the cost is you can look on the RR site.

Thank you. I should clarify...I do understand that the points will go under my RR account from the card. But the card is supposed to earn me 2x (or whatever) points on SWA purchases, and so if I used the card but made the reservation under HIS RR account which is NOT linked to the card, I'm wondering if we still get the 2x points? I used the card designed to GIVE me the points, but a different RR account which is not linked TO thatcard, if that makes sense. Not sure how to best explain it.

 

[NotUrsula]

It is your credit card, you made the purchase, and you get the purchase points; they are attached to the CC, and go to whatever RR account is linked to the CC. What he will get is the butt-in-seat flight points for the flight. The points you get as the purchaser are so-called "partner points" awarded via Chase, rather than awarded directly via SWA. As an example, I just priced a one-way flight from MDW to DEN. It is $140, and it is worth 774 flight points. In your scenario, on this flight your DH would earn 774 points butt-in-seat to his RR account, and you would earn 280 points to your RR account via the CC for the ticket purchase.

However,I don't understand why you could not buy him the ticket from inside your account. It is normally completely possible to buy a ticket for another passenger (while using reward points from your own RR account, or by paying with a CC). I do it all the time for my children (they do have RR accounts, but they don't have credit cards, so I buy via my RR account so that I can pay the processing fee and get the flight notifications via my cell phone without having to complete extra forms.) Of course, there would be no butt-in-seat flight points that would accrue for the purchase if the passenger didn't have an RR account in his or her own name, but the purchaser would still get the partner points for the purchase via the CC.

FWIW,tTo maximize rewards, be sure to register your other credit cards to your RR account for Rapid Rewards Dining, and use your SWA CC via the Rapid Rewards shopping gateway for your purchases at participating websites.

 

[MommyBryn]

It is your credit card, you made the purchase, and you get the purchase points; they are attached to the CC, and go to whatever RR account is linked to the CC. What he will get is the butt-in-seat flight points for the flight. The points you get as the purchaser are so-called "partner points" awarded via Chase, rather than awarded directly via SWA. As an example, I just priced a one-way flight from MDW to DEN. It is $140, and it is worth 774 flight points. In your scenario, on this flight your DH would earn 774 points butt-in-seat to his RR account, and you would earn 280 points to your RR account via the CC for the ticket purchase.

However,I don't understand why you could not buy him the ticket from inside your account. It is normally completely possible to buy a ticket for another passenger (while using reward points from your own RR account, or by paying with a CC). I do it all the time for my children (they do have RR accounts, but they don't have credit cards, so I buy via my RR account so that I can pay the processing fee and get the flight notifications via my cell phone without having to complete extra forms.) Of course, there would be no butt-in-seat flight points that would accrue for the purchase if the passenger didn't have an RR account in his or her own name, but the purchaser would still get the partner points for the purchase via the CC.

FWIW,tTo maximize rewards, be sure to register your other credit cards to your RR account for Rapid Rewards Dining, and use your SWA CC via the Rapid Rewards shopping gateway for your purchases at participating websites.

Thank you. We are shopping through them when it is the best deal (I get a better one through other online sites most of the time though).

It wouldn't let me change the passenger name from myself when it was in my RR account. I was told to GET the points in the first place I had to be logged into a RR account, so I was logged into mine. So I tried that, and it wouldn't let me change passenger name for the ticket or anywhere on the account. I googled it and apparently I'm not the only one it has happened to? I don't really understand it all. In the end it's not a big deal, as I played around with it and see that I can certainly buy multiple tickets on my account WHEN I am flying (as in, any other time we ever fly, as this event with hubby flying is a rare-to-never thing).

 

[pooch]

while booking, there is a screen into which you enter passenger information. It also asks for a RR # for each passenger. You cannot enter your RR # under his name there. You must enter his.

THEN, when you get to the payment screen, you enter your RR# and it should let you pay for any or all of the flights, regardless of whose name is on the ticket. I do this all the time whether or not I am actually taking the trip too.

 

[MommyBryn]

while booking, there is a screen into which you enter passenger information. It also asks for a RR # for each passenger. You cannot enter your RR # under his name there. You must enter his.

This is the screen where my info automatically came up in the boxes and it wouldn't let me change it. I was logged into my RR account at the time. When I was NOT logged into mine I could enter it, but again, as you say, it went under his RR account anyway.

Thank you all for your help...definitely filing this info away for future use!

 

[rlduvall]

This is the screen where my info automatically came up in the boxes and it wouldn't let me change it. I was logged into my RR account at the time. When I was NOT logged into mine I could enter it, but again, as you say, it went under his RR account anyway.

Thank you all for your help...definitely filing this info away for future use!

I'm sorry about this glitch you are experiencing, because honestly that's exactly what it is . . . a glitch. I log in to my DH's RR account all the time and book air for myself using his earned points [through SWA cc]. I am always able to back out his prefilled information and enter my name and RR number. I'm so sorry you are having this issue.

 

[MommyBryn]

I'm sorry about this glitch you are experiencing, because honestly that's exactly what it is . . . a glitch. I log in to my DH's RR account all the time and book air for myself using his earned points [through SWA cc]. I am always able to back out his prefilled information and enter my name and RR number. I'm so sorry you are having this issue.

Thanks. Not a very big deal at this point, considering it's already booked and I don't think I can change it. Worst case scenario is we just won't get the EXTRA points but will at least still get the base points into one account.

As I wrote this reply I realized the reason for my asking the original question...I guess what confused me is say, my Visa and MY RR account are #1, and DH's RR acct is #2. Since both parts of #1 are linked, I assumed that to get the double points I had to ONLY use #1. It wouldn't seem right to get double points into MY RR account for using the Visa and still get base points for the flight on HIS RR account since they are essentially seperate.

Does that make any sense?

I must look silly for being so mind boggled like this!!

I do like that RR is such an easy program to earn with, though. I already do things like E-Rewards where I can earn more without much effort.

 

[pooch]

This is the screen where my info automatically came up in the boxes and it wouldn't let me change it. I was logged into my RR account at the time. When I was NOT logged into mine I could enter it, but again, as you say, it went under his RR account anyway.

Thank you all for your help...definitely filing this info away for future use!

you need to be signed in to your RR account in order to pay with points. When you are signed in, it knows your RR# and fills it in on the "Passenger" screen. It won't let you change that on your name or add it to your husband's name because its YOUR RR#. His # goes next to his name. Then as I said earlier, you use your # on the "Payment" screen to pay for the flight.

and now reading the last post, I'm a little confused as to the problem ?? Are your trying to book with points? or get the double points for charging a SW flight on your SW Visa? In either scenario, it doesn't matter who's getting a ticket. ANY charge to your SW Visa for flights on SW should earn double points no matter who's flight it is. If, however, you want the double points for the flight to go to his Visa, you need to pay with his Visa. Points earned for the flight itself (not for its payment method) are given to the RR# by each person's name in the "Passenger" screen. Double points for PAYING with your SW Visa are based on the CC# used in the "Payment" screen.

 

[MaleficentRN]

I don't get it either. I booked flights with my points for my DD and DS on a trip I didn't take with them this past week.

 

[MommyBryn]

Sorry all, don't mean to be a nuisance, just trying to figure this all out. Guess I'm not doing a great job explaining myself. It's not a "problem", as it's already booked, just trying to understand how it works so I know next time we use it.

Thanks for the help!

 

[hsmamato2]

did you book dh's flight using your rr points, or your SWA visa? I think that is the question....
When I book using (my) points, I simply log in,purchase dh's ticket,it asks for his info,and automatically inputs his RR # into the flight info. I book it using MY rr points though.

 

[MommyBryn]

did you book dh's flight using your rr points, or your SWA visa? I think that is the question....
When I book using (my) points, I simply log in,purchase dh's ticket,it asks for his info,and automatically inputs his RR # into the flight info. I book it using MY rr points though.

I booked with my Visa, under his RR account. (my RR account/# is the one linked to the Visa, not his)

I think what I am confusing is the points received for the flight and the points per dollar. See, the way I was thinking was that it basically just doubled the points you earned on the flight in your RR account. Example...say I get 1500pts for a flight that cost $250. I was assuming that it meant in the end I'd end up with 3000pts in my RR account for that purchase when all was said and done (through the Visa to my account).

But from the sounds of it, it will actually have 1500 points go to DH's RR account, and then 2x250 so 500 points on the Visa for the purchase.

Is that correct?

As for booking the ticket, again, I couldn't seem to make it work after an hour of playing around with it by entering DH's info while in my RR account, and booked it under him anyway, so no biggie, I'll just transfer points later.