This is a short-sighted and unfriendly move by American AAdvantage.
AwardWallet has ties with AAdvantage.
AwardWallet can be used to track your points balances with various airlines, credit cards, and hotel loyalty programs. You can store your loyalty program account information and update your AwardWallet account to see how your points balances have changed.
AwardWallet can remind you when your miles are due to expire, and it is also a good way to make sure you don't get cheated. It is easy to update loyalty program accounts in one place, since I can do it in just one place.
American AAdvantage is the latest loyalty program to have an issue with AwardWallet tracking points balances. AwardWallet sent an email to users today.
We are writing to let you know that we have stopped tracking your American Airlines account. We are very disappointed in the decision. AwardWallet believes that you have the right to control and share your loyalty and travel data as you please. We are not in a position to fight this demand.
The email goes on to list all of the AAdvantage accounts that have been removed from AwardWallet.
AwardWallet can no longer track AAdvantage miles.
What motivates American AAdvantage?
It comes down to two main factors when a program forces AwardWallet to stop tracking account data.
If points are being tracked, they are less likely to expire, and you are reminded when the point expires.
If you apply for a credit card, book a flight, complete a transaction with a partner, and log into your account as often as possible, your loyalty program will allow you to monetize that visit, rather than having that done through a third party.
I can at least see where a loyalty program would be coming from, but the logic doesn't add up, or at least doesn't outweigh the biggest drawbacks:
AwardWallet made it easy for me to log into my AAdvantage account after my mileage balance is updated, so I am more likely to visit my American AAdvantage account after that.
If I can constantly refresh all the accounts that I manage to make sure there are no unauthorized transactions, I can make sure that I don't end up with mileage theft.
This change doesn't show good faith towards members on the part of AAdvantage leadership. There is a change.org petition for American to change their mind. It is up to each individual to decide if that is worth taking part in.
This is a change on American's part.
The bottom line.
AwardWallet was forced to stop tracking AAdvantage accounts by American Airlines. AwardWallet is a site that makes it easier to engage with loyalty programs, and that also helps with making sure your accounts aren't compromised.
It is clear that this is intended to increase the number of miles that expire by making it harder to keep track of mileage expiration dates. I am not sure if this accomplishes what the airline is hoping for, but I suppose it is also about AAdvantage wanting more people to check their balances directly on aa.com.
What do you think about the AwardWallet change?
