Credit card at check-in

Booked a one-way UC fare using my miles for a friend & paid the taxes with my own credit card. During the booking process I got a warning message that the card must be in the name of the traveller & be presented at check-in. I ignored this, clicked Accept & the booking went through fine, miles debited, card charged & e-ticket in inbox within a minute. All looking good... for now.

Friend gets to LHR check-in and is refused check-in as he could not produce the credit card used to pay the taxes. Had I been present with him and shown the card it would have been OK. He had to travel on the flight in question, so had an expensive visit to the ticket desk to buy a one-way ticket.

Is this a new rule? I remember back in about 2004 when I first flew Virgin they said you had to present the payment card used (even for a revenue ticket) at check-in, but they never asked for it. This rule is seemingly daft as there are many genuine reasons why the payment card may not be available.

How do you go about booking a ticket for someone else now using your miles? (which is allowed). Given the flexibility you need to have on G fares, you could be holidaying with friends and you have to travel over 2 consecutive days, so if you travel first, you're not going to be at the airport with the credit card the following day.

Or, is this new rule yet another "enhancement" that has come from the move to the Delta IT platform?

I would welcome the advise of any more learned people on here before I call Flying Club - I think I am going to have to put it down to experience though and take the miles/taxes hit, as the warning on the booking screen was quite clear.

It seems an eminently sensible rule to me, to prevent fraud. Otherwise there's nothing to stop someone using your stolen credit card details to fly off to the Caribbean.

It's still perfectly easy to use miles from your FC account to buy flights for someone else - just use their credit card to pay for the taxes & fees.

I fear you/they will just have to take the hit on this one - as you say you were warned about the rule but chose to ignore it. Always worth a call though, just in case they're feeling generous.

It seems an eminently sensible rule to me, to prevent fraud. Otherwise there's nothing to stop someone using your stolen credit card details to fly off to the Caribbean.

Which someone did try to do on one of my VS cards recently. I know EK have the same rule, as I had to work to get around it a few years ago when buying a flight for #1 daughter. The resolution was to book through a TA.

[mitchja]

I suspect with it being a one-way flight that has raised a red flag on the system as well.

The only other airline this rule seems to be enforced (or at least used to be) is Singapore Airlines as that's the only airline I've ever been asked to show the payment card at check-in even though most airlines do mention it as part of their booking terms.

I suspect with it being a one-way flight that has raised a red flag on the system as well.

The only other airline this rule seems to be enforced (or at least used to be) is Singapore Airlines as that's the only airline I've ever been asked to show the payment card at check-in even though most airlines do mention it as part of their booking terms.

Qatar appears to do this on normal tickets, ie: not particularly reward tickets. I've heard they've sometimes required faxing in copy of passport before issuing tickets, but that didn't happen to me, nor the credit card proof on my one Qatar flight at Christmas.

i think it depends on how the booking is made, online/telephone with no real identity validation is where i'd think there would (and should) be extra scrutiny to avoid fraud

when i used amex to arrange tickets (EK) to fly my uncle SYD-LHR, he simply needed to turn up with his passport - but amex took me through security q&a every time i spoke with them, i think if i'd simply booked online there'd have been a problem

I should also add I have never been asked for the payment card used for a ticket (be it a revenue or reward fare) on any airline at check-in. Have flown a lot with Virgin and a fair bit with Emirates & Ryanair.

TBH, you'd be pretty daft to use a fraudulent card to book an airline ticket - especially if it's for yourself - as if the fraud is picked up, the Police know exactly where you are going to be on a set date & time (i.e. at the airport) so it's very easy to arrest you at the boarding gate. (Have seen this happen on BBC Airport programme where someone was arrested & removed from a plane for using a dodgy credit card to pay for his ticket).

I also used to work at a theme park many moons ago & the admissions staff got lots of online bookings made with cards that were reported lost/stolen after the transaction had gone through. The tickets were always for a set date, so it was not uncommon for plain clothed police to be waiting round for the purchasers to collect their tickets on the said date & then take them away for a less enjoyable day out.

when i used amex to arrange tickets (EK) to fly my uncle SYD-LHR, he simply needed to turn up with his passport - but amex took me through security q&a every time i spoke with them, i think if i'd simply booked online there'd have been a problem

If you used Amex to make the booking, then I suspect EK would treat them as a TA and therefore require no cc to fly.

I should also add I have never been asked for the payment card used for a ticket (be it a revenue or reward fare) on any airline at check-in. Have flown a lot with Virgin and a fair bit with Emirates & Ryanair.

When I booked our trip to Australia in 2013 one of the reasons for using EK was so #1 Daughter could fly in from Manchester and hook up with us in Dubai. When I spoke with EK to try to arrange this directly they stated very, very clearly that all parties would have to have to be able to show the same credit card to be allowed to check in (one of us in LHR, one in MCR), with the only alternatives being my making a trip to an EK office in London to sort it or booking through a TA. Now, it could have been that on the day there would have been no problem but the call centre staff had spooked me enough to take the TA option (which cost no more).

Does make you wonder though that in these days of card hopping for best rates how many could get caught by this. Book a flight several months in advance on one card, transfer balance to new one and dispose of old card in error forgetting you need it to check in leaving you in a bit of a bind come arrival at the check in desk!

WM

This is an interesting issue.

Firstly like Kraken said, I too have never been asked for the credit card used to book flights but maybe that's because I have always been one of the passengers actually taking the flight. Perhaps the different name flagged up an issue?

Personally speaking just for myself, I hope this is not going to become a custom practice for one simple reason.
I use my AmEx credit card to book our flights. However I never ever take this on holiday because I use my Halifax Clarity card only. So no reason to risk taking the AmEx credit card in my purse, that stays in my safe at home. If I've now got to take that to the airport, I shall not be a happy bunny.

I should also add I have never been asked for the payment card used for a ticket (be it a revenue or reward fare) on any airline at check-in. Have flown a lot with Virgin and a fair bit with Emirates & Ryanair.

Perhaps because when you pay for your own ticket the passenger's name matches that on the card, so the system has no need to flag it as suspicious and tell the agent to ask to see the card?

But in your friend's case the names wouldn't have matched and the system would have thrown up a red flag.

Frankly, one-way ticket paid for with someone else's credit card screams dodgy so IMHO VS are right to enforce the rules. You'd be thanking them if your card had been stolen.

TBH, you'd be pretty daft to use a fraudulent card to book an airline ticket - especially if it's for yourself - as if the fraud is picked up, the Police know exactly where you are going to be on a set date & time (i.e. at the airport) so it's very easy to arrest you at the boarding gate.

Well yes, but most criminals aren't exactly known for their intelligence!

Equally though a lot of credit card fraud is extremely sophisticated. Most people don't check their accounts very often, so there's a pretty good chance that a criminal who uses your card details to book a flight shortly before it departs will get away with it because by the time you notice they'll be long gone.

Clearly it's a risk, but so is all crime and sadly many are willing to take it.

This is an interesting issue.

Firstly like Kraken said, I too have never been asked for the credit card used to book flights but maybe that's because I have always been one of the passengers actually taking the flight. Perhaps the different name flagged up an issue?

Personally speaking just for myself, I hope this is not going to become a custom practice for one simple reason.
I use my AmEx credit card to book our flights. However I never ever take this on holiday because I use my Halifax Clarity card only. So no reason to risk taking the AmEx credit card in my purse, that stays in my safe at home. If I've now got to take that to the airport, I shall not be a happy bunny.

I do exactly the same and have just had to check which card I used back in March 16 to book our up coming flight.
Sure enough Amex Black which I had planned to leave at home.

Dick D

Does make you wonder though that in these days of card hopping for best rates how many could get caught by this. Book a flight several months in advance on one card, transfer balance to new one and dispose of old card in error forgetting you need it to check in leaving you in a bit of a bind come arrival at the check in desk!

WM

Agree. I had the same "show us your card" with Singapore Airlines and as soon as I booked the tickets the next time I passed through LHR I just showed that card to their ticket desk at T2 and the flag was removed from my booking.

This is an interesting issue.

Firstly like Kraken said, I too have never been asked for the credit card used to book flights but maybe that's because I have always been one of the passengers actually taking the flight. Perhaps the different name flagged up an issue?

Personally speaking just for myself, I hope this is not going to become a custom practice for one simple reason.
I use my AmEx credit card to book our flights. However I never ever take this on holiday because I use my Halifax Clarity card only. So no reason to risk taking the AmEx credit card in my purse, that stays in my safe at home. If I've now got to take that to the airport, I shall not be a happy bunny.

I do exactly the same and have just had to check which card I used back in March 16 to book our up coming flight.
Sure enough Amex Black which I had planned to leave at home.

Dick D

That would be such a horrible way to come unstuck in this day and age.

Thinking about it, the "show us your card" is pretty common with online purchases when you Click & Collect in a store. At John Lewis you can't collect anything without the payment card (the last 4 digits of which is on the packaging) and photo ID. The big difference is with online shopping, you're going to collect it pretty soon, so the odds of you not having the card used are practically zero.

As has been said above, with flights that you could have booked 11months ago, there is a good chance some people will have switched to another card issuer & destroyed the old card (as is wise). What do the airlines do in these instances?

Echoing the thanks for the reminders/raisng this issue - just taken the Black out of the wallets due switch to the "blue team" but have an outstanding reward booking (think VS have taken the charge for the upgrade element of it this time...). Recently flew SriLankan and booked many months out and remember that the "plastic check" warning was prominently displayed on their website at various stages of booking - if the card was not going to be physically present at CI to contact them in advance to "make arrangements" to guarantee the pax would fly. I thought fair enough because I can also remember receiving a call from the fraud dept of a credit card company asking whether I was currently trying to buy an air ticket in Cebu...funnily enough I was not!

I highly recommend Apple Pay (other, similar services are available) which sends an alert to my phone whenever my credit cards are used.

So when some little ******* used my BA Amex to buy a toolkit online at Screwfix using PayPal I was alerted immediately and cancelled it within 5 minutes.

Credit card fraud is extremely common and increasingly sophisticated so to me it makes perfect sense for airlines to demand to see the payment card if it belongs to someone other than the passenger. The inconvenience of keeping an old card or carrying cards you'd rather leave at home seems a very small price to pay.

[mitchja]

It's only proper AmEx cards that show all account transactions via ApplePay/iPhones though (including account payments and none-ApplePay transactions etc).

MBNA issued AmEx cards, VISA & M/Cards will only display actual Apple Pay / contactless transactions and nothing else unfortunately.

I agree though, I do like the full AmEx card system that shows you everything. When ever I pay for something online it immediately shows up on my iPhone as a ApplePay notification.

Credit card fraud is extremely common and increasingly sophisticated so to me it makes perfect sense for airlines to demand to see the payment card if it belongs to someone other than the passenger. The inconvenience of keeping an old card or carrying cards you'd rather leave at home seems a very small price to pay.

Not disagreeing about the sophistication of the evil criminal gangs but....

Funnily enough that advice is the exact opposite to what was instucted to me by the Police Officers and later the Fraud squad after my bag was literally snatched from my lap whilst sitting at Gatwick airport a few years back.

Fortunately my passport was in my pocket with my boarding pass as we waited for the queque at passport control to reduce down a bit. The guy came from behind, leaned over snatched my bag then ran and passed it to another before this criminal ran down to ramp to the station. This was all captured on CCTV but it took months and months before the numerous cards were finally 'off the market'.

Very clearly I was told "never carry any credit/debit cards which you know you are not going to use whilst out of the country".

As has been said above, with flights that you could have booked 11months ago, there is a good chance some people will have switched to another card issuer & destroyed the old card (as is wise). What do the airlines do in these instances?

Or been the victim of fraud and had the card replaced by one with a new number...

Or been the victim of fraud and had the card replaced by one with a new number..

That happened to me some years ago when flying EVA Air who used to ask for the relevant card to be swiped at check in. My card that was used for the booking was cloned and cancelled, the bank replaced it with a new card that had a different number. I realised the problem about a month before flying and phoned EVA's London office to discuss this. I had to get a letter from my bank confirming the clone and the old and new card numbers. This was noted on my booking and I got written confirmation that I would be allowed on the flight. Have to say EVA's service on this occasion was excellent. EVA now use 'verified by Visa' when booking and no longer require you to show the card used to make the booking at check in.