Taxes/surcharges queries

Just a couple of questions which no doubt someone here will know the answers to :

(1) If booking an outright Upper Class reward LHR-LAX return (dates in Sep 2013) the grand total for tax/fees is £545.25. However if using cash the grand total is £568.85. I can see this is due to 'US' (USA Transportation Tax) and 'XF' (USA Passenger Facility Charge) not being included if it's a reward. Any ideas why?

(2) If booking just a one way reward the grand total for fees/taxes is £728.30 which clearly is far more than half the total compard to the return. Why?

Cheers
James

Don't understand them myself, recently booked 2 reward seats LGW-LAS returning MCO-LGW in PE for May 2013 and the taxes were as follows

YQ236.00 GB134.00 XT22.40 Total £392.40 each

Yesterday i changed the return date to a few days later, kept the same routes and class of travel and expected to pay the £50 change fee. Whilst booking the agent said "the taxes have changed" i expected it to be more but he said it had gone down, something he'd never seen before. So the cost to change was £33 as i was due taxes refund of £17. He couldn't explain why or what was different but the computer said lower taxes. E-ticket arrived and taxes now shown as

AY1.50 YQPD226.00 XTPD156.40 Total £383.90 each (refund of £8.50 each)

Firstly can anyone explain why the taxes went down? Same route same class just a different return date.

Secondly why are the tax codes different on the changed flight - surely they should be the same?

AY is US security fee i think? so why not charged on the first ticket?

Bemused ?|

Very very naughty to state taxes have changed, when in fact it's nothing to do with tax! Purely a VS charge...

James

1. That's just how it is!
2. The ex-UK tax is higher than that charged ex-USA.

James

1. That's just how it is!
2. The ex-UK tax is higher than that charged ex-USA.

Thanks for that but re my first point, still baffled why 'US' (USA Transportation Tax) and 'XF' (USA Passenger Facility Charge) are not charged on on a full reward but are charged when using money?

James

2. The ex-UK tax is higher than that charged ex-USA.

Sorry but no. The APD on ex-UK flights is the same rate no matter where the ticket is booked.

My understanding is that US Taxes are not applied to reward flights.

Sorry but no. The APD on ex-UK flights is the same rate no matter where the ticket is booked.

I meant that if you price up a one-way ex-UK you get a figure for taxes/surcharges that is higher than half the full cost of taxes/surcharges for a return. The OP's question presumably assumes they would be split equally, but that is not the case (as you know ).

Unless I have misunderstood the OP?

Thanks for that but re my first point, still baffled why 'US' (USA Transportation Tax) and 'XF' (USA Passenger Facility Charge) are not charged on on a full reward but are charged when using money?

It is just how the tax rules work in relation to this. For whatever reason (and I don't know what it is) those taxes aren't applied to reward bookings. If only that were true in the UK!

Sorry but no. The APD on ex-UK flights is the same rate no matter where the ticket is booked.

I meant that if you price up a one-way ex-UK you get a figure for taxes/surcharges that is higher than half the full cost of taxes/surcharges for a return. The OP's question presumably assumes they would be split equally, but that is not the case (as you know ).

Unless I have misunderstood the OP?

The VS Surcharges may differ (and how they calculate them is up to them) but the APD remains the same whether it is a reward or cash flight or single or return or open-jaw

We need to stop conflating taxes and the VS surcharges.

Conflating! Nice word - had to look it up and looking forward to using it.
V Flyer can enrich your word power.

The VS Surcharges may differ (and how they calculate them is up to them) but the APD remains the same whether it is a reward or cash flight or single or return or open-jaw

We need to stop conflating taxes and the VS surcharges.

I think you are misunderstanding me.

The OP asks why the taxes/surcharges for a one-way flight are more than half the taxes/surcharges for a return.

I have provided the answer: it is basically because the UK taxes are greater than the US ones.

I am not conflating the surcharges and the taxes. If the OP priced up a one-way ex-US leg he would see that the taxes/surcharges were less than half the total charged on a return journey.

Thanks for that but re my first point, still baffled why 'US' (USA Transportation Tax) and 'XF' (USA Passenger Facility Charge) are not charged on on a full reward but are charged when using money?

Me too, I cannot make sense of this.

I've just done a dummy booking using an economy return fare LGW to MCO in March.

The extras for a Revenue fare = £325.30 but with the Reward fare extras are only £301.30 because that USA transportation and facility tax is not included in the list of 'extras' .

I just fail to see why, as its still the same travel ie from UK into USA and then USA into UK. Why should the taxes differ whether the fare is paid using all cash or part cash+miles?