Estate planning as a BA Avios account holder

The British Airways Executive Club (now branded "The British Airways Club") is British Airways' frequent-flyer program. Members collect Avios, the loyalty currency shared across British Airways and its partner programs, by flying, using co-branded credit cards, and shopping through partners. Avios are redeemed for Reward Flights, cabin upgrades, hotels, car hire, and partner rewards, and members earn tier points that move them through the Club's tiers (Blue, Bronze, Silver, Gold). Avios can be transferred to other people and to partner loyalty programs, and several members at the same address can pool their balances through a Household Account. Under British Airways' Conditions of Use, membership terminates upon the death of a member and the Avios, tier points, and lifetime tier points accumulated but unused at the time of death are cancelled. Title in Avios remains with Avios Group Limited at all times and never passes to the member, and there is no beneficiary designation, so the practical estate value is realized by redeeming, transferring, or pooling Avios during the member's lifetime.

Under BA Avios's terms, Avios are not property of the account holder and are forfeited when the account closes at death. No estate planning document—will, trust, or otherwise—can override this forfeiture.

BA Avios provides a pooling or family sharing option for Avios. British Airways offers a free Household Account that lets up to seven individuals who live at the same address (the member plus up to six others) pool their Avios into one cumulative household balance that any household member can redeem. Children can be included. When Avios are spent from a Household Account, a proportional amount is deducted from each member's balance based on the size of that member's share of the pooled total. Each member still earns tier points and moves through the Club's tiers individually. Separately, a Family and Friends list lets Club members who are part of a household account redeem for up to five nominated individuals, who may be existing Club members (their membership number is added to the nomination) or people who are not Club members; the member is responsible for the accuracy of the details and for obtaining each nominee's consent. The Family and Friends list is a redemption nominee list, not a pooling mechanism, and it does not survive the member's death. Outside of Household Accounts, members can transfer Avios to other people and can transfer Avios between their British Airways Club account and their Iberia Club, AerClub, Loganair Loyalty, Vueling Club, Qatar Airways Privilege Club, or Finnair Plus accounts at an equal value. Reward Flight Saver remains available: members who have collected Avios in the past 12 months can pay Avios plus a flat fee on short-haul Reward Flights. Selling, bartering, or purchasing Avios outside the program, including through internet sales or auctions, is prohibited.

What happens at death

British Airways' Conditions of Use for the Executive Club / The British Airways Club provide that membership terminates upon the death of a member (clause 3.12), and that any Avios, tier points, and lifetime tier points accumulated by that member but unused at the time of death shall be cancelled (clause 3.12.2). British Airways does not publish an estate-transfer, next-of-kin, or nominated-beneficiary process for a deceased member's Avios, and the Club does not offer a beneficiary designation. The Conditions of Use also address the property question directly: Avios, and all rights of title to and property in Avios issued at any time, remain with Avios Group Limited (AGL) at all times and never pass to the member, and Avios have no monetary value and cannot be refunded or exchanged. An Avios balance is therefore not an asset the estate owns and can claim; a survivor's only route is a discretionary goodwill request to British Airways. Because Avios can be transferred to other people and to partner loyalty programs while the member is alive, and balances can be pooled through a Household Account, the practical way for a family to retain the value of a balance is to redeem, transfer, or pool the Avios before death. British Airways operates separate bereavement support for changing or cancelling existing travel bookings when a member of the travelling party or an immediate family member dies; that support addresses travel bookings, not the inheritance of Avios.

Frequently asked questions