Many airlines, such as Virgin Atlantic, already allow you to bid to upgrade your seat. I have tried this in Asia before and quite like the concept. It will be interesting to see how much the prices are before I get too excited. However, given the eye-watering prices of BA flights at the moment, hopefully, it may give people the chance to save some money. The bad news is that it will initially only be available on mixed BA/Iberia bookings, not on a straight BA booking. However, it does state that other routes and carriers may be available in the future.
It does look like this is planned from the staging page showing.
From May 2024, customers can place an offer for an upgrade on British Airways/Iberia mixed metal journeys (one-way, return or connecting).
You would be presented with an “Upgrade offer” and then can can submit an offer of how much you are willing to pay for an upgrade within a range indicated. Offers can be made before arriving at the airport and can be submitted up to 6 hours and 30 minutes prior to departure (even if you have already checked in online).
An offer can be made for an upgrade to any higher cabin that is eligible. The good news is that you get the tier points for the higher category; the bad news, which could be significant, is that you only get the original baggage allowance which means if you were originally HBO, you would still have to pay if you want to check baggage.
If there is more than one person on the book, you all have to upgrade.
If a seat assignment has already been paid for in the original cabin, a refund can be requested if the offer is successful.
Here is how it will work:
1: See if your flight is eligible
Where eligible, you can make an offer to upgrade your flight booking to enjoy the benefits of a higher cabin and lounge access*. Upgrades are available on flights, dates and destinations as selected by British Airways. We will be adding more routes and partner airlines as they become available.
2: Request your upgrade
Determine the offer amount you would like to submit, enter your payment information, and review and submit your offer.
3: Enjoy your upgrade
If your upgrade offer is successful, you will be notified.
There is an official page here for the
HT: Flyertalk
