Frequent Flier Miles

Frequent-flier miles clearly have value — why else would people want them? But do they also represent taxable income? Citibank seems to think so. It's sending tax forms to people who received thousands of miles as a reward for opening a checking or savings account. Those forms value each mile at about 2.5 cents and list the total dollar amount as miscellaneous income. This is news to tax pros. "I've been practicing for 25 years and I've never had an instance where miles have been treated as taxable," said Gregg Wind, a West Los Angeles certified public accountant.

If you got a stack of gift cards for the holidays, United Airlines now has a deal to turn those cards into miles. Frequent-flier members with United, which will soon merge with Continental Airlines, can exchange gift cards from 60 major retailers for frequent-flier miles in United's MileagePlus program. The program is unusual because most airline mileage programs convert accumulated frequent-flier miles into credit toward hotel room stays, car rentals or meals. The new United program flips that concept around.

Question: When are airline tickets that are paid for with frequent flier miles not free? Answer: Almost never, but some tickets, booked on certain carriers, are almost as expensive as a trip to the North Pole. This question, a composite of three recent letters, including one in today's Letters column, highlights a growing concern among travelers who pay for tickets with awards points: They do the work to accumulate enough for a ticket, and when they book it, they discover some amazingly high fees, sometimes under the label of a fuel surcharge.

Frequent-flier miles clearly have value — why else would people want them? But do they also represent taxable income? Citibank seems to think so. It's sending tax forms to people who received thousands of miles as a reward for opening a checking or savings account. Those forms value each mile at about 2.5 cents and list the total dollar amount as miscellaneous income. This is news to tax pros. "I've been practicing for 25 years and I've never had an instance where miles have been treated as taxable," said Gregg Wind, a West Los Angeles certified public accountant.

Always best to use a travel agent Regarding On the Spot ["Waves of Doubt," Dec. 5] by Catharine Hamm: The simple answer for the traveler who had booking problems with her Carnival cruise should have been to use a travel agent. As an agent who specializes in cruise travel, I can assure you that the traveler would never have had the problem she encountered if she'd used an agency. We are the travelers' advocates. For those who prefer to search the Internet for bargains, or who think that going direct to the vendor will get them a better deal, do your research, then call us. By booking through us or agencies like ours, you will almost always get a better deal with less hassle, no extra cost and a travel professional to assist them should problems arise.

Frequent-flier miles are both a boon (to the vacationer who scores the award ticket) and a bane (to the person who has the miles but can't seem to score the ticket). That's where the commonality ends. Each program is different, with its own elite designations for very frequent fliers. Here's a comparison of seven plans for U.S.-based carriers. These are mileage plans (as opposed to points) unless otherwise noted. Alaska Pros: No fee to use miles to upgrade from coach; Alaska's MVP, MVP Gold and Gold 75K also receive a bundle of special elite benefits on Delta through a marketing alliance.

Are you losing frequent-flier miles because you don't know when they expire? Traxo.com, which was largely a social networking site, has a new Loyalty Tracker that makes keeping track of airline, hotel and car rental points easier than spending them. What's hot: I wasn't convinced I needed this service until I saw the Loyalty Tracker feature. It keeps track of your mileage points (by taking your login/password information) and shows you, on a single page, when they're about to expire.

A traveler who uses frequent flier miles and used American Airilnes and Japan Airlines on a round-the-world trip asks: What is the point of the airlines "stressing out" the loyal customer? Regarding "Not Feeling the Reward of Frequent Flier Miles" by Catharine Hamm [On the Spot, Dec. 25]: Recently, I returned from a round-the-world business and pleasure trip. I used a combination of frequent flier miles and revenue for ticketing 14 flights. As Hamm's article stated, it is getting increasingly more difficult to use frequent flier miles whether it's one carrier (American and Delta are my preferred airlines)

Feeling guilty because you're not reading your frequent-flier membership emails and hotel loyalty program correspondence? Here's a site that stores your info and alerts you to deals and bonuses. Name: UsingMiles.com What it does: Stores your travel loyalty reward programs and lets you search and book travel using your debit/credit card, award flights or reward points. If you choose to book an award flight, it takes you straight to the airline website, for example, signs you in automatically and presents you with your options.

When members of California's congressional delegation fly home from the Capitol, as they did to kick off a 20-day spring break late last week, most charge taxpayers just the low government rate--$199 round-trip to Los Angeles and about $500 to San Francisco. But some choose to spend more of the public's money.

A traveler who uses frequent flier miles and used American Airilnes and Japan Airlines on a round-the-world trip asks: What is the point of the airlines "stressing out" the loyal customer? Regarding "Not Feeling the Reward of Frequent Flier Miles" by Catharine Hamm [On the Spot, Dec. 25]: Recently, I returned from a round-the-world business and pleasure trip. I used a combination of frequent flier miles and revenue for ticketing 14 flights. As Hamm's article stated, it is getting increasingly more difficult to use frequent flier miles whether it's one carrier (American and Delta are my preferred airlines)

A great city for any season I enjoyed the story about Bethlehem, Pa. [" ' Christmas City' Filled With Holiday Tradition," by Karl Zimmermann, Dec. 25]. It's an amazing place any time, and especially at this time of year. I live near there and know the Historic Bethlehem area well both at Christmas and at other seasons of the year. The Moravians have a marvelous, continuing tradition. Donald S. Heintzelman Zionsville, Pa. His own trip globetrotting I howled with glee when I read David Lamb's Dec. 18 story, "A Gift of the World.

Question: When are airline tickets that are paid for with frequent flier miles not free? Answer: Almost never, but some tickets, booked on certain carriers, are almost as expensive as a trip to the North Pole. This question, a composite of three recent letters, including one in today's Letters column, highlights a growing concern among travelers who pay for tickets with awards points: They do the work to accumulate enough for a ticket, and when they book it, they discover some amazingly high fees, sometimes under the label of a fuel surcharge.

I enjoyed the article about snowshoeing in the Travel section ["Hey, Waffle Feet, Mom Knows Best" by Sara Lessley, Dec. 11]. Organizations have found that by holding a snowshoeing activity, a nonprofit can organize a successful fundraising event. The participants walk over white flakes rather than walk or run over hard ground. Sue Chehrenegar Los Angeles Pasadena history I am a mystified that Christopher Reynolds failed to mention the Pasadena Museum of History in his close-up on Pasadena ["Marvelous Magnitude," Nov. 27]

Our family Thanksgiving celebration didn't come off exactly as planned. We'd imagined a long-postponed reunion of siblings, aunties and cousins from around the country, gathered at my brother's grand new home in Palo Alto. But circumstances conspired to unravel that plan. Some East Coast relatives were forced to back out by sky-high airfares, unexpected medical bills and budget-choking college tuition hikes. One cousin just lost a job; one is allowed no time off at his new one. Another was grounded by worries that looming foreclosure might make this the last Thanksgiving his family will celebrate in their own home.

What is it about Oct. 5? A year ago on that date, the Lake Tahoe region received an early 4-5 inches of snow. A similar early snow on that same date this year (Wednesday) has triggered hopes of another record-setting La Niña. A recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study  found signs of the extreme weather pattern again this year. NOAA will release its official winter outlook later this month . . . . What will the financial turmoil at AMR Corp. - parent company of American Airlines - mean to those with frequent flier miles?

If you got a stack of gift cards for the holidays, United Airlines now has a deal to turn those cards into miles. Frequent-flier members with United, which will soon merge with Continental Airlines, can exchange gift cards from 60 major retailers for frequent-flier miles in United's MileagePlus program. The program is unusual because most airline mileage programs convert accumulated frequent-flier miles into credit toward hotel room stays, car rentals or meals. The new United program flips that concept around.

Feeling guilty because you're not reading your frequent-flier membership emails and hotel loyalty program correspondence? Here's a site that stores your info and alerts you to deals and bonuses. Name: UsingMiles.com What it does: Stores your travel loyalty reward programs and lets you search and book travel using your debit/credit card, award flights or reward points. If you choose to book an award flight, it takes you straight to the airline website, for example, signs you in automatically and presents you with your options.

Travelers are being offered many ways to contribute to the earthquake and tsunami relief effort in Japan. Some airline and hotel rewards programs will allow members to exchange their points for charity donations. In an earlier blog post, I wrote about donation options from American Airlines and All Nippon Airways . Here are more companies that provide ways to help, with links to their rewards programs: Hilton HHonors --Will match donations made by its members to a maximum of $250,000.