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I am usually really skillful at earning and burning points and miles. I don’t want to sit on six- and seven-figure balances while the devalue. I amassed a good number of Free Spirit points and kept meaning to use them, but I find myself sitting with a balance of 105,453 points now that the airline has collapsed and these will soon disappear without any way to use them.
I flew Spirit many times over the past few years (31 to be exact) and earned these points. I kept thinking about using them, looked for transfer partners (there were none), and eventually just let them sit. On every flight I flew with Spirit, I was in a Big Front Seat (later rebranded as First Class). When trying to redeem Spirit points for these flights it was always looking for a cash co-pay for these seats and it never made sense to me to spend the points. I should have done so, and I will eat the loss.
Holding onto miles forever might feel safe, but in reality it’s usually the losing move. Airline and hotel points are a depreciating currency, not an investment. Programs can (and do) change redemption rates with little notice. Flights or hotels that cost 50,000 points today might cost 70,000 or 100,000 later. That’s essentially inflation eating your balance.
Unlike cash, you don’t control the rules. Airlines and hotels can:
- Raise award prices
- Remove sweet spots
- Add dynamic pricing
When that happens, your stash instantly becomes less powerful. Many bloggers (and members) are lamenting the upcoming negative changes to World of Hyatt®, for example.
There’s no upside to hoarding Miles and points don’t earn interest. They don’t grow. Sitting on 200,000 points for years doesn’t make them more valuable (it just increases the risk you’ll get less out of them later).
Instead of saving indefinitely:
- Earn with a goal in mind
- Redeem regularly for good value
- Keep balances modest rather than stockpiled
Anthony’s Take: I knew all of this, but some how failed to take my own advice with Spirit Airlines. I did not value these miles as being worth much and now they’re worth nothing. Use this as a lesson and go spend those miles and points.
(Image Credits: Spirit Airlines.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
