UPDATE: If you’re stuck waiting for your MyPoints, please see this MommyPoints post for more information: “Tracking Issue” For MyPoints/OpenSky Orders Requires Follow-up
On September 27th and 28th, MyPoints ran a short lived promotion in which it was possible to earn 150 points per dollar by shopping at a site called OpenSky. You can read my September 28th post on the subject here.
During that promotion, I had a great time buying random gifts for family members in anticipation of the upcoming holiday season. Usually I go to a lot of trouble to check reviews and compare prices for anything I buy, but with this promotion I didn’t worry about any of that. The points earned would be worth more than I spent anyway. I could get a bunch of garbage and I’d still be happy as long as the points post. So, for me at least, it turned out to be a fun time buying overpriced stuff that family members just might like.
The waiting is the hardest part
After making my original purchase (I spent about $520), I’ve checked the MyPoints website every day to see if points have posted. And, every day has been the same: not a point to be seen.
The first good news occurred on October 10th and 11th when several readers reported that their points were showing as pending! Each of these readers had spent less than $500 so I figured that the MyPoints team was making its way through the smaller orders first and would soon get to the larger orders.
Many more days passed without points posting. Fellow BoardingArea blogger MommyPoints then posted encouraging news on October 21 (see “Things Still Looking Good for MyPoints 150 Points Per Dollar Deal“). Apparently MyPoints told customers via Facebook not to worry – they’ll receive their points soon. Still, time has rolled on and I have yet to see a single point appear.
Tired of waiting
On Monday, I got fed up with waiting and I contacted MyPoints’ Member Services. I selected “Help” and then “Contact a MyPoints Member Services Expert’. Then, from a drop-down list of subjects, I selected “Purchase Point Crediting Concerns.” The website showed the following:
Well, more than 30 days had gone by, so I filled out all the required information in the available text box. Tuesday morning, I received the following reply:
Thank you for contacting MyPoints Member Services.
We owe you a sincere apology for any inconvenience caused. Rest assured, we are investigating this issue and your concern will be addressed at the earliest and points will credited to your account.
We truly acknowledge your concern and hence seek your patience and co-operation towards this matter.
Will this really help me get my points sooner? Only time will tell.
How about you? Have you received your MyPoints yet?
I redeemed MyPoints to United miles almost 16 days ago. Today my United miles deposited. Did anyone get theirs?
Also amazon also posted for my friends.
My points just arrived. I had to instant chat with the OpenSky people but they solved the problem and the points posted one day later.
jkl: Great!
.
Irishtiger: Awesome! I’m still waiting for my points to get credited at all.
My points have cleared the ‘pending’week queue and are now redeemable. Will be cashing out tonight and opening up some new toys!
received open sky points finally,
contacted live chat at open sky, and the next day the points were in my account!!! Also the new member bonus points are pending. So i am a happy camper!
[…] Home › Frequent Flyer News › The Case of the Missing MyPoints […]
@Al, if only those Walmart gift cards could be used to load Bluebird!! Maybe we have a two headed monster in mypoints and Walmart…??
@Trevor and company – obviously, and reward deal costing 150 pts/dollar or less is ideal. I think Kmart or Lands End cost even less and both work at the Kmart gift card rack. I also often redeem for Safeway cards but can not confirm the use of gift card to upgrade. Also consider what gift cards you might be giving away for the holidays and order asap because they take a while to arrive!
@DRSP: I think if you’re looking for the cash the best choice will be Target or Walmart gift cards (7,600pts for $50). If you can sell the cards for 92c on the dollar you’re still ahead of the Visa cards (9,000pts for $50). Of course, if you’ll end up with orphan points, a combination of the two might be better.
How’s ur points earnings in last 3 months since the 6 month post? U’ve been on fire. Keep up good posts!
Webazoid: Let’s just say I’ve earned way more UR points than I know what to do with!
On day 30 I logged in only to find my mypoints account had been closed. I played by the rules so contacted mypoints and they said it had been closed because I hadn’t confirmed my email, phew! I got the account re-opened and they told me to fill out the missing points claim. I am also seeing that new members are eligible for double points on orders within the first 30 days. Some people on slickdeals are reporting getting double points. If so, this could be an even more amazing payoff. The current offer is 50 points, so it might even be worth it for new members who didn’t get in on the last deal.
I, like Trevor, would also be interested in discussing redemption strategies once our Points post. I was initially looking at the Hyatt gift certificates, which offer one of the better Points/dollar ratio (.78 pts/dollar). These seem troublesome, however, since if you overpay with them they lose the remaining value. When I have some time I am going to calculate how much money I could get by redeeming for different gift cards on MyPoints and then selling them online. I will then go with the option that gives me the most cash back. The only problem with this is volatility in the gift card market, especially around the holidays.
MyPoints doesn’t always play fair. I had my account shut down about a year ago after I submitted a request to get a large number of points credited. They simply shut down my account and everyone else I referred, claiming it was because I violated the terms. No explanation.
I submitted a form on the 30th, and got a response yesterday saying they’re checking with OpenSky, but also that OpenSky has been closed because of the storm. So I’m still waiting! I have high hopes they’ll post, since others have.
I’ve been in contact with MyPoints but it seem like every time I reply to the email they think it’s a new request.
Latest email I received.
Unfortunately there has been a tracking issue for the September OpenSky offer and some members may not have received their Points. If you are still waiting for Points from the 150 Points per dollar offer in September, please reply to this email with a copy of your OpenSky order confirmation. If you signed up for OpenSky with a different email address than the one you use for MyPoints, please indicate that in your email. If you have already submitted a request, there is no need to do it again, we have your information and are working with OpenSky to verify the order and award you your Points. However, due to the recent storms on the east coast, OpenSky offices are currently closed so we appreciate your continued patience as we do our best to amend this issue in a timely manner. Thank you for your loyal membership.