Alaska/MBNA Credit Card changes for Canadians.

I am curious as to how Canadian holders of the Alaska/MBNA MasterCards are dealing with the forthcoming MBNA CC changes with the elimination of the ability to collect points or utilize some of the Alaska Airline perks such as Companion discounts and a baggage allowance.

Gracias,
Roberto!

To say Alaska dropped the ball on this is an understatement. To date I have received nothing....nada....zilch.....from Alaska regarding the termination of their affiliation with MBNA bank for Canadian Alaska Mastercard holders.

Back in late July/early August, when MBNA bank announced that their affiliation with Alaska was ending effective 1 September, I contacted Alaska to ask how they were going to deal with Canadian Alaska Mileage Plan members/credit card holders. Basically, they had no idea. Apparently, us Canadians were chopped liver.

Alaska confirmed that accrued Alaska Miles don't disappear, but in response to my suggestion that expiry dates for Companion Fare vouchers be extended by, say, a year, they refused. In my case, my Companion Fare voucher expired 12 Sept/23, and, because we could no longer use a Canadian Alaska Mastercard to pay for an airfare after 1 September, we would lose the "first checked bag free" perk that went with the Mastercard.

Not willing to roll over, I got in touch with their Customer Support Department, or whatever they're called, and complained that Canadian Alaska cardholders and Mileage Plan members were being treated shabbily.

Upshot was that they agreed to extend the expiry date of my Companion Fare voucher by only a month or two, (after saying there was ABSOLUTELY NO WAY an expired voucher could be extended). To compensate for losing the "first checked bag free" perk, they offered me a $50 US credit, which I assumed could be applied against any future baggage charge at check-in......but no, it could only be applied against a future trip booking. Due to their delay in responding, I had already booked Kelowna to Zihua return, (and did not use the Companion Fare, because it was significantly cheaper to use Miles). When I told Alaska that I'd already booked, they said it was too late to deduct the $50 credit!

Aaaaargh! Booking airfares has to be one of life's most unpleasant experiences.

By the way, those old MBNA credit cards have been re-issued without the Alaska connection, and with no annual fee, (unlike the $75 fee, or whatever we paid before). "MBNA Points" can be earned according to the usual formulas, and, starting in 2024, will be convertible to Alaska Miles on a 1:1 basis.