United Airlines Might Owe You 30,000 Miles

Photo: Ringo Chiu (Shutterstock)

If you were caught up in the United Airlines delay debacle back in June and found yourself either stranded overnight or never made it to your destination, there’s good news now: You have 30,000 MileagePlus miles waiting for you.

After United experienced massive disruptions between June 24 and June 30—which were attributed to an unfortunate combo of bad weather and air traffic control, staffing, and equipment issues—the airline awarded 30,000 miles to passengers whose travel plans were “significantly disrupted.”

Eligible passengers should have received an email with instructions to claim their miles depending on whether they were already enrolled in United’s MileagePlus rewards program. While the miles were “automatically” awarded, there are a few steps to take to ensure you actually receive the credit.

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How to claim your United bonus miles

If you still have the email United sent stating that you qualify for the 30,000 miles, click the link in the email and follow the instructions. If you don’t already have a MileagePlus account, you’ll have to enroll to claim your award.

If you don’t have the email handy, you can also go directly to United’s compensation offer page and either sign in or create an account.

Once you’re logged in and on your account homepage, you can check your mileage deposits by opening the MileagePlus dropdown in the left-hand menu and selecting Activity.

Finally, if you think you’re eligible for compensation but the offer page says you don’t qualify (or you don’t see the miles in your account), you can submit a claim to United’s customer care center.

According to United, the miles do not expire and can be used for flights and related purchases, such as in-flight wifi, food and beverages, and seat upgrades.