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Before you go “clickin’ on stuff” on Delta.com please read this post twice. Then read it again to be sure you get it or you could make a “DOH” choice. First the educational part.
From January 1st 2014 until December 31st 2014 you were earning your Medallion status for 2015.
Now you may have had some other perks during 2014, but please clearly understand that you earned your 2015 Medallion status. Understand?
The 2015 Medallion Choice Benefits, if not selected before February 1st this year, 2016, will go “POOF” and go away. Now what to pick: LINK TO DELTA.com https://www.delta.com/choicebenefits/
That really is up to you but there is one thing you MUST NOT CHOOSE from the 2015 choices at this point and that is gifting Medallion status (either Silver as your Platinum gift or Gold as your Diamond gift). Why? The person you give this status to will have it only for a few days, that is, their upgraded status will end on February 1st, 2016.
Now that we are crystal clear on the 2015 Choice Benefit, earned in 2014, we can talk about the next one.
So, from January 1st 2015 until December 31st 2015 you were earning your Medallion status for 2016 that fully begins on February 1st 2016, that is, in a few days. As we follow the logic above we know there is NO RUSH to spend your Platinum or Diamond Choices benefits for 2016 (unless you want to that is) as you have OVER 1 YEAR TO CHOOSE THEM before they expire. That is, you have until February 1st, 2017 to spend that gift.
Then, as of the first of this year, that is, from January 1st 2016 until December 31st 2016 we are now earning our Medallion status for 2017.
Now regular blog readers will know I have rolled over enough MQMs to already have earned my Diamond status for next year since it took me only 13 days to be MQD exempt this year via my spending on my Delta AMEX Reserve card <-LINK. As you can see from my digital Delta SkyMiles card in the Fly Delta APP, it has already been updated to reflect my new status, that is, I am now Diamond until February 1st of 2018.
So, if you happen to be in the same boat as me, then you have an interesting situation on the way. After February 1st if I choose my 2017 Choice Benefits, I could for example gift my wife GOLD status. She would have the status “free” if you will all of 2016 and enjoy it all of 2017 and it would end February 1st of 2018. OR, I can wait almost 2 years to choose my Choice Benefits as I have until February 1st 2018 to make my selection.
I hope all of this is very clear. If it is not, please re-read this, or ask questions below, before you visit Delta.com to make your selections. Just whatever you do, do not let them go away by making NO selection that you have earned! – René
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Rene – given the increased difficulty in applying RUs/GUs and the decimation of C+ with “upgrades” do you feel it’s a better value for a PM to gift Silver to my significant other who travels with me 75% of the time and hope that Silver will have some value in 2016?
@Garth – If they fly even just 6+ times a year Silver can be GREAT. May even, with work and #TEAMBOARDLAST get a few upgrades! Hard call but one to think about yes.
Thanks for the reminder. I would have been toast!
If you are diamond and need some regional upgrades BEFORE you are ready to gift gold, you can claim your platinum benefits now and wait to choose your diamond benefits later.
Thanks, Rene. I haven’t claimed my RUs for 2015 so I’m planning to do that this week. I’m leaning towards claiming the Silver gift, given than I’m a MSP captive, but we shall see.
@Garth – This post may help you decide btw: http://renespoints.boardingarea.com/2015/10/16/is-it-worth-it-to-go-for-delta-silver-medallion-status-are-the-perks-worth-the-effort/
Thanks for this post! I did miss the deadline last year for the 2014 Choice Benefits, but I have already chosen the ones for 2015. Hopefully your post will help someone to remember!!
Hi Rene,
I might be wrong, but I thought that I could select my diamond benefits one at a time. I want to gift gold to my wife now, and redeem my GU certs at the end of the year because I don’t plan on using them right now and want to push the expiry date back.
Doesn’t look like I can do that, but I thought I did that last year. Any suggestions?
@Mike – It has been that way for a very long time. You must select both at once REG DM choices. You can pick the PM one and the 2 DM ones later if you want or the other way around as well.
Regarding you last point about the nearly 2 years of gifted gold- Have you verified this trick works?
Seems like they would either activate it for the current 2016 year or possibly just the 2017 medallion year, but both would be great if this is true.
@Noel – No trick at all. I did this and YES my wife has Gold for almost two years. Keep in mind the match. I choose my 2017 Choice Benefit. It is good for all of 2017 and ends 1FEB18. She got Gold “free” basically in 2016. It would be the same if say someone on 1JAN16 flew 50,000 miles and spent $6,000 in MQD. They would earn 2017 status and fly it free as Gold 2016. See?