It might seem petty to be anxiously awaiting the arrival of my 2012 MileagePlus credentials, but as most of you know, Star Alliance “lounge dragons†demand a valid card for entry. I’ve witnessed many people turned away after not being able to present a current card even though their Star Gold status is clearly evident on their boarding passes, and since I still haven’t received mine with today’s mail, I called MileagePlus to complain.

As usual, calling more than once tends to yield different results, so I placed two calls directly to the MileagePlus Service Desk. Here’s a recap:

Call #1:

Agent: “Hello, this is Ms. Davis… am I speaking with Mr. Booth?â€

Me: “Yes, hello.â€

A: “Thank you for being a valued 1K, how may I assist you?â€

Me: “Well, I’m a bit concerned I haven’t received my new card yet and I have a flight tomorrow on Singapore Airlines in economy (okay, I lied). Singapore’s lounge agents have always needed a valid card for entry, so given I haven’t received mine, I’m at a loss of what to do.â€

A: “I’m so sorry. We mailed the cards and I know many still haven’t received them, so I’d recommend printing your activity from United.com to show that you’re a current 1K member.â€

Me: “I’ll hope for the best with that. Do you show when my card was mailed?â€

A: “No, we don’t have specifics for individual cards, but they were mailed.â€

Me: “In previous years, they were always sent via Standard mail, which can take up to a month… do you know when they were sent?â€

A: “Oh, I don’t think they’d mail 1K cards Standard mail. Hold on.â€

After about three minutes on hold…

A: “Thank you for your patience. They were mailed First Class, so you should receive it in within the next week.â€

Me: “Okay, thanks… I’ll hope for the best with the lounge agent.â€

 

Here’s how the second phone call went.

Call #2:

Agent: “Hello, am I speaking with Mr. Booth?â€

Me: “Yes, hello.â€

A: “How can I help you?â€

Me: “Well, I’m a bit concerned I haven’t received my new 1K card as of today’s mail and I’m flying with Singapore Airlines tomorrow in economy. The lounge agents have historically always required a valid card for entry, so I’m a bit worried I’ll be denied access.â€

A: “I’m sorry, Mr. Booth, but they were mailed last week.â€

Me: “Last year they were sent via Standard mail which can take up to a month. Do you know if that’s the case now?â€

A: “No, I was told they were mailed First Class. I can send you an email confirming your status if you like.â€

Me: “Yes, please, that would be helpful. I just hope the lounge agents accept it.â€

A: “Well, with the merger, we’ve advised Star Alliance that things are going slow, so hopefully the email will be accepted.â€

Me: “Thanks for your help.â€

Here’s the email as it was sent to me. Quite honestly, it’s not very official looking, but if you still haven’t received your credentials it might not hurt to give MileagePlus a call to request the same.

Finally, if you’re a million-miler… be sure to check your doorstep for a FedEx package. This Flyertalk thread is reporting many MMs received their credentials and a gift today.

[Edited to add: Definitely follow Gene’s recommendation in his comment below to print a temporary card. Also, a friend here in Southern California received his Gold kit today and his, anyway, was sent standard mail…]