How points hack scored CEO $10k worth of free flights in a year
Travelling for work can be punishing, but this CEO found a way to have some of that business travel spill over into the “life” column of his work/life balance ledger: points hacking.
On any given week, Jamie Morris could find himself in any city in Australia.
The chief operating officer at Early Learning Management, a company supporting small business childcare centres across Australia to manage or grow their businesses, Mr Morris frequently travels interstate at short notice.
“We’re essentially road warriors,” he told news.com.au. “We could be in the Northern Territory one week, then Tasmania the next.”
And while the work can be intensive, he’s found a way to have some of that business travel spill over into the “life” column of his work/life balance ledger: points hacking.
And Mr Morris is not alone, with Virgin Australia noticing a growing strend of business owners - particularly those who run microbusinesses, which account for 80 per cent of the program’s members - using their everyday spend to offset personal travel and holidays.
Mr Morris is Virgin Australia Business Flyer member, and through a savvy approach to work travel he’s been able to accrue enough points to book three international trips in the space of 12 months - amounting to $10,000. All he needed to pay were the taxes.
“I flew to Argentina to see Shakira at the beginning of the year,” explains Mr Morris. “I went for three weeks and it was a dream.”
Return flights from Mr Morris’s hometown of the Gold Coast to Buenos Aires average around $2000 at a minimum, but because of the points he’d accrued through his business travel and credit card expenditure, he was able to pay for the entire journey on points.
“All of our work credit cards are linked to our Velocity rewards as well,” he said. “So right now I’m in Perth, and I just ordered Uber Eats to the hotel. That’s earning me more points as we speak.”
Mr Morris’s partner, who works in renewable energy, also takes advantage of the program’s family pooling feature, which allows family members to pool their points and status credits (Velocity is the only Australian airline points program that allows members to do this) in one member’s account in order to reach status milestones sooner.
As a result, Mr Morris is now a platinum member, meaning he enjoys premium comforts like four complimentary business class upgrades per year, complimentary economy-X extra-leg room seating, and access to Virgin Australia lounges for him and up to three guests.
But the real benefit of a Platinum membership comes in the form of extra points-earning capacity. While a standard member earns four Velocity points for every dollar spent, a Platinum member earns eight, meaning Mr Morris has been able to accrue rewards at an impressive pace.
“My partner and I flew to Japan about six weeks ago, also on points,” he said, which saved the couple an estimated $3000 on flights.
“But most exciting is that I’m planning on surprising him with flights to Turkey for Christmas.”
An average return airfare for two people from Australia to Europe is around $5000, meaning in just 12 months Mr Morris’s gruelling work travel schedule has netted him some serious perks.
“What I love about it is that these aren’t just perks for me as the chief operating officer,” he said. “But they’re for everyone in the team - and by thinking about where you’re spending your money now, and how you can consolidate those rewards, anyone can build up their points balance quite quickly.
“I think the trick is to choose one frequent flyer program and stay loyal to it. If you focus on how to maximise those points, before you know it you’ll have racked up 100,000 or 200,000.”
Velocity points hacks
The world of points hacking is untapped gold when it comes to earning rewards. Here are three tips for maximising your miles.
- As of April 2025, holding a Velocity credit card directly increases the number of points you earn from flying. While non-Platinum members earn four points per $1 spent, using a Velocity card to book flights will earn five points per $1.
- The “Zone 1” value hack is another Velocity special. Virgin’s “Zone 1” prices are of significant value, with short domestic legs redeemable for only 5900 points, extracting massive value per point. “I’m from Sydney, and a few times I’ve had to fly back and forth at short notice,” says Morris, “and I’ve been able to do it using only a few points each time, which has been amazing.”
- Fly in lie-flat luxury to Tokyo by redeeming points on partner airline All-Nippon Airways (ANA), one of the best-value routes on the chart. Because ANA is a partner airline, it sits on a different reward table than Virgin’s own flights, with a business-class ticket (one way) only setting you back around 82,000 points, with very low taxes to boot.
This article was created in partnership with Virgin Australia Business Flyer rewards program
