Absolutely steaming with Halifax

sav_c

Hi All,

I've had a Halifax One Visa card with 0.5% cashback on it for several years. I have a pretty large credit limit on it so have kept it for that reason despite there being many better cards out there.

Anyway, my card ran out on 31st August 2008 and was replaced by a Halifax Mastercard instead. They insisted that the card has identical T&Cs as the Visa one so no problem there.

I went on to their website to see if there were any differences between the cards. I noticed to my delight that the Mastercard carries a 1% cashback plus a 10% bonus cashback at year end of any unspent cashback. Excellent!

However, when I called to see if that was the case for my account the answer was no - I keep my existing T&Cs. OK, fair enough, but could I change to the new T&Cs to get the new cashback - the answer was no!

I find it a little odd and annoying that they are offering the 1% to new customers but old customers are told they have to stay on the old amount even though they have the same card.

The girl I spoke to today had no power to do anything and no supervisor was available to speak to as usual so I'll be calling the retentions department tomorrow to see what they can do.

Anybody else have the same card? Any joy upgrading the cashback?

Paul_Herring

sav_c wrote:

I find it a little odd and annoying that they are offering the 1% to new customers but old customers are told they have to stay on the old amount even though they have the same card.

Welcome to the world of customer loyalty towards/from banks.

It is not unusual for 'new offers' not to be extended to 'existing customers.'

Threaten to leave. And mean it (i.e. start looking for other cards if you need them, or be prepared to use existing ones. Note that some cashback schemes only pay on certain dates and canceling early will surrender andy cashback due.)

sav_c

Paul_Herring wrote: »

Welcome to the world of customer loyalty towards/from banks.

It is not unusual for 'new offers' not to be extended to 'existing customers.'

Threaten to leave. And mean it (i.e. start looking for other cards if you need them, or be prepared to use existing ones. Note that some cashback schemes only pay on certain dates and canceling early will surrender andy cashback due.)

I'm going to speak to them tomorrow and fully intend to tell them that I'm going to walk. Amex Platinum is my chosen weapon! I have a current account and saving account with them, plus my mortgage plus accounts for the kids all with Halifax. I'll threaten to take the lot somewhere else. We'll see what happens.

normanmark

Guns blazing isn't necessarily the best tactic. If you're polite to the person on the phone and explain what accounts you have with them as opposed to just trying to boast what you have with them & then expecting them to bend over backwards.

Politeness is the way forward

ldn-100

I had the Halifax Platinum Cashback Visa and it was also recently converted to Mastercard. I've had this card since around 1999. I called the retentions department last year to complain about the high APR (20%+) and had it reduced to 9.9% for purchases. I also mentioned the cashback (0.25%) and said it was uncompetitive, but was told this was something they had no power to change. I use Amex for purchases whenever I can and will now be using Egg Money for all other places.

King_Of_Fools

Just apply for the 1% cashback one as well. At one time I had 3 Halifax credit cards (one with no cashback, one with 0.25% cashback that had fallen from 1% and one with 1% cashback and 0% on purchases for 10 months).

sav_c

normanmark wrote: »

Guns blazing isn't necessarily the best tactic. If you're polite to the person on the phone and explain what accounts you have with them as opposed to just trying to boast what you have with them & then expecting them to bend over backwards.

Politeness is the way forward

I know I may have sounded gung ho but I am never ever rude to the person I speak to as it gets their back up and they just shut off.

I just got off the phone with one such person and she just told me that she couldn't do a thing about it. No changes can be made to the cashback element of the card. I went through the usual - I've got loads of accounts that I will cancel etc and she still said no. I told her to then put on my notes that I will be cancelling the card after several years as it deeply unfair that new customers get a better rate than existing ones and she just said OK. I am surprised and not surprised at the same time, but I would think that banks would want to keep good customers - obviously not.

I'm now going to call customer relations and go through the same thing again and see how far I get. If that fails the card is going!

Moggles_2

sav_c wrote: »

I'm now going to call customer relations and go through the same thing again and see how far I get. If that fails the card is going!

I wish you luck with customer relations, but the Hally is not known for existing customer offers, unfortunately.

Some lenders will not consider applications from former cardholders in the period following cancellation, but Halifax accepts applicants a month or so after closure. If I were you, I'd close your existing card a/c. That way there's nothing to stop you from reapplying as a new customer.* Admittedly, you may be handed a lower credit limit initially, but the Hally tends to raise the limit automatically every few months, provided that you keep within the Ts & Cs

*Btw, it's advisable to check your credit reports to make sure the a/c is marked "settled" before you submit a new credit card application

normanmark

sav_c wrote: »

I know I may have sounded gung ho but I am never ever rude to the person I speak to as it gets their back up and they just shut off.

I just got off the phone with one such person and she just told me that she couldn't do a thing about it. No changes can be made to the cashback element of the card. I went through the usual - I've got loads of accounts that I will cancel etc and she still said no. I told her to then put on my notes that I will be cancelling the card after several years as it deeply unfair that new customers get a better rate than existing ones and she just said OK. I am surprised and not surprised at the same time, but I would think that banks would want to keep good customers - obviously not.

I'm now going to call customer relations and go through the same thing again and see how far I get. If that fails the card is going!

I'm not surprised really, if its a core term of the card that its an introductory offer then there isnt a lot an adviser can do.

As for the good customer spiel. It counts for nothing, so don't waste your breath.