Best Cashback Cards Article Discussion Area

p27

i have recently got a platinum american express as i have a large purchase to make unfortunately they dont take it, infact i have only found one shop that does so i dont think i will be using it . Does anyone know why so few places take it? .

M_Thomson

p27 wrote:

i have recently got a platinum american express as i have a large purchase to make unfortunately they dont take it, infact i have only found one shop that does so i dont think i will be using it . Does anyone know why so few places take it? .

I wouldn't say it is correct that few places take it. Pretty much most of the major stores and big name companies will take it although although some smaller stores will not. The reason is that they charge stores a higher commision fee than Mastercard or Visa.

angelfire

OK, i'm very new to this credit card cashback thing, but would like to take advantage of it - not only for the cashback, but also for the extra 'insurance' on items when bought via credit card...

I only really spend each week on household shopping, mobile phone, petrol, birthday presents etc and I'd say it would amount to around £450 - 500 per month?

What would be the best card to go for please?

Also, just wondering whether I might be better going for a loyalty points card instead?

anniecave

Ok I'm looking at Martin's article, and I'm not 100% sure.
I'm thinking the Amex card wouldn't be very beneficial for you as Amex isn't always accepted everywhere, so you may not spend enough on it with it's tiered cashback system.
If you normally use a debit card, so are used to paying for stuff as you go, I would probably go for the egg money card (don't confuse it with the egg card). You pay money onto the card in advance and it pays out 1% cashback on what you spend. It pays interest on what's on the account before you spend it, but you'd need to be careful you didn't go "into the red" ie spend without enough money on the card.

Your other option would be to go for two cards, as there are a few cards that do tiered cashback rates, specifically 1% for the first £2000 of spending in a year, and 0.5% above that limit.

So for example you could apply for the Morgan Stanley Card, which has an into bonus so you'd actually get 3% cashback for the intro period (it looks like it's 3 months) then use this until you've spent £2000 on the card. So some of your spending would be at the 3% intro rate (possibly £1500) then some at the 1% rate (say the next £500) Then have another 1% card (like the Yorkshire Building Society Classic) and spend the next £2000 of your spending on this. After this you can pick either card for the remainder of the year as they'd both be paying 0.5% on further spending.

Future years you wouldn't get the intro bonus, but you'd still get 1% on the first £2000 of spending on each, which isn't bad, providing neither card changes their cashback terms of course!

One thing to think about though is that cashback cards only pay cashback out at the end of the year normally, so for example if you apply for two cards now, they'd both pay their cashback out this time next year. Some people think that providers may start charging annual fees for credit cards, so that would discourage people like me who have more than one card at a time. And this would mean assuming current offers continue, you may be better off with egg money if this happens.

I think if I were you I'd go with egg money but it depends on whether you can be bothered with the pre-loading money onto the card thing.

angelfire

:beer: Thankyou AnnieCave for your thorough reply - it is very much appreciated! i'm not sure which to do - my partner would, I'm sure, prefer me to go for the egg as it means I'm never in debt so to speak - but like you say, I'd run the danger of overspending..

Plus the other optin would pay more..

Certainly food for thought.. - are any of the cards harder to obtain (credit check wise) than the others?

Harmonic

Why has the GE Credit Card, paying 3% Cash-Back, been dropped from being one of the top Cash-Back cards ?

Phoenix79_2

Harmonic wrote:

Why has the GE Credit Card, paying 3% Cash-Back, been dropped from being one of the top Cash-Back cards ?

Because its no longer available.

jordan_gibson

M_Thomson wrote:

I wouldn't say it is correct that few places take it. Pretty much most of the major stores and big name companies will take it although although some smaller stores will not. The reason is that they charge stores a higher commision fee than Mastercard or Visa.

Yes, if I remember correctly they charge a relative fortune (to the retailer) for being able to take Amex.

King_Weasel

anniecave wrote:

If you normally use a debit card, so are used to paying for stuff as you go, I would probably go for the egg money card (don't confuse it with the egg card). You pay money onto the card in advance and it pays out 1% cashback on what you spend. It pays interest on what's on the account before you spend it, but you'd need to be careful you didn't go "into the red" ie spend without enough money on the card.

I think if I were you I'd go with egg money but it depends on whether you can be bothered with the pre-loading money onto the card thing.

What's all this about having to pay in advance with Egg Money? I have this card (for the cashback) and treat it like any other credit card. You can pay in advance if you want, but you don't have to. You can of course pay in advance on any credit card. The only difference with Egg Money is that they'll pay you 4% pa interest if you do.

One other point to watch with this card: they deduct any monthly payment automatically from your bank account. (You choose either the minimum amount or the full balance.) Personally, I would have preferred to keep full control, but for others this could be an added attraction.

Hope this helps.

King Weasel

gazza1988

can i please ask someones advice?

ive read the article, followed the flow-chart, got to cashback/reward cards.

right all this tiered cashback sytem really has me confused, i was confused by the whole article (one minute it said tescos card was good (£2 for every £100), the next it was bad???(they halved the points you get))

im not too bothered about any rewards, (but ones where i can get money off dvds, games, etc would be nice) i would use the card to pay for stuff like xbox live (they only take visa, mastercard, and amex) and a few ebay payments etc

i currently have a solo card from natwest.

i try to never buy something that i cannot afford. which with me being 18 you may find hard to believe.