MSE News: Aqua axes 3% cashback credit card – should you ditch and switch?

Aquamania

marks7389 wrote: »

Just asked the question... yes they will round it down, so best to check how much you're owed and if just under a multiple of £5 spend the necessary in the next week to push it over the threshold.


Cheeky since this has not been mentioned in any of the closure literature - I suspect there will be a few unhappy people when that becomes apparent.

I think if there is one lesson that can be learnt from this thread, it's that you cannot rely on the information their call centre staff give out by phone.

I think I will wait until I receive payment and then perhaps argue about it it's short.

Whilst they have rounded down the amounts to the nearest £5 when crediting accounts in the past, the amount rounded down was carried forward on the account. i.e it wasn't pocketed by Aqua.

Or I might follow Scrounger's suggestion and send in the application form so they can transfer the amount not paid to a new account

Aquamania

Aquamania wrote: »

It would appear lots of us have chosen the ditch & switch option.

Got an email this morning. It says we can still send in the application for their 0.5% cashback card, but that it could take 3 business days from date of receipt to re-activate the card which otherwise will stop working from 22 January.

Now they've phoned me, well actually it was a recorded text on my landline to remind me again.

CLI was 0844 284 4215

marks7389

Aquamania wrote: »

I think if there is one lesson that can be learnt from this thread, it's that you cannot rely on the information their call centre staff give out by phone.

I think I will wait until I receive payment and then perhaps argue about it it's short.

Whilst they have rounded down the amounts to the nearest £5 when crediting accounts in the past, the amount rounded down was carried forward on the account. i.e it wasn't pocketed by Aqua.

Or I might follow Scrounger's suggestion and send in the application form so they can transfer the amount not paid to a new account

Well I specifically asked if they would round it down, to which I got a response that didn't answer the question. However he then proceeded to quote how much cash back I would get based on my spend to date, which was rounded down.

I then clarified by asking if I accrue £86 (as an example) is that what they would pay. No, came the response, £85. So you are going to round it down I said. Further fudging in response...

So draw your own conclusions from that... Personally I will spend the small amount I need to over the next few days to push it just over the next £5 threshold.

If you take up the option of a new card that presumably won't be an issue, though you'd have to wait until your next anniversary for the payment and at 0.5% it would take a lot more spend to bring it up to the next £5 anyway. Once your account is closed and cash back paid out I doubt there will be any way back, and no guarantee that the new card will still be available. Complaining is unlikely to help since the clause enabling them to round down payment is burried in the terms and conditions, and I suspect most people wouldn't bother for <£5.

bkkmei

I will be letting my card lapse.

To cut a long story short, there is a large disputed amount (online fraud) on my account for which I have paid by automatic direct debit. I guess I was optimistic that the whole issue would be resolved swiftly. It has been there since end November and I still haven't been paid back. Aqua blame the retailer for being tardy over documentation.

It's been a long time since I've had to dispute a transaction or lost my cards but when it has happened in the past, I have always been refunded immediately and any further investigation would not affect my account. But not with Aqua.

After the 3rd time of calling, they have just told me that if I wanted I could ask my bank to reverse the direct debit and get a refund that way. Why didn't they tell me this before?

So lovely for the 3% cashback (RIP), but not at the expense of being fleeced for a fraudulent transaction.

marks7389

bkkmei wrote: »

After the 3rd time of calling, they have just told me that if I wanted I could ask my bank to reverse the direct debit and get a refund that way. Why didn't they tell me this before?

Sounds like nonsense to me.

If you reverse the direct debit without the transaction having been removed from the account you will simply owe money on which they will charge interest, plus any other fees that a failed DD may enable them to apply.

As you say most card providers will remove the disputed transaction immediately on the basis that if the vendor can supply documentation that proves the money is in fact owed, they will reapply it.

I only disputed one transaction with Aqua, where an overseas vendor had charged my account in Sterling dispute my explicit instruction (recorded on the card receipt) that it be charged in local currency. They immediately credited my account with the difference, albeit it was only about £3. Presumably they felt that was not worth debating, and was credited as 'goodwill'.

bkkmei

marks7389 wrote: »

Sounds like nonsense to me.

If you reverse the direct debit without the transaction having been removed from the account you will simply owe money on which they will charge interest, plus any other fees that a failed DD may enable them to apply.

Indeed, I had to call back and double check on this. I was told that the disputed item would not incur interest while under investigation. Of course, I need to keep a close eye on this - I haven't thought about a failed DD - but it was their client team manager who advised me to do this. There is a timing issue too, as allegedly the investigation is in its final stages and the amount should be credited back to my account within the week, i.e. before next payment/billing date.

I don't know why some clients are able to get immediate refunds and I have not. It was a large amount and done online - I would have thought: easy, check the buyer's address. But it has been 6 weeks now and Aqua say they need to give the retailer a chance to respond. No other card company has ever said this to me! They also wasted a lot of time by making me wait for a letter to confirm the disputation, signing it and sending it back. Only then did they start investigating.

So:
a) they don't automatically refund fraudulent transactions - unlike every other card company I've ever dealt with
b) they could have told me earlier that I could reverse the direct debit and not get charged for the item in dispute
c) they have taken ages to investigate, even given xmas etc. etc.

I feel like I'm jumping through hoops to get my money back and I've not done anything wrong. Shoddy. Not worth it for 3% cashback let alone 0.5%.

lisyloo

Now will i get my cashback by chqeue?

Yes, but you'll have to wait a few weeks as they'll have quite a few to send out.
Can you not spend £100?

I've chosen to spend exactly £100 instead, then I don't need to wait weeks for cheques and go to the bank to pay it in, wait for it clear etc.

ann_oyed

I applied for a Aqua card 14 months ago and saved the web page advert which stipulated

“Withaqua Reward you could earn 3% cash back on everything you buy, every year”.

So how can they legally cancel the card when your contract is based on the above statement

Gromitt

ann_oyed wrote: »

So how can they legally cancel the card when your contract is based on the above statement

Your contract is based on the terms and conditions they sent to you (and you agreed to), not an advert. This will allow them to cancel the contract at any times, as long as they give you sufficient notice.

Scrounger

Misleading Advertising

An advert is misleading if, by its words or image, it deceives or is likely to deceive and so persuades, or is likely to persuade, you to spend your money or to change how you spend your money (for example, by persuading you to change from one credit card to another). Misleading adverts may: contain lies; leave out or hide important facts; make a promise which will not be carried out; or create a false impression - even though everything in it may be true.

What action shall we take?

Scrounger