Credit Card Freebies

MSE_Martin

If you've spotted a new credit card freebie.  Then please reply to this and tell us about it.

To read Martin's article on credit card freebies click here http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1061149376,77935,

If you only have basic details of the freebie, great! Please tell us.  However if you know then please include

i. What the freebie is?
ii. What you need do to qualify for it?
iii. Is it generally available or only through a special link?
iv. Any idea how long it is available for?
v. Any details on the interest rate of the card?

Martin

System

My wife just received a mailshot from MBNA offering Liverpool Football Club sponsored credit card.

The freebie they are giving away is a Liverpool FC home shirt (after Chelseas 1-2 win) subject to availability for applications before September 26th. Use the card once and the home shirt is yours within 28 days. It is not available on the MBNA website so it looks like a mailshot promotion.

As MBNA also promote Manchester Utd and Chelsea FC cards, maybe they will be offering those teams shirts as freebies depending on location.

The interest rate is 0% p.a transfer of existing borrowing and 15.9% APR variable on purchases.

ADC_3

I'm a unison member and I've been offered a card with various benefits but the big one is if I use it within 30 days of receiving it I get £40 M&S vouchers. The terms don't specify how much I have to spend.

See it online at https://www.unioncard.co.uk/unison

Tim_L

This will certainly be a Bank of Scotland 'Affinity" card, which they sell through various organisations and charities.

There are quite a number of variants of these, including the Stroke Association, which I had for a while. Apart from the £40 vouchers, the association or charity gets a certain amount of money when you sign up, and of course there's usually a 0% balance transfer (you need to pay off your initial spend before making this or else you can end up paying interest). I didn't get a particularly generous credit limit though, about 2.5K where normally I get 6-10.

Anyway it's quite a worthwhile card to look at from a fewangles if you haven't already got a BOS card of some sort.

cosmos_2

I have got an MBNA Europe Platinum card with freebie CD player. I phoned to ask how to get my CD player, I was told to pay the minimum payment on my account statement then make a purchase of say £5 and the CD will be sent to me within 28 days. I have also applied for a Blue Amex card with freebie Digital Camera, the same applies as above. After reading Martins post, (Important note: Both these cards have special interest rates that apply only to balance transfers, not for your spending. This means you should NEVER use these cards for spending on. Do that and your spending debts will be trapped at a high rate, and you won’t be able to clear them until you’ve paid the whole amount of the balance you have transferred off.) “When is a freebie not a freebie” seems to apply to the above. The only way I could beat this system is to pay off my balance transfer of £500 + my £5 purchase = freebie, then balance transfer an other £500 from my Lloyds card to take advantage of my 9 month Btf of 0% Is it worth doing this? Has anyone taken up the freebie offer? Or what do you think? Thanks Cosmos

MSE_Martin

Both these are good points. Let me clarify slightly - the 'you must spend' criteria allows a very small spending amount. If you spend a tiny bit and do the balance transfer the impact is very very small.

With Blue Amex if you dont spend £500 a year there is an annual fee. However if you spend a little and use the balance transfer at 4.9% (assuming it is that rather than cashback you want it for - with cashback there's no issue) then the £15 is actually not too big an amount considering the low cost of the BT (providing your BT is above £1,000 - the equation is skewed slightly for lower amounts)

martin

Tim_L

It is *not* a tremendously wonderful CD player, so not worth jumping through hoops for. You don't have to do an immediate balance transfer though - this can be done online later - so the solution is just to spend a fiver, pay it off, then do a transfer.

isasmurf

and the amex blue gives you the chance of winning a car ... fat chance that i'll win

I'm interested in the amex blue, if only for the camera, i always pay off my balances in full so interest rates don't bother me and it beats my current cashback rate... but I knew someone that applied for a Blue Amex a couple of years ago and he said he had problems with places accepting it? Is this true?

He got the card when they charged an annual fee, and he craftily got out of paying the annual fee by saying he didn't realise he had to pay a fee and telling the customer service woman that he didn't want it if he had to pay a fee... so she said he didn't have to pay a fee... it might be worth trying with any other cards that have an annual fee.

MSE_Martin

Unfortunately the Blue Amex is less accepted than a Visa or Mastercard. Often the problem is in restaurants. Usually I recommend the Circle Rebate card for exactly this reason as it is the only other full 1% card - yet it is a Mastercard. However the camera swings teh balance somewhat as does the 2% for three months.

On another note - it should be pointed out the 'offer' Blue Amex doesn't have teh 4.9% balance transfer rate anymore, it now has a worse rate - i've amended the main article to explain.

martin

dguppy

I have just recieved an email offering me a free men's Accurist watch RRP £69.90 (while stocks last), if I apply for an MBNA card with 9mths 0% APR.

See the link below for details.

https://www.applyonlinenow.com/UKMPapp/Ctl/display?page=optionalPage&pageName=rewards

chaos2

Anyone wants up to £2000 interest free for up to six months?

Citi Bank is offering that when you apply for their credit card. You can apply upto £2000 and they will send you a cheque. Can used the money and save it in a Bank Account. Also purchases are 6 months interest free.

They have a stand at Blue Water in front of the Lego shop. Whether you apply or not you can have a go at their virtual car racing facilities.