Barclaycard Platinum travel card 2018 or 2022 fee free?

kfsimpson

I applied for the Barclaycard as a Visa alternative to my Santander Zero Mastercard when the fee-free deal was until August 2018. Shortly after receiving it they extended the offer to 2022 for new applicants. I have contacted them to ask if they will be extending this period for existing cardholders and am very surprised that they reply that they will not. I can understand that they might not do so for all existing cardholders, but reckoned they would, ‘as a goodwill gesture’, for those who asked. Anyone else in the same position? What’s the advice of fellow forum users? Close the account and then re-apply as a new applicant? It’s certainly not treating customers in a way likely to create loyalty and goodwill …..

Chino

kfsimpson wrote: »

Close the account and then re-apply as a new applicant?

You may have to wait six months after closing your account to be considered a "new" applicant. It might be worth checking with Barclaycard first on this point.

Of course, there's no guarantee the offer (or similar offer) will be available once you are eligible to be considered a new applicant.

greenorange

Once you've had the card 6 months, call them and product transfer it over to the 0.5% cash back card.

Wait 6 months... apply for the travel card.

You'll have a decent (considering the lack of options) cash back card, as well a free to use abroad card.

kfsimpson

Chino wrote: »

You may have to wait six months after closing your account to be considered a "new" applicant. It might be worth checking with Barclaycard first on this point.

Of course, there's no guarantee the offer (or similar offer) will be available once you are eligible to be considered a new applicant.

Thanks, wasn’t aware of the need to wait six months. I’ll probably wait until Aug 2018 and assess the offers available at that time.
Still think it’s a poor show from Barclaycard!

kfsimpson

greenorange wrote: »

Once you've had the card 6 months, call them and product transfer it over to the 0.5% cash back card.

Wait 6 months... apply for the travel card.

You'll have a decent (considering the lack of options) cash back card, as well a free to use abroad card.

Thanks, good thinking, but I already have the 0.5% cashback card (used to have the 1% Amex version). Annoying that they extended the ‘offer’, and disappointing that they haven’t offered it to existing holders. More and more financial providers are looking after existing clients – witness Banco Santander increasing the regular saver rate to 5%. Clearly B’card doesn’t care about retaining customers.

wiseonesomeofthetime

I too applied for the Barclaycard Platinum card this year for the Travel aspect and received the offer of fee-free until 31 August 2018.

Having now completed this year's foreign holiday, I shall not require a foreign travel card again until 2019 as takes two years to save up for a holiday abroad.

For me, the card is now useless, as I have other cards for UK use.

Keeping open for the time being though purely to protect my credit utilisation on my stoozing plans.

Agree with OP though that it would have been nice to have had the original promotional offer extended to 2022 like new customers.

Wellard_Mann

wiseonesomeofthetime wrote: »

I too applied for the Barclaycard Platinum card this year for the Travel aspect and received the offer of fee-free until 31 August 2018.

Agree with OP though that it would have been nice to have had the original promotional offer extended to 2022 like new customers.

Likewise. I do have a Santander Zero card as well but I think it's prudent to carry a back up card on overseas trips, and the Barclaycard being a Visa card is a bonus since the Santander is Mastercard.

I'll keep it open and assess options on expiry.

stevenhp1987

It's no different from a company offering 15 months balance transfer 0% to offering 18 months 0%. People don't complaint then, so why do people complain about this?

You applied for the top deal at the time. You got it.

Offers change. You got an offer you were happy with. 0% offers change over time.

It's not a travel specific card. It's a card with a travel offer attached to it, much like a balance transfer offer.

PeacefulWaters

kfsimpson wrote: »

Clearly B’card doesn’t care about retaining customers.

Or maybe the cost of changing T&Cs for several thousand wave one customers now can be saved by doing nothing until they have to.

They'll have to contact you nearer the "expiry time" with replacement T&Cs and my guess is they'll extend the date then. One lot of paperwork through your letter box. Better for their costs, better for the environment.

At the monent you have a guaranteed period of benefit. Halifax Clarity (and others) could remove their benefit at two months notice. Barclaycard have committed to longer.