Topping up Revolut with a credit card - a warning to others!

jbrassy

So I'm quite lucky in that I have a legacy Capital One credit card which still pays 0.5% cashback on all purchases (quite rare for a non-Amex these days). For a while now, I've been topping up my Revolut card using my Capital One card and I have not been charged any fees by Capital One for doing this. Therefore, I've been lucky enough to have the best exchange rates abroad using Revolut combined with 0.5% cashback from Capital One.
However, last month I had a bit of a shock when I checked my Capital One statement to find that a cash fee had been applied and that I was charged interest for topping up Revolut. I immediately contacted Capital One who told me that Revolut have recently changed the way they treat credit card top ups from "purchases" to "wire transfers", thus charges are now applied to these transactions. 
I complained to Revolut who have so far agreed to refund the cash fee I was charged, but not the interest. I just wanted to post this as a warning to others so they don't get charged like I did. For me it's a lesson learned and I will not be topping up Revolut with my credit card again. In fact, it's unlikely I'll use Revolut again as I now have the Barclaycard Rewards credit card which pays 0.25% cashback and does not charge for foreign transactions and I have a Starling Bank account to get free ATM withdrawals abroad. 

john1002

You were lucky to have it last as long as you did, I believe that most credit cards topped up this way are now treated as cash advances so fees and interest charged.

john

The_Urbanite

Agree with the sentiment that it was good while it lasted. Thanks jbrassy for warning others. That Barclaycard product is probably best if you want both rewards and to spend abroad without forex fees.

It's expensive for Revolut to process card top ups. Most similar products either charge a top up fee of anything up to 4% or don't accept cards for top up at all, instead encouraging top ups by bank transfer and direct wage payments. Revolut have experimented recently, changing their merchant category around. They appear to have settled on one which credit card issuers are likely to discourage customers from using. Any combination of charging a cash advance fee, interest with no interest free period and not awarding any points/cashback are what most issuers do with transactions of this nature.

Given they also have crypto features I wouldn't be surprised if the merchant category changes to a full blown quasi-cash one at some point.

bengalknights

Strange on my MBNA still shows as MCC Finanacial Institutions - Merchandises and Services 
It must be Capital one that have changed the stance.

The_Urbanite

bengalknights said:

Strange on my MBNA still shows as MCC Finanacial Institutions - Merchandises and Services 
It must be Capital one that have changed the stance.

When did you make that transaction?

Nemodot

This prob explains why revolut wouldn't allow me to top up without entering my card details again - I didn't bother. They should warn customers! So prob end of the quickie free cash flow management tool. Pity.

bengalknights

The_Urbanite said:

bengalknights said:

Strange on my MBNA still shows as MCC Finanacial Institutions - Merchandises and Services 
It must be Capital one that have changed the stance.

When did you make that transaction?

Just did one yesterday and one on 19th still no changes

jbrassy

I just thought I'd provide an update on this.

I complained to Revolut about the charges I have faced as a result of topping-up using my Capital One credit card. Thankfully, they agreed to refund the cash fee and interest I was charged by Capital One as an act of goodwill. 

In the email they sent me, they stated the following:
"Unfortunately as a requirement of the card networks, (i.e. MasterCard, Visa), it was necessary to change the way top ups were processed. Since the fees were not charged by us, we do not believe our terms and conditions have been breached."

I still think it's poor form on Revolut's part for not informing their customers about how they are treating credit card top-ups. Therefore, I thought I'd highlight to the MSE community. 

As I mentioned previously, I've removed my Capital One card from my Revolut account and I doubt I'll be using Revolut again given the superior products now available on the market.

jbrassy

I just thought I'd provide an update on this.

I complained to Revolut about the charges I have faced as a result of topping-up using my Capital One credit card. Thankfully, they agreed to refund the cash fee and interest I was charged by Capital One as an act of goodwill. 

In the email they sent me, they stated the following:
"Unfortunately as a requirement of the card networks, (i.e. MasterCard, Visa), it was necessary to change the way top ups were processed. Since the fees were not charged by us, we do not believe our terms and conditions have been breached."

I still think it's poor form on Revolut's part for not informing their customers about how they are treating credit card top-ups. Therefore, I thought I'd highlight to the MSE community. 

As I mentioned previously, I've removed my Capital One card from my Revolut account and I doubt I'll be using Revolut again given the superior products now available on the market.

block10

Virgin Money now charging a fee also for top-ups given Revolut recently changed the MCC code.

jbrassy

block10 said:

Virgin Money now charging a fee also for top-ups given Revolut recently changed the MCC code.

Yet another reason to ditch Revolut.

Another thing I noticed recently is that Revolut now only allow you to exchange £1000 per month fee-free on their free "Standard" plan. This used to be £5000. I don't want to boast or anything, but I'm pretty sure that when I go on a 2 week foreign holiday, I can easily spend more than £1000 once I've paid for hotels, food, drink, and everything else. 

As I mentioned previously, I have no idea why anyone would stick with Revolut anymore when you can get Barclaycard Rewards or Starling Bank (I haven't even mentioned Revolut's awful customer service, i.e. their useless "Rita" chatbot and endless waits to talk to a human). It's a shame because Revolut used to be so good.