Any cards that are really worth it these days?

[Deleted User]

Sandtree said:

Mickey666 said:
Exactly.   I’m not up to date with Amex merchant fees but they used to be among the highest and was why many places would not accept Amex cards.  My advice to anyone with an Amex card is to also have a Visa or MasterCard as Amex is the only card I’ve ever had refused by a merchant . . . Which is not ideal when it’s the only card you have, especially when travelling.

Even before the caps on the interchange fees came in AmEx had already lowered its fees considerably.

AmEx has moved into a bit of weird space in recent years... its massively more mainstream in the UK than it used to be, helped in part by the Lloyds merchant banking services and others adding AmEx to their services. 

Certainly in London its old established small/medium size companies that are the remaining ones that arent likely to accept it... large companies bar a few notable exceptions have accepted it for years... smaller new companies are using things like iZettle, Square and PayPal instead of traditional merchant services and these all accept AmEx and so its your cornershop with a traditional card machine that are the only ones that routinely still dont accept it but then our local cornershop has gone to the wall since a co-op  and a sainsburys local both opened in the area and both take Amex.

There are definitely some quirks to be aware of:

• Amex Contactless isn't always setup (even where Amex is accepted as Chip & Pin) but Visa/MC contactless works.
• There are no longer any forex free Amex cards after Amex stopped 3rd party issuers such as MBNA.
• Non-US foreign transactions are converted via USD - e.g. AUD > USD > GBP.

Sandtree

dahj said:

• There are no longer any forex free Amex cards after Amex stopped 3rd party issuers such as MBNA.
• Non-US foreign transactions are converted via USD - e.g. AUD > USD > GBP.

There are the international cards that bill in $ or €, I had the former in a business card back in my days of going to the USA every couple of weeks... they do have forex fees if you spend in a different currency, inc GBP, but if you are spending a lot of time in the USA or Europe could make sense and not attract fees.

Whilst the final point is true I’ve never seen any real world impact of it... certainly I’ve spent £1,000 on AmEx and Visa whilst abroad and the conversion rates, were exceptionally close and at times one was fractionally better than the other and others times the other way around.

[Deleted User]

Sandtree said:

dahj said:

• There are no longer any forex free Amex cards after Amex stopped 3rd party issuers such as MBNA.
• Non-US foreign transactions are converted via USD - e.g. AUD > USD > GBP.

There are the international cards that bill in $ or €, I had the former in a business card back in my days of going to the USA every couple of weeks... they do have forex fees if you spend in a different currency, inc GBP, but if you are spending a lot of time in the USA or Europe could make sense and not attract fees.

Whilst the final point is true I’ve never seen any real world impact of it... certainly I’ve spent £1,000 on AmEx and Visa whilst abroad and the conversion rates, were exceptionally close and at times one was fractionally better than the other and others times the other way around.

You do know that a forex free card is different from one denominated in another currency?!

sharsky53

In terms of cashback there is nothing close to Amex. It's just that beside smaller retailers some major players also don't accept it so you always need a Visa or Mastercard (I have an Amazon card) back up. Tui Group is one and B&Q is another example and if you are paying anything to the Government such as road tax etc forget Amex. It's a pity really as their customer service is very good.

Malkytheheed

Sandtree said:

Malkytheheed said:

Sadly the UK is about the worst place in the world for Credit Card perks. In the US you can get a plethora of cards with 3, 5% cashback, double cashback, miles, hotel stays etc.

Thats because they issue a lot of cards on Visa Infiniti etc which have massive fees for merchants to accept but merchants in the USA can choose to decline to accept certain cards or pass the card fees on to the customer. 

In the UK, and europe, fees have been capped, merchants cannot differentiate pricing by payment method for private customers etc so less money being generated to pass on to customers are rewards.

I know why it is, doesnt make it any better. End of the day the responsible customer loses out. I have UK cards and US cards and I can tell you the US cards are way better for me as the end consumer 

_Baz_

If you use Amazon a lot and especially if you're a Prime member then the Amazon Platinum CC might appeal. Cash back is by Amazon gift card which is credited against your amazon.co.uk account rather than the CC account. For me, it's as good as cash.

I use the Amazon CC for all purchases, unless it's a USD or EUR online purchase (or on holiday) when instead I use the Halifax Clarity CC with zero foreign currency fees/loading.

For Prime members, Amazon purchases have effective 1.5% cashback and off-Amazon purchases 0.25% cashback, given back through gift cards.

From Amazon's website:

   Earn 1.5 Amazon Reward Points per £2 spent at Amazon.co.uk, 
   Earn 0.5 Amazon Reward Point per £2 spent everywhere else 
For eligible Amazon Prime members**: 
   Earn 3 Amazon Reward Points per £2 spent at Amazon.co.uk, 
   Earn 0.5 Amazon Reward Point per £2 spent everywhere else 
1000 points = £10 Amazon.co.uk Gift Card 

Chrysalis

Even without 0% deals, credit cards always have value, they there as a source of money for emergencies, s75 protection, and paying for food etc. and then paying off in full every month is a way to defer expenditure as well.

Alex9384

I'm surprised nobody mentioned NatWest Reward credit card.
It has 1% cashback on all supermarket spend, which is better than Amex.

Yes, it has a £24 annual fee, but this is waived if you have their Reward current account, which means even more rewards.
For some reason, they don't want to give me their credit card. Instead, they're offering me £5000 overdraft, which I really don't need. So for now I just stick to Amex.

jbrassy

Alex9384 said:

I'm surprised nobody mentioned NatWest Reward credit card.
It has 1% cashback on all supermarket spend, which is better than Amex.

Yes, it has a £24 annual fee, but this is waived if you have their Reward current account, which means even more rewards.
For some reason, they don't want to give me their credit card. Instead, they're offering me £5000 overdraft, which I really don't need. So for now I just stick to Amex.

The Natwest Reward credit card may pay 1% on supermarket spending, but it only pays 0.25% cashback on all other spending. On the other hand, the Amex Platinum pays 1% on all spending and 1.25% on spending over £10,000 over the course of the year. Although Amex charge a £25 annual fee, I personally think Amex is a better offer. 

Sandtree

Malkytheheed said:
I know why it is, doesnt make it any better. End of the day the responsible customer loses out. I have UK cards and US cards and I can tell you the US cards are way better for me as the end consumer 

Thats unfortunately the cost of a nanny state... that goes way beyond just the quality of credit cards on offer but also prices you pay in the shop which obviously has to cover CRA rights, distance selling regulations etc... in some areas these can add a material amount to the cost but you as a savvy shopper have no ability to waive rights in exchange for lower prices.