When to cancel Barclays Blue Rewards?

PRAISETHESUN

changearound1 said:

So the fee for August will be collected in September and the fee for October will be collected in October. What about the fee for September?

I could be wrong, but my understanding is that the fee is always a month in advance, so the fee for September is taken at the start of September. The reward payment for September is paid at the start of October, after meeting all the criteria during the month of September

WillPS

changearound1 said:

So the fee for August will be collected in September and the fee for October will be collected in October. What about the fee for September?

No, the fee is taken at the start of each calendar month. The reward is paid for the previous month *after* the fee for the current month has been taken.

The last reward payment is in September, relating to actions completed in August. After that, there are only fees (paid in advance) but no rewards (in arrears).

Sandyra

Can I ask, as a Premier account, Barclays will cancel the rewards for you? 

RateTartExtraordinaire

Do I have to wait until I get the switch cashback and the fee to be deducted before cancelling membership of Blue Rewards.
On 14 Aug I switched an account with 2 direct debits to Barclays, I paid in £800 and joined Blue Reward on 16 Aug.
They have confirmed my switch and direct debits as on record from my old account. I think the £5 cashback for Blue Reward in Aug will go in on the first working day next month according to their welcome letter: 3 Sep
Is the earliest I can cancel my subscription to Blue Rewards and still qualify for the £175 for switching my bank account, 31 Aug?
If I cancel on 31 Aug, would I fall foul of the cooling off period?
If so, might it be safer to pay the Sept fee and cancel after that? ... Wishing I had managed to get the account open in July. 

WillPS

RateTartExtraordinaire said:

Do I have to wait until I get the switch cashback and the fee to be deducted before cancelling membership of Blue Rewards.
On 14 Aug I switched an account with 2 direct debits to Barclays, I paid in £800 and joined Blue Reward on 16 Aug.
They have confirmed my switch and direct debits as on record from my old account. I think the £5 cashback for Blue Reward in Aug will go in on the first working day next month according to their welcome letter: 3 Sep
Is the earliest I can cancel my subscription to Blue Rewards and still qualify for the £175 for switching my bank account, 31 Aug?
If I cancel on 31 Aug, would I fall foul of the cooling off period?
If so, might it be safer to pay the Sept fee and cancel after that? ... Wishing I had managed to get the account open in July. 

The earliest you can safely cancel Blue Rewards is after your switch bonus is paid. You might as well try and meet the conditions to get a £5 payment in September, then so long as you cancel before the end of September (but after the final £5 reward and your switch bonus have both hit your account) you should be fine.

The cooling off period is for you, not for them.

I'm not sure why it'd have been any different had you started in July.

boco803

My second DD is due to be collected in the next few days - do I cancel Blue Rewards shortly after and before 31st August, or do I wait until the reward is paid during the first few days in September? 

What will that mean in regards to the fee?

WillPS

boco803 said:

My second DD is due to be collected in the next few days - do I cancel Blue Rewards shortly after and before 31st August, or do I wait until the reward is paid during the first few days in September? 

What will that mean in regards to the fee?

The thread contains the answer:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80922905/#Comment_80922905

The long and short is that:

• if you want to keep Blue Rewards for as long as possible without paying a fee which won't be reimbursed with a matching reward, cancel at the end of September
• if you benefit from Blue Rewards to a greater extent than the £5 basic reward (i.e. for a mortgage), cancel anytime in September after the final reward is paid
• otherwise, it doesn't matter if you cancel before the end of August or after the final reward has been paid, as you won't get the final reward payment (for August) unless you pay the fee (for September).

The only potential way to 'lose out' is if you leave Blue Rewards after the 'end of the month' August deadline (5pm Fri 30th August) but before the reward for August is paid; or if you fail to cancel before the 'end of the month' September deadline (5pm Mon 30th August).

boco803

WillPS said:

boco803 said:

My second DD is due to be collected in the next few days - do I cancel Blue Rewards shortly after and before 31st August, or do I wait until the reward is paid during the first few days in September? 

What will that mean in regards to the fee?

The thread contains the answer:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80922905/#Comment_80922905

The long and short is that:

• if you want to keep Blue Rewards for as long as possible without paying a fee which won't be reimbursed with a matching reward, cancel at the end of September
• if you benefit from Blue Rewards to a greater extent than the £5 basic reward (i.e. for a mortgage), cancel anytime in September after the final reward is paid
• otherwise, it doesn't matter if you cancel before the end of August or after the final reward has been paid, as you won't get the final reward payment (for August) unless you pay the fee (for September).

The only potential way to 'lose out' is if you leave Blue Rewards after the 'end of the month' August deadline (5pm Fri 30th August) but before the reward for August is paid; or if you fail to cancel before the 'end of the month' September deadline (5pm Mon 30th August).

Thanks, I did but skim-read.

Looking at my transactions, it looks like both the fee and reward are taken/paid on the same day (a few days following the end of the month it relates to (so in arrears).  Assuming both fee and reward for August will be made on 3rd September, I can cancel any time after this, as long as it's before 5pm Monday 30th September (which is what I believe you meant)?

Or if you just pay a fee of £5 and get rewarded £5, could just cancel now?

WillPS

boco803 said:

WillPS said:

boco803 said:

My second DD is due to be collected in the next few days - do I cancel Blue Rewards shortly after and before 31st August, or do I wait until the reward is paid during the first few days in September? 

What will that mean in regards to the fee?

The thread contains the answer:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80922905/#Comment_80922905

The long and short is that:

• if you want to keep Blue Rewards for as long as possible without paying a fee which won't be reimbursed with a matching reward, cancel at the end of September
• if you benefit from Blue Rewards to a greater extent than the £5 basic reward (i.e. for a mortgage), cancel anytime in September after the final reward is paid
• otherwise, it doesn't matter if you cancel before the end of August or after the final reward has been paid, as you won't get the final reward payment (for August) unless you pay the fee (for September).

The only potential way to 'lose out' is if you leave Blue Rewards after the 'end of the month' August deadline (5pm Fri 30th August) but before the reward for August is paid; or if you fail to cancel before the 'end of the month' September deadline (5pm Mon 30th August).

Thanks, I did but skim-read.

Looking at my transactions, it looks like both the fee and reward are taken/paid on the same day (a few days following the end of the month it relates to (so in arrears).  Assuming both fee and reward for August will be made on 3rd September, I can cancel any time after this, as long as it's before 5pm Monday 30th September (which is what I believe you meant)?

Or if you just pay a fee of £5 and get rewarded £5, could just cancel now?

Correct. It's nil benefit/loss financially either way - I'd do it now if I wasn't bothered about Apple TV+ or keeping the Rainy Day Saver as long as possible.

philpmcs

Does anybody know what will happen to the rainy day saver account?  Mine is 'maxed' out at the moment, but I need to know when to shift my money elsewhere without losing interest.  Will Barclays contact me with info of when the account will close and I have to move my money?