Time to maximize points on travel-branded credit cards
I have four credit cards in my wallet, but most of the time I use just one general purpose card. It’s easy and the points I earn are transferable to about a dozen airline and hotel partners. I save the hotel and airline cards for when I travel to rack up lots of incentive points when I use their brands.
But lately I’ve forced myself to rethink my strategy. That’s because as the coronavirus pandemic spreads, issuers of travelbranded credit cards including United Airlines, Marriott and Southwest Airlines are making it more attractive to use their cards by seriously increasing the points consumers can earn for everyday spending on groceries, car hire services and even utilities.
Some are offering 5 points for every $1 in basic spending categories instead of the typical point or two.
Credit card issuers are hoping
their mega-point deals will entice customers to keep accumulating points for when they start traveling again — and keep using travel-branded credit cards as spending shifts from airfare and hotels to eating at home and online shopping. More credit card transactions mean more merchant fees for the issuers.
For people who are paying attention, there are some real deals to be had.
Marriott, for example, is offering Chase customers with the Marriott-branded credit cards 5 points instead of the usual 1 to 2 points for every $1 spent at grocery stores and Amazon.com until the end of the year. Chase is offering a similar deal to customers with the Southwest Airlines branded credit card.
My family spent a night at a Marriott hotel on a recent road trip and had the choice of paying either $110 or 7,500 points. Between groceries and Amazon, it didn’t take long to spend $1,500 on my Marriott-branded Chase credit card to rack up all the points we needed for the hotel room. The spending — $1,500 X 5 — generated 7,500 points.
Chase, the nation’s second-largest credit card issuer, said it knows customers are craving flexibility about rewards during the pandemic. “We’re adding value to meet our card members where they are now, as well as providing options to earn and redeem towards things as the environment continues to evolve,” said Chase spokeswoman Ashley Dodd.
But making the most of these deals, usually offered through email, requires some dedication. If you’re a point chaser, like me, you probably have several credit cards, so the first challenge is to remember which deal goes with what card. You may also have to jump through some hoops such as preregistering for each promotion.
Marriott, for example, requires enrolling with name and membership number on the company’s website.
The extra bonus deals are often capped, including Southwest’s, at $1,500 of combined grocery stores and Amazon.com spending. But if you’re a big spender, you could accumulate as many as 7,500 airline points, which will take you round trip in December to Denver, Chicago or New Orleans. Or you can save the points for a more exotic getaway.
This pursuit of points, of course, requires a bit of optimism that someday we’ll go back to squeezing onto airplanes, crowding into hotel lobbies and hoisting drinks in hotel bars. If you’re a glass-halffull person, as I am, keep your eyes on your inbox for some sweet deals.
But one word of warning: The math doesn’t work if you don’t pay off your statement balance in full each month to avoid interest charges, which average 16 percent a year, according to the shopping website CreditCards.com.
Interest will eat you alive and make any point gathering effort worthless.