Is this the best credit card deal ever?

Amex offers £5 cashback for £10 spent in local shops. So...

AMERICAN EXPRESS is giving customers £5 cashback for spending £10 or more in small shops in one of t he most generous credit card rewards ever. To tempt shoppers back to high streets, the credit card giant has launched are ward deal for customers who spend money in local stores and restaurants.

Under the scheme, you can qualify for the £5 cashback up to ten times – meaning up to £50 is available to each customer.

You can use the offer only once at each retailer. The cashback is being funded by American Express, not the store. It can also be used in conjunction with the Government’s Eat Out To Help Out 50 per cent discounts scheme for restaurants and pubs, which launches tomorrow.

American Express has signed up thousands of small businesses across the country for the deal, including family- run butchers, clothes shops, hair salons, dry cleaners, pubs, fancy restaurants or local fish and chip shops.

It says it wants to help small firms that are struggling to survive the pandemic. The special offer is only available to those that use an American Express payment card. Corporate cards do not qualify.

To take advantage, you must first download the American Express ‘Amex’ app on to a smartphone and press on the ‘offers’ button. Then scroll down to a ‘shop small’ link that pledges to credit your account with £5 every time you spend £10 or more at a selected local retailer.

Finally, you press on a ‘save to card’ blue bar on the bottom of the website page to activate the deal when you shop. The promotion is open for the following six weeks, closing on September 13.

Any participating shop can be found easily by using the ‘view participating locations’ link on the Amex app page when you are looking at the deal. The link will also be sent to you by email when you sign up.

Clicking the link will take you to an online map where you find shops in a given area. You can also search by the business name. When you use your card for payment at one of these selected stores, the credit should automatically show up on your next card statement.

For example, spend £20 on sirloin steaks at a participating local butcher using your Amex card and American Express will only demand you pay off £15 from your account.

This should be shown clearly when the statement lands on your doormat. You should allow at least four days from the moment of payment for the bonus to be credited. The special offer is only available to those that make a purchase inside a participating store, not online.

An American Express spokeswoman says: ‘During these challenging times we need to support our local small businesses more than ever before. Although many are suffering hardships, lockdown has provided an opportunity to think about how we spend our money and to show how much we appreciate the support of local independent shops and the personal service they offer.’

American Express makes money by typically charging retailers between 2 and 3 per cent of each transaction where its cards are used. It previously relied heavily on international travellers, with

Avios points being offered for spending with the cards. The ‘shop small’ offer is not the only way it is hoping to attract more customers. It also has other shop discounts and ‘cashback’ offers for those who use an American Express payment card. If you use an American Express card or take one out, make sure you pay the bill in full every month. Otherwise you could find the offers end up costing more than the savings made.

For example, those who hold a British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card can find they are stung with an eye-wateringly high 74.7 per cent APR on outstanding balances if they fail to pay off the full amount each month. This is one of the highest interest rates on any credit card on the market. According to the trade body Federation of Small Businesses, one in five firms has been forced to lay off staff due to a fall in demand for goods and services on the high street – and local small shops are among t he worst affected by plunging profits.

Mike Cherry, chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, says: ‘After months of little or no revenue coming in but still bills and rent to pay, our small high street businesses need all t he help they can get. It would be fantastic to see all card providers and banks doing everything within their powers to incentivise shoppers to visit small firms whenever possible, wherever they are.’