Category Archives for Credit Cards.
This was news to me. I’ve redeposited award tickets where the taxes and fuel surcharges were substantial, and I’ve lost money when those fees were credited back to me when the dollar strengthened between the time of booking and refund. It never occurred to me to ask my card issuer (usually Chase in that case) to make good on the difference. It seemed interesting enough to pass along.
The blog post details a debate at CardCon on credit card interchange legislation, where the author argues against government-mandated lower interchange fees, citing concerns about the negative impacts on the economy, consumer credit, and rewards programs. It contrasts the potential benefits to retailers with the broader societal costs, questioning the real-world effectiveness of such legislation and its impact on various stakeholders, including consumers and financial institutions.
Marriott may be offended by this. Bilt probably won’t like it either. But I’m laying down truth here, and it’s simple math. Marriott points transfers are simply a low value use of Bilt points. You can transfer to Air Canada Aeroplan, United or American, Turkish and more. Anyone paying a little bit of attention can do better than a transfer to Marriott.
Bilt will offer up to a 150% transfer bonus to Emirates Skywards on December 1 for ‘Rent Day’ as well as special dining offers on top of their usual monthly bonuses and free points available.
Cardless has launched the brand new TAP Miles&Go American Express® Credit Card and it’s an intriguing tool for elite status that’s recognized on Star Alliance partner airlines (like United and Air Canada) and for earning miles that can be used for improved award availability across the Atlantic and for good value awards on partners like Emirates.
American Airlines is asking employees to lobby against legislation from Senators Dick Durbin and Roger Marshall that would limit credit card interchange.
Interestingly, American presents the (true) argument to employees that they pushed back on me over for so long – that they lose money flying planes (cost per seat mile is greater than passenger revenue per seat mile, and even passenger revenue plus cargo, in many quarters) and only turn a profit by selling miles to banks.
Hilton’s premium co-brand is interesting because it straight up comes with Honors Diamond status, though I view Hilton Diamond as worth less than similar status at Hyatt, Marriott, and IHG (no guaranteed late check-out from Hilton or IHG, even, but at least IHG offers confirmed suites).
The premium card is also the only one where Hilton spend is more rewarding that putting it on an alternative card.
There are folks who will come out ahead – those who already have unlimited Priority Pass and will get the full $200 per year value out of the statement credits – but overall judging the pure value of the card I don’t think this is a net improvement. It’s still a good value product but I don’t see this refresh as an improvement.
Prior to the Durbin amendment, 76% of checking accounts were free. That declined to 39% in 2012 after the rollout of the Durbin amendment and recovered slightly to 46% in 2022. Cramming down the debit revenue stream for banks will certainly benefit retailers, but we’ve seen that it isn’t paid for entirely by banks but by consumers through higher fees.
This new TAP Miles&Go American Express® Credit Card lets your spend contribute to Star Alliance Gold status, their award chart is reasonable especially ‘extra miles’ awards that let you travel on far more TAPs flight than are available to other airline partners.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
