So... does that mean I should get ALL these credit cards?

AmericanDad on 20/05/2013 - 12:49

Sorry for another credit card discussion, but after doing some research this is what I found:

  1. 28 degrees card

    • good for online shopping as great conversion rate and no international transaction fee
    • shopper protection for 6 months
    • good for being used overseas for cash withdrawals provided you preload it with credits and strictly no cash advances
    • no annual card fee and no fee for insurance if pay before statement generated or .5% of closing balance otherwise

  2. Coles Mastercard

    • good if you shop at Coles frequently to get Flybuy points
    • shopper protection for 24 months
    • merchandise protection for 6 months
    • also come with accidental injuries, disability protection etc
    • $49 annual card fee + 1% closing balance for insurance (no fee if 0 closing balance)

  3. Bankwest zero gold card

    • comes with international travel insurance if you spend 75%(i think) on your trip
    • 12 months extended warranty
    • no annual fee

These credit cards all seem to offer amazing rewards which are quite well suited to what I need. Should I be applying all of them?? Going from no credit card to 3 at one time seems a little excessive!

Financial

Comments

  • one man clan on 20/05/2013 - 13:00
    +1

    Do not get all 3. Get 1 max.

    Having multiple credit cards (even unused) can effect your credit rating and may prohibit you from getting a home loan (or other loan) in the future, for a small benefit now.

    • georgedeka on 20/05/2013 - 13:40

      The fact it will effect your credit rating is a falacy, due to the way that the credit system works in the US.
      Here you only get bad marks on your score and they can also see who has been looking up your score.

      • one man clan on 20/05/2013 - 14:29
        +3

        Credit rating means something different here, yes, but I used that as a general term. It's not a fallacy.

        It's akin to credit liability - if you have 3 credit cards with a $5000 on each, you have a potential for $15k debt on top of you loan. Banks don't like that. They would also probably question your ability to repay the loan if you need 3 credit cards in the first place.

        • mskeggs on 20/05/2013 - 15:37
          +6

          Yes, but in that circumstance there is no reason not to cancel a card when that happens.
          I was once conditionally approved for a mortgage on the basis I close a CC account.

        • Funky Moose on 22/05/2013 - 09:48
          +6

          I can also confirm this. They will just tell you to close a credit account if you have many.

        • Blinkenlights on 23/05/2013 - 08:14
          +7

          To apply for a home loan we needed the decreased "credit liability". Plain laziness or conservatism on the part of the credit institutions - we paid off all the cards in full, every month. Had the choice of closing cards or reducing limits.

          One bank had steadily increased my limit up to a whopping $43k. I went in and reduced it down to $2k. When asked why I explained about the home loan. The wide eyed manager asked why we weren't getting a loan from them "I was in here a couple of weeks ago, you wouldn't give me one with the amount we wanted".

          It took me a while to work out why I kept getting offered smaller loans, (It was not explained) - a smaller amount than I needed - despite having a lot more than just the 10% deposit. It was because of the large credit card limits. Perversely, paying it off in full had got us the higher limit, that then factored in as a liability when it came to getting housing finance.

      • [Deactivated] on 24/05/2013 - 08:25

        Um… I applied for a home loan with CBA and asked about how credit ratings affect the application. The guy said the CBA checks… and just having more than two applications for a loan can cause them to reject an application - suspecting you might be applying for more than one loan - and thus you might be unable to service theirs.

        So I imagine it would be similar with credit cards. He also said just cancelling them won't help - because when CBA makes a credit record inquiry, it only shows how much credit you applied for - not if you actually received the card/loan or even if you have since cancelled it.

        But check for yourself. Maybe he was wrong.

        As for increasing credit limits reducing the amount of credit you qualify for… You can ring some places and have them reduce the limit again.

      • kangaroo on 24/05/2013 - 11:53

        Having multiple cards will reduce your borrowing capability.

        I was pre-approved (informally) for my Home Loan (few years back). But as I was about to sign the mortgage papers, the Interest rates went up.

        So I could not pass the credit test and the lender asked to me cancel one of my credit cards to pass the test.

    • nikey2k27 on 24/05/2013 - 23:07

      i would apply for 2 of them if you can control your self. i have 4 of them enjoy them i know how control them

  • evol on 20/05/2013 - 13:03
    +21

    1. 28 Degrees Card - Definite yes. This should be a mandatory requirement for OzBargain membership.

    2. Coles Mastercard - Nope. Crap rewards, Flybuys is useless value wise. Shopper protection you can just use the 28Deg card.

    3. Bankwest Zero Gold - Average, but only because no fee. Never rely on insurance policies on credit cards - they are effectively useless once you read thru the T&C's. Buy your own proper policy for health/travel/etc.

    If you want rewards cards I would say your ideal loadout should be:

    1. 28 Degrees - for overseas and online foreign currency purchases.

    2. Amex Platinum Edge - Easily the best rewards card at the moment value wise. 3/2/1 earn rate, $195 annual fee, free return domestic flight on Virgin every year (pays for the annual fee itself), bunch of other goodies. I have a 15k signup bonus points referral link if you want, the normal online signup bonus is only 10k points (PM me if interested anyone!). The points are very good value when used for flight redemptions/upgrades. Can also be redeemed for gift cards, at a lower point value.

    3. Woolworths Qantas Mastercard - $89 annual fee, 16k Qantas points on signup, 1:1 earn rate with Qantas (very rare at this annual fee level), integrates with Woolworths Everyday Rewards very nicely.

    But yes…I wouldn't go for 3 at once if I were you - not a good idea for your credit rating. Get 2 max (unless your income isn't high enough to justify the min credit limits), then wait 6 months+ and get another one.

    Oh and most important of all…if you're planning on getting a credit card(s), and not paying off the balance in full each month, then you're doing it wrong.

    Hope that helps :)

    • postman on 20/05/2013 - 14:43
      +5

      Save 50$ annual fee on Amex Platinum Edge if you are a member of a professional organisation (eg. ACS, CPA, EA, etc)

      • Eivad on 22/05/2013 - 16:19

        That's what I thought as well, but I just re-checked the Law Society affiliate website, and it's now up to $149 (now normally $195). Don't know if the same change has been applied across the other affiliates, but I imagine it would have.

        • evol on 22/05/2013 - 16:41

          The Amex Plat Edge was $149/year when it launched, and $99/year for affiliate organisations. The annual fee was bumped up to $199 around April this year, so all the affiliate organisations would be $149/year now.

          Still, with the affiliate's there is some interesting variety. E.g. if you're a heavy Qantas FF user, the EA (probably similar with other prof organisations) Amex Plat Edge gives you the option of earning at the same 3/2/1 rate, but with direct 1:1 point conversions (uncapped too!) into QFF.

          The tradeoff is that you lose the annual return Virgin return flight if you enrol into the Qantas Direct option, but the subsequent uncapped 3/2/1 earn rate on QFF points is the highest QFF earn rate of any credit card I know of. QFF points are very low value though, but that's an entirely different story haha…

        • postman on 22/05/2013 - 21:30

          That's correct. Annual fee for all professional membership platinum edge cards are now $149 (still $50 saving). You get the same point earn rate and other benefits like normal card, but instead of 10/15K point new card bonus, you get David Jones gift card instead.

          The bonus David Jones gift card for new card member is now $150 (instead of $200 previously).

    • mskeggs on 20/05/2013 - 15:41
      +3

      Lots of scare mongering about the credit card insurance T&C's. You can read them online and you will see they do not differ much from the pay-for policies, but it is up to you.
      Here is a link to just about the worst holiday disaster you can have, and the credit card cover was adequate:
      http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-incidents/family-holiday…

      And for the record, Fly Buys is hopeless and I wouldn't bother with that card.

      • danyool on 20/05/2013 - 23:58

        Wow - terrible story. Hope there's a permanent disabiltiy part to their insurance.

      • OzBrogains on 22/05/2013 - 20:36
        +2

        Agreed. I have the CBA Gold Low fee card and got free travel insurance with my overseas trip. I have spent many hours combing through the PDS of the insurance I got and concluded it was not any different to a $120 insurance policy Flight Center was offering.

        Feel free to either take my word for it or read the PDS yourself.

        • maximum on 25/05/2013 - 22:58

          Another good thing about the cba insurance is they cover older people. My mums friends are 70 odd and separate insurance was getting really expensive but they rang and checked and they were covered under the card insurance.

        • tonester on 26/05/2013 - 18:21

          fyi anz has free domestic travel insurance for seniors
          http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/33092

        • kobrien456 on 14/06/2013 - 20:49

          Thanks for that. Received the same PDS and was working up the stomach to read it all!

    • SpaceNinja on 20/05/2013 - 16:23

      Can you suggest a cc with reward system better than flybuys, for me nothing is better that seeing $10 coming off instantly from my grocery bills that I get with coles card and flybuys , I don't need free flights.

      • rewardscompared on 22/05/2013 - 11:22

        SpaceNinja - the best card depends on your monthly or yearly spend, and what percentage of your purchases you can use an amex card for. Check out our comparison table here http://rewardscompared.com/cards

        Let me know if you have any questions

        • tomclancy on 23/05/2013 - 23:13

          Great website. Do you accept requests for additional cards to add to the table?

        • rewardscompared on 24/05/2013 - 09:36

          Yes for sure - the goal is to make it as useful as possible for people to find the best deal, so if there's one you think people should know about let us know and we can add it up there.

        • tomclancy on 24/05/2013 - 11:34

          Great - I have the Macquarie Platinum credit card and it has a great earning rate of $7,600 spend for $100 gift card (VISA/MC only, no AMEX). I also rarely fly so won't get benefit from QFF points so the gift card is certainly the best way for me to cash out my reward points.

        • rewardscompared on 24/05/2013 - 11:54
          +1

          @apate - that card has been added, though how did you get the earning rate of $7600 for a $100 card? By my calculations, earning 1.25 points per $1 means $10k spend to earn 12500 points for the $100 cash back (which looks the reward with the best value)

          http://rewardscompared.com/cards

        • tomclancy on 24/05/2013 - 22:20

          sorry, my bad. I signed up years ago under a deal which got me a different points earning rate. It isn't available anymore so I won't go into details. I checked your calcs and they are correct. Thanks for looking into this.

    • wcm8382 on 20/05/2013 - 16:36

      @evol
      PM me the referral link for the AMEX Platinum edge, please. Thanks.

      • evol on 20/05/2013 - 18:10

        PM sent :)

    • rewardscompared on 22/05/2013 - 11:25

      evol, just curious why you don't rate the Coles Mastercard?

      Our figures show it's one of the best options if you're spending $3k per month on your card?
      (Rewards Compared - http://rewardscompared.com/cards )

      • evol on 22/05/2013 - 12:08
        +2

        Because Fly Buys is a useless rewards program in terms of reward options and reward value. Amex Plat Edge gives you 3 points/$ at supermarkets, and the points are much more versatile and of higher value than Flybuys.

        Although I like your site layout, "spend to earn $100" is a very poor metric as gift card/voucher/dollar redemptions are done at very low (usually the worst) point value conversion rates.

        If you take into account points signup bonuses and/or Frequent Flyer point conversions (where applicable), the points value is significantly higher. E.g. points used for an upgrade from economy to business class on an international route will have a much better point/$ value than redeeming them at a crap rate for a $100 gift card.

        TLDR; Using points on gift cards/$ redemptions are a waste of points value-wise, but I understand that obviously everyone is in a different situation and some people do not care for travel etc :)

        • rewardscompared on 22/05/2013 - 12:58

          Thanks evol.

          In my experience (but happy to be proven wrong), the gift cards are definitely not the 'worst' value but often one of the best - with exception of air travel. For those that do not travel frequently, the shopping vouchers seem to be the best value?

        • cruise control on 22/05/2013 - 13:01

          Yes I find that points are not a one-to-one ratio. That is, 1 flybuy point is not equivalent to 1 frequent flyer point.

          I do like the website in that it manages to compile so many credit cards and plans into one page.

        • evol on 22/05/2013 - 13:38
          -1

          From a pure points/$ value, gift card/voucher redemptions are always low value no matter what rewards program it is (obviously so, as it's pretty much the credit company handing you cash).

          Even for people that do not travel frequently, the point I was trying to make is that cards such as the Amex Plat Edge are still better than Coles Flybuys once you take everything into account - which is what your site doesn't show (e.g. Amex has diff earn rates depending on what type of merchant you're paying, points have diff values depending on what redemption metric you measure them on etc)

          E.g. Amex Plat Edge
          1. If you don't use the annual flight, sell it to someone (you can redeem the flight under any name last I checked - a PER-MEL/SYD return flight is ~$440 on Virgin) to easily cover the annual fee (or even make a small profit) or give it as a gift.
          2. 3 points/$ at supermarkets and 2 points/$ at petrol stations (all big supermarkets/petrol stations will accept Amex with no surcharges) will give you a much bigger bunch of points with higher individual points value, so even if you did want to go down the voucher path you would be able to redeem more than the Flybuys program. And if you did not then you would have a bunch of highly versatile points you could use for flights ;)

        • rewardscompared on 23/05/2013 - 11:42
          +1

          You're right re the earning power of Amex Plat Edge increases at Supermarkets and Petrol stations, but that's one of the few cards that offer that type of increased earning rates - others do but for purchases that aren't likely to make up a significant amount of your spend (eg only at David Jones, or only at Virgin)

          In my experience, for most other cards (eg ANZ Rewards Platinum, BankWest More, etc) vouchers still represent the best value for those that aren't regular flyers.

    • jimbobaus on 22/05/2013 - 11:48
      +1

      in regards to the credit rating comments.
      Currently if you look at a credit rating it says something like this:

      Jane Citizen applied to ANZ bank for a reccuring credit of $1000

      THATS IT!!
      So they dont know if u were approved or anything.

      Due to changes in the law from march 2014 it would say something like this:

      On January 10th, 2011 Jane Citizen applied to ANZ bank for a reccuring credit of $1000, Account was approved and is currently active. She had 2 payments over 14 days overdue. Credit has been increased three times and is currently $6000
      14 Day overdue
      June 2013- Paid
      July 2013 Paid

      The idea behind these changes is that banks etc will better see your status and they can also see if u have had constant issues repaying. It also means using example above, that you could explain that in June 2013 you lost your job say, and started a new job in August and this would be clearly explaining why you were over 14 days late on payments.

      Under new laws, ANY payments more than 14 days overdue will show on your file, and then they will "list" at 60 days like they do now.

      So while yes it will be bad to have three cards, from march next year the banks will see more information when they access your file.

      • one man clan on 22/05/2013 - 13:54

        Will this be retrospective?

        AGL messed up their billing and never sent me a bill until I got an overdue text alert, so I don't particularly appreciate having that piece of history on my potential future record.

        • jimbobaus on 22/05/2013 - 16:17

          I have to double check, but i believe it will include previous 5 years if the information has been provided to the agency.

          Credit cards etc info and loans (like borrowed $5000 with $3456 remaining) will auto update through banking systems so it will give a result to the company checking your file as of that day.

          Your concern is the main one that is being expressed by consumers, some believe it is going to make gaining simple credit (mobile phone plans etc for example) harder becuase it essentially gives the company checking your file more information about your financial standing as it currently does.

          The banks etc say its is required to adhere to the responsible lending code (which also changes on march 1, 2014) This will allow them to better assess your situation based on what credit you are seeking, and also allow them to make a better informed decsion in relation to why things were overdue or listed.

          Essentially they are saying, if someone has say one 60 day listing on their file, currently the code says .. No credit. Under the new system, there will be lee-way to consider why its listed, whether its since been paid etc.

          I am torn as to who i believe, but it will be interesting to see.

        • mskeggs on 22/05/2013 - 16:24

          After seeing the mess the USA credit checking system is in with that sort of reporting, I am astounded the government is letting them change it.

    • schwinn on 22/05/2013 - 13:38
      +1

      Gotta say that AMEX isn't as widely accepted a master card is though. A lot of small business vendors either add a surcharge for AMEX (and DINERS), if they even accept them at all.
      We signed up with AMEX to get a free coffee machine, and had trouble spending the $500 required to get the coffee machine, mainly because most vendors charged the surcharge (with our bills) or it wasn't accepted.

      • jkcat on 22/05/2013 - 19:25
        +2

        Buy $500 worth of Woolworths/Coles gift card and you are good to go plus earning 3 points for each dollar spent.

    • MementoMori on 23/05/2013 - 13:59
      +1

      FWIW I don't believe the Amex Plat Edge card can transfer to QFF. That's only possible on the $900pa AMEX Platinum card.

      If you have a AMEX Plat Edge + a Woolworths Qantas you'd be building points under at least 2x systems, you may get flight rewards quicker even on a lesser earn rate by committing to a single system.

      • evol on 23/05/2013 - 14:39

        Read above, affiliate organisation Plat Edge cards have the option of enrolling into the 1:1 uncapped Qantas Direct program, at the expense of losing the return Virgin flights.

        The point of having an Amex + Mastercard is so that you can use Mastercard when Amex isn't accepted or has a surcharge and still earn some points.

        With Amex MR points you can accumulate them all in your account and when you feel like using them, transfer them to various airline programs. This gives you better flexibility than "committing" to a single system and being locked into for example, the (devaluing) QFF program and flight routes.

        Another reason for having the two is purely for their sign up bonuses. You'd be hard pressed to find any card with a $89 annual fee and 16k QFF points on signup.

        • MementoMori on 23/05/2013 - 15:46
          +1

          Oh OK I didn't know that.

          For me, the main benefit of the AMEX card was redeem on much better value/availability airlines programs other than Qantas.

    • ShortyX on 23/05/2013 - 21:23
      +1
      1. Coles Mastercard - Nope. Crap rewards, Flybuys is useless value wise. Shopper protection you can just use the 28Deg card.

      We've found this is the best rewards card for us as we don't travel and since it's Mastercard, you don't have to check for surcharges everywhere you go, unlike Amex.

      We get 2 points/$ everywhere plus whatever points you normally earn with FlyBuys at Coles, etc.

      2000 points gives $10 reward and we've set to automatically generate a $10 discount at Coles.

    • squirellwing on 24/05/2013 - 22:45

      can you pm me the link? ;)

      • evol on 24/05/2013 - 23:35

        PM sent :)

    • Risser on 26/05/2013 - 13:55

      Good info Evol. I have a loan via NAB, so the flybuy visa card is part of the package. I was looking seriously into getting a descent card for QFF points as we travel to the USA (BNE to LAX) every 3-4 years, it's also the only flights we make. It would seem that to book this flight on QFF points alone you'd have to book around 355 days in advance because the QFF seats go real quick and are very limited. So, if this is correct, I'm going to keep my nab flybuy card and simply turn the rewards into dollars. I turn over 200-400 bucks a year from just buying what I normally would buy.

      • Temptation on 04/08/2013 - 12:14

        Hi @evol any chance of the link as well mate? thanks

    • orrinxu on 28/05/2013 - 14:30
      +1

      PM me the ref link too @evol!

    • crosla on 24/06/2013 - 18:26
      +1

      Evol, Can you please PM me the referral link for the AMEX Platinum edge. Thanks.

  • AmericanDad on 20/05/2013 - 15:41

    Thanks for the comments! Looked up the AMEX platinum Edge; the complimentary flights look very attractive but after counting how much we spend a month (family of 2 working adults with boring lifestyles :p) it seems like we will only be getting around $100 worth of gift card after the annual fee. Unfortunately not a member of a professional organisation yet, otherwise it will definitely make it more tempting!

    We do want to travel in the country but I am not sure if the flights are going to go to waste as we might not want to spend the extra on accommodation etc.

    • Giraffe on 23/05/2013 - 13:36
      +2

      I've loved using the flights, especially for last minute bookings or travelling during Easter or other peak times. But yeah it depends on how much you travel.

      A couple of things to note that AMEX has told me (but I haven't tried yet):
      - you can book for someone else, doesn't even have to be family.
      - if you don't use the flight throughout the year and then book on the anniversary of when you signed up, you can book for 2 people. Eg. You sign up 01/01/13, don't use a flight throughout the year then call on 01/01/14, you can double up and book a holiday for you and your partner (They also said there's 2 weeks grace from 01/01/14 to book it)

  • Extinction Rebellion on 21/05/2013 - 20:21

    @evol PM me with referral link too thanks

    • evol on 21/05/2013 - 20:52

      PM sent, thanks!

      • epicaricacy on 22/05/2013 - 22:24

        and me please :-)

        • evol on 22/05/2013 - 22:29

          If you go to My Account | Settings and tick the "Allow private messages" box I'll send you one ASAP! :D

        • marquise on 26/05/2013 - 18:26
          +1

          Me too pls evol. I will send you a PM
          Thanks

        • evol on 27/05/2013 - 11:50

          PM sent, thanks :)

        • Temptation on 04/08/2013 - 12:17

          May i have the link too bud?
          thanks

        • [Deactivated] on 04/08/2013 - 18:33

          could i plz have the referral too
          cheers mate

  • tooblue on 21/05/2013 - 21:44

    Bank West Zero Platinum MasterCard can replace all the three.

    No annual fee and foreign transaction fee, with all these insurance and protection, free emergency card replacement and complimentary concierge.

    I am happy with this card. It upgraded my Gold to Platinumautomatically and later offerred 0% balance transfer. Not many cards offer 0% BT for an existing customer.

    • PissLUR on 21/05/2013 - 22:51

      shopper protection?

      • leeroys_dad on 22/05/2013 - 08:55

        you only receive 21 days of shopper's protection with bankwest. fail

    • cjp on 22/05/2013 - 11:15

      i was using BW card for more then a year and they offered me 0% purchase rate for 6 months in last Nov. Not many banks offers promotions to existing customers.

  • Bargain4U on 22/05/2013 - 11:35

    Just get the Citibank Plus account, use your own money.

  • jimbobaus on 22/05/2013 - 11:42

    There are only wto credit cards worth anything in the market and they are good for differnt reasons

    1) 28 Degrees card is good to make OS purchaes as long as u pay it back straight away, as their interest rate is worse than most companies cash rates. (over 22% p/a)
    Biggest negative though… They are GE which means they will mass market to you endlessly and if u ever miss a payment will list you the day they can.

    2) Citibank Clear Platinum, has the lowest interest rate in Australia (11.99%) and a low annual fee. They are also giving 6 months 0% interest for new customers on all transations (including cash advances etc)

    • evol on 22/05/2013 - 12:05
      +10

      If interest rates are your prime factor when deciding on a credit card (i.e. you're not intending to pay things off in full each month), then you're doing it wrong and shouldn't be considering a credit card.

      • jimbobaus on 22/05/2013 - 13:06

        Correct!

        But life will sometimes give u lemons and sadly sometimes we get stuck and have to pay interest. even the best of us have issues from time to time.
        I would rather have a cc that gave a lower interest rate just in case.

        And for the record
        Citibank Platinum Clear offers you the ability to select one purchase on your card, that you know you cant pay off before the due date (say a new TV or something like that) and you can assign it a half price rate. you then select a period to pay it off 1,2 or 3 years and it is listed seperatly on your statement and does not affect any interest free periods etc

        Not bad, beats crappy finance in store etc.

        • samfisher5986 on 22/05/2013 - 13:17
          +2

          A lot of people get away without credit cards, I'm assuming they are wizards or something? :)

          Never paid interest on my 28 degrees credit card and never will.

        • jimbobaus on 22/05/2013 - 13:20
          +2

          Yeah i only use my 28 degrees for when i buy from Overseas (amazon, zavvi etc) and as soon as i make purchase i transfer the money from my personal bank account.

        • young_dazza on 23/05/2013 - 08:49

          Why do u need to be a wizard to get away without having a credit card? All u need is a debit card and some self discipline. It sounds like you pay yours off ever month so you've already got the latter… And a debit card can be used wherever a credit card can - the only difference being you spend your own money!

        • Eivad on 23/05/2013 - 09:30
          +1

          a debit card can be used wherever a credit card can

          Except for using as a bond for holiday houses, rental cars, hotels, and some other things.

          Each to their own. I pay off my credit card balances every month. The only time I delayed payment was when I was overseas and my luggage was stolen, and so I had to fork out quite a bit of upfront fees for emergency expenses - which then got covered by my travel insurance. If I only had a debit card I would have run out of money and would have had to wait for a friend/family to transfer money to me before I could buy my necessities.

          In my opinion it's useful to have the option of knowing that if life gives you lemons, you'll always have a solid backup. Credit cards are handy for a rainy day.

          EDIT: You could also just just run BTs across card after card (many cards offer near zero or zero interest rates for a period of time, eg 6 or 9 months), which effectively gives you an interest-free loan for years (as long as you have a stable high-paying job to show the banks giving you credit).

        • samfisher5986 on 23/05/2013 - 10:58

          young_dazza, it was a response to what jimbobaus said.

          I think its very easy to go without a credit card, its the same as paying off your credit card every month and havnig a debit card, like you said.

        • young_dazza on 23/05/2013 - 17:11
          -7

          Eivad - I've been using debit cards for everything for 15 years and I dont recall ever having a problem using a debit card. Ive used them as security for rental hotels, cars etc before. I dont normally tell them its a debit card and they dont normally ask. Maybe I've just been extremely lucky.
          Credit cards are big earners for the banks. Interest rates are 2-3 times as much as a homeloan interest rate which is frankly ridiculous and should not be supported. ie Anyone who requires a credit card for payment should be shot :)

        • tomclancy on 23/05/2013 - 23:21
          -1

          clueless

        • theStinge on 24/05/2013 - 16:54

          What Eivad said, plus some airlines. I know Thai won't accept a debit visa card for a date change penalty / ticket re-issue. They were quite explicit in that regard.

        • c64 on 24/05/2013 - 21:27
          -1

          i have never had any troubles using a visa debit card

  • No ONE on 22/05/2013 - 16:42

    Is it a good idea to Use 28 degree to add it into paypal account and pay using paypal and money gets deducted from 28 degree?

    I am also interested to get 28 degree credit card.

    • evol on 22/05/2013 - 16:46
      +2

      Yes it's great for buying stuff online, BUT make sure you let Paypal charge you in the foreign currency, rather than letting it convert to AUD for you. The 28 degrees currency conversion rate is far better (Mastercard market rate) than Paypal's rate.

      • No ONE on 22/05/2013 - 17:19

        Would paypal give option for us to choose the currency we want to be charged? Hv u used it with paypal

        • Morien on 23/05/2013 - 09:30
          +1

          Yes, it does. I recall only one time I didn't use it with PayPal.

  • NightFlight on 22/05/2013 - 17:35

    There's only one card that earns points (1 Qantas point for each dollar spent) without any annual fee: AMEX Discovery

    https://www.americanexpress.com/australia/campaigns/discover…

    Link it to your PayPal account and enjoy points for eBay purchases as well (only use for purchases in AUD though!)

    This one AND the 28 degrees card should be mandatory for OzBargain membership IMO!

    • PotPlant on 22/05/2013 - 19:51

      Does Paypal accept AMEX now? I didn't think they did? Cool if they do.

      • evol on 22/05/2013 - 20:27
        +1

        They re-added the capability to link an Amex card to a Paypal account a few months ago. Even more points now for buying AUD stuff online :D

    • Eivad on 22/05/2013 - 21:56

      There are more cards that earn points without an annual fee.

      Eg. The Amex Velocity Escape, which is structured the same (just earns Velocity points for Virgin flights rather than QFF points)

      https://www.americanexpress.com/au/content/velocity-rewards-…

      Also the Amex Gold Ascent (I can't find a direct website but it is available if you are an affiliate) has no annual fees, and lets you earn rewards in either Amex Ascent or Qantas Direct (QFF points).

      • tonester on 24/05/2013 - 11:59
        -1

        .

        • tonester on 26/05/2013 - 18:24

          what's with the neg?

  • c64 on 24/05/2013 - 12:32
    -2

    getting a credit card just to collect points for some loyalty scheme is stupid

    • PotPlant on 24/05/2013 - 16:24
      +1

      Not one of the most insightful comments I have read on Ozbargain! I couldn't disagree with you more. You can actually make the credit card reward system work in your favour, ALOT in your favour, by being organised, disciplined and did I mention organised?
      I haven't paid one dollar in interest to Citibank in ten years, every single year they waive the annual fee as I am a loyal customer, and I earn 1.25 points per dollar spent.
      People need to remember that every time they use and pay with cold hard cash at a retail outlet, supermarket, online store or WHEREVER credit cards are also accepted, they are already paying a 'factored in' small fee (although it would be VERY small) for those who normally use credit cards, where VISA or AMEX or MasterCard charge the retail outlet 0.75% or something of the transaction.

      Then again, reading this comment back to myself, I'm not sure it now makes any sense.

      Maybe loyalty schemes are just stupid after all….;)

    • marquise on 26/05/2013 - 22:32
      +1

      getting a credit card just to collect points for some loyalty scheme is stupid

      At face value it seems like it, but dig a little deeper and you'll find people travelling the world for free on loyalty points. And these people aren't exactly big spenders either. Not so different to what a lot of people on this site do every day!

  • nadan on 24/05/2013 - 16:26

    In my opinion and I am still doing some more readings, get both 28Degrees and Coles Master card if you need the insurance. I have 28Degrees already and will replace my Commbank ones with Coles.

    As you have stated in your original post:

    Insurance: 28Degrees offer Price protection only for 6 months and Coles offer 24 months. With Coles MC you can buy anything at full price now and not worry about price reductions for another 24 months, given that you remember the $2000 annual limit. Electronics come down in prices significantly and if it is still sold in 24 months.

    Merchant Protection: This is where 28Degrees is great because it covers items purchased overseas as well unlike Coles MC which only covers items purchased in Australia.

    I personally don't think rewards are worth it as much as the price protection if you buy electronics.

  • marquise on 26/05/2013 - 18:31

    @evol
    I was considering signing up for the Amex Qantas Discovery, due to no annual fee and a 1:1 earning rate. I note that this has a higher earning rate, but with the Amex Membership Rewards program. Just wondered if you or anyone else finds the Amex MR rewards redemption better value than Qantas FF?
    i.e. does MR take fewer points to redeem for flights than QFF? all other things being equal?

    Can you also transfer points from Amex MR to QFF at any point in time and what is the transfer ratio?
    Thanks

    • marquise on 26/05/2013 - 22:33

      Found some more info on Amex Platinum Edge and stuff related to CC points
      http://www.pointhacks.com.au/maximising-membership-rewards-h…

    • evol on 27/05/2013 - 11:56
      +1

      Amex MR lets you transfer points into 8 diff airlines (QFF not included). Most of these have much better availability & less surcharges on reward bookings/upgrades than Qantas. Of note is Malaysia Airlines, which has very good value redemptions. Another good option is Cathay Pacific. In general, due to the 3/2/1 earn rate, you will be able to redeem flights faster than on the 1:1 Amex Discovery, plus have a wider range of routes to choose from.

      Amex MR can't be transferred into QFF unless you're on the higher Amex cards (i.e. Platinum $900/pa). However, if you get a professional organisation (CPA, EA, etc.) Plat Edge card you get the option of enrolling into the QFF direct program. You get the same 3/2/1 earn rate (highest uncapped earn rate out there for QFF) but all your points will auto transfer into QFF instead of MR. You also lose the annual return Virgin flight.

      If you want a QFF option, the recently updated Qantas Amex Ultimate might be worth a look. Less useful 3/2/1 earn rate than Plat Edge, $450/pa, 50k QFF signup bonus, annual return domestic flight on QF (stingy options unless you're flying from Perth).

      • marquise on 27/05/2013 - 13:12

        Thanks evol. I think I'm sold on Platinum Edge.

      • matt_will_fix_it on 27/05/2013 - 14:10
        +1

        Evol - I think we agree the Platinum Edge card is the best for people that fly. Its great if you're single or a couple, but if you have kids, health conditions, work commitments or a fear of flying its not the best card.

        The best card to get actual cash rewards I believe is the Coles Mastercard. I use this and get several hundred dollars a year back for just using the card…

  • nadan on 27/05/2013 - 17:05

    I applied for a Coles Mastercard after reading the PDS, I got approved with a limit of $11,000 which is more than what I wanted or need.

    I am assuming that based on this I will get a Platinum card? "If you apply for a Coles MasterCard and are approved for a limit of $8,000 or over, you’ll instantly qualify for a Coles Platinum MasterCard."

    What are the advantages of Platinum over a normal card? I can't find the info on Coles's website.

    • evol on 27/05/2013 - 18:22

      Google is your friend: http://www.colesmastercard.com.au/platinumoffer

      See the box in the top right for the benefits. Might want to read up above in this thread about credit limits creating headaches for loans, if that applies to you. $11k is a tad unnecessary :P

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