• expired

Lifetime $0 Annual Fee: Westpac 55 Day Platinum Credit Card (New Cardholders Only)

1740

I've had this card for years (and been paying $90/year). Without doubt, the best thing is the up to 2 years additional warranty that you get on new purchases. An an example, if you purchase a TV at JB with 2 years warranty, pay with this card and get 4 years. Not bad! (If it had 1 year warranty, this card matches it and adds 1 year extra warranty)

The other great feature is the $5500 vehicle rental excess coverage. You only need to buy the cheapest policy from Hertz/Budget/Thrifty without the need to pay extra for higher accident protection and this card takes care of the rest (potential saving of ~$35/day).

Until September 30, all new customers get the card with $0 annual fee for life. As this card comes with no rewards, just put the card away, and use it for major purchases where warranty is important.

Other great features are:

  1. Overseas Travel Insurance
  2. Purchase Security Insurance
  3. Price Guarantee
  4. Interstate Flight Inconvenience insurance
  5. Rental Vehicle Access Insurance
  6. Transit Accident insurance

See here for all the details.

Referral Links

Westpac Choice Account: random (115)

Referrer & Referee get $50 after referee makes 5 card purchases & deposits $500+. Maximum of 5 referrals allowed per customer: bonus is not paid to either parties if the referral code has been used more than 5 times.

Related Stores

Westpac
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closed Comments

    • +1

      I did few months ago. Basically my phone stopped working. Credit card simply forward to chubbs (underlying insurer). They said get quote from repairer. Then they approve, you get it fixed and get money back. Relatively straight forward. Just slow. Some phone repairers are dodgy and actually ask for money for quote.

      • +2

        Chubb would cover the cost of repair up to the purchase price and they will pay out the lesser of the two. For write-offs you are supposed to send the faulty goods back to Chubb, but it didn't ask me last time.

        Procedures for claim:

        1. Call the insurance hotline supplied by your bank.
        2. Chubb asks you for the type of claim requested (extended warranty, travel insurance, etc).
        3. Chubb sends you a PDF claim form to fill out.
        4. Return the completed claim form and supply these additional information: proof of purchase, proof of purchase using your credit card, details of your credit card account, written quotation from manufacturer or repairer, a copy of the warranty statement, and BSB & a/c number for where you want the money sent (scan of first page of bank statement).
        5. Wait for approval and money. You do not have to proceed with the repair once you received the payout.

        So remember to keep your receipts, keep your credit card statements, and keep your warranty statements.

        • Which credit card gave you this extended warranty?

          And just to clarify, was there excess?

        • NAB Gold Visa Debit. No excess.

        • @Mugsy:
          Yeah. Mine was NAB Gold card as well with no excess. Dont have the card anymore. I didn't realize paying excess was standard thing.

        • Thanks guys. I'll look into this. I'm gonna have so many bloody VISA debit cards by the end of the year!

        • @Mugsy: The NAB Gold Banking account is no longer for sale on a standalone basis effective 23 April 2012.

        • With Westpac, it's actually Zurich and there's a $250 excess for repairs to personal belongings such as mobile devices

  • The other great feature is the $5500 vehicle rental excess coverage. You only need to buy the cheapest policy from Hertz/Budget/Thrifty without the need to pay extra for higher accident protection and this card takes care of the rest (potential saving of ~$35/day).!!!

    You mean overseas, not in Australia right?
    Overseas travel insurance

    For overseas trips up to 6 months, cover includes:

    • Specified medical expenses incurred overseas
    • Up to $20,000 per person cover for loss or damage to personal property
    • Up to $550 per person for loss or damage to travel documents
    • Limit of $2.5 million of personal liability cover
    • Up to $5,500 rental vehicle excess cover as specified in the policy for loss or damage to rental vehicle.

    Going through their PDS —
    Rental vehicle excess insurance in
    Australia policy—
    Rental vehicle excess insurance in Australia cover is available
    to Westpac Black card, Platinum Plus card and Platinum A
    card cardholders.

    • +1

      You mean overseas, not in Australia right?

      No. Please read this comment. It applies domestically.

      Excess insurance in Australia cover is available to Platinum A card cardholders.

      This is a Platinum A card. Read this comment.

      • Thanks.. Subscribing as it cover the rental vehicle cover..its a rip off 33$..hope i never have to use it though as getting it reimbursed/processed would be a pain

    • Again I am free sure Citibank card offers that. Again, anyone done comparison with Citibank? Is it worth getting this as well?

      • +1

        CB Signature does not offer domestic rental car insurance excess cover.

        • It does, if "Interstate Flight Inconvenience" applies, with a limit of $2,250. So not as good as what the Westpac card offers, but better than nothing.

        • Tightarse. Would you get this card? You probably have looked into most detail so far. I am not convinced that its worth getting this card especially if you have Citibank card. It seems you are better off getting the HSBC one instead if you after rental excess.
          Curious which credit card do you have?

      • +1

        Why don't you do the comparison since you seem quite interested? Just asking… :)

        • +2

          Fair point :). I sort of browsed earlier. Hence, I cant work out why is this so popular. But more importantly whether it is worth getting if you already have a citibank card. There are no reward points, which is the main point to not go for it. So, far it seems this one only has a +1 for the rental car insurance. But I vaguely remember seeing that somewhere else (must be the HSBC platinum card). I will do the comparison later tonight. I'll update you guys. I am still no convinced that it is worth getting.

        • @dealonaustralia:
          maybe this is a case of just because you can it doesn't mean you should

        • +1

          @SBP: Fair point. Hence, I really had to look into this card for this westpac card. It was too easy to just get it. Im glad I did. For me atleast this card is not justified. People should consider as well. There is no rewards program. That is the big no in general.

        • @dealonaustralia:

          Nice one, dealon :).

        • @dealonaustralia:

          great comparison

        • @dealonaustralia:

          Nicely done mate!

  • +2

    Just to let you know the excess for extended warranty claims

    • This card - $250
    • Bankwest - $250
    • Citibank Signature - $100
    • Citibank general excess $200, (full) ticket cost must be charged to card but with $300 max cashback it's looking good. How do you get the no annual fee for life?

  • +1

    comparison would be good to see which one is better either citibank or westpac

  • +1

    The BankWest Zero Platinum is a comparable card, with no annual fee. It seems to include most of the features of this card but also includes no foreign transactions fees on international purchases (similar to the 28 degrees card). Worth noting the extended warranty only seems to be 12 months and it has a $6,000 minimum credit limit.

    More information: http://www.bankwest.com.au/personal/credit-cards/compare-cre…

    • Agree with Tailsk, the overseas transaction fee on my BankWest Zero Platinum is the feature I get most use from. I hate paying ~3% on other cards which is why I ended up with this.

  • All the banks are pushing their premium cards. New businesses setting up merchant facilities will note that fees for premium cards aren't cheap. Of course all the PayWave and PayPass are also pushing folks away from EFTPOS too.

    • But they'll make more money than just accepting cash.

      • Actually my point is premium vs non premium Visa and Mastercards.

    • How much more?

      • Well, they'll get my business at the very least. I don't pay by cash these days unless I really, really like the service or product. Hardly carry around enough spare change to make a pay phone call.

    • That's a good point you make. TBH I didn't believe it the first time I heard it, but the truth is that different credit cards have wildly different interchange fees. Here are a selection of Mastercard's

      card pain
      Consumer Elite 2.20%
      Consumer Super Premium 1.75%
      Consumer Premium 1.04%
      Consumer Electronic 0.33%
      Consumer Standard 0.33%
      PayPass (=< AUD 60) 0.32%

      I'm not sure what all the categories mean, presumably they correspond to different metals? Note PayPass is a tiny bit cheaper than vanilla CC. I doubt that will last.

  • I used the amex card and anz platinum card for replace lcd screen on laptop, not pay any fee. I thinks all cards are the same, you just pay warranty claim in some case.

  • -2

    wow thats an ugly looking card

    • You take yours to bed to play with do you?

  • Great deal - I'm no expert, but I thought that extended warranties are are not needed most of the time due to Australian Consumer law. Being that a product must last a reasonable amount of time, and for a lot of purchases that would mean more than two years

    • Extra 2 years which is a lot of warranty.
      Nothing to do with consumer law

      • He's talking about statutory warranty which is often far longer than the manufacturer's warranty and costs nothing but a bit of effort and persistence.

  • CB Signature $0 annual fee for life with points offer till 31/10/14, IMO I think is better. Maybe a comparison chart might help to decide.
    http://www.citibank.com.au/familyandfriends/

    • +3

      You just volunteered to do one. ;-)

      • +1

        Ok guys. I'll do it. Give me 30 minutes - 1 hour. I did comparison for HSBC, Citibank few months back. It seems I missed about excess on extended warranty. I'll update it to include this card.
        I am on borderline about this card anyways and not convinced that we should get this card.

        • Thanks, I'm trying to decide which one.

    • Ready…. Go!

    • Thanks. Answered my query above.

    • +1

      Only issue is CB Signature requires minimum income of $75000, which some may not have. This deal only requires annual income of $30000.

    • +8

      Done. See my comment at the bottom of this thread for details. Comparison chart: http://www.dealon.com.au/smart-australians-pay-0-fees-for-cr…

  • Re excess fees on extended warranty, does it mean it's worth claiming only if the repair/replacement cost is more than $250?

    • +2

      Yes.

      Don't forget statutory warranty on bigger items - ie in a nutshell, how long would a reasonable person expect a product to last with proper care and "average" usage. Eg For an expensive phone it could be a couple of years, for a decent washing machine or fridge 5 years, that sort of thing.

      • +1

        thx for explaining.

      • You do have to front a tribunal (& pay a fee) to get an enforceable decision on a statutory warranty claim. A positive outcome is not guaranteed.

        • At least some of the time the fact that you understand your rights and tell the retailer will be enough for them to take action of some sort without having to resort to consumer affairs agencies. On the other hand if you take the manufacturer's warranty at face value they probably won't advise you of your statutory warranty rights.

  • So what are the requirements for eligibility?sorry im a nub at these things

    • -5

      Yes you are, "Nub!"

      • +1

        Not very helpful. Some people tell me that you need to be earning over 40k pa to be eligible for a platinum card. I meant requirements like that

  • -7

    [NOTE]

    In response to "just get it and don't use it until you need it" I should suggest that having multiple credit cards puts you in the risk of MESSING UP YOUR CREDIT SCORE.

    For more details google it or have a read of this
    http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/too-many-credit-…

    • +1

      Your link is to a US site, and much of the advice there applies only to the US (FICO scores etc.).

    • +4

      So wrong it isn't even funny.

  • Thanks TA warranty bonus ftw

  • What I find interesting is that the "Rental vehicle excess insurance in
    Australia policy" is a completely separate item from the "Interstate flight" one.

    Does that mean it applies even in your home state? And even if you don't pay for the car with that card? That alone would make this card very worthwhile to have!

    That is different to for example Citibank, where rental excess is is just one of the possible benefits of the Interstate insurance, with all the attached conditions (i.e. only relatively short trips, paid by that card, etc).

  • I decided to call Wankbest and tell them about this offer and the fact that I was going to cancel my Platinum cc and change to Westpac.
    They didn't care.

    She said straight out there is nothing they could offer me to keep me as a customer such as waiving the annual fee or giving me some kind of discount. That's a shame.

    I'm not really going to change to Westpac but I thought they would have at least tried to do something to keep me as a customer. After all, I've got a 10k limit and I don't pay the card off in full every month.

    • you DON'T pay the card off in full?

      • That's correct. I'm in the process of paying it off, it's a debt that's been building slowly over the years. I didn't just go to Harvey Norman one day and drop $5k on a new TV.

        Once it's paid off in full (which is about 6-8 months away at the current amounts I'm dropping on it) it will just be for emergencies and overseas transactions (no forex fee).

        • +3

          Well I hope it all works out for you.

          You should look at getting a 0% balance transfer.

        • @chill: NAB recently said they have 15months 0% balance transfers on a CC, if that's useful.

        • @chill:

          That's what I did. I'm currently not paying any interest on this balance, I took up Bankwest's offer of 13 months interest free. I do have to pay an annual fee, but to me having the included travel insurance and free forex, it's worth it.

        • @bonezAU: Well all good then.

          However if you have a balance transfer running, how can you ring them up and threaten to walk? You are relying on them, not the other way around. Plus your not actually a valuable customer until after the balance transfer is finished, and they are 'banking' on you not being able to pay it off in full.

        • @JetBombat: I love NAB for lots of reasons. However as a new customer, they apparently only offer small credit limits to new customers doing balance transfers. (Note this is anecdotal evidence from ozbargain and whirlpool)

          Also they only offer 70% of the balance.

          Citi has a habit of offering higher credit limits @ 80% of the balance + cheque to self options.

          Both NAB and Citi offer regular balance transfer even to existing customers (my experience)

        • @chill:

          I'm not having a cry that they said no, but if I didn't ask in the first place, how would I ever know?

  • +3

    Be warned.

    The insurance is underwritten by Zurich. I have the westpac altitude platinum and family got sick on an overseas trip recently. Medical costs were $700 I thought well 250 excess and get the rest back. Wrong- 250 per claim. 3 people 750 excess. Plus they want you to get a report at your cost from your gp to state that the sickness is something you have not had before. This insurance is good if you are in something major.

    My card was a set with an Amex which was westpac issued and as such the pds states that no local travel is covered unless it is part of a connection. So local car hire excess was not included. Have not read this one, but worth checking if this is what you are getting it for. Woolworths or 1 cover are well,priced .

    • +1

      If you go to
      http://www.zurich.com.au/content/zurich_au/individuals/credi…

      Look at Question 6 of the FAQ, it says "If you make more than one claim as a result of a single event, the excess only applies once. However, if you submit a claim for separate events (for example, medical expenses and lost baggage), then an excess will apply to each claimed event."

      This seems to me that the excess applies to each type of event claimed, rather than the number of claims.

    • Yes you have to read the PDS in detail but even then you can be left wondering. This one states "clearly":

      Overseas travel insurance policy – You must pay the first A$250 for each claim made under Benefits 1 to 7 of ‘Part B’………Also if you make more than one claim as the result of a single event, the excess only applies once.
      Ahem.

      • Each persons claim counts as a separate claim according to them.

  • If I use city bank signature, can I still get insurance cover if I buy tickets using PayPal that link to the credit card?

  • -2

    dupe
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/133157
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/139493

    It's an ongoing promotion just like the citi signature

    Why does this one get double/five times the votes?

    Still everyone asks the same silly questions…."is it really free for life or until the card expires?"

    • No sillier than your question regarding votes I'd say. 'For the life of the card' is ambiguous. My CC has an effective life of 2 years. In any case there is usually a getout clause which states "we can vary conditions at any time…" which means "life" is tenuous, as it always is.

    • +2

      dupe

      If you think it's a dupe, feel free to report it. Both those posts have expired, or did you miss that? This offer started July 25.

      You should be pleased a stack of people that missed those deals now have the chance to take up this offer if they wish.

      • -7

        TA writes

        If you think it's a dupe, report it. Both those posts have expired, or did you miss that? This offer started July 25.

        And as far as your other question goes, read this.
        https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/158126#comment-2197613


        Hi TA

        As you can see the last offer expired on July 24 (that is the day before this offer started). You are a month late with posting the deal. So it is actually the same continuing deal, but now with two sets of comments.

        As my punctuation makes clear and Possumbly has noted. I am not actually asking the question.

        To my other point which Possumbly dismisses as silly regarding the votes. I still think it is a valid point. It was merely a discussion point. Now there is a seven times difference in votes. Is it because people make a made rush for credit cards due to Christmas coming up and an increase in the unemployment rate? Or is it because the home page of Ozbargain in always filled with completely free udemy courses?


        As to your updated comment:

        "You should be pleased a stack of people that missed those deals now have the chance to take up this offer if they wish."


        Yes I am. Although this card offers little compared to the Citi signature considering statutory warranty in Australia

        On a final note I will learn how to use the Ozbargain quote tool in the future, my apologies.

        • +2

          Hi again chill. Feel I need to respond.

          You are a month late with posting the deal

          Apologies, but unfortunately I'm not a robot. I only found the deal this morning.

          Ozbargain in always filled with completely free udemy courses

          Please remember deals get to the front page for a reason. If people didn't want courses, books, travel deals, software, or anything else that's posted on OB, we wouldn't waste our time searching for and posting them? You're free to neg/report this or any other deal if you believe it's not to your expectations. Also, would be awesome if we could get a deal from you soon.

          Cheers mate.

        • Where abouts in the Deal Posting Guidelines does it say a deal has to be posted on the day it is made available to the public?
          I am glad you're not running this site.

        • -4

          @tightarse:

          Hi again chill.

          Hi TA.

          Feel I need to respond.

          Sure.

          Apologies, but unfortunately I'm not a robot.

          I don't believe I suggested that you were. But my understanding is that you are a valid Westpac customer who hires cars for at least 3 days per year and is therefore happy to pay $90 annual fee for this purpose.

          Therefore when the deal first came up back in February, you would have noticed it on Ozbargain. By seeing the deal at this time and seeing as you are prepared to stay on hold with Westpac for 35 minutes just to confirm that the deal really is for life, you would ask them why you cannot also enjoy it free for life and would they be happy to lose your business if this wasn't the case? You would then let Ozbargain know if existing customers are able to obtain fee free. Finally you would remember the good work of Ozbargain. Therefore next time you see the deal being available (i.e. today) you would get the old deal marked as not expired and allow comments to resume and the deal to be further promoted.

          This would mean people weren't arguing over issues that have already been discussed and would have saved yourself 35 minutes today.

          Please remember deals get to the front page for a reason

          I respect this but are you saying that the Westpac deal shouldn't have been on the front page in February. Imagine all those people who have hired cars since and had to pay extra. What a shame. We all know that one little dent in the hire car is sort of like murphy's law.

          Also, would be awesome if we could get a deal from you soon

          No promises TA. Unfortunately any deal I post would have to be in line with my personal ethics and values. I don't know if ethics is covered in your udemy courses?

          You won't see me trying to win any popularity contests such as aligning myself to certain business to boost my ranking only for it to all go wrong.
          https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/141142#comment-1946750

          I would then feel I had let the Ozbargain team down and feel sad :(

          Cheers mate.

          Cheers.

          Hope you enjoyed the Daniel Ricciardo win tonight.

        • -4

          @luke73:
          Talk about going off track.

          I am glad as well. Would be a nightmare. Lucky for Scotty and team I am sure the Google Ad Services make it a worthwhile experience.

          Have a good night.

        • @chill:

          Thanks again chill. Your contribution to this community won't go unnoticed. It's people like you that make everyone's efforts all worthwhile.

        • -4

          @tightarse:
          Thanks TA.

          Appreciate the kind words.

  • +7

    Guys I did the comparison as I wasn't convinced with this card. I already have wizard, citibank and did not want to unnecessarily accumulate more cards (you go through pain when getting home loan). So, basically only extra thing this card offers (as pointed out by tightarse) is rental vehicle excess for overseas, interstate and current state. Citibank card only offers vehicle excess for overseas and interstate. So, if you are planning to hire car in your city/state or don't qualify on $75,000 income criteria. Then I would recommend getting this card. Otherwise, not that much benefit if you are already sorted.

    Also, worth mentioning their extended warranty is confusing. It says: "This extended warranty period will be for an equivalent duration as the Australian warranty up to a maximum of two years.". Then in example table it says extended warranty as 2 years for Australian warranty between 1-5 years. Seems like a grey line. I would think it is just 1 year extra in case your warranty was 1 year.

    See the comparison table here: http://www.dealon.com.au/smart-australians-pay-0-fees-for-cr…
    I created that earlier. Purpose was to spread the word so none of my close friends and relatives pay more than $0. Its really annoying that a lot of them still do :). I only got my parents recently on HSBC free card offer.

    • Thanks. I was getting confused with OS and Oz Citibank cards, your rewards link clarified that. Been reading more than I was absorbing obviously.

      Extended warranty is a match of manufacturer's warranty up to 2 years, and nothing with warranty over 5 years (lol) is eligible.
      eg
      Manufacturer —- Extended
      6 months ———— add another 6 months;
      1 year —————- 1 more year;
      18 months ———- 18 more;
      2-5 years ———— 2 more years;
      5 years ————— no extended warranty applies.

      • Thanks for clarifying. That's what I thought. Its really a pity that these big banks can't really match what is already out there. I reckon HSBC is highly under-rated in Australia.

        • Also Citibank rewards is bigger than dining if my research is correct - has points redeemable for cash, complimentary Priority Pass for 2 visits to airline lounges for holder and guest.

    • Hey @dealonaustralia, could you add Bank West Platinum into the comparison list as well? They have 0 annual fee and some people in this thread mentioned that they don't have foreign transaction fee. Thanks!

      • Sure. I'll add it tomorrow. Its a bit late now. I just have a personal funny story with BankWest. Long story short I am banned for life from BankWest. Nothing to do with credit history. Hence, I always skip bank west :).

        • That is … hmm. I'll leave it at that if you don't want to share :)

          Great write up!
          I'm not sure who to go with. I like the Citibank offer. However, I'm going on a trip at the end of the year. I paid for the ticket from Aus (I haven't bought the return ticket yet). If I get the Citibank card, I won't be eligible for the cover :(

        • @vsynca: I should write up about my bankwest story. I'll post it tomorrow as well.

          I think Citibank is good to have anyways. That is the credit card of choice (like wizard card) for ozbargainers.
          The westpac doesn't have any rewards program. But their condition was just to prepay $450 worth to qualify for travel insurance. Maybe worth while getting it just for that. You can always cancel later. Actually, considering you already got half you ticket, I dont think you have much option.

        • @vsynca: I just updated to include BankWest card. There is no rewards either. I think that is big factor when considering a credit card, especially where with citibank and hsbc you get rewards for free.
          Apart from that, its pretty close to westpac but available all year round.
          Couple of things stood out: $250 excess for inter state, $250 excess on purchase protection. I don't recall seeing that on other cards (unless I missed it).

        • @dealonaustralia: Thanks for adding that.
          I think I will apply for the citibank card and BankWest.
          I checked the insurance documents, here are some notes:
          - Excess for Westpac interstate travel insurance is $200
          - Excess for Citibank interstate travel insurance are: $200 excess for Personal Belongings, Unexpected Cancellation; $100 for Purchase Cover Insurance and Extended Warranty Insurance

          You might want to add that into the list :)

        • @vsynca: Thanks a lot. I'll update it.

  • I can confirm that the annual fee waiver is for as long as you have the credit card account active, not just the expiry of the first physical card.

    A very good deal on a Plat card (I dont qualify for City Signature as yet).

    PS This promo has been on for a few months now…I got it back in March.

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