Barclaycard jumps in with Avios - here’s what you can expect
Another week…another Avios article. After sharing the news of Qatar Airways adopting the Avios currency, we now have even more options to earn these points in the UK thanks to a new partnership with Barclaycard. This is a big deal for the UK as the market is quite uncompetitive outside of American Express.
Introducing Barclaycard Avios & Avios Plus Rewards
Both cards offer you the opportunity to earn Avios with every pound you spend - just like any other frequent flyer credit card. Here’s the breakdown for new customers only:
Avios Rewards - no monthly charge - 1 Avios per £1 spent + 5000 bonus Avios when spending £1000 in the first 3 months. Solo traveller upgrade voucher when you spend £20,000 in 12 months.
Avios Rewards Plus - £20 per month - 1.5 Avios per £1 spent + 25,000 bonus Avios when spending £3000 in the first 3 months. Solo traveller upgrade voucher when you spend £10,000 in 12 months.
For existing Barclaycard customers, according to the travel website Turning Left for Less, you will get the same earn rate per pound but the bonus is just:
Avios Rewards - 1000 bonus Avios for £1000 spend in first 3 months
Avios Rewards Plus - 5000 bonus Avios for £3000 spend in first 3 months
Could you Avios take you to BA Club Suite…?
It’s a MasterCard!
Avios can also be used on partner airlines including Iberia, Cathay Pacific and many others
People living outside of major cities, rejoice! As much as it’s great to earn points with American Express cards, it can still be difficult to use them in many places. Until recently, the go to product for non-Amex points earning has been the Virgin Atlantic MasterCards which offer a fee-free option to earn points - albeit at a rate of 0.75 Virgin Points per £1 spent. If you are somebody who wants the best of both worlds, it may be worth getting yourself an American Express and the Barclaycard Avios card as your backup for when Amex isn’t accepted.
You should be able to swap between the two products
I initially was very shocked at the high cost of the Avios Rewards Plus card. £20 a month is a lot for a card in the UK. Lets do some sums:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus Card costs £250 per year, gets you 25,000 bonus Avios for £3000 spend and 1.5 Avios per pound. Spend over £10,000 in a year and get a companion upgrade voucher
Barclaycard Avios Rewards Plus is £240 for the year and gets you the exact same
Looking at it that way it is in line with comparative products on the market. A good strategy for you to get the most from the card can be to:
Hit the £3000 spend target and wait for the bonus Avios to be deposited and then downgrade. The progress towards your Upgrade Voucher target gets wiped out if you do this.
Or hit the bonus spend target and then, if you know you are to hit £10,000 spend within 12 months and wait for the upgrade voucher. If there are a few months leftover within your 12 month period, then you could downgrade for a few months (saving on the monthly fee) before upgrading again when the next 12 month period begins.
This could be a clever way to save a few pennies whilst still getting the extra Avios and upgrade voucher in the process. The only doubt I have is whether the Barclaycard systems will be capable of doing this, as their website went down yesterday.
What’s my take?
This is a positive move for almost all points collectors in the UK. If you’re living on these Isles, you will likely be collecting Avios thanks to our home airline being British Airways. Whilst the scheme itself may not be the most competitive, they are the easiest points scheme to earn from a variety of sources. The introduction of the Avios Barclaycards is fantastic, even if you go for the free card. If you are likely to have some big purchases over the next few months, then opting for the Rewards Plus card is your best bet. If not and if you are a more casual collector of Avios, the Avios Rewards card is a no brainer. As noted on Head For Points, no other free card has as good a return on every pound spent as the Avios Rewards Card.
