Don’t make THIS rookie points credit card mistake…

When you’re new to the credit card points-earning space, it’s pretty bewildering.

Avios. Virgin Points. AMEX Points.

All mumbo jumbo. Jargon. A bit overwhelming and it’s so easy to get confused - I was in the same boat when I first started on the points-earning journey. Hopefully some of my recent and upcoming articles on UK points earning cards may help, but if you’re going to take anything from this series, please listen to this.

First time with an AMEX

Image Source: MyBankTracker.com

My first points-earning card was the free American Express Rewards Credit Card (ARCC) in 2017. My primary motivation was not the points earning element but for the, now unavailable, 0% APR purchase offer for 12 months as I was buying expensive car insurance at the time and this is cheaper than paying the insurance company monthly. By coincidence, there was also a ~5000 AMEX points bonus for spending around GBP 2000 within the first three months.

And also, don’t you think the ARCC has the best looking design considering it’s the cheapest? Everybody is always impressed it’s see through!

I had no idea what to do with these points

For anybody who hasn’t read into it, it’s pretty difficult to know what to do with these kind of AMEX points. They seem as throwaway as Nectar or Clubcard points.

I decided to spend them on Amazon…for the value of just GBP 25…

On reflection, that was an utter waste of points. Firstly, I should have left the points and built up a bigger pot of AMEX points to use on flights.

Secondly, the GBP 25 value is extremely poor. For the 5000 AMEX points, I could easily have got a return flight, with luggage, and a nominal GBP 30 fee on British Airways to Europe. Much better value for your points - rather than getting an Amazon discount.

Flexibility is nice, but be wise

Although its great that AMEX gives you the ability to have flexibility in using their points, whether that’s transferring to airlines, hotels or shops, the best value will always be sending them to airlines. Cash tickets can be expensive, particularly in premium cabins, and if you value a great experience like me - you will not be disappointed saving your AMEX points for travel, over a quick discount with Amazon.