Why the Lloyds Avios credit card ‘refer a friend’ service is a joke
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Four weeks ago I wrote about the new refer-a-friend offer that Lloyds was offering on the Lloyds Avios Rewards credit card.
This was a decent deal. You could refer someone for the card and they would receive 4,500 Avios points for signing up. Given that there is usually no bonus on this card, it was a good incentive.
You, as the person making the referral, would also receive 4,500 Avios.
It was all very nice. Apart from the fact that the Avios website was well and truly broken.
I tried to make a number of referrals over a number of days. Only once did I ever receive the email. Feedback from other Head for Points readers confirmed it.
I don’t know how difficult it is to write a piece of software that sends an email to an address you type into a box but I am guessing it does not require a PhD …..
And then, last Thursday afternoon, I received a massive flow of emails into my inbox. Someone had unblocked the pipe and all of the emails I had triggered over the previous three weeks suddenly appeared.
I thought it was fixed. Not that this helped much, since the people who were interested had already got fed up with waiting.
On Friday, I was asked for another referral. I triggered an email but nothing arrived. Nothing on Saturday either. Or Sunday. Finally, at 5pm on Monday, it arrived. Just three days after being requested.
Until Lloyds / AGL can hire a 12-year old who is capable of writing a bit of computer code to automatically send an email, I would give the refer-a-friend scheme a miss. You are just opening yourself up to hours of grief.
Want to earn more points from credit cards? – March 2024 update
If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.
In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.
You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:
Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard
Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review
Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review
You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review
American Express Preferred Rewards Gold
Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review
The Platinum Card from American Express
40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review
Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard
15,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review
Earning miles and points from small business cards
If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive a huge 120,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Platinum by 9th April 2024. You receive 80,000 points for spending £12,000 within 90 days and a further 40,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
SPECIAL OFFER: You receive 60,000 Membership Rewards points if you apply for American Express Business Gold by 9th April 2024. Remember that the card is FREE for the first year. You receive 40,000 points for spending £6,000 within 90 days and a further 20,000 points if you retain the card for 14 months. Click here to apply.
British Airways Accelerating Business American Express
30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review
American Express Business Platinum
Crazy 120,000 points bonus (to 9th April) and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review
American Express Business Gold
Huge 60,000 points sign-up bonus (until 9th April) and free for a year Read our full review
Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 10,000 points bonus plus an extra 500 points for our readers Read our full review
For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.
Barclaycard Select Cashback credit card
2% cashback on all your business spend for 3 months (1% thereafter) and no annual fee Read our full review
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