Will Avios switch from Tesco to Sainsbury’s?
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A reader sent me across a questionnaire he received from Avios.
It is all very innocent (‘”Which of these loyalty schemes do you know about?”, “Which are you members of?”) until it comes to this:
Would you shop less at Tesco if Avios were no longer available?
followed by this:
And if you could no longer collect Avios at Tesco, but Avios were available at another supermarket near you, how would this affect the amount you shop at Tesco?
The implication here is not good!
Head for Points readers with very long memories (so you’d need to 35-ish+ I reckon!) may remember that Air Miles (before Air Miles became Avios) used to partner with Sainsbury’s.
A bit of research shows that it was 15th March 2002 when Tesco took over the awarding of Air Miles and BA Miles from Sainsbury’s. It is therefore not impossible that Sainsbury’s (via Nectar) may be looking at getting back in bed with BA.
Nectar has, after all, made a surprisingly large play of its tie-up with easyJet. This is despite the fact that the deal for redeeming on easyJet (£2.50 per 500 points) is no better than redeeming instore.
What is clear, though, is that a move back to Sainsbury’s would be a disaster. The reason is simple – Nectar has never, ever, bothered with bonus point promotions in a big way.
I never do a main shop in a Tesco without an incentive. But if there are a slug of bonus Clubcard points available, I will do it. Nectar never does this – you can only rack up points at a snails pace through your regular shopping. None of ‘3000 points for taking out life insurance for 4 weeks’ or similar!
So … we can only hope that Tesco and Avios can come to an arrangement to keep each other happy. Because, frankly, divorce would not be good for either of them, or for the kids (that’s us!).

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (January 2023)
As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards. Many cards also have generous 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
25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard
5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher for spending £20,000 Read our full review
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
SPECIAL OFFER: Until 21st February 2023, the sign-up bonus on the British Airways Premium Plus American Express card is increased to 35,000 Avios from 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus
35,000 Avios (ONLY to 21st February) and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

British Airways American Express
5,000 Avios for signing up and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending £12,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points.

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
30,000 points and unbeatable travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review
Run your own business?
We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.
SPECIAL OFFER: Capital On Tap has increased its sign-up bonus to points worth 30,000 Avios if you apply by 4th February. This is exclusive to Head for Points readers. Click here to apply.

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa
Get a 30,000 points bonus, worth 30,000 Avios, until 4th February 2023 Read our full review
You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

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
There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

American Express Business Platinum
40,000 points sign-up bonus and a £200 Amex Travel credit every year Read our full review

American Express Business Gold
20,000 points sign-up bonus and free for a year Read our full review
Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.
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