Tesco now imposing the 30,000 points per quarter cap on Clubcard points
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A couple of years ago, Tesco changed the rules of their Clubcard scheme. A cap was brought in, with the maximum number of points you could earn per quarter capped at 30,000 (so 72,000 Avios or 75,000 Flying Club miles).
This cap was never enforced, though. Everyone assumed that Tesco had brought it in to cover its back if it discovered abuse of the scheme, so that it could strip people of points if it wanted.
This quarter, though, it IS being enforced. Not for everyone, but for some people. There are a number of reports on paidtoshop and Flyertalk of people having their balances reduced to exactly 30,000 points and receiving just £300 of vouchers.
Frankly, this is a bit of a poor show by Tesco, since the rule has never been imposed in the past. It is difficult to know if you would have any recompense against them, given that the rules do state this clearly.
There is at least one lesson to learn here, though: do not transfer TopCashback cashback to Clubcard until it is nearly at the end of a Clubcard quarter.
A number of people have had TopCashBack funds removed from their Clubcard account. This seems very wrong – Tesco is effectively taking real money away from you in this scenario, as you could have cashed out that TopCashBack money for real cash.
If you are considering moving TopCashBack money to Tesco, leave it until late in the quarter. If a great Tesco promotion comes along to earn Clubcard points very cheaply, you can fill up your account to 30,000 points that way and hold off from doing a TCB conversion until next quarter.
(You should, though, do a very small TopCashBack transfer to Tesco as soon as you can, since it starts the clock on the one year anniversary at which point the £50 cap resets.)
Even weirder, there are examples of Tesco taking away ‘change’ from Clubcard vouchers issued in a previous quarter! (If you redeem a £20 voucher for a £5 redemption, the £15 ‘change’ is credited back to your account and reissued next time.) This seems even crazier, since these points were clearly originally earned in a different quarter.
It will take some time before the dust settles on this and we can be clear about what is going on. At the moment, though, go above 30,000 Clubcard points at your own risk.
How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)
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
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
There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:
British Airways American Express Premium Plus
25,000 Avios 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 £15,000 Read our full review
You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.
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
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: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.
Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa
Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 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 an annual £200 Amex Travel credit 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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