Do you understand Avios / Virgin ShopsAway / Bink in-store ‘card clash’?

Both Avios and Virgin Flying Club have launched some interesting in-store earning opportunities recently.  We also featured the Bink loyalty app late last year which lets you earn Avios in High Street retailers.

All of these deals work in the same way.  You register your credit cards with the relevant points provider and give them permission to access Visa / Mastercard / Amex’s transaction records.  They receive card data on transactions at specific retailers and, when your card number is spotted, you receive points.

The key Virgin Atlantic partner is Waitrose.  You earn 4 Flying Club miles per £1 spent instore, as I wrote here.

The key Avios partner is probably Caffe Nero.  You earn up to 10 Avios per £1 spent instore, as I wrote here.

The only Bink Avios-earning partner so far is PizzaExpress.  You earn 3-6 Avios per £1 spent instore, as I wrote here.

But …..

It appears that there is some element of ‘card clash’ at work here.

Importantly, registering a card for one of these services appears to stop you using the same card with a competing service, even for different retailers.

I can’t get to the bottom of it, however.

This is what I do know – the last Avios points I received from Caffe Nero were dated 6th February.  Nothing has turned up since then.  (This is not linked to the block on using Visa cards with Nero as I only use an Amex there.)  At some point after that, I registered the same payment cards with the Virgin programme so that I could earn in Waitrose – and those points have been posting OK.  Avios from all of my recent Pizza Express visits have also been paid OK via Bink.

This wording has appeared in the small print of the Avios instore shopping channel:

“You might not earn Avios In Store if the same payment card is registered with another ‘card-linked offer’ programme. To avoid this, ensure that you delete or remove the card from any other ‘card linked offer’ programmes.”

This is vague.  I can understand why their could be problems if, for example, the same retailer was participating in both the Avios and Virgin instore shopping schemes (and some are in both, for example Ernest Jones).  But does it mean that if I register an Amex card with the Avios instore scheme I cannot use it to collect Virgin miles via Waitrose, who are not with Avios?

I know that some other readers have stopped receiving Caffe Nero Avios after registering for Waitrose / Virgin miles.  There doesn’t appear to be any issues with cards linked to Bink, despite the warning that the Avios e-store is putting out.

We don’t have a lot of evidence though.  If you’ve got any experience of ‘card clash’ when using the same payment card with Avios and / or Virgin, please post your experiences in the comments.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2025 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 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

Get 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.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 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:

American Express Business Platinum

50,000 points when you sign-up 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

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review