Bits: new Heathrow Rewards offer, new BA Amex spend bonus, 6000 Avios with Tesco insurance

News in brief:

Heathrow Rewards launches a new Virgin Flying Club offer

Heathrow Rewards is launching a promotion for Virgin Flying Club members today – but it isn’t bonus miles.

Anyone who transfers their Heathrow Rewards points to Virgin  Atlantic – at the standard 1:1 rate, in chunks of 250 – will be entered into a competition.

The prizes are:

First prize – 20,000 Virgin Flying Club miles

Second prize – 10,000 Virgin Flying Club miles

Third prize – 5 people will win 5,000 Virgin Flying Club miles

Anyone who makes a transfer to Virgin during September will be entered.  You will only be entered once, irrespective of the number or size of transfers you make.

If Virgin Flying Club miles don’t appeal, remember that the 50% conversion bonus on Heathrow Rewards transfers to Avios is still running until 30th September.

New BA Amex spend bonus launched

Some British Airways American Express cardholders will be contacted today about a new spending promotion.

Eligible British Airways American Express cardholders will be offered 2,500 bonus Avios for spending £5,000 between 1st September and 30th November

Eligible British Airways American Express Premium Plus cardholders will be offered 5,000 bonus Avios for spending £10,000 between 1st September and 30th November

Whilst these offers are worth having if you are targetted, you should think carefully before pursuing them.

If you have already hit your spending target for the year to trigger your 2-4-1 voucher, it might be better to get a new card and hit a new spend target:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold charge card (£2,000 spend required to trigger 20,000 bonus Amex points, worth 20,000 Avios) or

Starwood Preferred Guest American Express credit card (£1,000 spend required to trigger 10,000 bonus SPG points, worth 10,000 Avios) Representative APR 36.2% variable including £75 fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit or

Lloyds Avios Rewards credit card (you receive a BA Avios upgrade voucher for spending £7,000) Representative APR 23.7% variable including £24 fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit or

IHG Rewards Club Premium MasterCard (20,000 IHG points for signing up and a free night voucher – potentially worth £250 at a top hotel – for spending £10,000)  Representative APR 41.5% variable including £99 fee based on a notional £1200 credit limit

Any of these would be more valuable than putting an extra £5,000 – £10,000 through your BA Amex.

Get 6,000 Avios or 6,250 Virgin Atlantic miles with insurance

Tesco Bank is currently offering 2,500 bonus Clubcard points (converts into 6,000 Avios or 6,250 Virgin Flying Club miles) when you take out its Building & Contents Insurance for the first time.

You should compare the Tesco price with the current Alan Boswell Group insurance deal.  Boswell is an Avios partner and they are giving out 5,000 – 10,000 Avios with policies taken out this month.  Details are here.

PS. If you are not a regular Head for Points visitor, why not sign up for our FREE weekly or daily newsletters? They are full of the latest Avios, airline, hotel and credit card points news and will help you travel better. To join our 65,000 free subscribers, click the button below or visit this page of the site to find out more. Thank you.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2025)

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

Get 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

30,000 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.

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

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large 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, and the standard card is FREE. Capital on Tap cards also have no FX fees.

Capital on Tap Visa

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

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

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

There is also a British Airways American Express card for small businesses:

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

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

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

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.