Get 10% off Blacklane executive car transfers for new users

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• AT says:

  16 Aug16 August 09:54

  OT – Virgin Atlantic credit card: Where/how do you get the voucher upon reaching the £10k spend target? All I can see in my Flying Club account is in the activity view : “Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Credit Card – Reward Qualification”

  No mention of anything in my card statement.

  • Rob says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:14

    Not sure we know yet, given how new the card is.

  • Kip says:

    16 Aug16 August 13:52

    I think that’s all you get. I used a Reward Companion voucher this week issued by MBNA last September and the transaction line on the FC account was the only thing to say I had received it.
    I also got my VM card Reward Qualification this week and it looks on the account the same as yours.

    You have to redeem these vouchers on the phone anyway so there’s no voucher coded or anything to input online.

• Concerto says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:09

  I will transit Shanghai tomorrow. I intend to avoid going into transit as I have a long layover and was planning a quick visit to the city. But does TWOV really work there? Will immigration let me through even though I’m on a 9h layover?

  • AndyR says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:37

    I used it fine last when we had a 12hour layover in Dec 2017. However, since March there have been some changes apparently.

    Below taken from TWOV thread on Flyertalk:

    Update March 2018: TWOV is still operational in Shanghai however new rules are supposedly in operation – at least at PVG – limiting the ability for passengers to enter China and leave the airport. Passengers with: (1) short stays (under four hours), (2) same-day transfers (more than four hours, but with an onward flight on the same day as arriving), (3) a transit within 24 hours but without confirmed hotel accommodation, and/or (4) who do not need to collect bags and recheck for their onward flight may all be affected. Passengers in any one of these categories may be directed to the transfer line with direct air-side transfer (not allowed to enter China/leave the airport).

    I suggest reading the last few pages of that thread, see if anyone has done something similar recently.

• James says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:22

  There must be a devaluation coming given how many Avios Iberia are selling off at 1.1p.

  • Genghis says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:56

    I’d disagree. That’s generally how much they’re worth…

• Graham Walsh says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:25

  New Pop-up Amex Lounge in London

  American Express Platinum House is coming to London. Platinum Cardmembers and their guests2 are invited to experience the best of Platinum during a four-day pop-up event at the Old Central St. Martins Building. Stop by Platinum House and enjoy complimentary food & beverages, live music performances, morning workout classes, beauty services and more.

  To join us for this event please check in with the American Express team in the lobby of the Old Central St. Martins Building. Please have your American Express Card available for entry. To learn more, visit: amex.co/platinumhouse.

  • Kevin says:

    16 Aug16 August 11:30

    We should totally all go to the same yoga and meditation class.

• Jimbob says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:29

  OT : any personal recommendations for HSBC premier bank account? Tempted just to be able to sign up for the premier credit card, but would probably move my whole current account across from Barclays, who I’ve actually been quite impressed with, Barclay’s banking app is actually very good (I can even deposited cheques via the app to save on a trip to the bank)

  Decisions, decisions………

  • John says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:36

    Everyone should have current accounts with 2 or 3 different banking groups

    I have HSBC premier in several countries but not sure it’s really worth it in the UK, except for the credit card

    • Rob says:

      16 Aug16 August 10:49

      Having had it for 20 years, fundamentally it just gets you the level of service that everyone would have got 30 years ago but no-one gets today.

  • Genghis says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:43

    I’ve been mulling this over. I’m currently with Barclays and quite like the free coffee (and cake a few times a year) and the English Heritage thing. But the queues at Barclays are long and machines useless. The segregated Premier offering at the Queen Victoria St branch is appealing.

  • 1nfrequent says:

    16 Aug16 August 11:22

    I made the move earlier this year and have been pretty pleased with it. If you have a local HSBC branch then I find that the staff tend to acknowledge me and say hello when I pop in and they’re genuinely very helpful if you have an issue (I had a problem making a payment and they sorted it for me within 10 minutes). The switch itself went smoothly and the only downside was that it took about 45 minutes in branch to actually set up the account (although this was due to my having moved jobs, which affected on of the things on their computerised system). The downside is that the on-line banking site isn’t particularly intuitive – the access is secure but working out how to make payments etc took me a while to get used to. There was also a bit of pressure to download their App onto my phone (which I didn’t do because I try to minimise what I keep on my phone) and I’ve had a couple of calls from their Premier team trying to sell me products, which I have politely and firmly put a stop to (thank you, GDPR). I can’t speak to their savings/investment products though because I got the account by moving my mortgage (they had the best rate for what I wanted so it was a no brainer).

    1F

  • Kevin says:

    16 Aug16 August 11:38

    I’ve been Premier for yonks (even had to pay for it in the beginning).

    It’s fine but I don’t have a Barclays card to compare it with.

    They made a terrible, terrible hash of my application to get the Elite MasterCard but I expect they’ve sorted out their systems by now. If you collect one of the airline currencies Premier offers then it’s well worth it. The free travel internet was good but that’s been quietly dropped from the Elite version I think.

  • the_real_a says:

    16 Aug16 August 12:21

    The HSBC products (even premier) IMO are terrible, and you need to consider the opportunity cost of lost interest compared to “best in market”.

    HSBC is a very bureaucratic organisation, expect to have to “go in branch” to get anything done, and also expect over zealous anti money laundering paperwork (and associated proofs) for basic transactions. How would you like your account suspended and asked to “go in branch” to prove source of funds for a £750 cash deposit for example?

    • John says:

      16 Aug16 August 13:25

      I don’t have an HSBC UK account any more after it was closed for paying my Amex £5000 by direct debit. I feel that they got spooked because my usual DDs to that Amex were under £1000, and I transferred £3000 from my own account at another bank the day before the DD was taken. The letter specifically told me not to go in branch as they were not going to reconsider! And it was hand signed by the branch manager….

    • Jon says:

      16 Aug16 August 18:35

      Totally agree. I was thinking of getting HSBC Premier or another “premium” tier bank account, but then the rates of interest on savings products are terrible compared to challenger banks. Most of the investment products from these traditional banks are also expensive. I had a HSBC account purely for the 5% regular saver and switching bonus, but the app was so poor I switched again after a year. So for me, deffo not worth it!

  • rams1981 says:

    16 Aug16 August 20:24

    I have it. Don’t do much with the account. Have a regular saver which I use. Not a fan of their £10k daily online limit on bank transfers.

    • Rob says:

      16 Aug16 August 22:12

      +1

• John says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:33

  Would arriving at LGW on the train at 0527 for a 0645 departure (Norwegian) give us enough time to enjoy the Grain Store? Could also aim to arrive 0457 but not sure if worth it

  • N says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:41

    can get a takeaway afaik

  • Evan says:

    16 Aug16 August 16:24

    I wouldn’t have thought so no.

• tintin says:

  16 Aug16 August 10:40

  OT: Does anyone know if Melia Rewards bookings paid for entirely in points can be cancelled and if so if the points are also refunded? Can’t find this info anywhere on Melia website or in FAQs

  • Alistair says:

    16 Aug16 August 10:55

    Yes, I did that a couple of weeks ago. Took a few minutes for the points to come back through, although when trying to rebook it showed the pre-refund balance until I logged out and back in.

    • tintin says:

      16 Aug16 August 11:23

      Great thanks, will make my booking in that case 🙂

  • Alistair says:

    16 Aug16 August 11:01

    From the booking confirmation:

    “MELIÁREWARDS BONUS
    REDEMPTION
    Payment garanteed with points.

    Cancellation of the reservation

    If cancel within 24 Hour(s) before arrival or customers are no show, 1 Night(s) will be charged as cancellation penalty”

• S**mo says:

  16 Aug16 August 11:42

  OT/

  AMEX SPG – Anybody had any more feedback from American Express on the retention offer that seems to have been messed up in the Marriott merger?

  I’m awaiting a phone call back from Amex, but based on the previous conversations its not going to be easy…

  For others not aware, there was a retention offer of double points (2 points instead of 1 per £) for keeping the SPG AMEX instead of cancelling, however the base rate has now moved to 3 points in the new scheme, but AMEX are saying that its still only 1 extra point per £ instead of the logical double of 3!

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