Good new American Express cashback deals: TFL, Harrods, John Lewis, Fenwick etc

American Express has launched a number of new cashback deals to help cut the cost of your Christmas shopping.

These are a very generous group of offers.  However, if my own family cards are anything to go by, it seems that they are not appearing to everyone.

This is what I had across my cards:

Transport for London – 10% off contactless travel 

The offer runs to 31st December.  It does not include Heathrow Express or Heathrow Connect / TFL Rail when paid via contactless payment.

John Lewis – £10 cashback when you spend £50

Expires 29th December. Waitrose shoppers may want to buy a £50 John Lewis gift card instore which can then be used in a Waitrose.  Excludes John Lewis Opticians.

Harrods – £30 cashback when you spend £100 (expires 24th December)

Debenhams – £10 cashback when you spend £50 (expires 31st December, so it can be used during the sale too)

Fenwick and Bentalls – £5 cashback when you spend £20 (expires 24th December)

If you’re a big fan of tuna baguettes, Upper Crust also offered me £2 back when I spend £5 before Christmas Eve!

And …..

There is also a new Accor hotels deal available.

It is offering £50 cashback when you spend £350 at selected luxury hotels in Europe before 28th February.

It is very select group of hotels included.  The only countries covered are the UK, Netherlands, France, Austria, Germany and Switzerland.

If you were planning to stay at a Sofitel, Pullman or MGallery then your luck may be in.  Sofitel Heathrow and Pullman London (Kings Cross) are excluded, however.

Pullman Berlin, which I reviewed earlier this year (our Pullman Berlin review is here and see the photo above) and liked a lot, IS included.

Remember that Amex charges a 3% FX fee when you use your card abroad so, if you have a card from another provider with 0% FX fees, remember to factor in the FX fee when working out how much you will save.

The rules do not say if cumulative spend counts.  It usually does with American Express hotel promotions, but until we get feedback from other readers you shouldn’t rely on it.

The Accor website is here if you want to scope out your options.  If you don’t want to earn Le Club AccorHotels points, you can take Avios directly instead.  Credit to Iberia Plus and not British Airways Executive Club as the rate is twice as high – you can use ‘Combine My Avios’ to move them across to BA afterwards.

PS.  If you missed it, take a look at our recent article on the top 10 reasons to apply for the free (in year 1) American Express Preferred Rewards Gold credit card.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – January 2022 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit or charge card, here are our January 2022 recommendations based on the current sign-up bonus. 

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the top current deals.

There are special sign-up bonuses on both of the BA American Express cards until 28th February 2022. The bonus on the free card is doubled to 10,000 Avios and the bonus on the Premium Plus card is increased from 25,000 Avios to a huge 40,000 Avios.

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.

The bonus on the Capital On Tap card is increased from points worth 10,000 Avios to 30,000 Avios until 4th February 2022.

The bonus on the British Airways Accelerating Business card is increased from 30,000 Avios to 45,000 Avios until 28th February 2022.

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.

Apply 31st March 2022 and your cashback will be increased to 2% for the first three months.