Beginner Avios questions / advice needed please

[jezza76]

Hi, hope someone can help. After much reading on HFP and after asking advice from others, me and my partner want to get into the world of credit cards and collecting points.

We have decided to start with collecting Avios points and concentrate on this for the time being, as we feel like just sticking to one rewards scheme for beginners like us would be easiest. (unless anybody reading this suggests otherwise) . Ultimately we want Flights, hotels or lounge access as the main benefits from doing this.

We were all set to go for the American Express maximiser here: https://www.headforpoints.com/2023/01/03/maximise-american-express-signup-bonuses/
But right now my partner is about to apply for a mortgage, so her mortgage advisor has said she should wait before applying for credit cards.

So that just leaves me. I have had advice that going for the American Express Gold card might be good (free for one year and £160 after, 20,000 avios points) but would that then stop me going for all the sign up bonuses on here: https://www.headforpoints.com/2023/01/03/maximise-american-express-signup-bonuses/ ? (once my partners mortgage goes through she’ll be able to apply no problem and we both have a good credit score)

So should we wait and maybe take out another card before we try and American express sign up bonus route? Or does the Amex Gold card not effect the sign up bonus thing.

We are keen to get something ASAP as she is travelling soon and will spend around £1500 on tickets and i may spend around the same on tickets for my parents who may go away soon too. So that would help us hit the £3000 within 3 months target for some of these cards. Without that, i think we’d probably struggle to hit that £3,000 target as we arent big spenders (although we are probably going on holiday together in June and again in November)

Final couple of questions i have is, Do Avios Points reset year to year or do they carry over? (is there a time limit on them?)

Also, how long does it take for a card to arrive after you apply for them? This one is quite important as my parents are looking to book asap.

Sorry for all the questions, any help/advice would be greatly apprecaited!

Thanks

[NorthernLass]

Points and avios collecting strategy can be a minefield at the start and it’s easy to get it very wrong (such as losing eligibility for one kind of Amex sign up bonus by getting another one), so I would really suggest reading Rob’s articles a few times until you’ve digested all the information as short replies on here can’t convey all of that. Avios do expire after a certain period, but again you need to look at the rules on that and how to prevent it. Cards can take anything from a couple of days to a couple of weeks to arrive so it’s not an exact science.

[masaccio]

There’s a more nuanced description of how credit applications affect your credit score here. You could get a free trial of one of the main credit scoring agencies or pick one of the free ones like Clearscore to see whether your OH has a decent score in the first place. Of course you might not have that much of a risk appetite given the importance of the outcome.

[YC]

I would go for the BA premium Amex card given the enhanced 70k bonus but do get initial hesitation with paying fees. Very easy to stop avios from expiring – hfp have done an article (last a minimum 3yrs). Card will likely arrive within a few business days (my experience)

Enjoy your points journey! With any hobby, it requires a bit of constant ‘work’ (both earning and redeeming) but if you enjoy it, it does pay off

[Robm]

Being brand new you can get a boat load of points with SUBs and referrals between you and your partner. I’d recommend following Robs guide on the order. If the mortgage offer is coming soon, you could start with your first card, then start the referral to your partner once the mortgage is sorted. I’d highly recommend the platinum card as part of this strategy as the SUBs and referrals are large. There are also other benefits like Dining and Harvey Nichols. Plus the card fee is refundable pro rata. With the fallow period being 2 years until you are eligible for SUBs with Amex I’d take your time. There are lots of good ways to hit SUBs as well – e.g. Octopus Energy, you can credit your account with Amex.

[Robm]

If you ask for a referral code from someone, e.g. Rob, when you are ready for your first Amex you will also get an enhanced SUB.

[jezza76]

NorthernLass wrote:

Points and avios collecting strategy can be a minefield at the start and it’s easy to get it very wrong (such as losing eligibility for one kind of Amex sign up bonus by getting another one), so I would really suggest reading Rob’s articles a few times until you’ve digested all the information as short replies on here can’t convey all of that. Avios do expire after a certain period, but again you need to look at the rules on that and how to prevent it. Cards can take anything from a couple of days to a couple of weeks to arrive so it’s not an exact science.

Thanks, we have been reading up loads on the forum this last week. Yeah i did check on the card arrival times and amex said it can be up to 17 days and Barclaycard said 7-10 days

[jezza76]

masaccio wrote:

There’s a more nuanced description of how credit applications affect your credit score here. You could get a free trial of one of the main credit scoring agencies or pick one of the free ones like Clearscore to see whether your OH has a decent score in the first place. Of course you might not have that much of a risk appetite given the importance of the outcome.

Thank you, yeah i think it might be a little risky at the moment for us as the mortgage is really important right now

[jezza76]

YC wrote:

I would go for the BA premium Amex card given the enhanced 70k bonus but do get initial hesitation with paying fees. Very easy to stop avios from expiring – hfp have done an article (last a minimum 3yrs). Card will likely arrive within a few business days (my experience)

Enjoy your points journey! With any hobby, it requires a bit of constant ‘work’ (both earning and redeeming) but if you enjoy it, it does pay off

Thanks, i didnt spot that article before. So is that £250 annual fee pro rata, meaning i could pay it up front, hit the £3000 spend (within 3 months) and then cancel, keep the points and get a refund?

[jezza76]

Robm wrote:

Being brand new you can get a boat load of points with SUBs and referrals between you and your partner. I’d recommend following Robs guide on the order. If the mortgage offer is coming soon, you could start with your first card, then start the referral to your partner once the mortgage is sorted. I’d highly recommend the platinum card as part of this strategy as the SUBs and referrals are large. There are also other benefits like Dining and Harvey Nichols. Plus the card fee is refundable pro rata. With the fallow period being 2 years until you are eligible for SUBs with Amex I’d take your time. There are lots of good ways to hit SUBs as well – e.g. Octopus Energy, you can credit your account with Amex.

Cheers, this is what we were confused about after doing more reading into the american express maximise referral offers route. for example, what i wasn’t sure about was with the https://www.headforpoints.com/2023/01/03/maximise-american-express-signup-bonuses/ maximise referral thing. It says you cant have a different amex card within the past 24 months. So if i took a card out, spent the £2k (for the first nectar card) and then referred partner and she spent the £2k. Wouldnt we both then have to wait like nearly 18+ months before we can do the next card on the headforpoints list? That would then take like 5 years in total to do all the cards between us….is that right?

Thanks

[jezza76]

YC wrote:

I would go for the BA premium Amex card given the enhanced 70k bonus but do get initial hesitation with paying fees. Very easy to stop avios from expiring – hfp have done an article (last a minimum 3yrs). Card will likely arrive within a few business days (my experience)

Enjoy your points journey! With any hobby, it requires a bit of constant ‘work’ (both earning and redeeming) but if you enjoy it, it does pay off

Also how would i get around the £1200 credit limit? If i wanted to spend the £3000 (within 3 months) as quickly as possible to get the points and cancel the card. If i spent £1200 and cleared the balance immediately, would that reset my £1200 limit or would i have to wait until next month?

Thanks

[NorthernLass]

How do you know you have a £1200 credit limit?

[jezza76]

NorthernLass wrote:

How do you know you have a £1200 credit limit?

it says this under the card details:

Representative 107.7% APR variable. £250 annual fee. Assumed £1,200 credit limit with 28.1% per annum variable purchase rate. T&Cs apply. Doesn’t that mean my limit will be £1200?

[Jasdev]

£1,200 is a standard figure used across all UK credit card offers, because it allows customers to easily compare the cost of borrowing from product to product.
Your limit will be stated in your American Express account and in your introductory letter from American Express.

[aq.1988]

You’ve asked quite a few questions, so I’ll try my best to answer as much as I can.

The £1200 you’re looking at is probably the assumed limit, but yes, if you cleared it before your statement due date, you can earn more points.

Yes, for the BAPP card, you can cancel and receive a pro-rata refund of the £250 fee.

I find that the cards arrive pretty much within 1 or 2 days of acceptance.

Usually I would suggest the Gold card as the first card you apply for as it’s free for the first year, but given the incredible 70k bonus on offer for the BAPP, I would say it’s too good to miss. Usually it’s only 25k, and I think it when it had an enhanced offer, it’s 40k. Same with the Barclaycard Avios Plus card, it’s 25k, and there was an enhanced offer of 50k last year.

Because of your situation with the mortgage, this is how I would order it to maximise your bonuses. But obviously do what is best for you.

You apply for the BAPP for the 70k (up to you whether you want to cancel for a refund or spend the £10k for the 241 voucher).

Then you refer your partner for the Gold card after her mortgage is sorted; she could go for the Plat for a higher bonus but it has a £575 fee (again refundable).

She would still be eligible for the SUB on the BAPP if she started with the Gold (you can refer her if you still have your card).

In this scenario, as you started off with the BAPP, the only SUB you could still get would be the Platinum (again get her to refer you).

And, to increase your points from each of these cards, add a free supplementary card to each of your cards (but don’t do it at the application stage). Do it afterwards using the special link online, as you get 3k avios for the BAPP, and 3k MR points for the Gold card. Google “add supplementary amex card”, and you’ll find it.

With regards to getting the bonuses:
-For BAPP, you can’t have had a BA Amex in the last 2 years
-For Gold, you can’t have had any Amex in the last 2 years
-For Plat, you can’t have had an MR earning Amex in the last 2 years (i.e, the Gold, Green or free rewards card)

Having a supplementary card on someone else’s account does not count as you having held that card.

[aq.1988]

Avios expire after 3 years, but you can stop them expiring easily enough.

https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/executive-club/collecting-avios/avios-expiry-rules

[Robm]

“It says you cant have a different amex card within the past 24 months. So if i took a card out, spent the £2k (for the first nectar card) and then referred partner and she spent the £2k. Wouldnt we both then have to wait like nearly 18+ months before we can do the next card on the headforpoints list? That would then take like 5 years in total to do all the cards between us….is that right?”

So… to keep it simple, as neither you or your partner have had any Amex cards in the last two years you are eligible for all the SUBs on the cards in Robs article – as long as you do them in the right order – straight away. You don’t need to wait long in between at all. (In practice you would leave some time in between to help make sure you hit the SUB values – e.g. 3 months or whatever – or as soon as you are close to hitting the SUB on the current card.

You can ignore the 2 years – this is only important if you want to cancel a card and then wait until eligible for a SUB on that same card. E.g. if I had the BA card, got the SUB, then cancelled it – I would have to wait two years until applying in order to be eligible again for a SUB on the BA card.

[Robm]

The 70k offer on the BAPP is crazy – if you see Robs article on it. I think you and your partner could possibly get this before the offer runs out on 21 Feb – although partner maybe doesn’t go for it if they haven’t got a mortgage yet. And sack off the nectar card. I believe – but am not sure – you’d still be eligible for a SUB on the Platinum card. You’d need to do some maths on how valuable the special offer on the BAPP is. You could also split – you going for the BAPP special offer, then your partner going for the “regular” order in Robs article. It is pretty complex, but I enjoy it as a hobby. I normally have a note or spreadsheet with the order/ timing of what works best for me and my partner. I really find it a great hobby – I hope you do as well!!

You’d need to do some maths and see how it works for your situation. The 241 from the BAPP card is also valuable if you want to go for one longer term (10k spend required over the card year).

[jezza76]

Jasdev wrote:

£1,200 is a standard figure used across all UK credit card offers, because it allows customers to easily compare the cost of borrowing from product to product.
Your limit will be stated in your American Express account and in your introductory letter from American Express.

Ah i see, ok thanks for clearing that up

[jezza76]

aq.1988 wrote:

You’ve asked quite a few questions, so I’ll try my best to answer as much as I can.

The £1200 you’re looking at is probably the assumed limit, but yes, if you cleared it before your statement due date, you can earn more points.

Yes, for the BAPP card, you can cancel and receive a pro-rata refund of the £250 fee.

I find that the cards arrive pretty much within 1 or 2 days of acceptance.

Usually I would suggest the Gold card as the first card you apply for as it’s free for the first year, but given the incredible 70k bonus on offer for the BAPP, I would say it’s too good to miss. Usually it’s only 25k, and I think it when it had an enhanced offer, it’s 40k. Same with the Barclaycard Avios Plus card, it’s 25k, and there was an enhanced offer of 50k last year.

Because of your situation with the mortgage, this is how I would order it to maximise your bonuses. But obviously do what is best for you.

You apply for the BAPP for the 70k (up to you whether you want to cancel for a refund or spend the £10k for the 241 voucher).

Then you refer your partner for the Gold card after her mortgage is sorted; she could go for the Plat for a higher bonus but it has a £575 fee (again refundable).

She would still be eligible for the SUB on the BAPP if she started with the Gold (you can refer her if you still have your card).

In this scenario, as you started off with the BAPP, the only SUB you could still get would be the Platinum (again get her to refer you).

And, to increase your points from each of these cards, add a free supplementary card to each of your cards (but don’t do it at the application stage). Do it afterwards using the special link online, as you get 3k avios for the BAPP, and 3k MR points for the Gold card. Google “add supplementary amex card”, and you’ll find it.

With regards to getting the bonuses:
-For BAPP, you can’t have had a BA Amex in the last 2 years
-For Gold, you can’t have had any Amex in the last 2 years
-For Plat, you can’t have had an MR earning Amex in the last 2 years (i.e, the Gold, Green or free rewards card)

Having a supplementary card on someone else’s account does not count as you having held that card.

Thanks so much, thats amazing, thanks so much for taking the time and writing all that out and giving us a clear map of what to do. I applied for the BAPP card just now and it said application under review, should it have gone through instantly and now i may get declined? It said it can take up to 10 days

[jezza76]

Robm wrote:

“It says you cant have a different amex card within the past 24 months. So if i took a card out, spent the £2k (for the first nectar card) and then referred partner and she spent the £2k. Wouldnt we both then have to wait like nearly 18+ months before we can do the next card on the headforpoints list? That would then take like 5 years in total to do all the cards between us….is that right?”

So… to keep it simple, as neither you or your partner have had any Amex cards in the last two years you are eligible for all the SUBs on the cards in Robs article – as long as you do them in the right order – straight away. You don’t need to wait long in between at all. (In practice you would leave some time in between to help make sure you hit the SUB values – e.g. 3 months or whatever – or as soon as you are close to hitting the SUB on the current card.

You can ignore the 2 years – this is only important if you want to cancel a card and then wait until eligible for a SUB on that same card. E.g. if I had the BA card, got the SUB, then cancelled it – I would have to wait two years until applying in order to be eligible again for a SUB on the BA card.

Ah i see! Thanks for clarifying that. If i dont get the BAPP card i think i may go down this route then. Cheers

[jezza76]

Robm wrote:

The 70k offer on the BAPP is crazy – if you see Robs article on it. I think you and your partner could possibly get this before the offer runs out on 21 Feb – although partner maybe doesn’t go for it if they haven’t got a mortgage yet. And sack off the nectar card. I believe – but am not sure – you’d still be eligible for a SUB on the Platinum card. You’d need to do some maths on how valuable the special offer on the BAPP is. You could also split – you going for the BAPP special offer, then your partner going for the “regular” order in Robs article. It is pretty complex, but I enjoy it as a hobby. I normally have a note or spreadsheet with the order/ timing of what works best for me and my partner. I really find it a great hobby – I hope you do as well!!

You’d need to do some maths and see how it works for your situation. The 241 from the BAPP card is also valuable if you want to go for one longer term (10k spend required over the card year).

Yeah its a great offer and i totally missed it until someone pointed it out on here. I’ve applied for it but unfortunately didn’t get accepted immediately. Which is a shame because i really wanted that ASAP so i could put my parents tickets on there to help with the £3k spend target but they want to book in the next few days. If i dont get it, then ill have to look into rob’s route like you said or maybe even the Barclaycard 35,000 points offer

[aq.1988]

jezza76 wrote:

aq.1988 wrote:

You’ve asked quite a few questions, so I’ll try my best to answer as much as I can.

The £1200 you’re looking at is probably the assumed limit, but yes, if you cleared it before your statement due date, you can earn more points.

Yes, for the BAPP card, you can cancel and receive a pro-rata refund of the £250 fee.

I find that the cards arrive pretty much within 1 or 2 days of acceptance.

Usually I would suggest the Gold card as the first card you apply for as it’s free for the first year, but given the incredible 70k bonus on offer for the BAPP, I would say it’s too good to miss. Usually it’s only 25k, and I think it when it had an enhanced offer, it’s 40k. Same with the Barclaycard Avios Plus card, it’s 25k, and there was an enhanced offer of 50k last year.

Because of your situation with the mortgage, this is how I would order it to maximise your bonuses. But obviously do what is best for you.

You apply for the BAPP for the 70k (up to you whether you want to cancel for a refund or spend the £10k for the 241 voucher).

Then you refer your partner for the Gold card after her mortgage is sorted; she could go for the Plat for a higher bonus but it has a £575 fee (again refundable).

She would still be eligible for the SUB on the BAPP if she started with the Gold (you can refer her if you still have your card).

In this scenario, as you started off with the BAPP, the only SUB you could still get would be the Platinum (again get her to refer you).

And, to increase your points from each of these cards, add a free supplementary card to each of your cards (but don’t do it at the application stage). Do it afterwards using the special link online, as you get 3k avios for the BAPP, and 3k MR points for the Gold card. Google “add supplementary amex card”, and you’ll find it.

With regards to getting the bonuses:
-For BAPP, you can’t have had a BA Amex in the last 2 years
-For Gold, you can’t have had any Amex in the last 2 years
-For Plat, you can’t have had an MR earning Amex in the last 2 years (i.e, the Gold, Green or free rewards card)

Having a supplementary card on someone else’s account does not count as you having held that card.

Thanks so much, thats amazing, thanks so much for taking the time and writing all that out and giving us a clear map of what to do. I applied for the BAPP card just now and it said application under review, should it have gone through instantly and now i may get declined? It said it can take up to 10 days

No worries. Tbh, I’m not sure what happens when it goes to review; all my applications have always gone straight through.

[Erico1875]

Rob has an exclusive 50k SUB for the platinum. You would need to contact him for a referal

[jezza76]

aq.1988 wrote:

jezza76 wrote:

aq.1988 wrote:

You’ve asked quite a few questions, so I’ll try my best to answer as much as I can.

The £1200 you’re looking at is probably the assumed limit, but yes, if you cleared it before your statement due date, you can earn more points.

Yes, for the BAPP card, you can cancel and receive a pro-rata refund of the £250 fee.

I find that the cards arrive pretty much within 1 or 2 days of acceptance.

Usually I would suggest the Gold card as the first card you apply for as it’s free for the first year, but given the incredible 70k bonus on offer for the BAPP, I would say it’s too good to miss. Usually it’s only 25k, and I think it when it had an enhanced offer, it’s 40k. Same with the Barclaycard Avios Plus card, it’s 25k, and there was an enhanced offer of 50k last year.

Because of your situation with the mortgage, this is how I would order it to maximise your bonuses. But obviously do what is best for you.

You apply for the BAPP for the 70k (up to you whether you want to cancel for a refund or spend the £10k for the 241 voucher).

Then you refer your partner for the Gold card after her mortgage is sorted; she could go for the Plat for a higher bonus but it has a £575 fee (again refundable).

She would still be eligible for the SUB on the BAPP if she started with the Gold (you can refer her if you still have your card).

In this scenario, as you started off with the BAPP, the only SUB you could still get would be the Platinum (again get her to refer you).

And, to increase your points from each of these cards, add a free supplementary card to each of your cards (but don’t do it at the application stage). Do it afterwards using the special link online, as you get 3k avios for the BAPP, and 3k MR points for the Gold card. Google “add supplementary amex card”, and you’ll find it.

With regards to getting the bonuses:
-For BAPP, you can’t have had a BA Amex in the last 2 years
-For Gold, you can’t have had any Amex in the last 2 years
-For Plat, you can’t have had an MR earning Amex in the last 2 years (i.e, the Gold, Green or free rewards card)

Having a supplementary card on someone else’s account does not count as you having held that card.

Thanks so much, thats amazing, thanks so much for taking the time and writing all that out and giving us a clear map of what to do. I applied for the BAPP card just now and it said application under review, should it have gone through instantly and now i may get declined? It said it can take up to 10 days

No worries. Tbh, I’m not sure what happens when it goes to review; all my applications have always gone straight through.

My application for the BAPP got approved and they said card will take up to 7 days. But they haven’t mentioned anything about the £250 annual fee for the card? When/how do you have to pay them the money?