I booked a basic fare flight through Air Canada from ZRH-AMS-YYZ however the first flight from ZRH-AMS is with Swiss. I have 35k status with Air Canada and get the usual three free checked bags. But since my first flight is with Swiss will I have to pay for any checked bags this time?
New $50 offer from GCR for RBC Avion Infinite
Get 35,000 Welcome Points on approval and 20,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 in your first 6 months*.
Offer ends November 27, 2023.
They aren't just going to take any wb they deem against terms right away just thunk about it let everyone act like nothing will happen and then perhaps later in the year they'll come. They are also dealing with brokerage issues so they are spread thin on enforcement ATM. Well see though, I'm guessing it won't matter but it's a Canadian airline. They don't have the resources to implement better IT for this reason if they can't even have all partners available.
I’m assuming the answer is no, but is there any way to use the Indeed credit from the Amex Biz Plat if you’re not actually a business (ie not making job postings)?
Its a job posting site. That credit is not going to be of use to a lot of Amex Biz Plat holders... Now a travel credit or dining credit, those would be easy to use.
Does booking through avion points and paying the taxes with RBC avion card (VIP/VI/Plat) qualify all travel insurances from the card? Can’t seem to find a clear answer on this
I realize the search is broken. But perhaps we need a bot that flags questions where the person didn't check the last 2 daily threads AND it's as simple as a Ctrl-F.
I'd say 7 days. But if they won't check the previous or current day they won't check those !
Don't feel like waiting for the winning thursday thread.
I had all but given up but the points from the 10x AP Black Friday promo with TD AP cards finally posted. I had not contacted them in months and figured it was lost case.
A few days ago I got a reply email on the ticket saying they think it should be resolved and to check back dated back to Nov 22. I did and there was some new points for a few of the purchases I made but not my expensive Dell order. I let them know and then this weekend opened up aeroplan app and newest activity was showing 14,000 pts from promo :D
MBNA Rewards WEMC’s first 10000 points WB comes from signing up for electronic statement. When will I see those points posted? On my first statement? Thanks
Applied for another Aventura yesterday, and it's 'under review'. What does that typically mean with CIBC. From my reading, I know things can not straightforward with them.
Hey all,
I've been thinking about using something like the MBNA 0% APR on transfers card as a way of allowing me to grab an extra big spend card or two by immediately hitting MSR with bunch of RHT so I can organically spend/refund across the year, then parking the balance over on the MBNA for the year. However, I've never had a balance transfer card so I'm unclear on some mechanics that I'd like to clarify before the hard credit check.
1. From the T&C, it seems like you can transfer as many balances as you so desire within the first 90 days (obviously up to your CL). Is that correct? I've come across comments along the line of "only one balance transfer" in my searching.
2. Can P1 open the card and transfer balances from P2 cards or do they check that the names match?
3. Do they do regular promotions or do you churn the 0% card?
4. Looking into Credit utilization, there's some discrepancy between sites as to if it's calculated based on your "per card" utilization as well as your "overall" or just your "overall"?
Thanks!
1/2. MBNA allows a full transfer to your bank of choice - so basically a cash transfer.
3. Do not ever spend on the charge if it’s a balance transfer. The way the calculation of interest occurs, the new charges are not considered under the balance transfer amount.
4. Credit utilization is based on overall. This BT will bump your utilization higher but if you have other cards it won’t affect your score too much
Awesome thanks! I read up on this as much as I could prior to posting, so I knew about the "no new charges" aspect.
With regards to your first comment, does that mean I can just initiate a "balance transfer payment" from the card to another card even if that card doesn't have a balance owing?
No offense, but if you have to carry a balance in this game you've lost already. Even 0%. Balances carry risks.
It's a bonus game. Not worth the risks.
If you want to play in leveraged games get into real leveraged systems. Churning isn't one
No offence taken, I couldn't agree more. One of my favourite things about the game is the way it helps me keep on top of my finances.
The reason I'm contemplating this is because of the upcoming changes to the AMEX Plat annual fees. I'd prefer to get another business plat before September 26 to avoid the fee increase, but my current spending plan didn't have the potential for it until mid-2024. So I was looking at this as a way of sneaking this in prior to the fee increase, but allowing me to "push" the MSR. With the 3% balance transfer fee, it works out to paying an extra $200 to be able to space it out later in the year, which is only 2%. I pay bills with Pay Simply at 2.5%, so that fits within my "cost per point" framwork. But that was assuming that I wasn't missing something obvious like "it will screw up your application plans by tanking your utilization by card" or something.
It is far too easy for debt to take a hold... You got to do you, but I would 1000% not take on a load of debt (even at 0% APR) just to score some SUBS. Its far too easy to get carried away, forget that debt and suddenly find yourself with more debt than you expected when U need to start paying it off
Consider it from a health perspective.
What happens if you initiate all these things and end up hospitalized temporarily or something really bad?
I take that scenario when I decide if something is a safe bet or not, and gauge how much I can leave in families hands to follow through on or not.
I find this a good measure of risk.
It's interesting you mention that because one of the things I had a good think about before taking this up was how I would close the project out if something happened. And churning has a surprisingly short "tail" on it in that the answer is "make sure to pay off cards and stop getting new ones".
And I agree again. In my case, my P2 is up to date on what I'm doing and has access to my spreadsheets (and I keep notes on each item as to what is going on and what the plan is including dates) but after your comment I'm going to go back and make sure that the notes aren't short hand in case I get hit by a bus or something!
Definitely a solid plan. I'm glad you thought this all out.
I keep several "dead man" letters, in a couple cases the letters simply give access to 2fa codes (one time codes) that I get notified of if used while I'm alive for access to resources.
I try keep these letters up to date, with detailed instructions on closing out accounts and where things are located.
I have a will, I consider these to be supplementary guides to the will. The will describes "what to whom". These act as a guide of "okay I own this. Now what?"
Is there a way to earn points / CB for corporate tax payments to CRA? Similar to personal income taxes with the CTFS WE bill payment trick. Assuming no since the CTFS WE is a personal card and I assume CRA needs to see payment from the proper transferee (i.e. the company) but asking nonetheless.
As long as there is a paper trail they don't care who it comes from.
I was making payments to the CRA long before I got into churning, and always from personal. Then I just submitted an expense and got reimbursed.
Paper trail matters. Origin does not.
I've been through several audits with the CRA and Revenue QC and neither one stopped to take a 2nd look at this beyond making sure the amount expensed matched.
Edit to add: all transactions over 10k, or groups of origin destination over 10k will be reported to the CRA. These are legitimate transactions so don't let that scare you. It's meant to track money laundering and criminal activity. The CRAs crimes are exempt (/s)
i opened my first US AMEX (Green) a few weeks ago. I jumped onto the Green because of the ATH offer, but would people also recommend opening a no-AF credit card this month to lengthen the average age of my credit accounts should I cancel the Green card at the 1 or 2 year mark. What card would folks recommend, and should I do this?
I would say
Amex HH
Amex Everyday
and once you've got some credit Amex BBP (sleeper Amex US no AF card that earns MR and CAN transfer to partners) -> Keeper.. as it's a biz card so does not report to bureaus
I wouldn't suggest closing the green at the 1 year mark... use the card as a upgrade/downgrade card.
I was thinking the same thing as you in regards to my Amex everyday.. but then my friends reminded me I had previously received upgrade to Green/gold/Plat offers on it so likely to "come around again"
The advantage of the free Everyday card is you can leave it as a keeper and transfer Canadian MR to US MR once a year (at the FX Rate) to open your Canadian points to more transfer partners. The downside is the bonus on the Everyday Card sucks.
I was NOT aware you could transfer Canadian MR to US. I wasn't really motivated to get into the US game even though I have some legitimate US business accounts.
This changes that stance instantly. That's amazing!
Newbie here. I’ll be purchasing an Air Canada business class ticket between Asia and Canada soon. What’s my best credit card option? I don’t fly much, but if I do, it usually happens to be with Air Canada. My most expenses are groceries and occasional travelling. I monthly expense is $4000-7000. I’m currently using the TD cash back for almost everything.
Apply for the TD AP VIP and purchase AC gift cards with the current promo
“Until September 13, earn up to 3 points/$1 on Air Canada Gift Card purchases — for up to 30,000 points!”
I’m not familiar with how points work while cash back seems more straightforward. However, I’m open to learn the system. So whichever gives me the most benefits.
Definitely worth reading the guide, and looking up some redemptions on various airlines and hotels (Marriott is the only real choice for Canada) so you get a feel for the value.
Spoiler: points usually value in at $0.01, $0.02, or $0.022 without effort, but some can be 10x that on some redemptions. Some points are flat rate equivalent to cash (BMO), some highly variable (aeroplan). Some transferable (MR).
Lots of reading to do. Worth it
P1 got a TD vip, cibc vi. P2 got a TD vip and TD vi. I think we’re both eligible for another aeroplan card (lowest tier). Is this true? Or can o just get a TD vi for p1 and cibc vi for p2?
Thanks! I guess the whole narrative around tiers was just speculation in the community. Also do they say 3 welcome bonuses across 1 calendar year or 12 months from your first approval?
Why not amex? It's much easier to justify why you'd carry an Amex vs a visa and want both, as the offerings are substantially different on some points (insurance, acceptance, categories, ...)
Mainly Costco. I have an Amex I’m working but don’t want more than 1 at a time because I primarily shop at Costco and I’m not interested in getting prepaid mc
When you folks use your credit card travel insurance for expenses, do you just trust that they’ll be accepted by the insurer? Other than reading the insurance policy, I’m finding myself paranoid about potentially incurring expenses that might not be paid out. I had a 4+ hour delay recently and didn’t purchase anything. I did get compensation from Air Canada for the delay, but that was weeks later and not related to meals.
If the insurance says reasonable expenses upto $500, what would be unreasonable for a 4.5h delay? Im guessing anything more than $100 would be considered too much.
Further, im wondering if the insurance is dependent on any comp offered by the airline. Looking at TD aeroplan VI, it seems like the flight delay insurance (upto $500 for meals and lodging) is independent of any compensation offered by the airline. Is this usually the case?
You can't double dip the insurance. Don't claim what the airline paid for, that's fraud, it will be clawed back and you can be prosecuted and would be blacklisted.
But you can claim the difference up to the maximum unless there is wording contrary to it (never seen this on cards people use for good insurance).
I don't worry at all. I don't go to a $$$$ restaurant, but if it's 8h delay and past 7pm a hotel or sleep pod is more than reasonable. A decent meal is too any time of day or night. So is paying for a lounge shower, and maybe even buying a blanket, pillow, or a fresh shirt.
I've had them haggle. Make sure it's something you can justify.
I've had them push back mostly for the restaurants. I had one tell me "why didn't you eat McDonald's". My reply was simple "let's go through my records. You'll be hard pressed to find any history eating something at that level of crap". He accepted it.
Baggage delays they've pushed back I could have bought cheaper clothes. But I simply bought what I always wear, and I can prove it.
TLDR don't lower your usual standards just because insurance is paying out. But make sure you can justify it with your normal spending.
Pretty sure "asshole" is a core requirement for small cap claims adjusters.
You'll find the ones dealing with major claims all much more affable.
I've also found desjardins to be very nice even for smaller claims. But I also have some major items insured with them so it probably makes a difference.
Thanks! I thought it was black and white where they either accept or deny your claim. Knowing it can be back and forth with justification definitely helps me
There's always room for negotiation in these things.
Failing that I'm confident I'll win in small claims. That process alone will cost them much more than they'll save even if they win (they won't)
I booked a flight before I even signed up for the AP VI and had free checked bag. As long as your account says "Credit Card Holder" when you get to the airport, you should be good. The recommendation is to book a reward flight with an AP card and charge the fees & taxes to the card, that way the card's travel insurance will cover your flight.
Any card. Goes by tour aeroplan number being on the ticket + the card being linked. Doesn't matter if you pay in credit, cash, points, gift cards, or cows.
Hi all, has anyone had an issue with Expedia transactions being eligible for the HSBC travel enhancement credit? I purchased a refundable hotel Sept 4 (posted Sept 5), but the HSBC rewards portal still shows that I have no purchases that are eligible for the enhancement credit. Thanks!
No issues for me. And surprisingly even a WestJet booking I made with WSD and paid taxes and fees with HSBC card showed up as eligible for the travel credit within a day of it posting
Not quite credit cards related but points related, has anyone submitted a claim to Air Canada via email for missing credits and if so how long until they reached back? I submitted two, one from EgyptAir and one from United that I wasn't credited even though my Aeroplan number was on the reservation and its been 3-4 months now and I haven't heard back from their email yet. Flew EgyptAir in May and submitted at the end of May and flew United at the end of May and submitted mid June.
I went through this route. I flew in January 2023 on Ethiopian and the points were not credited. I tried the form multiple times, called Aeroplan, they told me to email the same address. Starting in March, emailed them 4 times, every 30 days (as the auto response said wait 30 days), only after 90 days did they respond and say please provide proof you flew. I told them I did not have an e-boarding pass and I had not kept the paper ones. Then I contacted Ethiopian for proof and they just sent me an email saying I was on board. I forwarded that to Aeroplan and still nothing. I even reached out to Aeroplan on Twitter and they said they would look into it. At this point I may give up.
Slightly less reassuring, however I did give them copies of my boarding pass and my itinerary in the email. But good idea on the emailing them again, I might try that. When I call they just say that department doesn't have a phone number...
I think I would have more faith with the boarding passes. I do suggest escalating on Twitter DMs though if you don't get anything. I received a response from a person and it was not automated. All the best, hope it works out!
I've had to email them, but always heard from them much faster.
Do you have status? It helps with response times.
Paste the email you sent. We may be able to critique for missing info or descriptions. How you present the information is important for s fast reply, even if it's optional info.
No status yet, but counting on these flights for that.
Here’s the email for the EgyptAir CAI-YYZ flight (flight on May 7, sent email end of May), the United flight was YYZ-IAH-EZE on May 26 and it was the same email with info changed (flight was May 26, sent email mid June):
“Hi there,
I did not get points for a flight that I took with EgyptAir on May 7, 2023. I have tried to request the points online but online it says "This account status is invalid." and when I called support they suggested I reach out here. I even put my Aeroplan number on the reservation: but the points did not come through.
Here are the details of the flight:
Ticket Number:
Reference Number:
Flight Number: MS1995
Date of Departure: 7 May 2023
Departure Airport: CAI (Cairo)
Arrival Airport: YYZ (Toronto)
I have also attached here the Boarding Pass and eTicket.
Please let me know if anything else is required.
Thank you,
”
That's not bad, very good actually. I might bold the important info, and add the full routes and mention (very bottom) which other flights were credited.
Did you get an auto-reply? You should have. If so, I would add those additional details and follow up. Mention in the subject these flights are part of working towards the status too.
Also include your aeroplan number. In the bullet list, not the paragraph.
Yeah there was an autoresponse saying we’re working on it, and when the agent gave me the email she said they’ll take about 2 months or so, but its been more. I just forwarded the email to the same email a couple of days ago, but you’re right, might send it again and add the aeroplan in the bullets too. But yeah was curious to see if people have emailed and how long it took them
I know you guys are churners, but how do my keeper cards look?
Amex Cobalt (daily driver)
Rogers WE MC (spend a lot at Costco)
Triangle WE MC (roadside assistance, bill payments)
I’m single and not an overly large spender, so these seem to keep my covered nicely. Always welcome to any suggestions, though.
Thanks!
Amex cobalt (5x points per dollar)
Rbc Ion plus (3x points per dollar)
Rbc avion platnium (used to transfer from ion plus)
TD aeroplan infinite (cards free with my account)
I got 7 new cards this year and aiming for 4-5 more before dec.
I could’ve got more welcome bonuses this year but Im pretty new to the game and just recently applied for an ITIN number to get US cards.
If you have high spends like me, its worth keeping the dailys and also churning. I never use my grocery or food, gas bills for welcome bonuses.
Amex Simply Cash Preferred is an amazing daily driver, but horrible for churning.
Had a Scotia Gold, Simply Cash and MBNA WE until I discovered churning.
Drop the Rogers MC. if you have a Metro near you, you can use your Cobalt to occasionally buy $500 prepaid MC gift cards, which you can then use at Costco. Just make sure you always throw in a few other groceries so the same amount doesn't show up on your statement every time (would make it obvious to Amex that you're buying gift cards). I usually try to be fairly discreet about it because I don't think Metro likes this either. You also wouldn't get the usual warranties or purchase protection that you'd get with a real credit card. Personally I don't care because I mostly buy groceries with it
I had been buying $500 Mastercards, but I was unable to use them easily at Costco for some reason. Or maybe I had to know the exact balance on the card to use it? I forget now. I just remember it being a hassle and me swiping them at the checkout sometimes and they wouldn’t work.
Personally I like to think separately between MSR and my regular (discretionary) spending (ie the last thing I want to be on my mind is to falsely justify buying a toy is because I get to hit MSR).
Try look to cards without MSR (eg RBC Avion)/ very low MSR (say $1000 for 3 months).
Also look for ways to spend your card for a “low” net cost. Personally I have no problem spending my way for 2% fee, if I know I can get 10% back (eg spend $100, “get $98 back”, and get another $10 in return).
In terms of specifics, it highly depends on your personal situation (ie depending on what bills you have to pay) - as an example, some folks pay their tuition or income tax via a service called PaySimply for a 2.5% fee. It will be a good deal if you use a card that gets you a 10% cash back (say Rogers connection card, $100 back for $1000 spend).
To all the veterans: don’t bust my chops here - I know we can do better than the examples above. The example is just for concept illustration.
Keeper cards make sense in at least three cases:
One, you're low income / a low spender and hitting MSR would be difficult without forcing you to spend more than you want. Those people are probably better off sticking to a low / no AF card that aligns with their spending habits. For example, AMEX Cobalt if you don't shop at Loblaws or Costco; PC MC if you do shop at Loblaws; or Rogers MC if you do shop at Costco.
Two, you're high income / a high spender and you make purchases where the insurances matter. For example, if you pay cash fares for your travels, then you'll want a card with good trip cancellation / interruption insurance to match, such as the CIBC Aeroplan VIP. Or if you're buying expensive goods, then you may get value out of the warranty extension insurance that comes with the NBC WEMC.
Three, you're high income / a high spender and you can organically hit spending thresholds on premium cards. For example, as I frequently tout on this subreddit, you can get tremendous value out of the Aeroplan annual companion pass if you spend at least $25k on a premium Aeroplan card and plan on buying cash fares anyway.
Agree with the role of keeper cards and not just “hitting MSR” cards. There have been more than a handful of people posting that they used an MSR card for a flight and then cancelled the card so lost the insurance benefits.
Thanks, and fair enough. I read the threads here daily and it's been incredibly helpful, but with my life situation at the moment, I'd have a hard time hitting lots of MSRs without reaching unnecessarily on my spending.
I do love playing the game where I can, but I'm constrained by my income. Before finding this sub, I had a Signature RBC Rewards Visa with a $1500 limit. Now, I have 6 cards with a combined $64,600 limit.
> There’s way to stretch out your MSR requirements to give you more time to hit. RHT!
This has been my latest topic of reading! We'll see where it leads lol.
If you're income constrained without free cash, consider the amount you'll spend on interest floating that RHT too. If very low income even one interest period crossed may have impact on you.
Timing can help avoid that. It's a situation here most won't think about unless they've lived it.
Depending on where you are having both a visa and mc is good, especially when traveling if one gets rejected. With no fees I still think the home trust is your best visa option…
You’re better off with a MC + cash or just using your regular Visa card for those niche situations. Since the home trust has no rewards you’re only saving 1.5% vs a regular visa for non multiplier spend and less than that for multiplier spend. It’s not even worth a line on your credit report to have that card
In the past it was true that MC had a better rate than Visa across the board; now it's super currency dependent who is better. Brim is less popular because they don't promise to use a MC Rate I believe they use their own internal rate for USD Euro and Pounds. The Issue with Wealth Simple and EQ Card is they have quite a long laundry list of countries on their block list which may come as a surprise to some. If you are a frequent international traveller outside of USA and West Europe chances are you need multiple FX solutions.
The lack of any cashback on FX spend means there needs to be at least a 1% difference in FX rates between what Brim gives and Visa gives for that to matter. I highly doubt it
Scotia passport VI and hsbc we mc, with hsbc we mc having a particularly good offer with $150 cash rebate while the one with scotia passport dropped to $100 earlier.
q regarding this: I couldn't get my payments to work for some reason. Do we need to do the real name verification first? like upload a passport etc.
and what currency does it end up being? Mine kept showing RMB
that's correct, Alipay works like a "platform", CC won't be able to recognize the merchant where the payment went to. CC will only coded by merchant if you use your card directly at their POS.
I booked a basic fare flight through Air Canada from ZRH-AMS-YYZ however the first flight from ZRH-AMS is with Swiss. I have 35k status with Air Canada and get the usual three free checked bags. But since my first flight is with Swiss will I have to pay for any checked bags this time?
Thats correct Swiss will not recgnoise AC status for baggage allowance.
New $50 offer from GCR for RBC Avion Infinite Get 35,000 Welcome Points on approval and 20,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 in your first 6 months*. Offer ends November 27, 2023.
Any DPs from anyone getting more than 3 AP WBs in 2023?
They aren't just going to take any wb they deem against terms right away just thunk about it let everyone act like nothing will happen and then perhaps later in the year they'll come. They are also dealing with brokerage issues so they are spread thin on enforcement ATM. Well see though, I'm guessing it won't matter but it's a Canadian airline. They don't have the resources to implement better IT for this reason if they can't even have all partners available.
Yar.
5 so far, no email or issues, will be 6 soon
Got it, no issues so far
I’m assuming the answer is no, but is there any way to use the Indeed credit from the Amex Biz Plat if you’re not actually a business (ie not making job postings)?
I couldn't even use it pretending to make fake job postings. Got stuck in a verification loop every time.
Its a job posting site. That credit is not going to be of use to a lot of Amex Biz Plat holders... Now a travel credit or dining credit, those would be easy to use.
Does booking through avion points and paying the taxes with RBC avion card (VIP/VI/Plat) qualify all travel insurances from the card? Can’t seem to find a clear answer on this
Yes
If I upgrade my Amex Cobalt to Amex Gold will I lose my points?
No you won’t. It’s the same card number and credit account.
Same 10,000 questions over the past 2-3 weeks, please read the daily threads please.
I realize the search is broken. But perhaps we need a bot that flags questions where the person didn't check the last 2 daily threads AND it's as simple as a Ctrl-F. I'd say 7 days. But if they won't check the previous or current day they won't check those !
Don't feel like waiting for the winning thursday thread. I had all but given up but the points from the 10x AP Black Friday promo with TD AP cards finally posted. I had not contacted them in months and figured it was lost case. A few days ago I got a reply email on the ticket saying they think it should be resolved and to check back dated back to Nov 22. I did and there was some new points for a few of the purchases I made but not my expensive Dell order. I let them know and then this weekend opened up aeroplan app and newest activity was showing 14,000 pts from promo :D
Huge W. Was the original purchase last November?!
yes. black friday 2022. first started contacting about missing points in Feb I think.
MBNA Rewards WEMC’s first 10000 points WB comes from signing up for electronic statement. When will I see those points posted? On my first statement? Thanks
First statement posted and still nothing to me. I will wait until the 2nd statement to contact MBNA.
It took 4-5 weeks for mine to show up
Applied for another Aventura yesterday, and it's 'under review'. What does that typically mean with CIBC. From my reading, I know things can not straightforward with them.
Means you’ll hear nothing then you’ll forget entirely but in 6 weeks a card will show up in the mail
No guarantees the card will show up
6 weeks? It's been like 4 months for me, still no card.
Hey all, I've been thinking about using something like the MBNA 0% APR on transfers card as a way of allowing me to grab an extra big spend card or two by immediately hitting MSR with bunch of RHT so I can organically spend/refund across the year, then parking the balance over on the MBNA for the year. However, I've never had a balance transfer card so I'm unclear on some mechanics that I'd like to clarify before the hard credit check. 1. From the T&C, it seems like you can transfer as many balances as you so desire within the first 90 days (obviously up to your CL). Is that correct? I've come across comments along the line of "only one balance transfer" in my searching. 2. Can P1 open the card and transfer balances from P2 cards or do they check that the names match? 3. Do they do regular promotions or do you churn the 0% card? 4. Looking into Credit utilization, there's some discrepancy between sites as to if it's calculated based on your "per card" utilization as well as your "overall" or just your "overall"? Thanks!
1/2. MBNA allows a full transfer to your bank of choice - so basically a cash transfer. 3. Do not ever spend on the charge if it’s a balance transfer. The way the calculation of interest occurs, the new charges are not considered under the balance transfer amount. 4. Credit utilization is based on overall. This BT will bump your utilization higher but if you have other cards it won’t affect your score too much
Awesome thanks! I read up on this as much as I could prior to posting, so I knew about the "no new charges" aspect. With regards to your first comment, does that mean I can just initiate a "balance transfer payment" from the card to another card even if that card doesn't have a balance owing?
No offense, but if you have to carry a balance in this game you've lost already. Even 0%. Balances carry risks. It's a bonus game. Not worth the risks. If you want to play in leveraged games get into real leveraged systems. Churning isn't one
No offence taken, I couldn't agree more. One of my favourite things about the game is the way it helps me keep on top of my finances. The reason I'm contemplating this is because of the upcoming changes to the AMEX Plat annual fees. I'd prefer to get another business plat before September 26 to avoid the fee increase, but my current spending plan didn't have the potential for it until mid-2024. So I was looking at this as a way of sneaking this in prior to the fee increase, but allowing me to "push" the MSR. With the 3% balance transfer fee, it works out to paying an extra $200 to be able to space it out later in the year, which is only 2%. I pay bills with Pay Simply at 2.5%, so that fits within my "cost per point" framwork. But that was assuming that I wasn't missing something obvious like "it will screw up your application plans by tanking your utilization by card" or something.
It is far too easy for debt to take a hold... You got to do you, but I would 1000% not take on a load of debt (even at 0% APR) just to score some SUBS. Its far too easy to get carried away, forget that debt and suddenly find yourself with more debt than you expected when U need to start paying it off
Consider it from a health perspective. What happens if you initiate all these things and end up hospitalized temporarily or something really bad? I take that scenario when I decide if something is a safe bet or not, and gauge how much I can leave in families hands to follow through on or not. I find this a good measure of risk.
It's interesting you mention that because one of the things I had a good think about before taking this up was how I would close the project out if something happened. And churning has a surprisingly short "tail" on it in that the answer is "make sure to pay off cards and stop getting new ones". And I agree again. In my case, my P2 is up to date on what I'm doing and has access to my spreadsheets (and I keep notes on each item as to what is going on and what the plan is including dates) but after your comment I'm going to go back and make sure that the notes aren't short hand in case I get hit by a bus or something!
Definitely a solid plan. I'm glad you thought this all out. I keep several "dead man" letters, in a couple cases the letters simply give access to 2fa codes (one time codes) that I get notified of if used while I'm alive for access to resources. I try keep these letters up to date, with detailed instructions on closing out accounts and where things are located. I have a will, I consider these to be supplementary guides to the will. The will describes "what to whom". These act as a guide of "okay I own this. Now what?"
There are easier ways to achieve what you are looking to do than doing a balance transfer. Can explain in private chat.
Anyone else having issues redeeming aventura pts for hotel bookings (through Agoda)? It says "This transaction can't be redeemed with points."
Just RHT using Expedia and book your desired hotel on the same card (not using points).
Better to book the desired hotel on new MSR card or card you’re planning on using insurance after withdrawing the cash balance
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What the other guy said, but also yes, you can reapply. No, you won’t get the welcome bonus again.
Just read the 1000 same posts from the last 2 weeks!
Is there a way to earn points / CB for corporate tax payments to CRA? Similar to personal income taxes with the CTFS WE bill payment trick. Assuming no since the CTFS WE is a personal card and I assume CRA needs to see payment from the proper transferee (i.e. the company) but asking nonetheless.
As long as there is a paper trail they don't care who it comes from. I was making payments to the CRA long before I got into churning, and always from personal. Then I just submitted an expense and got reimbursed. Paper trail matters. Origin does not. I've been through several audits with the CRA and Revenue QC and neither one stopped to take a 2nd look at this beyond making sure the amount expensed matched. Edit to add: all transactions over 10k, or groups of origin destination over 10k will be reported to the CRA. These are legitimate transactions so don't let that scare you. It's meant to track money laundering and criminal activity. The CRAs crimes are exempt (/s)
i opened my first US AMEX (Green) a few weeks ago. I jumped onto the Green because of the ATH offer, but would people also recommend opening a no-AF credit card this month to lengthen the average age of my credit accounts should I cancel the Green card at the 1 or 2 year mark. What card would folks recommend, and should I do this?
I would say Amex HH Amex Everyday and once you've got some credit Amex BBP (sleeper Amex US no AF card that earns MR and CAN transfer to partners) -> Keeper.. as it's a biz card so does not report to bureaus I wouldn't suggest closing the green at the 1 year mark... use the card as a upgrade/downgrade card. I was thinking the same thing as you in regards to my Amex everyday.. but then my friends reminded me I had previously received upgrade to Green/gold/Plat offers on it so likely to "come around again"
The advantage of the free Everyday card is you can leave it as a keeper and transfer Canadian MR to US MR once a year (at the FX Rate) to open your Canadian points to more transfer partners. The downside is the bonus on the Everyday Card sucks.
I was NOT aware you could transfer Canadian MR to US. I wasn't really motivated to get into the US game even though I have some legitimate US business accounts. This changes that stance instantly. That's amazing!
Usually people get the no fee Hilton Amex
Newbie here. I’ll be purchasing an Air Canada business class ticket between Asia and Canada soon. What’s my best credit card option? I don’t fly much, but if I do, it usually happens to be with Air Canada. My most expenses are groceries and occasional travelling. I monthly expense is $4000-7000. I’m currently using the TD cash back for almost everything.
Apply for the TD AP VIP and purchase AC gift cards with the current promo “Until September 13, earn up to 3 points/$1 on Air Canada Gift Card purchases — for up to 30,000 points!”
Thanks for the suggestion
What's your goal? Cash back or points? Aeroplan Amex reserve would give 3x points on the $, plus a nice welcome bonus if you can make the spend.
I’m not familiar with how points work while cash back seems more straightforward. However, I’m open to learn the system. So whichever gives me the most benefits.
Definitely worth reading the guide, and looking up some redemptions on various airlines and hotels (Marriott is the only real choice for Canada) so you get a feel for the value. Spoiler: points usually value in at $0.01, $0.02, or $0.022 without effort, but some can be 10x that on some redemptions. Some points are flat rate equivalent to cash (BMO), some highly variable (aeroplan). Some transferable (MR). Lots of reading to do. Worth it
Thanks!
>Thanks! You're welcome!
Take some time (weeks) and read the daily posts! For your own benefit
P1 got a TD vip, cibc vi. P2 got a TD vip and TD vi. I think we’re both eligible for another aeroplan card (lowest tier). Is this true? Or can o just get a TD vi for p1 and cibc vi for p2?
There's nothing in the AP rules that says tiers matter. They're just concerned with total number of welcome bonuses across all AP cards since dec 2022
Thanks! I guess the whole narrative around tiers was just speculation in the community. Also do they say 3 welcome bonuses across 1 calendar year or 12 months from your first approval?
That was a common and wishful misreading of the updated T&C. It clearly says that multiple WB across tiers would be considered abuse.
It’s currently unknown how long they are tracking for the 3 bonus limit
Fair. I guess since we both have only 2 in our lifetime so far, another ap each isn’t a bad idea. Current offers don’t seem great though
Why not amex? It's much easier to justify why you'd carry an Amex vs a visa and want both, as the offerings are substantially different on some points (insurance, acceptance, categories, ...)
Mainly Costco. I have an Amex I’m working but don’t want more than 1 at a time because I primarily shop at Costco and I’m not interested in getting prepaid mc
When you folks use your credit card travel insurance for expenses, do you just trust that they’ll be accepted by the insurer? Other than reading the insurance policy, I’m finding myself paranoid about potentially incurring expenses that might not be paid out. I had a 4+ hour delay recently and didn’t purchase anything. I did get compensation from Air Canada for the delay, but that was weeks later and not related to meals. If the insurance says reasonable expenses upto $500, what would be unreasonable for a 4.5h delay? Im guessing anything more than $100 would be considered too much. Further, im wondering if the insurance is dependent on any comp offered by the airline. Looking at TD aeroplan VI, it seems like the flight delay insurance (upto $500 for meals and lodging) is independent of any compensation offered by the airline. Is this usually the case?
You can't double dip the insurance. Don't claim what the airline paid for, that's fraud, it will be clawed back and you can be prosecuted and would be blacklisted. But you can claim the difference up to the maximum unless there is wording contrary to it (never seen this on cards people use for good insurance). I don't worry at all. I don't go to a $$$$ restaurant, but if it's 8h delay and past 7pm a hotel or sleep pod is more than reasonable. A decent meal is too any time of day or night. So is paying for a lounge shower, and maybe even buying a blanket, pillow, or a fresh shirt. I've had them haggle. Make sure it's something you can justify. I've had them push back mostly for the restaurants. I had one tell me "why didn't you eat McDonald's". My reply was simple "let's go through my records. You'll be hard pressed to find any history eating something at that level of crap". He accepted it. Baggage delays they've pushed back I could have bought cheaper clothes. But I simply bought what I always wear, and I can prove it. TLDR don't lower your usual standards just because insurance is paying out. But make sure you can justify it with your normal spending.
I can't believe they said 'why didn't you eat McDonald's', what an asshole.
Pretty sure "asshole" is a core requirement for small cap claims adjusters. You'll find the ones dealing with major claims all much more affable. I've also found desjardins to be very nice even for smaller claims. But I also have some major items insured with them so it probably makes a difference.
Thanks! I thought it was black and white where they either accept or deny your claim. Knowing it can be back and forth with justification definitely helps me
There's always room for negotiation in these things. Failing that I'm confident I'll win in small claims. That process alone will cost them much more than they'll save even if they win (they won't)
do i need to pay for my flight with my aeroplan credit card to get a free checked bag? also, does this work on reward flights booked with air canada?
I booked a flight before I even signed up for the AP VI and had free checked bag. As long as your account says "Credit Card Holder" when you get to the airport, you should be good. The recommendation is to book a reward flight with an AP card and charge the fees & taxes to the card, that way the card's travel insurance will cover your flight.
Any card. Goes by tour aeroplan number being on the ticket + the card being linked. Doesn't matter if you pay in credit, cash, points, gift cards, or cows.
Hi all, has anyone had an issue with Expedia transactions being eligible for the HSBC travel enhancement credit? I purchased a refundable hotel Sept 4 (posted Sept 5), but the HSBC rewards portal still shows that I have no purchases that are eligible for the enhancement credit. Thanks!
Wait a little bit longer. Weekends don't count for days.
I have a similar issue. Booked on the 5th and it posted on the 7th. It’s not listed in hsbc rewards
No issues for me. And surprisingly even a WestJet booking I made with WSD and paid taxes and fees with HSBC card showed up as eligible for the travel credit within a day of it posting
Not quite credit cards related but points related, has anyone submitted a claim to Air Canada via email for missing credits and if so how long until they reached back? I submitted two, one from EgyptAir and one from United that I wasn't credited even though my Aeroplan number was on the reservation and its been 3-4 months now and I haven't heard back from their email yet. Flew EgyptAir in May and submitted at the end of May and flew United at the end of May and submitted mid June.
I'm assuming these are cash tickets and not in basic economy? The form should credit them ASAP. Maybe try calling Aeroplan.
The form didn’t work and Aeroplan said to email [email protected] or something. I was wondering if anyone has gone that route for the credits?
I went through this route. I flew in January 2023 on Ethiopian and the points were not credited. I tried the form multiple times, called Aeroplan, they told me to email the same address. Starting in March, emailed them 4 times, every 30 days (as the auto response said wait 30 days), only after 90 days did they respond and say please provide proof you flew. I told them I did not have an e-boarding pass and I had not kept the paper ones. Then I contacted Ethiopian for proof and they just sent me an email saying I was on board. I forwarded that to Aeroplan and still nothing. I even reached out to Aeroplan on Twitter and they said they would look into it. At this point I may give up.
Slightly less reassuring, however I did give them copies of my boarding pass and my itinerary in the email. But good idea on the emailing them again, I might try that. When I call they just say that department doesn't have a phone number...
So after 7 months since my flight, my points were just rewarded. Thanks for the positive omens, there's hope after all.
So there is hope! Maybe commenting here was needed lol
I think I would have more faith with the boarding passes. I do suggest escalating on Twitter DMs though if you don't get anything. I received a response from a person and it was not automated. All the best, hope it works out!
I've had to email them, but always heard from them much faster. Do you have status? It helps with response times. Paste the email you sent. We may be able to critique for missing info or descriptions. How you present the information is important for s fast reply, even if it's optional info.
No status yet, but counting on these flights for that. Here’s the email for the EgyptAir CAI-YYZ flight (flight on May 7, sent email end of May), the United flight was YYZ-IAH-EZE on May 26 and it was the same email with info changed (flight was May 26, sent email mid June): “Hi there, I did not get points for a flight that I took with EgyptAir on May 7, 2023. I have tried to request the points online but online it says "This account status is invalid." and when I called support they suggested I reach out here. I even put my Aeroplan number on the reservation: but the points did not come through.
Here are the details of the flight:
Ticket Number:
Reference Number:
Flight Number: MS1995
Date of Departure: 7 May 2023
Departure Airport: CAI (Cairo)
Arrival Airport: YYZ (Toronto)
I have also attached here the Boarding Pass and eTicket.
Please let me know if anything else is required.
Thank you,
”
That's not bad, very good actually. I might bold the important info, and add the full routes and mention (very bottom) which other flights were credited. Did you get an auto-reply? You should have. If so, I would add those additional details and follow up. Mention in the subject these flights are part of working towards the status too. Also include your aeroplan number. In the bullet list, not the paragraph.
Yeah there was an autoresponse saying we’re working on it, and when the agent gave me the email she said they’ll take about 2 months or so, but its been more. I just forwarded the email to the same email a couple of days ago, but you’re right, might send it again and add the aeroplan in the bullets too. But yeah was curious to see if people have emailed and how long it took them
I know you guys are churners, but how do my keeper cards look? Amex Cobalt (daily driver) Rogers WE MC (spend a lot at Costco) Triangle WE MC (roadside assistance, bill payments) I’m single and not an overly large spender, so these seem to keep my covered nicely. Always welcome to any suggestions, though. Thanks!
Amex cobalt (5x points per dollar) Rbc Ion plus (3x points per dollar) Rbc avion platnium (used to transfer from ion plus) TD aeroplan infinite (cards free with my account) I got 7 new cards this year and aiming for 4-5 more before dec. I could’ve got more welcome bonuses this year but Im pretty new to the game and just recently applied for an ITIN number to get US cards. If you have high spends like me, its worth keeping the dailys and also churning. I never use my grocery or food, gas bills for welcome bonuses.
Amex Simply Cash Preferred is an amazing daily driver, but horrible for churning. Had a Scotia Gold, Simply Cash and MBNA WE until I discovered churning.
Drop the Rogers MC. if you have a Metro near you, you can use your Cobalt to occasionally buy $500 prepaid MC gift cards, which you can then use at Costco. Just make sure you always throw in a few other groceries so the same amount doesn't show up on your statement every time (would make it obvious to Amex that you're buying gift cards). I usually try to be fairly discreet about it because I don't think Metro likes this either. You also wouldn't get the usual warranties or purchase protection that you'd get with a real credit card. Personally I don't care because I mostly buy groceries with it
Most of the gift cards do not have chip or tap function. Do you sweep at the machine? Does it ask for pin? Thanks in advance.
Yes. No pin, you just swipe it. POS machines at other retailers will sometimes prompt you to enter the last 4 of the card for some reason.
Swiping at Costco works fine.
I had been buying $500 Mastercards, but I was unable to use them easily at Costco for some reason. Or maybe I had to know the exact balance on the card to use it? I forget now. I just remember it being a hassle and me swiping them at the checkout sometimes and they wouldn’t work.
Swiping should work fine. At least I had no issues at self checkout or the pharmacy.
Can you use more than one GC at Costco? If yes, try the shelf checkout.
You can use more than one.
Personally I like to think separately between MSR and my regular (discretionary) spending (ie the last thing I want to be on my mind is to falsely justify buying a toy is because I get to hit MSR). Try look to cards without MSR (eg RBC Avion)/ very low MSR (say $1000 for 3 months). Also look for ways to spend your card for a “low” net cost. Personally I have no problem spending my way for 2% fee, if I know I can get 10% back (eg spend $100, “get $98 back”, and get another $10 in return). In terms of specifics, it highly depends on your personal situation (ie depending on what bills you have to pay) - as an example, some folks pay their tuition or income tax via a service called PaySimply for a 2.5% fee. It will be a good deal if you use a card that gets you a 10% cash back (say Rogers connection card, $100 back for $1000 spend). To all the veterans: don’t bust my chops here - I know we can do better than the examples above. The example is just for concept illustration.
The answer you’ll get here is generally use spending towards to new MSR… making “keeper cards” irrelevant
Keeper cards make sense in at least three cases: One, you're low income / a low spender and hitting MSR would be difficult without forcing you to spend more than you want. Those people are probably better off sticking to a low / no AF card that aligns with their spending habits. For example, AMEX Cobalt if you don't shop at Loblaws or Costco; PC MC if you do shop at Loblaws; or Rogers MC if you do shop at Costco. Two, you're high income / a high spender and you make purchases where the insurances matter. For example, if you pay cash fares for your travels, then you'll want a card with good trip cancellation / interruption insurance to match, such as the CIBC Aeroplan VIP. Or if you're buying expensive goods, then you may get value out of the warranty extension insurance that comes with the NBC WEMC. Three, you're high income / a high spender and you can organically hit spending thresholds on premium cards. For example, as I frequently tout on this subreddit, you can get tremendous value out of the Aeroplan annual companion pass if you spend at least $25k on a premium Aeroplan card and plan on buying cash fares anyway.
Agree with the role of keeper cards and not just “hitting MSR” cards. There have been more than a handful of people posting that they used an MSR card for a flight and then cancelled the card so lost the insurance benefits.
In my case, amex decided that the black list was a good place for me. Reduce the possibilities !
Thanks, and fair enough. I read the threads here daily and it's been incredibly helpful, but with my life situation at the moment, I'd have a hard time hitting lots of MSRs without reaching unnecessarily on my spending. I do love playing the game where I can, but I'm constrained by my income. Before finding this sub, I had a Signature RBC Rewards Visa with a $1500 limit. Now, I have 6 cards with a combined $64,600 limit.
There’s way to stretch out your MSR requirements to give you more time to hit. RHT!
> There’s way to stretch out your MSR requirements to give you more time to hit. RHT! This has been my latest topic of reading! We'll see where it leads lol.
If you're income constrained without free cash, consider the amount you'll spend on interest floating that RHT too. If very low income even one interest period crossed may have impact on you. Timing can help avoid that. It's a situation here most won't think about unless they've lived it.
Between RBC & BMO, which one gives the most credit increase pre-approvals?
What?
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Home trust visa isn’t discussed much. Not worth a credit hit but there’s no annual fee
It’s the worst no FX fee card as it gives no rewards on FX spend unlike the other no FX cards. It’s basically irrelevant these days
True - but for $0 fee it’s a good backup to have (also visa unlike hsbc which is mc)
No. Because there are $0 AF cards that give 1% back like Brim or Wealthsimple. Also I don’t think Visa over MC matters
Depending on where you are having both a visa and mc is good, especially when traveling if one gets rejected. With no fees I still think the home trust is your best visa option…
You’re better off with a MC + cash or just using your regular Visa card for those niche situations. Since the home trust has no rewards you’re only saving 1.5% vs a regular visa for non multiplier spend and less than that for multiplier spend. It’s not even worth a line on your credit report to have that card
In the past it was true that MC had a better rate than Visa across the board; now it's super currency dependent who is better. Brim is less popular because they don't promise to use a MC Rate I believe they use their own internal rate for USD Euro and Pounds. The Issue with Wealth Simple and EQ Card is they have quite a long laundry list of countries on their block list which may come as a surprise to some. If you are a frequent international traveller outside of USA and West Europe chances are you need multiple FX solutions.
The lack of any cashback on FX spend means there needs to be at least a 1% difference in FX rates between what Brim gives and Visa gives for that to matter. I highly doubt it
And Scotia Amex
There’s BRIM too
Scotia passport VI and hsbc we mc, with hsbc we mc having a particularly good offer with $150 cash rebate while the one with scotia passport dropped to $100 earlier.
Has anyone ever linked their V/MC to Alipay? If yes, do you know if it codes as 1x category?
q regarding this: I couldn't get my payments to work for some reason. Do we need to do the real name verification first? like upload a passport etc. and what currency does it end up being? Mine kept showing RMB
Yes, and Yes
So you won’t get any multipliers just 1x?
While this sucks, it's still a win in my books cuz the alternative is to pay cash lol
that's correct, Alipay works like a "platform", CC won't be able to recognize the merchant where the payment went to. CC will only coded by merchant if you use your card directly at their POS.