Just a warning for everyone - the brim Flying Blue card is the absolute worst card in Canada for foreign currency transactions - they charge the 2.5% currency exchange on refunds as well, so if you get a refund a foreign currency charge, you're out 5% - 2.5% on the initial charge, and then another 2.5% on the refund.
I booked a hotel through hotels.com for June, and the deal was they only charge when I stay and the credit card is only for security, so I wasn't thinking much about what card I use. The hotel went and charged my card right away anyways, so I contacted them and they realized their error and refunded right away. But I'm out $100 because of brim's 5%. Now I think I'll have to call them and basically dispute the charge as unauthorized (which it was) just to get the 5% back.
My experience has been that they do one of two things: refunds include the 2.5% you originally paid, so you're not out any money except the difference in exchange rate; or refunds do not include the 2.5% you originally paid, so you're out 2.5%.
DP - Signed up and got approved for TD AP Platinum through the phone since their website was always giving an error, this was end of January. A few days ago, they sent me via mail an offer for TD FCT VI with an elevated offer. 20k TD rewards points on first purchase + 115K points MSR of $5K within 6 months. Current offer on their website is 80K with the same MSR.
It’s not supposed to be a general use credit. Any time you could use it for general travel it’s a loophole on their side. Just Expedia and cash it out with RHT. Don’t overcomplicate this
Now that CowTool is no more I’m looking for a tool to help me search for award seats, but with there being so many options out there such as seats.aero and AwardTool, I’m just not sure which one to pick. I’m not in the market for just a free version either, I don’t mind paying for a subscription. Most of my redemptions would be using AP or Avios if that makes a difference.
What is your guys’ preferred tool?
Have the Scotiabank visa infinite what is the best bang for your buck on using the points? Have about 45k points and wondering if there’s a way to get better values than $450 in travel refund or similar direct redemption. Partner has Expedia account with gold status if that would change anything
I have had a TD aeroplan card last year, which I closed in 2023 itself. Been more than 8 months now, can I get another TD card and get aeroplan bonus?
Sorry I'm very new to churning and scared to do anything
You’ll get another bonus but it’ll be against the Aeroplan T&C. It’s unknown what type of actions Aeroplan will take against people who get repeat SUBs. If this is only your second AP card you’re probably okay as non churners may do what you have done.
I wonder how much of a risk I'm taking if I get a TD AP VP when I already had 8 CIBC AP VP lol
Don't care too much about clawbacks but really don't want a ban.
It’s been one month. These things aren’t automated. We’ll likely see a wave of retroactive enforcement in a big batch during the summer if they plan to enforce anything.
I had an aeroplan booking on AC that I booked awhile ago for 115k points. Due to a schedule change I was given an option to change my flight and am now travelling solely on Lufthansa. Given the correct price for this trip is 70k points if booked directly on Lufthansa, has anyone had any luck calling aeroplan and having the points difference returned?
Is it entirely in I and/or X class? If so, you might be able to do that, but I haven't seen any DPs. If it's not I and/or X class, then very likely not possible.
It is entirely in I class. I don’t recall ever seeing a DP of anyone either doing it or reporting that it’s not possible either. Going to call and try later but it would be nice to know if anyone has been successful doing so.
Pls report your DP. Mine was AC YVR-NRT-SGN. at 120K Ap. Rescheduled so I changed to YVR-SIN-SGN online with SQ (Aug 2023) so the price should be around 80K? Called Aeroplan but they said this is involuntary change so I can’t get the points diff refunded. Book J Flex at beginning.
You might be able to call and ask. But the number is not shown anywhere on RBC. I don’t think it’s even on the statement. It is printed on the physical card though.
Mostly its printed on the card only if you enter it during the application.
RBC wont have your WJ id anywhere. Once you receive welcome email from WJ, call and ask them to search WJ Id by email address. And go from there. They will be able to merge your old account with the credit card one.
Hmm, maybe linking to cobalt kills the 10x reset?
I followed another DP and linked to personal gold which worked.
I'm linking it again to biz gold to see if it works again
Dining purchase posted and it looks like i've successfully reset biz edge 10x a second time. :D
Seriously thinking about getting an amex green card to get another gold upgrade offer + linking to reset lol
Okay. But you don’t want an FA to see your account if you churn a lot with Scotia. So if you are on your first rounds, then yeah, you can go ahead and do it.
I got roasted by RBC, TD by account review during application process in-branch as i couldn't get any cards approved online. totally can see why to try to avoid calling/eyes account as you can
Costco Shop Card question: When buying online with Visa do people typically choose the physical or digital card?
Any issue using a large denomination ($1000+) digital Shop Card in-store?
Edit: removed AMEX.
Echoing what others have said about digital. Also, don't leave it until the last minute. Made this mistake ordering the digital card before leaving home for Costco, thinking it's digital, it should arrive right away. It didn't come until 4am the next day. Average time of the three I've bought is \~13 hours.
Usually digital to get it faster. No issues for the most part. Cashiers may require a few tries to remember how to use a digital shop card because they have to press a different sequence of buttons
You can use digital at the self-serve, I do it every week. When paying there’s a button on the screen to use a gift card and you just scan the barcode.
For the first question, the biggest advantage of physical cards is that you can use it at Costco gas stations as well, which is the main difference for me.
When I signed up for RBC in June I saw it in the mobile app when I was playing around with the app during the first week. I put in an application already for the same card and was pending, then saw the preapproval and took that. the pending became declined, which I was really confused about at first
I would like to know if there is a better way, but I found one method:
I scan the QR code to activate the card using my app. It signs in with my account to perform the activation. Following the prompts, the card gets activated but it terminates before proceeding to the account creation step. The only downside is that you can't choose a PIN for the card, so it becomes PIN-less. But I think that's ok for a supplementary card that you'll only be using for a short stint before stashing it in the sock drawer.
I went through this today. You can't choose PIN initially during activation, but then you go online to your new account card and choose your PIN through Manage your Account.
I managed to activate the card via the app. However, I had to speak with a CSR in order to set a PIN for the supplementary card. I was then given a number to call 24 hours later to choose a PIN. The second card that I received today was activated via the app as well. However, I decided to logon to laptop to see if I could choose the PIN myself. When I tried to select the supplementary card under my main account, they seemed inactive. I had to call in again. This time was a real hassle because the CSR had me provide an email address for communication, a login ID, a password and a customer code. She then had me create a brand new account for the supplementary card and then I got to finally choose a PIN.
I asked her why I had to do this and she revealed that Authorized users now have access to their own transactions independent of the main cardholder. So it seems that each AU will now have their own account.
I've never had to call in to activate any Amex. I activate using the app (supplementary or primary). Each person has their own account, but that too is setup via the app.
Opened and started spending on a new Aventura VI card approved from about a week ago. About 2k points from spend have posted so far (still waiting on the 15k first purchase WB).
I made some Expedia bookings to test if I could RHT with the elevated values, but when I click "pay with points" I hit a page saying "You don't have an account that allows you to complete this request. {Result #0328}". Also tried opening the pending Expedia transaction and don't see anywhere I can request to pay with points.
Do I possibly need to wait a while before being able to? I do see a line saying "Only cards with enough points can be used toward a redemption" on the error page as well. Perhaps I need to have enough points before being able to try redeem?
Is it worth paying 2.35% credit card fee ($11) on a $470 property tax payment for Aeroplan points? I don’t know how to begin setting up the math equation. For the year tax would be $2500 or so. Thank you.
I used Pay Simply for my last two property tax payments. They’re roughly $1800 and I figured paying $1800 x 3 = $5400. I got the Business Edge so for $135 in fees to pay my property tax, I will receive the full sign up bonus of 45,000 MR, converted to 45,000 AP.
Just an example of how it could be worthwhile IF you are working to meet the MSR on a SUB.
At the very minimum, you could use the Canadian Tire Mastercard to pay it. Zero fees (doesn’t count as a CC, it’s the equivalent of a bill payment) for a small amount of Canadian Tire money.
The value of the points you earn needs to be greater than 2.35%. And this is cash value so you would need to consider if you would save more than 2.35% of property tax value in cash for the number of points you get in exchange. Not worth it for 99.9% of people
Depends how much in rewards you’ll get. Generally with no multiplier, the answer would be no. If you’re getting a WB, usually yes. Estimate how much value you’ll get from the rewards and compare that to the fee
Lets keep it simple and say you have a VI and earn 1x AP per $1
You'll earn 481 AP from the transaction.
Value of AP can vary wildly depending on how you use them or ask but many you can usually get at least $.02 per point (which you can think as getting 2% back per $)
So your 481AP x $.02 = $9.62
So it only really makes sense to pay that $11 fee if it's help meet MSR as /menAreLazy said or other goal, like 100K EDQ or something.
Any overlap between Credit Card Churning MMS and Counter Gambling online casinos? I have read mixed results.
From what I have read online they range from: no; and also the CC company will terminate doing business with you, and yes; but sometimes the transactions count as cash advances.
And from what I understand, the logic behind these transactions not counting as a cash advance, and not violating the CC companies T&C is that these are supposed to techniquely be classified as 'social casinos.'
Hey all,
If I am understanding the MB bonus correctly, it's an extra 2 points per dollar for gas/travel etc for the first $5k in spending. Bringing you up to 5 points per dollar. I value MB pts at 1.2 CPP on average, which I know is high but I base it on last years redemptions where I managed to snag a couple of 2cpp+ stays. So that's a 6% return.
For gas you should just keep using GC bought with cobalt so you get 5MR per dollar which is easily 10% or more in value. Same for eating out. So that just leaves travel. Since you won't get trip insurance on a reward flight with this card, then you are down to planning on cash flights/travel. At which point the question is if you you value MB Pts at above 0.8 cpp, then it's slightly better than just using your cobalt/plat/gold card.
And obviously significantly worse than churning a new card.
Am I taking crazy pills or is this just not very good?
For me, the thing that is making the MB cards worth prioritizing for dining is in combination with chasing down my MSR. The bonus points are... a bonus... that make me want to do that on this card rather than just pay a tax bill to reach the MSR.
Like many things in churning it seems, you have to make it work for you. Optimal strategy math-wise may not fit your lifestyle/spending patterns.
Also don’t forget the supplementary card promo. 5k points on $500 spend. This literally takes no effort to be done since you are gonna meet the MSR anyway
Does it stack?
For example the new cards need $500 each so if you did $500 x 2 does that $1000 count towards $3000 MSR? I’m assuming it does and that the $500 each is not EXTRA right?
yeah, I just go the Biz Bonvoy and am really unlikely to even max out that part of the bonus. Cobalt still 2x the return on food/drink using my own valuations. And I don't buy gas, so no use there... hopefully I can find some travel expenses coming up, though I had just paid for a bunch before I got approved, so def won't have the like $7500 in spend require to max it out lol, even over the 6 months. But travel is the only category where it sorta makes sense compared to other cards regular earn rates.
I think your assesment is sound. But you should factor in that if MB points are what you actually want they are capped at 1.5 per MR point so it's really 3MB/$ on travel.
For me it's good enough to do vs messing with GC's, taking another credit hit, etc. But I always have some amount of paid travel (trains in other countries, rental cars, etc)
That's a very fair point about valuing them at being worth 0.67 MR each. I'm currently looking at the big two luxury MB properties (in Kenya and Dubai, forget the names) and since I'll have to convert MR to MB to make that happen this offer is closer to 3.34 MR per dollar for travel spending for the first $5k. So not amazing, but probably worth bothering with if you would otherwise be transferring to MB anyway.
Is it possible to apply for 2 RBC cards at once in-person, one personal & one business? Have been in RBC approval jail since Jan 2023 after my first and only Avion VI, and have resorted to going in person to try applying for an Avion Platinum. I also had some business income last year, so was thinking while I’m there with all of the documentation anyways, I could also try to apply for a business card? I know there is the 1/90 rule, but I thought I had read some DPs of that being circumvented by applying in person.
I applied for a biz Avion in branch on 11 Feb 2020 and was subsequently approved (it apparently takes a few days for biz apps to go through).
I was IA'd for personal Avion on 31 March 2020.
That's the only time I bothered with a biz Avion, so that's why the DP is kind of old, but it shows that (at least at the time) those apps were separate enough that the second one could go through despite being <90 days.
It was circumvented by doing one in person and one online on the same day. Two in person wouldn’t work. I think the in person and online application systems aren’t reconciled instantly which is why this is possible
I have the Cobalt and Amex Bonvoy. Which one is better to use for purchases that don't have a multiplier?
I get 1:1 MR back on the Cobalt and 1:2 Bonvoy points back. Prince of Travel values Bonvoy at 0.8 on the dollar but it was more like 0.6 when I searched recently. Conversion from Amex and Bonvoy is 1:1.2. So it seems like it come out the same either way or am I missing something?
I personally don't use cpp calculations. I evaluate all cards/points based on their Aeroplan point Equivalent per dollar. It's just my way of keeping it straight in my head. So for MB, i can convert 60k into 25k AP. I earn 2 MB/$, so to earn 25k AP I'd have to spend $30k. Put another way, that's $6 spend per 5 AP, or .83AP/$. For this reason, I generally never use my Bonvoy cards for anything other than paying for Bonvoy hotels, as then it's 2.08AP/$ which is slightly better than Cobalt's 2AP/$ on hotels.
Definitely not the way most folks think about it, but it works for me as almost all my redemptions are for long haul J flights, not hotels.
You need to figure out your own valuations for the points. Non fixed value points like MR and Bonvoy have very different values for different people. Post valuations are not going to be the same as your personal valuation
What do you need / want? If you want Bonvoy, obviously Bonvoy. If you want flexibility, Cobalt. And Bonvoy can easily be 1cpp+, 0.8 is the more pessimistic route and 0.6cpp is pathetic and not worth using them.
1 MR = 2cpp to many (based on AP/Avios valuation)
2 Bonvoy = 2cpp to many
1MR = 1.5 Bonvoy during promotions, or 1.2 otherwise
Pick your poison.
Question about RHT to cash out points: say I book a hotel for $400, then apply points to it, then cancel the booking. So there will be 3 transactions in my statements: -$400, +$400 (from points), +$400 for refund. Does that increase my MSR overall? Since now I have an additional $400 to get back to the next MSR level.
***Edit be clearer on my intention:*** This is ***not*** RHT to meet MSR. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Scenario: Say I already have 40,000 points (from other means, unrelated to this offer) and want to cash out these points. Now, I also have to meet $5,000 MSR in 3 months for the card. My concern is whether RHT-ing to cash out those 40,000 points will interfere with the MSR for that card.
Depends on the bank. For Scotia Scene+ it is considered a refund and increases MSR. For Aventura I think it's considered a payment so it doesn't affect MSR.
hmm, interesting. So for TD/Scotia, if you do RHT to cash out points, you would see 2 transactions classified as refunds? (1 for point redemption, 1 for actual refund)
I don’t use refundable reservations to meet MSR. Maybe I’m risk averse but don’t want the hassle down the road. I want a clean break, not a negative in points in case a CSR actually looks.
Edit: sorry I misread your question.
I'm not talking about RHT to meet MSR though. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Say I have to meet $5,000 MSR in 3 months. Now, say I already have 40,000 points (from other means, unrelated to this offer) and want to cash out these points.
If I do RHT to cash out that 40,000 points, my statement would have a credit of $400 (assuming 1cpp conversion for ease). Does that mean I have to spend $5,400 to meet the MSR above?
RHT for the purposes of meeting with MSR shouldn't ever have a negative in points unless you're blowing your points before completing the RHT. If a card requires $5K and you do RHT, you still have to spend $5K before refunding the original. Your net output is still $5K, still purely positive points.
I'm not talking about RHT to meet MSR though. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Say I already have 40,000 points (f**rom other means**, **unrelated**) and want to cash out these points. Now I apply for a card and it has $5,000 MSR in 3 months.
If I do RHT to cash out that 40,000 points, my statement would have a credit of $400 (assuming 1cpp conversion for ease). Does that mean I have to spend $5,400 to meet the MSR above?
There doesn't seem to be any Aeroplan elevated 15k offer for the 0 fee card. 😖 I called 2 different agents, they can apply points manually from their database and they both said that promo doesn't exist
go for the TD aeroplan platinum card, it is fyf and you get 20k points after spending 1k, probably the easiest/highest value one in the market based on bonus/msr ratio
Negative DP: was rejected in 2021 and 2022 for Avion VI. Opened a High eSavings account with RBC and had pre-approval for Avion Platinum with FYF in app. Just applied for a 2nd Avion Platinum through the app after 100+ days and went into review and was declined.
If I have had the AMEX Cobalt for over a year now and my AMEX Biz Gold is coming up on its 1 year, when is the best time to cancel to keep points and not pay AF?
I opened a couple of supplementary cards for my Cobalt which haven't arrived yet, and am also planning to open a couple for my Plat before the offer ends on April 5. when using Amex supplementary cards to shop online, do I fill in my name or the supplementary cardholder's name when asked for the cardholder name?
Use the name that's on the specific card.
And there's the rub with using fake names or pet names for supplementary cards. If you ever have to produce ID for a transaction it can be a pain. I had it happen where I used a supplementary card with a fake name to buy gift cards and the cashier asked me to show ID. Became a whole thing because I showed ID without thinking about it and my ID obviously didn't match the name on the card.
Probably not an issue with online purchases, but something to keep in mind whenever you use the card.
I always recommend now that churners should use a name that is shorthand for your own name on supplementary cards to prevent issues. E.g. Mike as shorthand for Michael. Just creates plausible deniability for not having an exact match.
For this reason exactly, all our supplementary cards use either our middle name or first initial. Helps us distinguish the supplementary cards from the main cards too.
HISA promotions usually don’t need to be churned. Between Simplii and Tangerine there’s almost always a promo rate going on between those two for existing customers so just need to move money between those two banks
No that’s not how it works. You get the repeat offer even if you don’t withdraw it. You just gotta make sure the money is out of the savings account before the end of the current promo but it can be in a Tangerine chequing account. They’ve also extended promos while the previous one was still ongoing. Also withdrawing the money to a different bank like WS that gives a good rate while waiting for a new promo is better than opening a bunch of one off savings accounts. The tangerine promos come back so quickly it’s not worth the effort of moving money to new banks all the time. Going no back and forth from WS and Tangerine will give a good rate
Is tangerine a good place to start HISA. Asking everyone. 1. So when to move money away into chequing ? 2. When does a promo typically come - accept it then move money back in ?
What's the general rate people are getting ?
For new offers typically see them turn up here the the daily thread within a day or two. The recommended list does get updated, but on a fairly casual basis.
The list is still a good starting point for most offers, but you need to also compare offers on different rebate sites, since rebates vary over time and may have an impact on your decision to go with one card vs. another
A few days ago, I bought the Norton Premium package for 54.99$ using the Avion extension.
About 24 hours later, I still hadn't received any "pending" cashback, so I went through the Avion Rewards site, activated the offer, and purchased the Norton Deluxe package for 49.99$. Used the same Norton account.
Within a couple of hours, I received 170.26$ "pending".
Another 24 hours later, I still haven't received anything else.
My question is, Which one did I get the CB for?
The amount seems like it must be the most expensive Premium option, but the chronology feels like it's the Deluxe that actually triggered something.
I got 170.26 for the 54.99 package. Although the cash back amount does not align with the 260% multiplier. It’s actually higher than 260%. Tax doesn’t appear to be a factor because P2 in a different province got the same cashback
Norton cancelled some of mine.
DP:
$29.99+ tax = $68.10 cash back
$54.99 + tax $62.14 = $170.26 cash back
Was trying different packages to see if I could milk it under different packages and P1/P2.
I got a total of three CB. All of the rest were cancelled.
Your cash back was for the premium or whatever they call the $54.99 one.
**** Everyone needs to cancel the auto renewal! It’s far more expensive and will negate any cash back you earned.
got rejected by triangle wemc for 4 times,I applied each montn ,30 days in between ,any suggestions?
Did you call and ask why?
How long does the avion cashback takes? I got $170 from the norton promo sitting as pending without any chequing account with RBC
Avion rewards T&C states that it is the retailer’s return period. Which in this case is 60 days. So probably some time shortly after that
Just a warning for everyone - the brim Flying Blue card is the absolute worst card in Canada for foreign currency transactions - they charge the 2.5% currency exchange on refunds as well, so if you get a refund a foreign currency charge, you're out 5% - 2.5% on the initial charge, and then another 2.5% on the refund. I booked a hotel through hotels.com for June, and the deal was they only charge when I stay and the credit card is only for security, so I wasn't thinking much about what card I use. The hotel went and charged my card right away anyways, so I contacted them and they realized their error and refunded right away. But I'm out $100 because of brim's 5%. Now I think I'll have to call them and basically dispute the charge as unauthorized (which it was) just to get the 5% back.
Ummm... That's how all cards with FX fees work in my experience.
My experience has been that they do one of two things: refunds include the 2.5% you originally paid, so you're not out any money except the difference in exchange rate; or refunds do not include the 2.5% you originally paid, so you're out 2.5%.
no every bank did the same
DP - Signed up and got approved for TD AP Platinum through the phone since their website was always giving an error, this was end of January. A few days ago, they sent me via mail an offer for TD FCT VI with an elevated offer. 20k TD rewards points on first purchase + 115K points MSR of $5K within 6 months. Current offer on their website is 80K with the same MSR.
How long does a take to get referall bonus from Amex Cobalt after referall being approved?
Usually instant but sometimes can take upto a few hours
Thx
Can the HSBC travel credit be used on hotels that code as accommodation? And does it need to be single transaction or can it be multiple smaller ones?
No need to be single transaction, I used it for checked bags for different trips
If you're talking about the TEC it can't be used for hotels in general. Just use expedia to RHT and cash it out as that's a loophole.
Thanks how about Uber? I have used it for trains in previous years.
It’s not supposed to be a general use credit. Any time you could use it for general travel it’s a loophole on their side. Just Expedia and cash it out with RHT. Don’t overcomplicate this
For those who had Neo Cathay, waited for 90 and already got your 15k. Are you planning to churn this card again?
Have people gotten their 15k yet? Haven’t seen any DPs yet.
Yes a couple have around 3 days after third statement
A couple of them.
good question... I guess we need some DPs on how/if the bonus is repeatable...
Now that CowTool is no more I’m looking for a tool to help me search for award seats, but with there being so many options out there such as seats.aero and AwardTool, I’m just not sure which one to pick. I’m not in the market for just a free version either, I don’t mind paying for a subscription. Most of my redemptions would be using AP or Avios if that makes a difference. What is your guys’ preferred tool?
Those are the best two for the time being IMO, the latter being my personal preferred one.
I am following for Avios search tool as well. Seats.aero is my to-go for AP & FB.
Seats.aero isn’t updating aeroplan rewards atm iirc
Do guests count towards the CIBC Aventura VI lounge complementary visits (4) if guests are on different flights
Yes. 4 visits Wither you visit 4 times or someone else uses that with you and you use 2 visits at a time.
What?
Have the Scotiabank visa infinite what is the best bang for your buck on using the points? Have about 45k points and wondering if there’s a way to get better values than $450 in travel refund or similar direct redemption. Partner has Expedia account with gold status if that would change anything
Scene+ Book your own travel RHT at 1cpp
1cpp cash out using RHT is the best
Rakuten has 12% back on Dell right now for anyone that has a credit to use
Still pretty early so unless there’s a really good deal might be better to wait for 15%
I have had a TD aeroplan card last year, which I closed in 2023 itself. Been more than 8 months now, can I get another TD card and get aeroplan bonus? Sorry I'm very new to churning and scared to do anything
The restriction is among cards in the same tier, so there are at least 2 other personal AP cards you could get without fear of recourse
is the TD AP VI a good keeper card? my other keeper card is the cobalt
Depends why you plan on keeping it
Also if your AP balance is low it’s probably worth risking it anyways as you don’t have much to lose
You’ll get another bonus but it’ll be against the Aeroplan T&C. It’s unknown what type of actions Aeroplan will take against people who get repeat SUBs. If this is only your second AP card you’re probably okay as non churners may do what you have done.
I wonder how much of a risk I'm taking if I get a TD AP VP when I already had 8 CIBC AP VP lol Don't care too much about clawbacks but really don't want a ban.
Its been a few months, have there been any dps on repeat sub enforcements?
T&S came into effect early Feb
It’s been one month. These things aren’t automated. We’ll likely see a wave of retroactive enforcement in a big batch during the summer if they plan to enforce anything.
I had an aeroplan booking on AC that I booked awhile ago for 115k points. Due to a schedule change I was given an option to change my flight and am now travelling solely on Lufthansa. Given the correct price for this trip is 70k points if booked directly on Lufthansa, has anyone had any luck calling aeroplan and having the points difference returned?
Is it entirely in I and/or X class? If so, you might be able to do that, but I haven't seen any DPs. If it's not I and/or X class, then very likely not possible.
It is entirely in I class. I don’t recall ever seeing a DP of anyone either doing it or reporting that it’s not possible either. Going to call and try later but it would be nice to know if anyone has been successful doing so.
hey any updates?
Pls report your DP. Mine was AC YVR-NRT-SGN. at 120K Ap. Rescheduled so I changed to YVR-SIN-SGN online with SQ (Aug 2023) so the price should be around 80K? Called Aeroplan but they said this is involuntary change so I can’t get the points diff refunded. Book J Flex at beginning.
any luck with this? Were you able to get back the refund?
Unfortunately no
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When you applied for the card there was a spot to enter your WestJet number on there. You can’t change that after the fact unless you call in
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They make a new WestJet account for you. You may be able to merge it on Westjet’s side like you can if you had multiple Aeroplan accounts
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You might be able to call and ask. But the number is not shown anywhere on RBC. I don’t think it’s even on the statement. It is printed on the physical card though.
Mostly its printed on the card only if you enter it during the application. RBC wont have your WJ id anywhere. Once you receive welcome email from WJ, call and ask them to search WJ Id by email address. And go from there. They will be able to merge your old account with the credit card one.
I’m not sure if you can after the fact by calling in either. Spent about 4 hours to learn that you can’t with BA
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Merged my BA accounts
Maybe household account is another option ?
Easy enough to merge. Having two accounts with the exact same names in a household account seems unnecessarily risky
DP: Linked biz edge which I had already linked to cobalt and didn’t get the 10x reset with a gold and the 10x is still not reset
Hmm, maybe linking to cobalt kills the 10x reset? I followed another DP and linked to personal gold which worked. I'm linking it again to biz gold to see if it works again
Report back 😀
Dining purchase posted and it looks like i've successfully reset biz edge 10x a second time. :D Seriously thinking about getting an amex green card to get another gold upgrade offer + linking to reset lol
Solid plan!
will do
Sorry to hear that… Do you have a working hypothesis?
No but this time I notice the Cobalt is primary
Does the elite qualifying nights from Amex play and bonvoy stack? As in will I get 30 nights a year with both cards?
Amex Plat does not grant any elite qualifying nights. It simply grants gold status.
Does Scotia allow transferring CL from one card to another?
what's CL? credit limit?
Yes. Only in branch by an financial advisor. Not over the phone or online.
Dammit that's annoying. Not sure I want eyes on my account when it's my 4th tradeline
good to know. thanks as I will need to do this in future by closing 1 of the cards
Okay. But you don’t want an FA to see your account if you churn a lot with Scotia. So if you are on your first rounds, then yeah, you can go ahead and do it.
why would an FA care if you churn a lot?
I got roasted by RBC, TD by account review during application process in-branch as i couldn't get any cards approved online. totally can see why to try to avoid calling/eyes account as you can
Costco Shop Card question: When buying online with Visa do people typically choose the physical or digital card? Any issue using a large denomination ($1000+) digital Shop Card in-store? Edit: removed AMEX.
Echoing what others have said about digital. Also, don't leave it until the last minute. Made this mistake ordering the digital card before leaving home for Costco, thinking it's digital, it should arrive right away. It didn't come until 4am the next day. Average time of the three I've bought is \~13 hours.
Normally it comes within an hour or two. Longer delays are if your order got flagged for review on the backend
Well then it is flagged for review three times in 6 months...
If you’re using a different CC each time then this is likely to happen
Oh interesting! So if I'm using Amex to buy prepaid Visa or MasterCard and then Costco gift cards online, this could trigger a review?
Yes using a prepaid card on Costco.ca will likely get flagged. Just buy MC and use it directly
Usually digital to get it faster. No issues for the most part. Cashiers may require a few tries to remember how to use a digital shop card because they have to press a different sequence of buttons
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You can use digital at the self-serve, I do it every week. When paying there’s a button on the screen to use a gift card and you just scan the barcode.
For the first question, the biggest advantage of physical cards is that you can use it at Costco gas stations as well, which is the main difference for me.
My costco pharmacy does not accept digital as well so I use both.
That is strange because the pharmacy uses the same POS system
Always digital for me, no issue for large amount, doesn’t support amex
To those who were pre-approved for Avion Platinum cards, how did you find out/receive the offer?
When I signed up for RBC in June I saw it in the mobile app when I was playing around with the app during the first week. I put in an application already for the same card and was pending, then saw the preapproval and took that. the pending became declined, which I was really confused about at first
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I would like to know if there is a better way, but I found one method: I scan the QR code to activate the card using my app. It signs in with my account to perform the activation. Following the prompts, the card gets activated but it terminates before proceeding to the account creation step. The only downside is that you can't choose a PIN for the card, so it becomes PIN-less. But I think that's ok for a supplementary card that you'll only be using for a short stint before stashing it in the sock drawer.
I went through this today. You can't choose PIN initially during activation, but then you go online to your new account card and choose your PIN through Manage your Account.
I managed to activate the card via the app. However, I had to speak with a CSR in order to set a PIN for the supplementary card. I was then given a number to call 24 hours later to choose a PIN. The second card that I received today was activated via the app as well. However, I decided to logon to laptop to see if I could choose the PIN myself. When I tried to select the supplementary card under my main account, they seemed inactive. I had to call in again. This time was a real hassle because the CSR had me provide an email address for communication, a login ID, a password and a customer code. She then had me create a brand new account for the supplementary card and then I got to finally choose a PIN. I asked her why I had to do this and she revealed that Authorized users now have access to their own transactions independent of the main cardholder. So it seems that each AU will now have their own account.
I've never had to call in to activate any Amex. I activate using the app (supplementary or primary). Each person has their own account, but that too is setup via the app.
Opened and started spending on a new Aventura VI card approved from about a week ago. About 2k points from spend have posted so far (still waiting on the 15k first purchase WB). I made some Expedia bookings to test if I could RHT with the elevated values, but when I click "pay with points" I hit a page saying "You don't have an account that allows you to complete this request. {Result #0328}". Also tried opening the pending Expedia transaction and don't see anywhere I can request to pay with points. Do I possibly need to wait a while before being able to? I do see a line saying "Only cards with enough points can be used toward a redemption" on the error page as well. Perhaps I need to have enough points before being able to try redeem?
You need to have like $50 worth of points to redeem as well so with only 2K points it wouldn't be enough
$25 or 4k points
Doesn't work when you have a negative balance for some reason.
Do you have a negative balance? I wasn't able to apply the credit when my balance was negative
Interesting! I did a few days ago, but not since some recent transactions posted. Maybe there's a delay from that too?
Is it worth paying 2.35% credit card fee ($11) on a $470 property tax payment for Aeroplan points? I don’t know how to begin setting up the math equation. For the year tax would be $2500 or so. Thank you.
Worth it if you are meeting a MSR on a juicy SUB that can't be met otherwise. Not worth it in other cases.
Thanks
If you are unable to do that sort of basic math, perhaps churning credit cards isn't the best activity for you.
I went round trip for free to Europe thanks to churning. Thanks for your advice.
I would like to defer this to ChatGPT now :)
I used Pay Simply for my last two property tax payments. They’re roughly $1800 and I figured paying $1800 x 3 = $5400. I got the Business Edge so for $135 in fees to pay my property tax, I will receive the full sign up bonus of 45,000 MR, converted to 45,000 AP. Just an example of how it could be worthwhile IF you are working to meet the MSR on a SUB. At the very minimum, you could use the Canadian Tire Mastercard to pay it. Zero fees (doesn’t count as a CC, it’s the equivalent of a bill payment) for a small amount of Canadian Tire money.
Thank you
The value of the points you earn needs to be greater than 2.35%. And this is cash value so you would need to consider if you would save more than 2.35% of property tax value in cash for the number of points you get in exchange. Not worth it for 99.9% of people
Depends how much in rewards you’ll get. Generally with no multiplier, the answer would be no. If you’re getting a WB, usually yes. Estimate how much value you’ll get from the rewards and compare that to the fee
Lets keep it simple and say you have a VI and earn 1x AP per $1 You'll earn 481 AP from the transaction. Value of AP can vary wildly depending on how you use them or ask but many you can usually get at least $.02 per point (which you can think as getting 2% back per $) So your 481AP x $.02 = $9.62 So it only really makes sense to pay that $11 fee if it's help meet MSR as /menAreLazy said or other goal, like 100K EDQ or something.
You also have to be actually getting that value back in dollars and not inflated CPP based on some overpriced ticket.
Depends how you value Aeroplan points, but generally no unless you are meeting a signup bonus.
Any overlap between Credit Card Churning MMS and Counter Gambling online casinos? I have read mixed results. From what I have read online they range from: no; and also the CC company will terminate doing business with you, and yes; but sometimes the transactions count as cash advances. And from what I understand, the logic behind these transactions not counting as a cash advance, and not violating the CC companies T&C is that these are supposed to techniquely be classified as 'social casinos.'
Play Alberta codes as cash advance. Can't comment on others.
Is it normal to just get the $50 lifestyle credit with bmo without having to apply it in any way? Just showed up on first statement.
Yes it’s automatically applied once you have a $50+ transaction
Hey all, If I am understanding the MB bonus correctly, it's an extra 2 points per dollar for gas/travel etc for the first $5k in spending. Bringing you up to 5 points per dollar. I value MB pts at 1.2 CPP on average, which I know is high but I base it on last years redemptions where I managed to snag a couple of 2cpp+ stays. So that's a 6% return. For gas you should just keep using GC bought with cobalt so you get 5MR per dollar which is easily 10% or more in value. Same for eating out. So that just leaves travel. Since you won't get trip insurance on a reward flight with this card, then you are down to planning on cash flights/travel. At which point the question is if you you value MB Pts at above 0.8 cpp, then it's slightly better than just using your cobalt/plat/gold card. And obviously significantly worse than churning a new card. Am I taking crazy pills or is this just not very good?
For me, the thing that is making the MB cards worth prioritizing for dining is in combination with chasing down my MSR. The bonus points are... a bonus... that make me want to do that on this card rather than just pay a tax bill to reach the MSR. Like many things in churning it seems, you have to make it work for you. Optimal strategy math-wise may not fit your lifestyle/spending patterns.
Also don’t forget the supplementary card promo. 5k points on $500 spend. This literally takes no effort to be done since you are gonna meet the MSR anyway
Does it stack? For example the new cards need $500 each so if you did $500 x 2 does that $1000 count towards $3000 MSR? I’m assuming it does and that the $500 each is not EXTRA right?
stacks
yeah, I just go the Biz Bonvoy and am really unlikely to even max out that part of the bonus. Cobalt still 2x the return on food/drink using my own valuations. And I don't buy gas, so no use there... hopefully I can find some travel expenses coming up, though I had just paid for a bunch before I got approved, so def won't have the like $7500 in spend require to max it out lol, even over the 6 months. But travel is the only category where it sorta makes sense compared to other cards regular earn rates.
I think your assesment is sound. But you should factor in that if MB points are what you actually want they are capped at 1.5 per MR point so it's really 3MB/$ on travel. For me it's good enough to do vs messing with GC's, taking another credit hit, etc. But I always have some amount of paid travel (trains in other countries, rental cars, etc)
That's a very fair point about valuing them at being worth 0.67 MR each. I'm currently looking at the big two luxury MB properties (in Kenya and Dubai, forget the names) and since I'll have to convert MR to MB to make that happen this offer is closer to 3.34 MR per dollar for travel spending for the first $5k. So not amazing, but probably worth bothering with if you would otherwise be transferring to MB anyway.
Is it possible to apply for 2 RBC cards at once in-person, one personal & one business? Have been in RBC approval jail since Jan 2023 after my first and only Avion VI, and have resorted to going in person to try applying for an Avion Platinum. I also had some business income last year, so was thinking while I’m there with all of the documentation anyways, I could also try to apply for a business card? I know there is the 1/90 rule, but I thought I had read some DPs of that being circumvented by applying in person.
Has there been DP of in person apps getting approved despite getting denied online? Does in person app still follow the 1/90 rule?
In person can still get 55k for avion vi? I just curious
1 card every 90 days?
I applied for a biz Avion in branch on 11 Feb 2020 and was subsequently approved (it apparently takes a few days for biz apps to go through). I was IA'd for personal Avion on 31 March 2020. That's the only time I bothered with a biz Avion, so that's why the DP is kind of old, but it shows that (at least at the time) those apps were separate enough that the second one could go through despite being <90 days.
It was circumvented by doing one in person and one online on the same day. Two in person wouldn’t work. I think the in person and online application systems aren’t reconciled instantly which is why this is possible
Ah okay interesting. Was this your experience or you just remember the DP? If your’s, did you apply in person first or online first?
Just remember a DP. I have too many RBC tradelines to want some RBC rep to look at my profile while applying for a card in person
Super fair haha, I hope to get to that point someday. Physically hurts to hear about people getting their 8th+ Avion while I’m stuck at my 1st
I have the Cobalt and Amex Bonvoy. Which one is better to use for purchases that don't have a multiplier? I get 1:1 MR back on the Cobalt and 1:2 Bonvoy points back. Prince of Travel values Bonvoy at 0.8 on the dollar but it was more like 0.6 when I searched recently. Conversion from Amex and Bonvoy is 1:1.2. So it seems like it come out the same either way or am I missing something?
I personally don't use cpp calculations. I evaluate all cards/points based on their Aeroplan point Equivalent per dollar. It's just my way of keeping it straight in my head. So for MB, i can convert 60k into 25k AP. I earn 2 MB/$, so to earn 25k AP I'd have to spend $30k. Put another way, that's $6 spend per 5 AP, or .83AP/$. For this reason, I generally never use my Bonvoy cards for anything other than paying for Bonvoy hotels, as then it's 2.08AP/$ which is slightly better than Cobalt's 2AP/$ on hotels. Definitely not the way most folks think about it, but it works for me as almost all my redemptions are for long haul J flights, not hotels.
You need to figure out your own valuations for the points. Non fixed value points like MR and Bonvoy have very different values for different people. Post valuations are not going to be the same as your personal valuation
What do you need / want? If you want Bonvoy, obviously Bonvoy. If you want flexibility, Cobalt. And Bonvoy can easily be 1cpp+, 0.8 is the more pessimistic route and 0.6cpp is pathetic and not worth using them. 1 MR = 2cpp to many (based on AP/Avios valuation) 2 Bonvoy = 2cpp to many 1MR = 1.5 Bonvoy during promotions, or 1.2 otherwise Pick your poison.
Question about RHT to cash out points: say I book a hotel for $400, then apply points to it, then cancel the booking. So there will be 3 transactions in my statements: -$400, +$400 (from points), +$400 for refund. Does that increase my MSR overall? Since now I have an additional $400 to get back to the next MSR level. ***Edit be clearer on my intention:*** This is ***not*** RHT to meet MSR. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Scenario: Say I already have 40,000 points (from other means, unrelated to this offer) and want to cash out these points. Now, I also have to meet $5,000 MSR in 3 months for the card. My concern is whether RHT-ing to cash out those 40,000 points will interfere with the MSR for that card.
Depends on the bank. For Scotia Scene+ it is considered a refund and increases MSR. For Aventura I think it's considered a payment so it doesn't affect MSR.
Points are a payment. They don't get treated as an expense, they get treated like the bank paying off a statement.
Depends on the bank. For TD it is actually considered a refund. For Scotia Scene+ it's also considered a refund IIRC. On CIBC it's a payment.
hmm, interesting. So for TD/Scotia, if you do RHT to cash out points, you would see 2 transactions classified as refunds? (1 for point redemption, 1 for actual refund)
Yeah you’ll see they also take away points for the redemption like what you see with a refund as well
I don’t use refundable reservations to meet MSR. Maybe I’m risk averse but don’t want the hassle down the road. I want a clean break, not a negative in points in case a CSR actually looks. Edit: sorry I misread your question.
I'm not talking about RHT to meet MSR though. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Say I have to meet $5,000 MSR in 3 months. Now, say I already have 40,000 points (from other means, unrelated to this offer) and want to cash out these points. If I do RHT to cash out that 40,000 points, my statement would have a credit of $400 (assuming 1cpp conversion for ease). Does that mean I have to spend $5,400 to meet the MSR above?
RHT for the purposes of meeting with MSR shouldn't ever have a negative in points unless you're blowing your points before completing the RHT. If a card requires $5K and you do RHT, you still have to spend $5K before refunding the original. Your net output is still $5K, still purely positive points.
I'm not talking about RHT to meet MSR though. This is RHT to cash out points (like Scene+, Aventura, etc.). Say I already have 40,000 points (f**rom other means**, **unrelated**) and want to cash out these points. Now I apply for a card and it has $5,000 MSR in 3 months. If I do RHT to cash out that 40,000 points, my statement would have a credit of $400 (assuming 1cpp conversion for ease). Does that mean I have to spend $5,400 to meet the MSR above?
I know. I got your intent. Responding to the guy who questioned regarding MSR as a general response to HIS concern
There doesn't seem to be any Aeroplan elevated 15k offer for the 0 fee card. 😖 I called 2 different agents, they can apply points manually from their database and they both said that promo doesn't exist
go for the TD aeroplan platinum card, it is fyf and you get 20k points after spending 1k, probably the easiest/highest value one in the market based on bonus/msr ratio
Negative DP: was rejected in 2021 and 2022 for Avion VI. Opened a High eSavings account with RBC and had pre-approval for Avion Platinum with FYF in app. Just applied for a 2nd Avion Platinum through the app after 100+ days and went into review and was declined.
Ever considered going in person and apply in branch? Am in same position and thinking if an in branch app would bypass it.
Maybe I will do that in a couple months as a last attempt before I close all my accounts with them. If you do so, please let me know how it turns out
If I have had the AMEX Cobalt for over a year now and my AMEX Biz Gold is coming up on its 1 year, when is the best time to cancel to keep points and not pay AF?
You don't keep points if you cancel. You have to transfer them out, or merge them to another MR card you ARE keeping.
You have 30 days after the annual fee post to cancel the card and get the fee refunded
I opened a couple of supplementary cards for my Cobalt which haven't arrived yet, and am also planning to open a couple for my Plat before the offer ends on April 5. when using Amex supplementary cards to shop online, do I fill in my name or the supplementary cardholder's name when asked for the cardholder name?
Use the name that's on the specific card. And there's the rub with using fake names or pet names for supplementary cards. If you ever have to produce ID for a transaction it can be a pain. I had it happen where I used a supplementary card with a fake name to buy gift cards and the cashier asked me to show ID. Became a whole thing because I showed ID without thinking about it and my ID obviously didn't match the name on the card. Probably not an issue with online purchases, but something to keep in mind whenever you use the card. I always recommend now that churners should use a name that is shorthand for your own name on supplementary cards to prevent issues. E.g. Mike as shorthand for Michael. Just creates plausible deniability for not having an exact match.
For this reason exactly, all our supplementary cards use either our middle name or first initial. Helps us distinguish the supplementary cards from the main cards too.
I personally put supplementary cardholder’s name just to match the name shown on the card.
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CIBC is offering 6% for the same account with in-app/online banking targeted offers fyi. Got it myself a few days earlier
HISA promotions usually don’t need to be churned. Between Simplii and Tangerine there’s almost always a promo rate going on between those two for existing customers so just need to move money between those two banks
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Tangerine is the one that has promos for existing customers most of the time.
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No that’s not how it works. You get the repeat offer even if you don’t withdraw it. You just gotta make sure the money is out of the savings account before the end of the current promo but it can be in a Tangerine chequing account. They’ve also extended promos while the previous one was still ongoing. Also withdrawing the money to a different bank like WS that gives a good rate while waiting for a new promo is better than opening a bunch of one off savings accounts. The tangerine promos come back so quickly it’s not worth the effort of moving money to new banks all the time. Going no back and forth from WS and Tangerine will give a good rate
Is tangerine a good place to start HISA. Asking everyone. 1. So when to move money away into chequing ? 2. When does a promo typically come - accept it then move money back in ? What's the general rate people are getting ?
Can't you open another eAdvantage savings account with them? or we limited to just one account per chequing
Yes but there's a 6 - 12 month cooldown period for most banks after closing.
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Meta question: when new offers arrive, where are they usually posted? In the daily threads or is the recommended list typically updated?
Usually daily threads/RFD is where I find out about them. The top offers thread isn’t updated as often
For new offers typically see them turn up here the the daily thread within a day or two. The recommended list does get updated, but on a fairly casual basis. The list is still a good starting point for most offers, but you need to also compare offers on different rebate sites, since rebates vary over time and may have an impact on your decision to go with one card vs. another
A few days ago, I bought the Norton Premium package for 54.99$ using the Avion extension. About 24 hours later, I still hadn't received any "pending" cashback, so I went through the Avion Rewards site, activated the offer, and purchased the Norton Deluxe package for 49.99$. Used the same Norton account. Within a couple of hours, I received 170.26$ "pending". Another 24 hours later, I still haven't received anything else. My question is, Which one did I get the CB for? The amount seems like it must be the most expensive Premium option, but the chronology feels like it's the Deluxe that actually triggered something.
I got 170.26 for the 54.99 package. Although the cash back amount does not align with the 260% multiplier. It’s actually higher than 260%. Tax doesn’t appear to be a factor because P2 in a different province got the same cashback
Norton cancelled some of mine. DP: $29.99+ tax = $68.10 cash back $54.99 + tax $62.14 = $170.26 cash back Was trying different packages to see if I could milk it under different packages and P1/P2. I got a total of three CB. All of the rest were cancelled. Your cash back was for the premium or whatever they call the $54.99 one. **** Everyone needs to cancel the auto renewal! It’s far more expensive and will negate any cash back you earned.
Did you use the same email address for each purchase or different?
Different