|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo Credit CardIndependent review with up to date rates, fees and special offers for this card... 
Lloyds TSB credit card review: Airmiles DuoStop Press! 1,500 bonus Airmiles (enough for 2 free flights!) are up for grabs if you apply and get accepted before 30th September 2010 and then spend at least £10 before 30th November 2010. LLOYDS TSB has recently become the bank of choice for the Airmiles reward program - and with an offering of 1 airmile for every £10 spent on the Lloyds TSB American Express card you can now earn airmiles twice as fast. The Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo credit card offers a rather unique feature in that you'll be given two credit cards - an American Express card and a MasterCard - that will both operate under the same account. The Lloyds TSB Airmiles American Express credit card allows you to earn 1 airmile for every £10 spent on all purchases, the Lloyds TSB Airmiles MasterCard credit card allows you to earn 1 airmile for every £50 spent on all purchases. Offered with the Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo credit card is the ability to earn even more airmiles - you'll earn double airmiles when you use either card abroad, and you can collect additional airmiles when you shop with over 100 high street and online airmiles partners - including Tesco Clubcard and Shell. If you have any current credit or store card balances outstanding, you can earn yourself 150 airmiles for every £1,000 transferred from other non-Lloyds TSB credit cards. However, you'll only have 3-months at 0% in which to repay them and there is a 3% transfer fee to pay which is fairly high for such a limited deal. The 0% balance transfer deal is actually 6-months, however Lloyds TSB require you to spend at least £100 during the first 3 months or the balance transfer period will be cut short to 3. If you do spend the £100 (or more) these purchases will be trapped behind the balance transfer amount - and will accrue interest charges until you've repaid the balance transfer first. In short, this card is terrible for balance transfers - so don't be tempted by the lure of extra airmiles unless you know you'll be clearing the balance within 3 months - and wait until then to make any new purchases. Failing this, if you've got a large balance to shift get a decent 0% balance transfer credit card as well for the purpose. Back to the brighter side... the Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo credit card is an excellent rewards card, and one of the fastest ways to clock up airmiles. There is no annual fee to pay here and if you keep your balance repaid each month you can look forward to earning some considerable rewards.
Review Continued...Use the Lloyds TSB Duo Airmiles credit card right and you could rack up the airmiles and pay off expensive balances from other credit cards. Two Credit Cards In the case of the Lloyds TSB Duo Airmiles credit card there are actually two different credit cards. The American Express card offering an airmile for every £10 you spend and a MasterCard offering an airmile for every £50. Obviously the American Express card should be used as much as possible - there are no differences in rates or fees only the amount of airmiles rewarded. The benefit of also having the MasterCard is purely as a backup since American Express credit cards are notoriously not accepted everywhere. It's free to add an additional cardholder so we'd suggest sharing the account with a partner or very trusted friend to really rack up the points. Additional credit cards are always a bonus when it comes to airmiles because the more purchasing power you can gather, the better. Should you add an additional cardholder to the account - they will also get two cards. It's important that all cardholders are aware of the restrictions on spending - cash withdrawals, money transfers and gambling transactions won't earn you any airmiles and will also accrue more interest than normal purchases as well as fees. Earn more Airmiles The Lloyds TSB Duo Airmiles credit card uses the official airmiles scheme. This gives you more flexibility on the carrier you buy the flight from than BA miles or Virgin Flying Club schemes and you can also redeem your miles for 'experiences' such as tickets to the London Eye. It's also worth noting that although you can accrue more points in different schemes, they're likely to get you flying around the same distance - see our FAQ section for more on how much airmiles in different schemes are worth. You can also compare other airmile credit cards and find out the actual value of the rewards you'll earn based on your spending levels. Redeeming your airmiles for flights is based on a zone system. For example, you'll need 750 miles to fly within zone 1 - within the UK and close European cities such as Paris and Amsterdam - and 5000 to get to zone 4 destinations such as New York and Dubai. So in other words, you'd need to spend £7,500 on the American Express card alone to get one return flight in zone one or £125,000 on the Mastercard and £25,000 on the American Express card to get a flight in zone 4. Avoid the Pitfalls The major pitfall when it comes to the Lloyds TSB airmiles credit card is the balance transfer offer which seems to have been deliberately set up to confuse consumers. Every £1,000 transferred from a non-Lloyds TSB credit card will earn 150 airmiles that can then notionally be paid off at 0% for six months. However, you'll only get the full six months if you spend at least £100 within three months of getting the card so, at best, you'll have to pay interest at 15.9% APR on £100 for four months. This works out at roughly just over £5 - but that's only if you spend £100 in the third month and clear the entire balance (purchase + balance transfer) just before the end of the 6-month period. Also, don't forget to add the balance transfer fee to this as well. Although you might still save money by transferring an expensive debt to the Lloyds TSB Duo Airmiles credit card and treating the interest on your purchases as an extra credit card fee, it's definitely worth factoring this in before you transfer a balance. If you choose not to pay any interest on your purchases you'll only have a very limited 3 months to pay back any debts at the 0% rate and there is still the fairly high 3% transfer fee to pay. In almost all cases, and to avoid expensive complications, you'll be far better off looking at other 0% balance transfer credit cards. As with other reward schemes it is also important that you repay the balance of your Lloyds TSB Duo Airmile credit cards every month within the 56 day interest-free period. Otherwise, the rewards you earn are likely to be outweighed by the interest you'll have to pay. Withdrawing cash and using abroad Although the Lloyds TSB Duo Airmiles credit card might be good for getting you abroad it's not much use when you actually get there. There's a 2.95% fee on all foreign transactions. In common with other credit cards, the Lloyds TSB Duo credit card is also not suitable for withdrawing cash - there's a 3% fee (minimum £3.00) on every withdrawal and then interest is charged at 27.9% with no interest-free period. All in All... All in all, the Lloyds TSB airmiles credit card is a great way for big spenders to reward themselves although those looking to offload credit card debt as well might be better off looking for a second credit card for the sole purpose of clearing an existing balance. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
