MAYBE GO EASY ON THE HAWAIIAN AIRLINES BUSINESS CARD: If you see a bunch of articles extolling the virtues of the Hawaiian Airlines business card, it’s because that card just started offering money to bloggers via affiliate links. Rapid Travel Chai encourages you to think twice before applying:
Barclaycard has gotten very tough on card approvals since 2012. Those new to Barclaycard and credit cards find some success, however many of us keep getting rejections.
The main reasons for denials:
- Too many applications with Barclaycard;
- Too many new accounts with other banks;
- More than enough credit already extended on existing cards;
- Not long enough history with existing Barclaycard cards;
- Not enough usage of existing Barclaycard cards.
If you fall into one or more of these categories, you may be wasting a credit pull. At minimum it seems 6 months are needed between Barclaycard applications.
Also, based on my experience, Barclaycard does not distinguish personal and business cards in terms of making the decision. Meaning, having a bunch of personal cards but no business card with them is not a way to get a business card approved.
It’s good advice, and it matches Mrs. PFD’s recent experience–she had no Barclays on her record other than one closed USAir account but was denied for the Arrival. It’s her only denial that I can recall, other than the odd Wells denial which Wells later turned into an approval.
Moreover, Hawaiian Airlines miles aren’t great. They used to be good for transferring to Hilton before the Hilton program got devalued and the transfer ratio for Hawaiian to Hilton got devalued. If you know what you’re doing with the Hawaiian miles then go for it; otherwise, this card isn’t a screaming hot deal.
DON’T TWO-TIME WELLS: The Miles Professor makes a point which bears repeating:
Some banks have restrictions that if you had a particular sign-up bonus previously, you may not be eligible for it again. But it turns out Wells Fargo has an even bigger restriction. If you ever had any Wells Fargo credit card, then you arenot eligible for the sign-up bonus on this one. And here is what Wells Fargo says in the terms and conditions for the card:
Eligibility for Introductory Rate(s), Fees, and Bonus Rewards Offers: If you currently have an open credit card account or a closed credit card account with a balance issued by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., you may not be eligible for the above introductory APR(s) and fees or the bonus rewards offers described below.
It may sound vague, but that’s exactly what they mean. If you already had a credit card with them, you’re not getting 5%.
I’d been wondering about that very question and I hadn’t seen it blogged about, so thanks to MP for shedding some light on this.
AMAZON DIPS ITS TOES INTO THE 5% WATERS: This isn’t anything worth jumping on, but there’s a FWF thread on Amazon’s new store card offering, which apparently goes as high as 5%. I say “apparently” because different people are getting different offers. When I hit the link from my account, I didn’t get any percentage back offer, just an offer for a $20 Amazon gift card. When I put the link into an anonymous browser window, I received only a $10 offer, and the same thing happened with my wife’s account.
A commenter on Doctor of Credit reported 4%. I had tried this last week as well when the news first broke and I received an offer for 2% back with my account and 3% back with my wife’s account, so maybe this was just a temporary test by Amazon?
FAMILY TRAVEL SEMINAR SCHEDULE: If you’re interested in the family travel seminar being put on by the Deal Mommy (not to be confused with Mommy Points), here’s the list of speakers:
9:00-9:45: Registration and meet your fellow travelers
9:45-10:00: Welcome from The Deal Mommy
10:00-10:55: Shawn Coomer, Dad, from Miles to Memories on the topic of extended travel with your kids (with an assist from The Deal Mommy on Camp Mom).
11:00-11:55: Phil, Dad of 2, from Miles Abound on how to earn miles without opening 10 credit cards in one day or spending 20K a month and which programs are best for families.
12:00-12:55: Lunch (be sure to use this time to meet new friends and chat travel!)
1:00-1:55: Jason Steele, Dad of 2 and well-known points expert, on using those points on family travel (Have you ever tried to book 4 award tickets?)
2:00-2:55: Susan DeBruhl, Mom and Grandma, from Carolina Travel Girl on lodging options when a regular hotel room just isn’t gonna cut it. I’ll have lots to share on this topic as well, including how I rent condos worldwide for $35/night!
2:55-3:10: Afternoon Break and snack
3:10-4:05: Debra Schroeder, Mom of 2, from Traveling Well for Less on how to keep saving once you get to your destination.
4:05-5:00: Ask the Speakers session. Make sure to bring your specific travel questions!
Hopefully there’ll be some advice on how to deal with unfriendly JetBlue flight attendants as well…
The quoted Wells Fargo text doesn’t support the “if you had it once you’re not getting it again” conclusion. It only states that if you currently have the card, or if you have a closed account with a balance, you’re not getting the bonus. It doesn’t exclude people with no balance and no card from getting the signup bonus. Maybe there’s other language that does, or maybe Wells’ practice differs from its Terms and Conditions, but this language isn’t it.
My reading of the Wells Fargo T&Cs parallels that of commentor “Stephen” on her blog, that you can’t get the bonus on the Hawaiian card if you have an open CC account or a closed CC account WITH A BALANCE. I read that to mean you could get the bonus if you previously had a WF card that is closed with zero unpaid balance.
5% cash back at Amazon is a nice offer for those getting it. I’m getting 4% – with some data points: Prime member since it was first offered, tons of S&S, definitely in the thousands per year spent at Amazon, own a Kindle Fire, purchase/rent from Amazon Instant Video. My affinity score is probably high, but probably high enough that they know I’ll buy anyway without 5%.
I do favor buying Amazon GC from an Office Supply store using Ink and getting 5X UR for my trouble. I value 5 UR > 5% cash back, but there is a cost on my time to periodically go get more gift cards. Good chance I’d bite on a 5% offer as a result.