I mentioned a few weeks ago that we got a Fuel Rewards MasterCard, issued by Comenity Bank, for Mrs. PFD. I picked this card first of all because we didn’t have any Comenity cards and I was curious, but also because I saw this offer:
Does 35 cents per gallon sound good to you? It does to me. The Fuel Rewards program lets you get up to 20 gallons as a reward redemption, so 35 cents per gallon equates to a maximum of $7 off a tank of gas for every $100 of groceries you purchase. I’ll take that all day long, since I much prefer free gas over non-free gas.
I did a test drive of the card at Bi-Lo and purchased $505.95 of groceries. Initially, I was worried that I would not get the big bonus after I saw this:
Mind you, that’s 25 cents per gallon earned on the entire $505.95, not per hundred dollars. I was also worried when I saw this:
See that second item down, the MasterCard Grocery Store Offer? It says I’m only $5.95 toward my goal. So that made me think I might not get much of a bonus out of this.
But just today, after a week of waiting, Fuel Rewards came through for me:
Apparently the various MasterCard bonuses and the FRN card bonuses are all handled differently. Bottom line: my purchase of $505.95 in groceries has netted me $1.50 per gallon in free gas, or a maximum of $60 $30. I’m okay with that.
A very important caveat: according to the T&Cs you can only do eight grocery redemptions per year, so that’s a maximum of $480 of free gas for this particular offer, or $8,000 of grocery spending if you want to think of it that way. I’m not sure how that will work in practice–does that mean I can only be awarded eight bonuses per year (in which case it would behoove me to buy $10,000 of groceries at a time, if possible), or that I can only have eight redemptions in which grocery rewards are used? This program is still new to me, so I’ll provide future details as events warrant.
I saw that offer also. Isn’t the maximum 20 gallons per fillup per car? My husband and I are taking advantage of one of those offers. We form a conga line at the gas pump, filling up both our cars during the same “session”, before the meter shuts off. And somehow we are still below the 35 max gallons allowed by our plan.
“…my purchase of $505.95 in groceries has netted me $1.50 per gallon in free gas, or a maximum of $60.”
Don’t you mean maximum of $30 saved? $1.50 x 20 gallons = $30.
Sorry, yes–I was translating things to money saved per thousand. Getting ahead of myself.
Yep, 20 max per fill-up.
I got involved with the program from it’s affiliation with Ceasars Entertainment’s gaming loyality program. I’ve found it interesting that there aren’t many discussions on Fuel Network out there in cyberspace. So it was hard to find answers to basic questions about the program.. Thanks for bringing this up. I’m a bit bummed by the fact that none of those grocery chains are here in STL.
I noticed the Caesar’s tie-in, thought that was interesting. Though unless I was missing something, it didn’t look particularly lucrative.
Yeah – the Caesar’s Total Rewards angle might be a stretch for most people. As a regualr player, I have standing free room offers and roughly $500 in free play from them. With that, it’s not too hard to get to 1,000 tier points in a day (good for .20 cents a gallon) which will be matched by the program for another 1,000 tier points (and another .20 cents). So, my wife and I use the SW companion pass for two-for-one flights on points , stay free, play free (if we stay strong!), usually get meals comped, and get a .40 or .50 cent fuel reward now as a kicker.
Wow, $505.95 in groceries. That seems like a pretty big and specific amount. It’s all in frozen chimichangas and Cheerios, right?
Nice! Do you have the Total Rewards credit card? I’ve been wondering about that one, but the nearest Caesar’s is 3 hours from here so it would be hard for me to make much use of it.
Yeah, pretty much. Lots of inflation, I blame the Fed.
What ? Are trying to say something? I mean I shop at Winn Dixie too (using my Amex PRG) and I often have $505.95 worth of groceries. Usually though I spend less. Like $503.95.