Credit Card Freebies

Perform a legal smash and grab raid on a credit card company right now and there's tonnes of freebies available; £15 Amazon voucher, British Airways, BMI and more flights all around Europe, £30 voucher to use in 25 high street chains, CDs and DVDs from Sony and more. Credit cards offer free gifts to new cardholders; sign up for the card, grab the freebie, and forget it!

Why are freebies offered?

Credit cards are so lucrative, companies are often willing to pay £40 - £80 to acquire a new customer: small potatoes compared to their potential profit from debts. This money materialises in a variety of ways; heavy advertising spend, introductory 0% offers, and free gifts or inducements to sign up for the card.

Also earn cashback with every purchase.

Some cards pay up to 5% cashback on all spending on them; pay them off in full each month so you're not charged interest, and you can make serious money, see the Cashback Cards article.

How to grab credit card freebies

While cards offer freebies to newcomers, the gifts aren't actually doled out on application or acceptance; to trigger the freebie gift most providers require you to spend on the card.

Spend as little as possible

Some cards don't set a minimum spend trigger; provided ANY amount is spent on the card, though others specify a trigger amount. The challenge is to spend as little as possible.

Happily most supermarkets allow credit card payments for any amount so buy chewing gum, chocolate or (for health-conscious MoneySavers) an apple, and hey presto the freebie's yours.

Then pay off the balance in full

With the vast majority of credit cards (including all these below), if you pay off the balance in full at the end of the month, you don't pay any interest. So for the freebie to be toatally free, ensure that you do this.

For this reason, even if the card has a higher minimum spend freebie trigger, the same principle applies. Just do some of your normal spending on the card, ensure you repay in full at the end of the month and you won't pay interest.

The Top Freebies

Many top freebie offers come through direct mailshots or e-mails; if you see these, check through the terms and grab ‘em. Yet a number of offers are currently available to everyone. My top picks are:

• Amazon £15 voucher

  New Amazon credit cardholders bag a free £15 gift voucher when spending ANYTHING on it within 180 days of opening the account. Apply, then once you've bought something using the card, you'll get 1500 Amazon Points, redeemable for a £15 voucher to spend on Amazon (i.e. for books, CDs/DVDs, electonics etc), except with some Marketplace sellers.

  The card offers twelve months 0% on balance transfers, for a 3% one-off fee. While not market leading (see Balance Transfer guide) it isn't bad, though never ever use the card for both spending and balance transfers, as this breaks the golden rule and could be costly.

  Quick Stats. Freebie: £15 Amazon voucher, Min. Spend Trigger: N/A - spend anything in first 180 days, Rate: 16.9% APR
  
  
• £30 voucher for High Street / Cinema / Eating out

  The relaunched Goldfish credit card's offering successful new applicants £30 worth of vouchers to spend as cash in 25 high street stores. You need to spend £100 on the card for each of the first three months (£300 in total). So, use it for day-to-day spending to hit the £100 trigger each month, pay it off in full each month, so there's no interest.
  
  The vouchers can be used in Argos, Boots, Cineworld, Currys, Debenhams, Halfords, HMV, Homebase, JJB, John Lewis, M&S, Mothercare, Next, Odeon, PC World, Pizza Express, Showcase, Ticketmaster, Vue, Waitrose, Waterstones, WH Smiths and more.
  
  Once you receive the vouchers, you can cancel if you choose. If you decide to keep the card after the three month period you'll get rewards points worth about 0.6% of spending, (though repay in full to ensure no interest).

  Quick Stats. Freebie: £30 High street voucher, Min. Spend Trigger: £100 per month for 3 months, Rate: 9.9% APR
  
  
• 1,500 Free Airmiles enough for free BA returns to Ibiza, Malta and more
  
  Open a Lloyds TSB Airmiles Duo* card via Airmiles website before 31 January 2010 and spend £10 on it by 31 March 10, and you'll receive 1,500 Airmiles. You can exchange this for a return flight to a 'Zone 2' European destination, with all taxes and charges included. Zone 2 includes Budapest, Barcelona, Stockholm, Ibiza, Rome and loads more, plus you can book on British Airways, bumping the worth compared to usual free flights on budget airlines, but you must book at least one hotel night via Airmiles too.
  
  Alternatively, 1,500 Airmiles can be redeemed for two all-in return flights to Zone 1 destinations, so you can pick from Paris, Dublin, Amsterdam and numerous UK airports, and go with a friend. To get the points, simply spend £10 by 31 March 2010 (ideally on something you'd have bought anyway), pay the card off in full and the miles will credit within 30 days.
  
  As you need to book at least one night in a hotel through Airmiles it's important to check what they’ve got on offer for your destination. Prices aren’t dirt cheap as they tend to look at higher end hotels; yet the slight extra on the hotel is easily balanced out by the free return flight. For example hotels in Prague start at £30 a night and range up to £150. Yet those looking for super budget stays in hostels are probably better off using the Flightchecker and Cheap Flights articles to find their hotel.
  
  With Airmiles Duo you actually get two cards, one Mastercard and one Amex version. You have to use the Amex for your £10 spend to get the 1,500 Airmiles, though it is the better card anyway, so worth sticking with if you want more Airmiles once you've grabbed the freebie. However ensure you pay it off in full every month otherwise the interest you pay will outweigh the benefits - read Loyalty Schemes Tips and Tricks.
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: 1500 Airmiles (See full T&C's), Min. Spend Trigger: £10, Rate: 15.9% APR, Taxes Included: YES, Other: Must book 1 night's hotel with Airmiles
  
  
• Free £15 Play.com voucher
  
  Open a new Play.com credit card, and spend £150 on it within 90 days, and you'll get 1,500 Playpoints, redeemable for a £15 voucher to spend on the Play.com website (eg. CDs/DVDs/Games/Books/Electricals)
  
  In addition, you get 9 months 0% on spending when you take out the card, meaning you needn't repay the balance in full straight away, though ensure whatever you spend is fully repaid by the end of the interest free period. You always need to pay the monthly minimum payment too.
  
  There is also a decent balance transfer offer on this card; 6 months 0% with a small 1.5% fee (see the Balance Transfer article for how this compares). However, avoid using this card for both spending and balance transfers, as this breaks the golden rule and could cost you big.
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: 1,500 Playpoints, Min. Spend Trigger: £150, Rate: 15.9% APR
  
  
• Free BMI Business flight to Russia or Turkey
  
  Get a BMI Amex* card, do £250 of your normal spending on it within 90 days, and you'll get 20,000 of BMI's 'Destination Miles'. These can be redeemed for a return business-class flight to Russia, Turkey, Majorca and others (see what you can get).
  
  A normal flight to one of these 'Zone 2' countries costs 12,000 miles, but for 18,000 you can upgrade to business. Alternatively, you can get two standard flights to a closer destination such as France, Germany or within the UK.
  
  You will have to pay any taxes and charges for the flight, but this is still a great deal. This also has a decent balance transfer offer of 0% for 12 months with a 3% fee (see the Balance Transfer article for how this compares), but always ensure the balance is entirely cleared before you switch any debts to it.
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: 20,000 BMI miles, Min. Spend Trigger: £250, Rate: 15.9% APR, Taxes Inc.?: NO
  
  
• Free European Flight with Flybe
  
  Grab Flybe's credit card and once you've spent anything on it you'll be sent a voucher for a return flight on any of its European routes. Taxes aren't included, so you'll have to pay these; but the beauty here is that there's no minimum spend. Buying a bag of crisps (or an apple for the health conscious!) still qualifies for the freebie. Just make sure you pay the card off in full to ensure no interest.
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: Free European flight Voucher, Min. Spend Trigger: No Minimum, Rate: 16.9% APR, Taxes Inc.?: NO
  
  
• CDs & DVDs, a CD Walkman or Playstation 2 game

  Open a Sonycard and spend anything on it within 90 days and you'll automatically receive 4,000 Pulsebeats, Sony's rewards scheme. This is enough points to redeem for a two CDs or DVDs, a CD Walkman and some Playstation 2 and PSP games (see the Pulsebeats catalogue). To qualify for the points, simply buy anything on the card, pay it off in full to ensure there’s no interest and it’s totally free.
  
  It has quite a good balance transfer offer too; allowing you to shift debt to it at 0% for 12 months, though there is a 3% fee. This is a competitive, though not market leading, offer. However, if you are going to grab the freebie AND shift the debts, ensure your purchase is paid off in full before you do the balance transfer (see full explanation why).
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: 4,000 Pulsebeats, Min. Spend Trigger: NONE, Rate: 15.9% APR
  
  

• More Free European Flights
  
  Another airline has a similar offer to the other free flights deals. Ryanair gives you a free European flight once you've spent £100, though you still have to pay the taxes.
  
  Quick Stats. Freebie: Ryanair Flight, Min. Spend Trigger: £250, Rate: 19.9% APR, Taxes Included: NO
  
  
• Others
  
  Some of the other freebies available are mostly through bonus reward scheme points given on application. These include the GM card's 100 points, use-able as a £100 discount off a new Vauxhall or Saab car. If you spot any more top freebies, discuss them.
  
  
  
  Find out as soon as new freebies are available
  

How freebie grabbing hits your credit score
Every time you apply for credit it has an impact on your credit score – and thus your ability to get further new credit (see the Credit Rating: Understand and improve yours guide). Yet if you've a good credit history there's no need to be unduly worried. There are no hard and fast rules, but many have successfully applied for ten cards without problem.

It's not how many, but how often that counts.

Each time you apply for a card, a search is added to your credit file. Lots of these in a short space of time will shoot down your credit score; the overall number of applications is less important than the frequency. Therefore if you're grabbing multiple freebies, after the first couple of applications, spread others out every few months. Other factors that count include total debts, repayment history and income.

Cancel old unused cards

Once you've decided you're not going to use a card any more, ensure you cancel it. That means actually calling up the card company and requesting the account is closed, not just cutting the card up. This is because having high available credit can diminish your credit score, not just the amount of outstanding debt.

Beware of Balance TransfersCards which offer a sign-up freebie, also tend to offer cheap balance transfer deals. A balance transfer means the new card pays off the debts on old cards for you, so you owe it the money, hopefully at a cheaper interest rate (see the Balance Transfers article).

Doing spending and balance transfers together is dangerous

The cheap balance transfer rate usually doesn't apply to any debts accrued from spending. If you do both, any repayments are usually allocated to repaying the cheap debts first, so your expensive debts from spending are trapped, quickly accruing interest, unable to be paid off until all the balance transfer debt is repaid.

If you spend on a card you've balance transferred debts to, it'll cost you a lot more than you think, so be careful.

Spend just £1 and it's not a problem

Having scared you, now let me calm it down a little. Providing your spending is only the smallest amount needed, in this case the interest you're charged will be negligible, so I wouldn't worry too much. For the £250 minimum spend deals, there is more of an effect, so balance transferring is best avoided.

However, if you spend for the freebie first, then pay off the bill in full. Once the card's clear, do the balance transfer the following month to avoid the problem.