@CreditDunce wrote:
@longtimelurker wrote:
@Imperfectfuture wrote:
@CreditDunce wrote:What are talking about? A couple thousand dollars spread out across several merchants to meet the spend bonus requirement. Then use the GC in the next couple of months for normal spend. I can't see this being a problem for the OP. Also, airline gift cards purchased from an airline will likely count as travel spend. Of course, it doesn't make as much sense to do this and not PIF. Or to buy the gc and not use it quickly.
I am planning on meeting a sign-on spend bonus by buying GC's for xmas gifts this year.
Nice choice, will add to my basket of meeting spend (along with rent, etc).
Ha, the slippery slope! So I buy $3K of Visa gift cards for all my lucky relatives. Hey, but that's a bit impersonal isn't it. I know, I will liquidate the gift cards, pay off the credit card bill, and then buy them nice gifts! But while I'm here, I may as well buy another $3K of Visa gift cards for the points.....
Yep, it is impersonal. I am not a good uncle. I was thinking about airline gc for neice 1, etc. It will make it easier for all of the "gifts" to be the same value. I have to be creative to meet spend. I don't have rent/mortgage. My utilities are modest (plus most are now charging fees for paying via CC). The curse of a saver. Slippery slope indeed. Before you know it I will be stalking drug stores looking for reload cards.
They charge fees for rent (which MAY go up 
), but utilities no (pay ahead). And I meant REAL retail gift cards guys. 
very small amount of virtual "gifts"? I met the 3k bonus spend easily on Ink Cash without any of the above, so what is 1k more ?
@Scupra wrote:I purchased a bunch of gift cards from the supermarket in order to give them away as gifts at work for referrals.. I do not see this as MS as I am not turning around and using the gift cards to pay off my credit card. I did do this at Fry's on a double fuel points day though, made out like a bandit
+1... I love my fuel points!
I buy fast food, eBay, and Amazon gift cards with my BCP at Kroger whenever they run the '4x fuelpoints' promotion on gift cards, and I do very well also... I generally get almost $20 knocked off a tank of gas! 
I'll add that Chase, Amex, etc. can't see what is purchased with their consumer cards at grocery stores, all they see is a transaction - they can't tell if you're buying a gift card or a filet mignon.
The only time I've ever heard of people having problems with this is when they go 'crazy' with it, as in spending literally thousands each month at a grocery store - that's clearly not normal (at extreme spend levels I"ve read that the issuer may request copies of your receipts to make sure the transactions were legitimate). My personal take is if you are merely buying cards to use as they are intended you shouldn't have a problem in any case.
@UncleB wrote:
@Scupra wrote:I purchased a bunch of gift cards from the supermarket in order to give them away as gifts at work for referrals.. I do not see this as MS as I am not turning around and using the gift cards to pay off my credit card. I did do this at Fry's on a double fuel points day though, made out like a bandit
+1... I love my fuel points!
I buy fast food, eBay, and Amazon gift cards with my BCP at Kroger whenever they run the '4x fuelpoints' promotion on gift cards, and I do very well also... I generally get almost $20 knocked off a tank of gas!
I'll add that Chase, Amex, etc. can't see what is purchased with their consumer cards at grocery stores, all they see is a transaction - they can't tell if you're buying a gift card or a filet mignon.
The only time I've ever heard of people having problems with this is when they go 'crazy' with it, as in spending literally thousands each month at a grocery store - that's clearly not normal (at extreme spend levels I"ve read that the issuer may request copies of your receipts to make sure the transactions were legitimate). My personal take is if you are merely buying cards to use as they are intended you shouldn't have a problem in any case.
Well, the checkout register doesn't know your intention! So it really is just plausible volume. Also, on low capped cards like BCP, it shouldn't be an issue, as you simply cannot spend enough to be a problem. Most of the crackdowns have happened on uncapped cards (which may as well have said "Abuse me!") where people would spend tens of thousands per month (me) or hundereds of thousands per month (those with more appetite for risk!)
@longtimelurker wrote:
@UncleB wrote:
@Scupra wrote:I purchased a bunch of gift cards from the supermarket in order to give them away as gifts at work for referrals.. I do not see this as MS as I am not turning around and using the gift cards to pay off my credit card. I did do this at Fry's on a double fuel points day though, made out like a bandit
+1... I love my fuel points!
I buy fast food, eBay, and Amazon gift cards with my BCP at Kroger whenever they run the '4x fuelpoints' promotion on gift cards, and I do very well also... I generally get almost $20 knocked off a tank of gas!
I'll add that Chase, Amex, etc. can't see what is purchased with their consumer cards at grocery stores, all they see is a transaction - they can't tell if you're buying a gift card or a filet mignon.
The only time I've ever heard of people having problems with this is when they go 'crazy' with it, as in spending literally thousands each month at a grocery store - that's clearly not normal (at extreme spend levels I"ve read that the issuer may request copies of your receipts to make sure the transactions were legitimate). My personal take is if you are merely buying cards to use as they are intended you shouldn't have a problem in any case.
Well, the checkout register doesn't know your intention! So it really is just plausible volume. Also, on low capped cards like BCP, it shouldn't be an issue, as you simply cannot spend enough to be a problem. Most of the crackdowns have happened on uncapped cards (which may as well have said "Abuse me!") where people would spend tens of thousands per month (me) or hundereds of thousands per month (those with more appetite for risk!)
LOL... very true, my friend... for the uninitiated who might be reading, volume was exactly what I was alluding to.