topic Re: Returns on Chase Freedom in Credit Cards

Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Fri, 17 May 2019 02:37:12 GMT

I don’t usually return stuff, so here’s my question: Let’s say you purchase an item for $500 under the 5% category. Then, you return it. Does Chase reset your quarterly bonus limit back to $1,500 or does it stay at $1,000 because you already bought $500 under the bonus category regardless of the return?

I tried to search here and Google but I was getting completely unrelated results.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Fri, 17 May 2019 02:44:49 GMT

I don't have a definitive answer but I believe they would. When I made returns on my Chase Amazon card, they subtracted the points I had initially earned from the purchases. I can't imagine they'd take the points back but not roll back the limit.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:08:17 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I don't have a definitive answer but I believe they would. When I made returns on my Chase Amazon card, they subtracted the points I had initially earned from the purchases. I can't imagine they'd take the points back but not roll back the limit.

Yeah, they take the points back for sure. However, in my search for an answer, I found some old posts where some people were claiming that Chase would only claw back 1 UR and they got to keep the other 4 after the return. Not sure about the accuracy or if that was the case at some point. I think it’s fair that they take away all 5 URs per $1, but I’m not certain if they reset your quarterly limit.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Revelate — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:13:05 GMT

Unless the Freedom is special I can tell you it does not work that way on the other Chase cards: they've always clawed the full monty back for things like fraudulent charges and what not over the last few years for me regardless of tradeline but I haven't used my Freedom in a while, not adjusting my habits for a credit card and the quarters just haven't been useful to me in a while.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

wasCB14 — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:17:00 GMT

On a related note, Freedom dropped return protection in August 2018, so you'd be subject to the merchant's policy.

As much as I like Chase for travel, I rarely use it for merchandise.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Revelate — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:21:04 GMT

@wasCB14 wrote:
On a related note, Freedom dropped return protection in August 2018, so you'd be subject to the merchant's policy.

As much as I like Chase for travel, I rarely use it for merchandise.

Well my FU still gets used quite a bit, though these days the bulk of my spend is travel up and back to SF: laid into my pimp today on that one, this tax code no longer being able to deduct unreimbursed expenses /sigh.

Sort of told them they needed to pay expenses as I wasn't getting paid nearly enough to move to the Bay Area haha.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:25:51 GMT

@Revelate wrote:
Unless the Freedom is special I can tell you it does not work that way on the other Chase cards: they've always clawed the full monty back for things like fraudulent charges and what not over the last few years for me regardless of tradeline but I haven't used my Freedom in a while, not adjusting my habits for a credit card and the quarters just haven't been useful to me in a while.

I never thought it’d work any other way. If I return an item, I figured they’d take back the entire rewards earned. I’m not really concerned about that, but it just came up in the some of the posts I was reading online.

I asked about returns because I’ve pretty much maxed out our 2 Freedom cards for the quarterly bonus, and there are some items that need to go back to Home Depot, but I also have to pick up some other stuff (doing a house project). I’m wondering if Chase resets the quarterly limit for the amount of my returns, so I can buy more stuff at 5%. If they don’t reset the limit, I’ll only be earning 1% so I’d use another card to buy what I need.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Fri, 17 May 2019 03:33:25 GMT

@wasCB14 wrote:
On a related note, Freedom dropped return protection in August 2018, so you'd be subject to the merchant's policy.

As much as I like Chase for travel, I rarely use it for merchandise.

In this case, I should be ok. Home Depot has a pretty good return policy.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Fri, 17 May 2019 10:53:37 GMT

Very interesting question! Never thought about it? Wonder what other credit providers do? As has been mentioned the deduction for points earned I have experienced but as to a reset on the quarterly ... hmm ...?

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Fri, 17 May 2019 13:55:10 GMT

It seems to me that resetting could be complex. Sure, in month 1, if I return the item quickly it would make sense to reset. But suppose I spend $1500 on an item, and also, in the same quarter, spend another $1000 on other category items, and all purchases are in month 3.

Shortly after the quarter ends, I return the $1500 item. They remove the UR, but should they now give the 5xUR on the $1000 which were previously over the limit? My guess is that they wouldn't. Any volunteers to test!

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Fri, 17 May 2019 16:01:35 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
It seems to me that resetting could be complex. Sure, in month 1, if I return the item quickly it would make sense to reset. But suppose I spend $1500 on an item, and also, in the same quarter, spend another $1000 on other category items, and all purchases are in month 3.
Shortly after the quarter ends, I return the $1500 item. They remove the UR, but should they now give the 5xUR on the $1000 which were previously over the limit? My guess is that they wouldn't. Any volunteers to test!

This is part of my thinking too, and it's not far-fetched. It doesn't even have to be at the end of a quarter. You could buy something expensive, then go back to the store, return it and get something equally expensive. If you're over the $1,500 already, the replacement item would only earn 1x, but then the return is processed and you "should" get the extra bonus again, but I'm not sure you do. Maybe not for that item, but a subsequent purchase after the return clears?

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Fri, 17 May 2019 19:48:21 GMT

Ohh, boy, I hesitate to type this and have the whole thing blown up. First, there might be a way that Chase claws back the bonus points that I am not seeing.

My last statement only has 2 charges in the Home Improvement category for Q2. If I add the numbers and multiply by 4, I get the same number of bonus points as what my bill says I earned. But I also had a return. So my total of earned points should have been about 32 less. My new statement should have been here today but I don't see it online yet. I want to make sure that the points on that statement are not less the 32 points from the return. The return was 6 days before the statement cut, and Chase does have the right to alter points on the next billing cycle.

From my quick observation, it does look like you keep the bonus points. I won't make any statement as to the ramifications of abusing this is though.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

imaximous — Sun, 19 May 2019 03:50:01 GMT

One of my partial returns just processed for $97.28. The pic below shows the points pulled back at 1x for 97 URs instead of the full 5x I got for the original purchase. I don’t know if they’ll take back the difference when the statement is generated. But once again, that wasn’t my initial concern with this post. This makes me suspect that if their system doesn’t recognize the bonus points and take them back immediately, the $1,500 quarterly limit doesn’t get restored either. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

ChargedUp — Sun, 19 May 2019 04:56:28 GMT

I wonder the same things about Discover? Pick a store with a 90 day return policy and buy near the end of the quarter, return 2 months later and see if the bonus sticks.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Sun, 19 May 2019 17:08:30 GMT

I can't find an example at present, but I can confirm by experience that with Freedom when buying something that earned you quarterly 5% and then *within that quarter* returning it, you'll lose the 5% and it will also reverse the amount you've spent of the bonus limit for the quarter. For example, if you had maxed out your bonus spending at $1,500 and returned $500 worth of stuff, then you'll be back to earning 5% on the next $500 of merchandise. But it doesn't retroactively affect previous spending over the limit. Again, with the previous example, if you had kept bonus spending after the $1,500 and thus had only earned 1% on that overage, then even when a later return will bring you back down below the $1,500, Chase won't adjust the bonus up on the purchases you had spent when over the $1,500 even though now the return has brought you below $1,500.

Now, once the quarter is over (excepting the rare occasions where a category persists from one quarter to the next), then returns will result in only 1% loss of rewards (and will not affect the $1,500 spending limit for the current quarter). You could exploit this, of course. Go out between now and the end of June and spend $1,500 at Home Depot or Lowes (obviously this exploit is more difficult with categories like grocery or gas), earning 7500 URP. Then on July 1, waltz back into the store and return the $1,500 of merchandise, losing 1500 URP. That's a nice $60 cash profit. To a smaller extent I've done this, not completely intentionally. Not sure exactly what I'd need, I've overbought, knowing that I'd be returning some stuff, and "procrastinate" on the return until the start of the next quarter. I suspect that if you really game this, the store and/or Chase will get wise and slap your wrist or worse. Buyer (and returner) beware.

It's been a while, but with Discover, I've found that even within the quarter, returns may only lose the base rewards. YMMV.

Chris.

Re: Returns on Chase Freedom

Anonymous — Sun, 19 May 2019 17:28:38 GMT

My newest statement is here. Like the previous one, I saw no reduction in bonus points for returns. I spent about $350, and returned $70. I still had a net gain of 1,400 points. There was also no sign of a reduction from the returns on the previous statement.

If they are not clawing back bonus points, then there is no way the $1500 limit would get adjusted for returns. Perhaps Chase could word it a little better. I believe it should read more like "Earn up to 6000 bonus points per quarter on eligible purchases" That seems to be a more accurate description of how the program works. The wording of the T&C does make it sound as though Chase can adjust your points balance if they need to.