@Revelate wrote:
@DaveSignal wrote:If you use this card as a regular card, you will probably have travel purchases that you didn't even realize were travel purchases. If have never NOT had a travel expense that I couldn't use all of my points toward for maximum cash back. All sorts of places qualify as travel, including the normal planes, trains, and busses.
I fully agree Dave, I'm pretty happy with my own especially if I do get sent to the UK which may happen next year or two if I don't dump my awkward employer.
That said, with the Quicksilver underwriting being so easily obtainable (and it is admittedly a very good card if you're not worried about CL nor customer service horror stories, and probably easier to qualify for than the BOFA card without going the secured PC route), it's hard for me to look at searching for options for this card vs. a 1.5% cash back spender.
Edit: I don't know when the Quicksilver got released but that card is just too good at it's strata in the current competitive market, and other lenders may have to move to match if C1 can get traction with higher credit profile customers on it.
I am currently living in the UK. A card such as the travel rewards card is more useful here than a quicksilver due to the EMV, even if it is chip + sig. There are a few smaller shops in town that do not even have a reader for a swipe card attached to the register... which can be a probelm if you live right next to one of these shops (I do). The merchants don't manually enter card numbers either. Most restaurants will take a swipe card though, since they usually have a chip reader with a swipe reader along the side of the pin pad.
But, as I was saying, especially if you are doing things in a big city (like London), various fun things to do that are often popular with tourists count as travel expenses.... and those a redeemable for a full year. A small few of many examples: I took my wife on the London Eye in June for fun, since we were in the area anyway. That purchse counts for full cash back that I could redeem right now or wait all the way until June of next year and still be eligable to use my points. Any tickets I have bought from automated machines in the London underground can be redeemed. I did a Scotch-making tour in Scotland where I drank Scotch with my buddies. Redeemable. All of the castles and english-heritage type stuff - redeemable. Most of these expenses are just me enjoying some of my free time to do things in UK, not even thinking about it, and then checking my online rewards statement to see all sorts of new travel-related purchases that can be redeemed for full credit.
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