Email Upgrade from Capital One?

[Anonymous]

I have a 12 year old Captial One card.  It might have been one of my very first cards and is likely the oldest account on my report.  This card has no rewards, has a $3000 CL, and is still in my maiden name (it's the only card I didn't bother to switch when I got married 6 years ago).

I received an email from Capital One this morning offering to upgrade this card to either the QuickSilver or the Venture.  I'm tempted.  The email states it will not affect my credit score (I'm assuming no hard pull?).  I'm tempted to upgrade to the Venture.  

I have no travel rewards cards because we really do not travel much, maybe one flight a year to visit family (this year my husband flew once and I flew twice).  I would like to travel more, if time and money permits.  We have families on opposite sides of the US and with my husband being military, we are always far away.

Anyway, it looks like if I just applied for the Venture, it offers 40,000 bonus miles as a sign-on bonus.  If I just allow Capital One to upgrade me, I don't believe there is a bonus.  The email also says this card only earns 1.25 miles per $1 spent, versus the online application that offers 2 miles per dollar.  

I wasn't going to apply for a new card until later next year, but now it has me thinking: should I just upgrade my non-rewards earning card?  Or apply separately for the Venture to get the bonus miles and the 2 miles per dollar?

What would you do?  

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I have a 12 year old Captial One card.  It might have been one of my very first cards and is likely the oldest account on my report.  This card has no rewards, has a $3000 CL, and is still in my maiden name (it's the only card I didn't bother to switch when I got married 6 years ago).

I received an email from Capital One this morning offering to upgrade this card to either the QuickSilver or the Venture.  I'm tempted.  The email states it will not affect my credit score (I'm assuming no hard pull?).  I'm tempted to upgrade to the Venture.  

I have no travel rewards cards because we really do not travel much, maybe one flight a year to visit family (this year my husband flew once and I flew twice).  I would like to travel more, if time and money permits.  We have families on opposite sides of the US and with my husband being military, we are always far away.

Anyway, it looks like if I just applied for the Venture, it offers 40,000 bonus miles as a sign-on bonus.  If I just allow Capital One to upgrade me, I don't believe there is a bonus.  The email also says this card only earns 1.25 miles per $1 spent, versus the online application that offers 2 miles per dollar.  

I wasn't going to apply for a new card until later next year, but now it has me thinking: should I just upgrade my non-rewards earning card?  Or apply separately for the Venture to get the bonus miles and the 2 miles per dollar?

What would you do?  

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The reward structure sounds like the VentureOne rather than Venture.  You can certainly do much better than 1.25 "miles" without a sign on, so unless you are very adverse to HP I wouldn't do this.  Taking an HP-less upgrade to Quicksilver may be more attractive, although there too you miss the (smaller) sign up.

With a small amount of travel, you probably don't want to pay an AF (which the Venutre proper has), at least for a "fake" travel card.

[Anonymous]

You are correct, it is the VentureOne that email references, not the Venture.

I would like to travel more, but again, there is no guarantee.  Some years we don't travel at all (we didn't travel at all in 2014 because we moved).  I suppose as long as those miles never expire, I could save them up for a really amazing trip.

Hmm.  Lots ot think about.  

[Anonymous]

I would upgrade to the qiucksilver. It has no foreign transaction fee so you can use it for travel and rewards rate is higher than ventureone. The only benefits the ventureone has over the quicksilver is that it would be a visa signature. Quicksilver cashback is extremely easy to redeem as well.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your reply.  I suppose upgrading it to the Quicksilver would be worth it, versus just having a card with zero rewards that I haven't used since 2008!  I currently do not have a card with no foreign transaction fees, so that's something to consider as well.

Perhaps this is a stupid question, but what's the difference between a Visa and Visa Signature?

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for your reply.  I suppose upgrading it to the Quicksilver would be worth it, versus just having a card with zero rewards that I haven't used since 2008!  I currently do not have a card with no foreign transaction fees, so that's something to consider as well.

Perhaps this is a stupid question, but what's the difference between a Visa and Visa Signature?

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Very little, a small set of benefits that most won't use.   But not sure why the poster said that, Quicksilver can be Visa Signature as well.

[sjt]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thanks for your reply.  I suppose upgrading it to the Quicksilver would be worth it, versus just having a card with zero rewards that I haven't used since 2008!  I currently do not have a card with no foreign transaction fees, so that's something to consider as well.

Perhaps this is a stupid question, but what's the difference between a Visa and Visa Signature?

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I believe all Cap1 cards have no FTF.

Visa Signature is the premium card with more benefits.

Note: If your current Cap1 card that they offered to upgrade is a MasterCard then it will remain a MasterCard when you upgrade/product change.

[Anonymous]

Hello there!

I have actually been in the exact situation you are in right now!

In July I appd for Journey, a Visa Platinum card. Within a month, I decided to PC (product change) to Quicksilver because of its 1.5% cash back compared to the VentureOne's worse 1.25 points (similar to my Journey card).

Also, you can call the rewards department, and they will credit your account with the rewards for Quicksilver, as I have done so myself. But still, YMMV. 

Here is a link to Visa signature benefits: https://apps.usa.visa.com/visasignature/benefits.jsp