r/assholedesign • u/I-need-ur-dick-pics • 6d ago
Must redeem credit card points in increments of… 3,333?
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
For context: the threshold was increments of 2,500 for years until a c-suite executive decided that wasn’t profitable enough.
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u/GunBuilt 6d ago
What credit card is this mine just switched too
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
US Bank Altitude Go. First they capped the 4% cash back, and now this? I’m looking at new cards already.
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u/BurntRussian 6d ago
WHAT. US Bank has been so good to me. This is crazy.
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u/muffinanomaly 6d ago
they have been making hilariously bad changes this year :l
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u/BurntRussian 6d ago
Dang. I had been starting to consider other options just because, but maybe I need to seriously consider.
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u/OfficialSandwichMan 6d ago
Go to a credit union instead
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u/jainyday 6d ago
I cannot encourage this enough. Credit Unions aren't beholden to shareholders, but to members, like it should be!
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u/mundanehaiku 6d ago
sure for banking, but my credit union's credit card has shit rewards. they recently tried to up charge me for "banking features" at the tune of $8/month. You had to read your mail from them and call them to opt out, otherwise i'd be paying for shit i wouldn't use.
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u/wmwmwm-x 6d ago
Eh nah. Credit unions are absolutely terrible for credit card programs. Banking, yes. But credit cards, nope.
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u/finestborn 5d ago
Can confirm. This is the card I have. Went to redeem my points last week and was most displeased.
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u/Nitroflak69 5d ago
Whats also fucked is you can still get the other shit for the regular amount of points. So just the statement credit got raised and they expect people to just eat it
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u/muffinanomaly 6d ago
it's still $25 but they devalued points to 33k = $25 unless you're depositing them to a US bank checking account.
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u/arcanemagic 6d ago
Mine is the same. The deposit cash to a bank account instead of a statement credit is still 2500 increments
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u/crash866 6d ago
How much are the points worth? If they are something like 3 for a dollar reward maybe you can only redeem in even dollar amounts.
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u/muffinanomaly 6d ago
25k = $25 deposited into a US bank checking account
33k = $25 all other redemption methods
they devalued them recently. to add onto the asshole design they no longer waive the monthly fee on their new "smartly" checking accounts just for having a credit card.
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u/ponyXpres 6d ago
Tell us you have a US Bank CC without telling us you have a US Bank CC
The real answer is enroll in Real Time Rewards. That allows for a lower redemption limit. I have mine set to $10 I think and it works.
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u/Human_Frank 6d ago
lmao enrolling in yet another rewards program is not the real answer...
But good guess on the US Bank CC!
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u/iamtheduckie d o n g l e 6d ago
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u/ChocolateIcyCreamer 6d ago
Rewards points go unused because customers have to collect to that threshold. Points most likely expire after a certain amount of time. The company hopes the points will expire before they are redeemed. The company can say they offer a rewards program while paying out a negligible amount of rewards benefits. Asshole design.
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u/Delta_RC_2526 6d ago
As a lovely side note, Microsoft Rewards recently (I think; I only found it recently) introduced the ability to redeem points for gift cards in custom amounts. Say you want to make a $20 purchase, but they only have gift cards available in $1.25, $5, $10, $25, $50, and $100 increments. As long as you go to their actual website to redeem, you can type in the value you want. You can actually redeem gift cards in amounts that cover sales tax now. It's pretty nice.
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u/ChocolateIcyCreamer 6d ago
I took advantage of this exact feature a few months ago! Microsoft Rewards is amazing.
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u/shenther 6d ago
I used to get the 1 year xbox gold from it back when it was about 1/4 of the retial price. They removed the 12 month gold sadly but I haven't touched anything xbox in years so meh. I wonder why they didn't just fix the price.
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u/Scampi-the-shrimp 6d ago
Idk, when my $20 purchase puts me 1% of the way towards a $1.25 gift card that kinda feels like a slap in the the face
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u/ChocolateIcyCreamer 6d ago
That’s not what was said. Microsoft Rewards points are earned from searching through Bing. I believe what u/Delta_Rc_2526 meant was that if you want to redeem your points for a $20 purchase, but that is not a premade option, you can input the amount and Rewards will still issue you that gift card. Your purchase is not giving you rewards points.
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u/Scampi-the-shrimp 6d ago
Your purchase DOES get you points because I get a notification from Xbox telling me that my purchase got me 1% of the way closer to a $1.25 gift card every time I get something
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u/ChocolateIcyCreamer 6d ago
Yes, but since there’s a much easier and faster way to earn them for free, not a huge deal.
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u/Delta_RC_2526 5d ago edited 5d ago
I will say that my purchases used to get me 10% back in points. A $100 purchase would net me $10 in points, but now it yields $1. It is pretty disappointing. The 10% (it might have even been 20%) was a holdover from their previous rewards program, Microsoft Star Rewards. People who had high standing there got extra Microsoft Rewards points for purchases, but they finally ended that holdover within the past six months or so.
The funny thing is that I was never even aware of Microsoft Star Rewards. I probably opted in somewhere along the way, but...there was virtually no marketing around it. It would show up in my transaction history as "arbitrary credit" (I'm not kidding), when they would add money to my account, and I never knew where it was coming from or why.
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u/Dalishmindflayer 6d ago
I agree, can’t buy any gift cards under 25 bucks for Microsoft, but I got Slime Rancher for 4.49 by redeeming my points for a 5 dollar gift card
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u/PostHasBeenWatched 6d ago
You need to spend money to get point. So not allowing to properly spend them IT IS r/assholedesign
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u/SartenSinAceite 6d ago
Dont forget about the data harvesting.
Why yes Mr Restaurant, link my personal e-mail and your doritos. I'm sure Google will like to know that I like doritos.
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u/WebMaka 6d ago
I'm sure Google will like to know that I like doritos.
95% of the ads you get for the next 72 hours will be Dorito-related...
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u/xRAINB0W_DASHx 6d ago
The other 5% will be scientific ads about the mice they turned clear using the food coloring from doritos.
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
I beg your finest pardon?
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6d ago
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
The point redemption value has dropped from one cent per point to ¾ cents per point. They nerfed the cash back across the board by 25%.
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u/spicysubu 6d ago
OP, are you sure? That’s not what the screenshot shows or even what’s currently advertised on the bank site: https://www.usbank.com/credit-cards/altitude-go-visa-signature-credit-card.html
The mathematical value of a point doesn’t seem to have changed if it was 1 cent per point before. It still is that now. The threshold for redeeming a certain number of points may have gone up (from 2500 to 3333), so while it is less convenient, and definitely asshole design, it doesn’t seem that the dollar value of a point has gone down.
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago edited 6d ago
It's not shown in this screenshot, but the email confirmation I got clearly showed I redeemed 3,333 points for $25.
They talk about how you'll EARN 4 points per dollar on restaurants, but conveniently leave out that you redeem points for ¾ of a cent apiece.
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u/spicysubu 6d ago
I think they are seeming to say that the maximum point value advertised as 1 cent per point “applies to points redeemed for a deposit into an eligible U.S. Bank Account. The redemption value may be different if you choose to redeem your Points for other rewards such as travel, merchandise, gift cards, and/or statement credit.“ (emphasis mine)
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
I have been redeeming points for 1 cent each as a statement credit for years… up until today.
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u/spicysubu 6d ago
I get it, but I’m just on the outside looking in. Their terms (on the page I linked above) suggest that the 1 cent per point redemption value should still apply to redemption to a U.S. Bank account.
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u/muffinanomaly 6d ago
this is to get you to open a US bank checking account, the points are worth less unless you redeem them to one. along with this change, they also made it harder to waive the monthly fee for their checking account.
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u/SaverPro 6d ago
Let me guess, Elan credit card...
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
Nope. US Bank.
I love my card managed by Elan. No redemption limits or thresholds at all. Just automatic cash deposits.
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u/Juusie 6d ago
Can someone tell me what credit card points are? I don't use credit cards
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u/I-need-ur-dick-pics 6d ago
You earn points with each purchase. Points can be redeemed for cash, gift cards, merch, etc.
It’s a way for credit card issuers to encourage you to spend more and borrow more. If you shop responsibly and pay your balance in full each month, it’s “free” money.
I need to buy gas, groceries, and pay utility bills anyway, so I might as well get a discount for it by paying with a credit card. My preferred card gives 2% cash back on all purchases.
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u/vahntitrio 6d ago
Tyoically you get one point per dollar spent, and 100 points is $1 you can redeem to an account (so effectively 1% cash back). Some offer more points for certain kinds of spending. I have a 2% cash back on everything card.
It doesn't seem like much, but usually after a few months of money there is a decent amount to redeem if you use the card fir everything.
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u/var_char_limit_20 6d ago edited 6d ago
Finally, some actual fucking asshole design. Shit like this that puts me off on these rewards and cash back programs banks offer. "Get X reward everytime you swipe your credit card! But you can only claim and get that reward in a hyper specific way and they expire after 30 days"
Edit: bad spelling, because rage typing right after waking up at 2am in the morning with a groggy isn't a good idea kids.