Cards with cashback bonus
Among the modifications that some debit or credit cards offer are the possibility of obtaining cashback bonuses. They are not very common, but they can be very effective.
Cards nowadays have been changing their features, so that they offer more and more services and functionalities such as, for example, the possibility of offering the return of certain costs or expenses. For example, a percentage of purchases.
The amount refunded is always deposited in the current account associated with the card, in the case of debit cards, or in the credit line, in the case of credit accounts.
Other types of refunds
However, it is also possible to obtain the refund by means of gift vouchers, redeemable for future purchases at the same merchant. For example, this system is common in gas station lines, which in addition to giving a direct discount on the sale price, sometimes also give the customer a check with a percentage of what has been consumed during that period with the plastic.
The most common way to return card purchases is as follows:
- Crediting the money in the current account. That is to say, if the card is a debit card and returns 5% of all purchases made in supermarkets, and this month we have spent about 100 euros, on the date specified, 5 euros will be credited to our account.
- Crediting the money on the credit line. On the other hand, if the card is a credit card, the entity will proceed to credit the bonus to the credit line associated with the plastic. In this way, the limit that we will be able to use for our next purchase is increased. It is usually available one month after the transaction has been made.
- Delivery of a gift voucher. The money of the corresponding refund will be delivered by means of a savings check that we will be able to redeem in the next purchases that we make, reason why we will be saving money.
The process of return of our purchases is established in a certain way depending on the entity in question and the type of card that we have. The best thing to do is to find out exactly, either in person, by phone, by e-mail, or even by reading the terms and conditions of each company. So that, before contracting a card, we must check exhaustively this kind of information, in order to avoid surprises.
Where to get these cards
If this type of product interests you and you want to get a card that returns a percentage of the amount of your purchases, you can easily contract them through the entities that we show you below:
- Banks and finance companies. Banks are one of the main providers of cards without commissions. There are also banks that offer loyalty cards, but these only return a portion of the amount of purchases made in a number of establishments in particular.
- Private companies. Department stores, gas stations or hypermarkets, for example, usually have loyalty cards that return a percentage of purchases made in their establishments.
In the end, it is not so important where we get our cashback cards, but that we are really satisfied with the advantages they will offer us, wherever they come from.
Depending on how we use this type of card, we can make savings every month, but they can also have associated costs, such as issuing or maintenance fees, or even interest if they are used as a method of financing. The most common costs associated with cards that return part of the amount of purchases are as follows:
- Interest for splitting purchases: if we use a credit card to spread the cost of a purchase in monthly installments, regardless of whether or not it discounts purchases, interest must be paid. Generally they are around 21%, but can even exceed this figure. However, it is possible to find cards with much lower interest rates.
- Issuing and renewal fees: there are certain companies that charge their customers a commission for issuing the card and for its maintenance. This first fee will only be charged at the time of application, however, the maintenance fee is applied on a regular basis. There are also other companies that do not charge them, or even eliminate them if the customer meets certain conditions.
- Commissions for other operations: there are some operations that we can carry out with our cards with purchase rebates, which may imply the charging of commissions by the issuing entity. It is therefore important to read the contract and know the associated fees. A clear example of this may be cash withdrawals at ATMs outside the bank, which are not always free.
The most common limitations usually associated with this type of card are as follows:
- Temporary promotions: there are banks that offer cards that give us money back on purchases made during a whole year, however, when this period of time passes, the refunds disappear. There are other entities that maintain this advantage when the year passes, but slightly reducing the percentage returned.
- Refund only of purchases in specific establishments: certain cards with cashback, especially those issued by private companies, only refund you a percentage of the purchases you make in establishments belonging to the company issuing the card, or that are linked to financing agreements with the issuing entity.
- Refund of a percentage of deferred purchases: this option is usually only allowed when the customer uses the deferred payment method. So that the cardholder will have to pay the interest applied by the entity, for deferring the payment of their purchases.
