New reward credit card for voucher hungry shoppers

This week, (from 2nd December), American Express will be issuing a new credit card, where reward points earned on spending can be redeemed for vouchers or gift cards at many of the UK's leading high street retailers.

The Express Rewards Credit Card offers rewards points on spend and more points in the places where Cardmembers use their cards most often:

3 points for almost every £1 spent at major UK supermarkets
2 points for almost every £1 spent at major UK department stores
1 point for almost every £1 spent elsewhere

Points earned can be redeemed for a voucher/s or gift card for use in store or online at Marks & Spencer, House of Fraser, Amazon, Boots, HMV, Harrods, Homebase, Molton Brown, Tiffany & Co., Comet, Net-a-Porter, Waterstones and iTunes. Minimum point redemption is 5,000 points (£25) and thereafter in increments of 5,000 (£25) at most retailers, in accordance with their individual voucher/gift card policy.

In addition, in the first year of Cardmembership, 6,000 bonus points (worth £30) will be credited to the account when £500 is spent in the first 3 months.  With an average family spending £18,000 a year on everyday expenditure, that's just over £200 worth of reward points back to the Cardmember in year one.

Katrina Cliffe, Head of Consumer Cards at American Express said: "The 3-2-1 point earning rate means our credit card reward programme is one of the most generous on the market. As much of the UK's shopping bill is spent in supermarkets and major stores, we've aligned with some of the UK's major retailers to bring richer rewards for people's everyday spending."

The American Express shopping behaviour research 3 provided a snapshot of the UK's monthly shopping bill: with almost half the money being spent in supermarkets, over a quarter is being spent in department stores and almost a quarter elsewhere.

"The UK has been bitten by the voucher bug. We're responding to a growing trend in the UK of using vouchers to get money off shopping, meals out and clothing. There's been a voucher culture in the US for many years, but we've only recently seen this become more mainstream in the UK.  With the appetite for vouchers set to increase next year, it makes sense to be providing a reward card that gives shoppers gift cards and vouchers that can be exchanged for treats, for themselves and their families" said Cliffe.

According to the American Express research, almost 9 in 10 Brits are now using vouchers (90 % of women and 86% of men).  Of these, almost two thirds of women (61%) and more than half of men (59%) are using vouchers once a month or more.  And almost a quarter of women (24%) and over a quarter of men (28%) are using these at a staggering rate of once a week or more to get a reduction in price on good and services. Usage over the coming 12 months is set to increase further still, with one-third of shoppers saying they expect to use vouchers even more next year.

The American Express shopping behaviour research revealed that just over half of women (52%) and half of men (50%) still tend to buy their favourite brands even when money is tight. However,  rather than sticking to one retailer and paying full price for an item, today's price conscious consumers are more inclined to shop around to get a price reduction. According to the research half of shoppers (50 % of women and 49% of men) say they shop around to get an item they want, more cheaply.

"By partnering with a wide range of outlets, the Express Rewards Credit Card offers a broad choice of redemptions so shoppers can use their points to get the goods and the brands they really want.

"This is an ideal card for today's discerning shoppers, who want to be rewarded for the spending on their plastic. In today's climate where every penny counts, it is more important than ever that consumers make their credit card work harder for them and consider switching from a debit card or another credit card that doesn't offer them anything back" said Cliffe.

For more information or to apply for a Card visit amex.co.uk/expressrewards.