February 2022’s credit card news & round-up

The latest news to help you get the most from your credit card.

Here’s my monthly update sharing changes for leading UK credit cards, as well as some of the relevant articles you might have missed on the blog.

February’s credit card update video

I go into more detail on some of this month’s updates in this video.

February’s credit card news

Barclaycard and Sainsbury’s Bank refunds

If you have a credit card with either Barclaycard or Sainsbury’s Bank, check the post or your account for a potential refund.

With Sainsbury’s Bank it’s for an error in January where the Bank Holiday meant some payments were taken a day later – and as a result were charged £12. If you were impacted by this the money should come through automatically.

The Barclaycard cash is a bit different as it’s for older overcharging errors, though there’s not much detail on when and why (here’s the MoneySavingExpert report). This payment will likely be sent as a cheque, so keep an eye on your post.

Amex and British Airways boost welcome deals

Until the end of February there are some increased welcome bonuses on the two British Airways American Express cards.

Though the intro offer on the free British Airways Amex card is only available to brand new American Express customers (or those who haven’t had one in 24 months), that’s not the case with the other card.

There are 40,000 Avios points (rather than the usual 25,000) on offer if you spend £3,000 in three months with the British Airways Premium Plus American Express card. And you are eligible as long as you haven’t had either of the BA Amex cards in the last couple of years.

This means if you have any of the other cards you can get this deal! It does come with a high fee (£250 a year) but you can get part of this refunded once you’ve spent £3,000.

Do this and it’s worth up to £250 in Nectar points. Here’s more information and the link to apply.

Amazon reverses decision to axe Visa credit cards

Ahead of a 19 January 2022 deadline, Amazon changed its mind and decided to allow customers to keep using Visa credit cards.

So, in the end, it was all a load of fuss about nothing – though of course this could be temporary as it doesn’t sound like any issues Amazon had with Visa were fixed.

As an aside, if you are paying with a Visa credit card for Amazon purchases you could be losing out on cashback available with other cards. Here’s the best of the bunch.

Amex Platinum credit at Harvey Nicholls

If you hold the expensive American Express Platinum credit card (it’s £575 a year!), then it’s worth checking your offers tab for a new deal with Harvey Nicholls.

You’ll get £50 credit on spending at the department store between now and the end of June, and another £50 for the rest of 2022. The offer will then repeat next year in 2023, and the year after in 2024.

You can spend the money in one go, or in cumulative smaller amounts, and you’ll get the credit back for each purchase. If you spend more than £50 in a six-month period, you’ll only get £50 back. If you spend less, you’ll get less.

This month’s best credit cards

As always when talking about credit cards the best credit card for you will depend on your credit report and why you need one.

Make sure you read my rules for having and applying for a credit card. You’ll also find my list of the latest offers in the same article.

But assuming you’ve got a great credit report, don’t need one to clear existing debts and will clear the balance completely each month, these are my top picks: