Four credit cards worth keeping, unused, just for their benefits

Typically there are three different types of travel loyalty credit cards you can apply for:

• cards you get just for the sign-up bonus

• cards you get primarily for the strong on-going earnings rate

• cards you get but don’t use because they come with generous perks

Head for Points tends to focus on the first two types. I thought it was worth another look at the four loyalty cards which offer decent on-going perks even if you don’t use them.

This article was updated on 1st December 2021, and all of the information is correct as of that date. Ignore the original publication date shown.

For clarity, my list does NOT include perks which require you to hit a spending target each year to receive them such as the British Airways American Express 2-4-1 voucher.  This article (click) looks at the most valuable credit card perks which require you to hit an annual spending target.

All of the perks discussed below are yours simply because you took out the card.

The place to turn for full details of all airline and hotel loyalty credit cards is, of course, our ‘Credit Card Offers‘ page, which summarises all of the cards currently available.

Looking through the list, these are the four cards you might want to get but keep in your desk drawer gathering dust:

The Platinum Card from American Express

The Platinum Card from American Express is the most complex and most debatable card here.

Because you can get a very generous 60,000 Membership Rewards points sign-up bonus (converts into 60,000 Avios or 60,000 Virgin Flying Club miles amongst other things) it may be worth giving the card a try to see if it works for you.

(Note that 60,000 points is a special offer which runs to 2nd November 2021. The bonus will drop back to 30,000 points from 3rd November 2021.)  

The Platinum Card is a charge card, not a credit card.  You need to clear your balance in full each month.

There are a lot of long-term benefits that can have real value:

• 2 Priority Pass cards, each getting you and a guest into 1,200 airport lounges for free.  If you give your second card to your partner, you have a family of four covered.  London lounges include the Aspire lounge in Heathrow T5, the Club Aspire lounge in Heathrow T3 and the ART & LOUNGE and SkyTeam lounges in T4.  At London Gatwick you have the new Club Aspire lounges in both terminals.
• Access to the Plaza Premium Lounge in Heathrow Terminal 5 as well as the other Plaza Premium lounges in Heathrow and indeed globally. Whilst these lounges are not in Priority Pass from July 2021, you can get in – with a guest – by showing your American Express Platinum card.
• Eurostar lounge access (cardholder only, no guests, although your supplementary Platinum cardholder can get in with their card)
• Lounge access with Delta in the US
• Access to Amex’s upmarket ‘Centurion’ lounge network at selected US airports, Hong Kong and – from 2022 – London Heathrow Terminal 3
• Marriott Bonvoy (Sheraton, Le Meridien, Aloft, St Regis etc) hotels Gold status,
• Hilton Honors (Conrad, DoubleTree, Waldorf Astoria, Hampton etc) Gold status
• MeliaRewards (Melia, INNSIDE, Tryp, ME) Gold status
• Radisson Rewards (Radisson, Park Plaza, Park Inn) Gold status
• Travel insurance, subject to enrolment, which is fully comprehensive (some minor benefits such as lost luggage requiring you to pay for your flights and hotels with an American Express card, although ‘big stuff’ like medical cover is covered regardless) – although read the small print if you have pre-existing conditions
• Comprehensive car hire insurance
• Discounts and/or added benefits in luxury hotels via the Fine Hotels & Resorts programme
• £10 per month of Addison Lee taxi credit
• $200 cashback on every onefinestay home rental – available unlimited times, no minimum spend

…. plus some other bits and pieces.

A lot of people, including myself, have a Platinum card for the benefits but – because of the weak 1 point per £1 earning rate – do not use it much.  I use mine purely for HfP-related expenditure which gives me the added benefit of being to treat the £575 fee as tax deductible.

IHG Rewards Mastercard

The free IHG Rewards Mastercard gives you Gold status in IHG Rewards, the Holiday Inn / Crowne Plaza / Hotel Indigo / InterContinental loyalty programme.

This is not worth much, frankly, but some hotels do give you a modest gift or some points as a welcome gift.  In the UK you will get the option of a free drink. 

Gold status, or indeed any level of IHG elite status, will also stop your points expiring. Base level members lose their points if there is no activity, earning or redeeming, on their account for a 12 month period.

Given that the card is free, it makes sense to take it out purely for the on-going Gold status if you have the occasional IHG hotel stay.

HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard

The HSBC Premier World Elite Mastercard is only available to HSBC Premier current account holders, and a substantial financial commitment to HSBC is required to receive one. 

You receive free airport lounge access at 750 airports worldwide via the LoungeKey programme.  Guests are charged at £20, although if you regularly travel with the same adult it would be cheaper to pay £60 to get them a supplementary credit card on your account.  It is a cheaper way of getting lounge access than buying your own Priority Pass card.

If you get the standard version of the HSBC Premier Mastercard, you also get a LoungeKey card but are charged £20 per lounge visit, no freebies.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express

The Marriott Bonvoy American Express card comes with 15 free elite night credits per year. 

15 night credits means that you will immediately qualify for free Silver Elite status in Marriott Bonvoy.  This has few real benefits, except for a 10% bonus on base points earned from Marriott hotel stays, so it is debatable whether it is worth the £75 annual card fee on its own.

However, it also puts you 15 nights nearer the very valuable Platinum Elite status which usually requires 50 nights. Platinum Elite comes with guaranteed lounge access, breakfast benefits and a guaranteed 4pm check-out.

You will also receive 20,000 Marriott Bonvoy points as a sign-up bonus, if you qualify and meet the spending target.

Our full review of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express is here. You can apply here.

Conclusion

Overall, there are some interesting deals to be had with some credit cards which makes them worth keeping, even if you don’t use them.

For bigger spenders, especially heavy travellers, The Platinum Card from American Express is worth a look.

The generous sign-up bonus (the current sign-up offer of 60,000 Amex points is worth 60,000 Avios or other airline miles when transferred), airport lounge access and the free hotel status cards mean that you don’t have much to lose by giving it a try, despite the heavy fee.

PS.  In case you are wondering, I deliberately excluded The American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card.  Whilst you get two free airport lounge passes per year, these do not justify the £140 annual fee from Year 2 onwards.  Of course, in Year 1, it is a different story.

(Want to earn more miles and points from credit cards?  Click here to visit our dedicated airline and hotel travel credit cards page or use the ‘Credit Card Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)

Disclaimer: Head for Points is a journalistic website. Nothing here should be construed as financial advice, and it is your own responsibility to ensure that any product is right for your circumstances. Recommendations are based primarily on the ability to earn miles and points and do not consider interest rates, service levels or any impact on your credit history.  By recommending credit cards on this site, I am – technically – acting as a credit broker.  Robert Burgess, trading as Head for Points, is regulated and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a credit broker.