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The HfP chat thread – Thursday 11th February

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We have decided to run this daily chat thread on Head for Points during the coronavirus outbreak.

Historically, the daily ‘Bits’ articles were the de facto repository for random comments and questions.  With the news flow being lighter, we are running fewer ‘Bits’ articles.

The comments under this article are where you should post questions about travel and, indeed, anything else on your mind.  At this tricky time, and given that many of you are at home, we want the HfP community to have a place to chat.

Please only comment under the main articles on the site if your comment is directly related to the topic of the article.  This has long-term benefits as it keeps the commentary relevant for people who read those articles in the future.

Old chat threads are hidden from the HfP home page.  If you want to look for something in an old thread, click here.  This brings up all the articles in our ‘General’ category which includes the chat threads.

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General

Comments (355)

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

  • Super Secret Stuff says:
    11 Feb11 February 08:56

    LNER offer is back on Amex this morning, 5% back everytime upto £30

    • 747_Brat says:
      11 Feb11 February 10:34

      Not on my cards, probably because I have used the offer twice recently! 🙁

      • Super Secret Stuff says:
        11 Feb11 February 16:56

        I used the one in mid 2020 but not since.aybe because your transactions to them have returned to normal ish levels?

        Mine are at about 10% of normal levels, simply because I had a stack of delay repay vouchers to use and in the last year I’ve only been on them twice

  • kevbar says:
    11 Feb11 February 08:58

    Curve have suspended my card due to NSI transactions. They have not requested KYI docs, just stated:

    ‘Curve’s core value proposition is day to day spend and we expect to see that the card is being used for more than just this type of activity’

    I have a lot less spend in lockdown and no other transactions on curve, will offer to mix up my spend and see if they un-suspend…

    • PabloEscobar says:
      11 Feb11 February 09:10

      How much were you putting through to NSI monthly?

    • C says:
      11 Feb11 February 09:23

      Interesting. I realised the other day my annual curve limit is 10k and I’ve now reached that, so I messaged to ask if this could be increased. They said they would look into it and get back to me. Over the last few months my spend has been Ernie only, but only about 2k per month. Before that, I did have some other significant transactions. Will be interesting to see what they say…

    • kevbar says:
      11 Feb11 February 09:31

      I’m legacy black doing 13k per month for over a year, but did 30k last month. So not much, but haven’t been mixing it up lately, maybe that made a difference maybe not.

      • Harrier25 says:
        11 Feb11 February 09:37

        I’m amazed that you lot are surprised this has happened. If you abuse the system like that then in the end you’ll be stopped!

        • Youllnever says:
          11 Feb11 February 09:44

          Agreed. Not quite sure what people were expecting when you put that kind of spend through.

        • kevbar says:
          11 Feb11 February 10:13

          has anyone said they are surprised? We all know the risks.

          • Harrier25 says:
            11 Feb11 February 10:21

            ….and you don’t care if you close all avenues to everyone else who don’t abuse the loopholes to such an extent. How totally selfish of you!!

          • The Savage Squirrel says:
            11 Feb11 February 13:31

            You expect nobody else to use loopholes or well known strategies that you yourself are using, so that they remain open just for you? Good luck with that.

        • Rui N. says:
          11 Feb11 February 11:26

          How exactly is this abusing the system? Curve is free to impose limits (they removed most of them recently) or stop certain transactions (they did that with CC payments, unless you pay, then suddenly it becomes acceptable to them!). Don’t Curve make explicit that one of their uses is to able to use credit cards where only debit cards are accepted? So, the abuse is using Curve as it is supposed to?

          • Track says:
            11 Feb11 February 11:43

            In the same way if you use your credit limit to the full (or overpay and use more than credit limit).

            First, “credit limit” become meaningless then.

            Second, credit limit utilisation for top score is 13% (across all account), implying if you are using 20-30-50% of your available credit, then you are a subprime borrower.

          • Rui N. says:
            11 Feb11 February 13:13

            Nothing on that is “abusing the system”. Also it’s about credit cards, not Curve…
            Credit card companies are more than free to not allow people paying mid-cycle and re-using the credit limit. If they don’t do it, then you can’t be abusing anything.

          • Genghis says:
            11 Feb11 February 13:17

            I don’t understand the argument. A credit limit is that: a limit on credit, borrowing money. If you pay money back half way through the month, then you’re no longer borrowing, i.e. reducing credit exposure.

      • TGLoyalty says:
        11 Feb11 February 10:33

        £30k in one place and call it not much 🙂

        • Callum says:
          11 Feb11 February 11:18

          Harrier25 – Your outrage is beyond ridiculous! You’re not a better person just because you knowingly break the exact same rules a little bit less than they do…

    • babyg says:
      11 Feb11 February 10:08

      and this is why we cant have nice things…. sounds like you used curve for pure MS…. you basically put a target on your back, doubt curve will want you back, but i could be wrong.

      • kevbar says:
        11 Feb11 February 10:17

        Well I am not recycling the money and my other spend has dropped off completely so not exactly pure MS but I agree that Curve probably won’t want me back. C’est la vie.

        • Lee says:
          11 Feb11 February 10:29

          Not just Curve

        • Andy says:
          11 Feb11 February 10:31

          Curve seem to like MS when they’re looking for investment and can point to how many clients they have and how much money goes through their system. I’m not surprised they flagged your account but then again many people posting here seem to do more than that so maybe it’s just bad luck

        • TGLoyalty says:
          11 Feb11 February 10:34

          Just because you are not cycling doesn’t mean it’s not MS

          You’re using it to find an institution that only accepts debit cards with a credit card therefore it’s MS.

          • Aston100 says:
            11 Feb11 February 10:39

            ***Just because you are not cycling doesn’t mean it’s not MS

            You’re using it to find an institution that only accepts debit cards with a credit card therefore it’s MS.***

            Then surely, any use of Curve would be regarded as MS?

          • Andy says:
            11 Feb11 February 10:43

            @TGLoyalty That is a good and interesting point! If I had say £50k in a savings account that i wanted to move into premium bonds then me buying them using Curve would be MS even though I had the £50k already? I guess it would but then what is the point of Curve otherwise? Almost everywhere i go takes Amex and I like to use curve places where i can’t use my credit card. So is that all MS as well?

          • BLG says:
            11 Feb11 February 11:01

            “Just because you are not cycling doesn’t mean it’s not MS

            You’re using it to find an institution that only accepts debit cards with a credit card therefore it’s MS.”

            Well TGL that statement covers all on here with a Curve card. Can you name one example of using curve NOT to mask credit card. Unless your using it to mask a debit card, if so you need a rethink

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 Feb11 February 12:43

            My point is you can’t claim it’s not MS when it is!

            There’s zero judgement in my post.

            FYI I use my card regularly in places which accept non Amex CC’s for anything I don’t need S75 protection.

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 Feb11 February 12:52

            “Unless your using it to mask a debit card, if so you need a rethink”

            Not even linked a debit card what’s the point?

            I MS as much as I can I just don’t pretend I don’t do it.

    • The Urbanite says:
      11 Feb11 February 11:35

      Just do as they ask and mix up the spend. They haven’t closed the account by the looks of things.

      • Ben says:
        11 Feb11 February 11:41

        They done the same thing to me when I first opened the card and put £2k through, I apologized explained I thought it was ok and started putting day to day spend through it.
        Not sure if they will tell me off for topping up anymore but what can you do? As others have mentioned, IMHO thats literally the point of Curve, to spend where you couldnt normally.

  • JDB says:
    11 Feb11 February 08:59

    My bonus year ends 27 Dec and I received the 10k bonus on 27 Jan without any chasing. My statement date is 23rd of the month and my understanding is that they usually credit the 10k shortly after the statement following your anniversary.

  • YC says:
    11 Feb11 February 09:54

    Feelunique stacking – Anyone know if there are better stacks? Currently there is a 15% off code or referral + 10% amex cb

  • cinereus says:
    11 Feb11 February 10:09

    What’s the latest on dark mode?

    • Rhys says:
      11 Feb11 February 10:12

      Bigger job than I thought it was going to be and I’ve had more important things to do! We still want to do it…

      • ayearinmx says:
        11 Feb11 February 10:18

        if we’re requesting features, how about putting a “HFP” footer at the bottom of the mobile comments so you don’t have to scroll all the way to the top of the page, just to be able to get back to the homepage

      • Rob says:
        11 Feb11 February 10:22

        We are a bit squeezed at the moment with Anika having just had her 2nd child and Sinead now counting the hours to her first! And at some point Rhys is going to take 18 months of unused holiday entitlement in one go so he can use the two Upper Class fights he won at Virgin’s Christmas media party 🙂

    • Also says:
      11 Feb11 February 11:42

      If you are on a computer, just get the Dark Reader extension. Works a treat

  • Raveon says:
    11 Feb11 February 10:12

    Anyone get a response from Tesco CC re the 1000 Virgin bonus points posted vice the 2000 offered?

    • dezbez says:
      11 Feb11 February 11:49

      I was told by Virgin that a second instalment of 1000 would post 28 Feb. not hopeful though..,.

  • jek says:
    11 Feb11 February 10:12

    I‘m looking for a freetrade and/or trading212 referral.

  • @mkcol says:
    11 Feb11 February 10:14

    And that’s Gatwick confirmed they will have a £5 drop off charge at North Terminal from 8th March, with South Terminal to follow suit.

    • Colin MacKinnon says:
      11 Feb11 February 10:40

      One of the first to introduce was Edinburgh – and they offer a free drop-off in the long-stay carpark.

      Now here’s where it might get interesting – if you go to book the long-stay at EDI you get a mesaage saying the long-stay is closed. So you will be booked into the mid-price open carpark next to the terminal.

      But both times I have booked, once payment is made you get a message that you have been further upgraded to the multi-storey!

      So with only three or four flights a day, do they still run the free shuttle bus from the long-stay for the “cheapskate” drop-off? Or is there a sign there saying use some code to get paid drop-off free?

      ps. In both the multi-storey in Edinburgh and Dublin there were some very expensive cars with – literally – inches of dust on them. Wonder if the owners had gone for a trip to Australia or something, and got stuck/stayed there?

    • Aston100 says:
      11 Feb11 February 10:41

      ***And that’s Gatwick confirmed they will have a £5 drop off charge at North Terminal from 8th March, with South Terminal to follow suit.***
      I’m surprised any UK airports allow free drop-off.

      • Nick says:
        11 Feb11 February 12:00

        All UK airports allow free drop off… just not right outside the terminal door.

        • Zoe says:
          11 Feb11 February 14:17

          Not Bournemouth, it costs 3 pounds and there are no pavements from the local road.

          • TGLoyalty says:
            11 Feb11 February 15:36

            Are you sure there’s no short stay car park a few mins walk with a free 15 mins?

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

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