Don’t Let Your Credit Card Reward Points Expire

Most of the time, rewards credit cards feature higher APR and more expensive maintenance fees, all of which should be easily offset if you’re able to make use of the points you earn to grab those rewards.  That is, if you actually make use of them, unlike an overwhelming majority of credit card holders.

Even though cashing in those rewards cost nothing, many people simply seem to not care enough, ignoring their points till the last minute and even letting them expire.  You do know they expire, don’t you?  If you don’t know the constraints on your points, check the terms of your credit card agreement to verify.

Keeping It Alive

If your points are near expiry and you can’t find anything in the rewards network you’d like to exchange it for, call up customer support and inquire about possible ways to keep the points alive.  While some will require you to either use up the points before the end date or lose it forever, some credit card companies will offer a bit more options.

Many companies allow your points earnings to stay past due date if you make certain types of purchases.  Find out the cheapest thing you can get to keep those points alive and get it.  I’ve heard of some rewards network that allow a single 99 cent iTune download to let you keep those earnings active.

If there’s really no choice but to use them up, try requesting if the points can be converted into payment for some of your charges and fees.  That’s at least better than being forced to get another ugly toaster.