I am posting this because after a LONG while, you now have more options again for Pay Yourself Back than just 25% to Charities. On my Sapphire Preferred PYB page, the new options for Gas Stations and Grocery Stores showed up today, January 1, 2023. Details are still vague, but past history has been 10% to 25% bonus on point redemption and both are valid through 3/31/23.
Attachment 12760864
NEW
Gas Stations (including paying at the pump or inside the station)
(Unknown)% more points value (usually 10%)
Redeem up to (unknown - usually $500 or 45,454 pts)
Valid through 03/31/21
NEW
Grocery Stores (including eligible delivery services, and most likely NOT Walmart)
(Unknown)% more points value (usually 10%)
Redeem up to (unknown - usually $500 or 45,454 pts)
Valid through 03/31/22
Select charities
25% more points value
Valid through 12/31/23
Charges must be made on the CSP card to use PYB bonus. However, you can move points from other cards on your Chase accounts to the CSP and apply them to the PYB bonus.
- Currently, only redemptions against purchases made with your Chase card with Ultimate Rewards at gas stations (including paying at the pump or inside the station), for grocery stores (including eligible delivery services), and for select charitable organizations will qualify.
This thread is not for those who like to bring up "You get better point value for travel transfers". Yes, we know CSP/CSR are good for travel. I don't travel enough to use any of the partner bonuses, and I'm sure many others don't either. I use all my cards for the 1% to 5% back, and if I can get a 10% to 25% redemption bonus now and then for something I DO use then it's a value to me and others.
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Travel insurance will not even remotely help the issue that I'm describing. For example, you need to reschedule a flight but the airline won't handle your booking without charging a fee. Chase customer support will put you on hold for hours and then tell you to call the airline. Rinse and repeat. Or, you are owed a refund after you booked with points. The airline processed it. Chase doesn't post them. You call and they tell you it takes 1-2 billing cycles. You call back and they say it could take another billing cycle. (PS- each of these calls involve hours of hold time). Again, rinse and repeat.
Personally, my experience was on a flight booked with a Delta credit during COVID. Delta downgraded my ticket and owed me a credit. After many hours dealing with Delta (not related to using the CSR), they finally refunded me what they were supposed to, but not as Delta credit. They refunded it to where my original flight was booked, which was via Chase UR points. They never arrived. Each call is an hour of wait time minimum, plus more as they escalate the issue. They almost all resulted in saying they would call me back (never happened once) or that the resolution would take 1-2 billing cycles (never resolved). I did spend SOME time trying to recover 40k pts, as that's supposed to be minimum $600 in value, but eventually I had spent enough hours wasted on this that it just wasn't worth my time. My particular circumstances may be unique, but in talking to many people, the "we'll call you back" and "it takes 1-2 billing cycles" is an extremely common occurrence to get you off their back. Nothing happens.
I'm always one to say take everything with a grain of salt. Believe me or don't believe me. But one universal thing that I always hear from the folks who have these experiences is that the portal works perfectly fine.... until it doesn't. And when it doesn't, it's a doozy. It doesn't hurt ME if you use the portal, I have no reason to relay this to you other than as advice from someone that may have more experience. I once had your attitude. I'm doing everything by the book and I know how to do this so the portal works fine. It was hubris. The travel portal used to be run by another company (rumored to be Expedia). Chase took it over entirely a couple of years ago. It is hot garbage unless nothing goes wrong. Again, nothing will go wrong MOST of the time, but don't get lulled into thinking this is somehow a good record for Chase. When nothing goes wrong, the customer service didn't do anything right, they merely had nothing to do. When you NEED them to do something, they fail at a startling high rate. Don't take this risk.
Again, this is never an issue when everything goes smoothly, and your booked travel takes place with no hiccups. Sometimes even the changes go smoothly. But for those that have used them extensively and experienced the problems..... never again. I wasted so much time that I eventually just punted the 40k+ pts I was owed. The money just wasn't worth the hours I was wasting.
The card and rewards are great but I do not advise anyone to book through their portal. Transfer to travel partners.
Compound all of that with the fact that Chase as a 3rd party is particularly terrible.
Again I'd like to reiterate, you cannot judge Chase by their performance when everything goes smoothly. If they book a flight or hotel and you use that booking with no changes or complications, that doesn't mean Chase did something good, it just means they didn't have anything to do. What is their record if you actually need them when something goes wrong?
Personally, the only time I would even THINK about risking using the portal is if it were a hotel that I was booking on super short notice, a great deal that I couldn't replicate, AND I was extremely confident that I would not have to make a change. Any booking further out, and any flight at all (due to potential issues outside of your control), and I'm not using it. Booking direct with airlines is the way to go. The 50% redemption boost isn't as lucrative as transferring to partners and when booking with cash, the 10X points, while nice, is not worth the potential headache.
Travel insurance will not even remotely help the issue that I'm describing. For example, you need to reschedule a flight but the airline won't handle your booking without charging a fee. Chase customer support will put you on hold for hours and then tell you to call the airline. Rinse and repeat. Or, you are owed a refund after you booked with points. The airline processed it. Chase doesn't post them. You call and they tell you it takes 1-2 billing cycles. You call back and they say it could take another billing cycle. (PS- each of these calls involve hours of hold time). Again, rinse and repeat.
Personally, my experience was on a flight booked with a Delta credit during COVID. Delta downgraded my ticket and owed me a credit. After many hours dealing with Delta (not related to using the CSR), they finally refunded me what they were supposed to, but not as Delta credit. They refunded it to where my original flight was booked, which was via Chase UR points. They never arrived. Each call is an hour of wait time minimum, plus more as they escalate the issue. They almost all resulted in saying they would call me back (never happened once) or that the resolution would take 1-2 billing cycles (never resolved). I did spend SOME time trying to recover 40k pts, as that's supposed to be minimum $600 in value, but eventually I had spent enough hours wasted on this that it just wasn't worth my time. My particular circumstances may be unique, but in talking to many people, the "we'll call you back" and "it takes 1-2 billing cycles" is an extremely common occurrence to get you off their back. Nothing happens.
I'm always one to say take everything with a grain of salt. Believe me or don't believe me. But one universal thing that I always hear from the folks who have these experiences is that the portal works perfectly fine.... until it doesn't. And when it doesn't, it's a doozy. It doesn't hurt ME if you use the portal, I have no reason to relay this to you other than as advice from someone that may have more experience. I once had your attitude. I'm doing everything by the book and I know how to do this so the portal works fine. It was hubris. The travel portal used to be run by another company (rumored to be Expedia). Chase took it over entirely a couple of years ago. It is hot garbage unless nothing goes wrong. Again, nothing will go wrong MOST of the time, but don't get lulled into thinking this is somehow a good record for Chase. When nothing goes wrong, the customer service didn't do anything right, they merely had nothing to do. When you NEED them to do something, they fail at a startling high rate. Don't take this risk.
Well said. I am in similar boat and still trying to recoup my points.