MilesBuzz! - Gift Card Summary Thread

Hi there,

I hope I'm not the only one in this position. I would LOVE to get on the miles for gift cards thing, but I would hate reading all the threads with endless pages of posts to find out how this works, the caveats, etc.

Is there some wonderful FlyerTalker out there who could summarise, step by step, how to do this with the various gift card programmes out there, along with what to watch out for under each one?

Or should I just stop being so lazy? :confused:

Many thanks,
TravelScholar

1. Go to www.charterone.com/giftcards and purchase $500 giftcards, billed to your mileage or reward earning Visa or Mastercard. Do not use American Express, since the purchase will be treated as a cash advance. Beware that some reward Visas and Mastercards have stopped giving reward points for these gift card purchases.

2. Depending on your level of tolerance for the "hassle factor" in cashing these cards, choose one of the following methods for cashing the gift card. After cashing the card, use the money to pay off your credit card bill. Repeat.

a. Post Office: cost = $3.25/$1000: buy a money order for $996.75. Have clerk charge $499 to two of your $500 gift cards. The purchase is a debit card purchase using your PIN. (The amount is $499 because Charter One charges a $1 transaction fee. Post office charges $1.25 for the money order.) This method will save $0.55 over method b below, but can be problematic since some postal clerks will have difficulty processing one purchase on two cards.

b. Post Office: cost = $1.90/$500: buy a money order for $498.10. Clerk will charge $499 to your gift card. The purchase is a debit card purchase using your PIN. (Post office charges $0.90 for the money order, and Charter One charge $1 for the transaction).

c. Bank: cost = $2/$500: have teller do a "cash advance" on the card for $498 (The amount is $498 because Charter One charges a $2 transaction fee).

d. ATM: cost = $2/$500: do a withdrawal for $480 if ATM dispenses $20 bills, or $490 if ATM dispenses $10 bills. You will have a balance remaining of $18 or $8, which you can spend on gas or whatever. (Charter One has a $2 fee for ATM withdrawals, but purchases have no transaction fee.) You should find a no-fee ATM, or you will have to pay an additional $1-$5 fee to the ATM's bank for using the ATM.

e. Wal-Mart: cost = $2.46/$1000. Buy a $997.54 money order. Have clerk charge $499 to two gift cards. (Wal-Mart charges $0.46 for the money order and Charter One charges $1 for each debit card transaction.)

f. Regular purchases: cost = $0: Just make $500 worth of purchases on your gift card.