Mar 7, 2014, 7:25 pm
Last edit by: der_saeufer
Why should I keep my CSP?
When downgrading, the card number does not change, but the expiration date and CVV will. The downgraded account retains the same credit limit and opening date, so it doesn't change AAoA nor count towards 5/24.
What's the best use of UR points?
Possible reasons to keep the card include
For additional details, see the CSP Benefits Guide.
Why should I cancel my CSP?- ability to earn 2 UR points/dollar on travel & dining expenses
- primary insurance coverage on rental cars
- See post #369 for an example of how this has real financial value
- 7% annual dividend (Note that this benefit ends in early 2016 with the award of the 2015 dividend.)
- no forex fees
- ability to transfer points at 1:1 (in many cases instantly) to a wide range of airline & hotel partners
- the potential difficulty in being approved again later for a second CSP
- See this wiki for details
- synergy with Freedom or other Chase card earning UR points
- you are among the few customers who receive a retention bonus offsetting the cost of the annual fee
For additional details, see the CSP Benefits Guide.
Possible reasons to cancel the card include
Why should I downgrade my CSP?- lack of interest in the UR transfer partner programs (or you hold, or will hold, another transfer-eligible premium card, such as the Ink Plus)
- you have a no-fee Freedom card to which you can transfer (and warehouse at no cost) your UR points
- you plan to re-apply & earn a second signup bonus at a later date or with a different first-year-free UR card
- Note: In 2015, Chase UR cards became much more difficult to churn
- you would rather use a 2% cashback card for most spending
- benefits of the card in your particular circumstances are outweighed by the annual fee
Possible reasons to downgrade the card include
What can I downgrade to (no AF), and why would I want to?- Opened a new CSR account for that sweet, sweet bonus. The CSP offers nothing that the CSR doesn't, so there's little point in keeping both--the AF is refunded in full if you downgrade within 60 days. There are conflicting reports of prorated refunds for downgrades >60 days after the fee is charged. AF refunds generally post within a day or two.
- You plan to re-apply & earn a second signup bonus at a later date or with a different first-year-free UR card, but have a UR balance you want to keep
- You're waiting out 5/24 to get CSR and you don't want to pay the CSP AF
- Sapphire (non-preferred). Not much point in this. No UR transfers to partners, 2x on dining, 1x on everything else. This card no longer exists for new customers, but it was still a downgrade option from CSP as of 9/16.
- Freedom. 5x bonus categories, rotating by quarter, 1x on everything else. If you downgrade and activate the bonus, you'll get the bonus retroactive to the beginning of the quarter. When they overlap, you get both (e.g. Jul-Sep '16 restaurants paid with CSP pre-downgrade get base points plus 1 extra from CSP and 4 extra from Freedom)
- Freedom Unlimited. 1.5x on everything.
When downgrading, the card number does not change, but the expiration date and CVV will. The downgraded account retains the same credit limit and opening date, so it doesn't change AAoA nor count towards 5/24.
Please read about/discuss this issue in Best use of Ultimate Rewards points [Consolidated].
Chase Sapphire Preferred - Keep, Downgrade, or Cancel?
Jun 22, 2013, 10:25 am
#137
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: NYC
Programs: UA 1K, AA EP, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Platinum, M life Noir
Posts: 1,279
If you downgrade a CSP to CS, will any travel charges the post between your last statement and the day of the downgrade still get 2x? I'm wondering if they give you a final CSP statement on the day you downgrade, or just switch things over to CS and keep the same statement cycle.
I was actually hoping the reward program switch was retroactive to the statement date since I am switching from a CSP to a Freedom and had a lot of restaurant purchases. Oh well.
Jun 22, 2013, 6:56 pm
#138
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: BOS
Programs: AA EXP, DL PM, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 2,028
I'm not sure if this has been reported yet, but I'll chime in anyways. I got the CSP in November 2011, and in December 2012 I downgraded to the standard Sapphire in order to avoid (refund) the annual fee. In April, I called to upgrade to the CSP again, and was willing to pay the annual fee, in order to be able to transfer some UR points. The customer service rep said I was eligible for the first year free, even though I've already had the card. I immediately jumped - so now I'm on my second year of the CSP free.
My apologies if this is already known.
My apologies if this is already known.
Jun 22, 2013, 7:03 pm
#139
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Tampa, FL
Programs: SPG Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Diamond, IHG Plat
Posts: 194
I'm not sure if this has been reported yet, but I'll chime in anyways. I got the CSP in November 2011, and in December 2012 I downgraded to the standard Sapphire in order to avoid (refund) the annual fee. In April, I called to upgrade to the CSP again, and was willing to pay the annual fee, in order to be able to transfer some UR points. The customer service rep said I was eligible for the first year free, even though I've already had the card. I immediately jumped - so now I'm on my second year of the CSP free.
My apologies if this is already known.
My apologies if this is already known.
Jun 23, 2013, 7:19 am
#140
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: BOS
Programs: AA EXP, DL PM, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 2,028
Jun 23, 2013, 7:57 am
#141
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Tampa, FL
Programs: SPG Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Diamond, IHG Plat
Posts: 194
Do you think you will downgrade it again when your "first" year free is up again?
Jun 23, 2013, 8:06 am
#142
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: BOS
Programs: AA EXP, DL PM, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 2,028
I'll have to re-evaluate come December, but I'll probably go back down to the Sapphire, and then upgrade to the CSP, by either paying (or not!) if I need to transfer points.
Jun 23, 2013, 1:18 pm
#143
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Tampa, FL
Programs: SPG Plat, Marriott Plat, Hyatt Diamond, IHG Plat
Posts: 194
Oh, I didn't even think of the fact that it was 2012 when I downgraded and then upgraded in 2013. Easily could have been that...
I'll have to re-evaluate come December, but I'll probably go back down to the Sapphire, and then upgrade to the CSP, by either paying (or not!) if I need to transfer points.
I'll have to re-evaluate come December, but I'll probably go back down to the Sapphire, and then upgrade to the CSP, by either paying (or not!) if I need to transfer points.
Did you ever have the chase inks (the business cards)?
Jun 23, 2013, 4:46 pm
#144
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: BOS
Programs: AA EXP, DL PM, Hyatt Diamond
Posts: 2,028
Anyway, I reapplied yesterday using my recently-founded non-profit as the business. It's currently under consideration, and I'll give the recon line a call tomorrow when it opens to see if I can manage my way into some free points.
Jun 23, 2013, 8:30 pm
#145
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 1,818
I applied for one of the Ink's a few months ago but was rejected after reconsideration due to a lot of recent credit pulls (which is fair - I have around 20 CC's, all within a year or two, at this point) and because I didn't really have much of a story behind what my business is. Maybe that's because it was non-existent.
Anyway, I reapplied yesterday using my recently-founded non-profit as the business. It's currently under consideration, and I'll give the recon line a call tomorrow when it opens to see if I can manage my way into some free points.
Anyway, I reapplied yesterday using my recently-founded non-profit as the business. It's currently under consideration, and I'll give the recon line a call tomorrow when it opens to see if I can manage my way into some free points.
Jun 29, 2013, 9:52 pm
#146
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 194
I got the Visa switched to the MC last week, and the card came in the mail. I got a refund on the annual fee. Now, how long do you guys recommend waiting before I cancel the MC and then how long to wait until I can reapply for the Preferred Visa?
Jul 2, 2013, 12:47 am
#147
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: In CT,left my heart in Leicester.
Programs: Work in progress.
Posts: 1,237
I sent them a SM to downgrade my card, and got offered a choice between the Chase Freedom MasterCard Platinum card and the Chase Freedom MasterCard World card.
What's the difference?
What's the difference?
Jul 2, 2013, 1:26 am
#148
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 1,818
Jul 2, 2013, 10:05 am
#149
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: NYC
Programs: UA 1K, AA EP, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Platinum, M life Noir
Posts: 1,279
Just curious, why would anyone opt not to take a higher credit card tier? The only reason I can think of is to not stick merchants with higher fees.
Jul 2, 2013, 11:14 am
#150
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: In CT,left my heart in Leicester.
Programs: Work in progress.
Posts: 1,237
They are very similar. World is just one tier higher than the platinum. See here: http://www.mastercard.us/credit-card.html
The CSR replied to my SM as well. I'll post it here for anyone else who might have the same question.
Benefits of Chase Freedom MasterCard Platinum card:
--------------------------
Lost/Stolen card reporting: Yes
Emergency card and cash: Yes
Auto Rental Collusion Damage Waiver (secondary): Yes
MasterRental Insurance Coverage: Platinum
Travel Assistance Service: Yes
Extended Protection: Yes
Purchase Protection: $250/claim, $50,000 lifetime
(maximum)
Price Protection: Yes
Return Protection: $250/claim, maximum $1,000 per year
Master Road Assist Roadside: Yes
Mastercard Global Service: Yes
Travel Accident Insurance: Not Available
Lost Luggage: Not Available
Travel and Emergency Assistance Service: Not Available
Trip Cancellation: Not Available
Personal Identity Theft: Not Available
No Preset Spending Limit: Not Available
Benefits of Chase Freedom MasterCard Worldcard:
--------------------------
Lost/Stolen card reporting: Yes
Emergency card and cash: Yes
Auto Rental Collusion Damage Waiver (secondary): Not
Available
MasterRental Insurance Coverage: World
Travel Assistance Service: Not Available
Extended Protection: Yes
Purchase Protection: $250/claim, $50,000 lifetime
(maximum)
Price Protection: Yes
Return Protection: $250/claim, maximum $1,000 per year
Master Road Assist Roadside: Not Available
Mastercard Global Service: Yes
Travel Accident Insurance: $250,000
Lost Luggage: Yes
Travel and Emergency Assistance Service: Yes
Trip Cancellation: Yes
Personal Identity Theft: Yes
No Preset Spending Limit: Yes
And B. Because as I've posted, I wanted to know if there were any differences in benefits. Which there are.