Aug 21, 2017, 5:06 pm
Last edit by: RedSun
Curve card is a "debit" card or "spend" card that you can use at stores and where you can use debit card for purchases. It is not funded by the bank with cash deposit, but funded by a collection of other debit cards and credit cards. You can't withdraw cash from ATM since it is not backed by the bank.
It carries MasterCard logo and can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted.
Curve Card is offered in the United Kingdom and selected European countries. Not currently available in the US.
It carries MasterCard logo and can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted.
Curve Card is offered in the United Kingdom and selected European countries. Not currently available in the US.
curve card changes.
Apr 23, 2016, 1:47 pm
#31
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: YUL
Programs: AC E75, WS Gold, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, GHA Plat, UA Silver, SQ Silver
Posts: 215
200£ limit
Its already updated in their website under FUP.
They are rolling back on promises even before card getting delivered to beta customers. Not a great proposition
As amex usage is the selling point - 200£ effectively makes the card worthless when travelling (esp to a country where Card payments arent the norm)
They are rolling back on promises even before card getting delivered to beta customers. Not a great proposition
As amex usage is the selling point - 200£ effectively makes the card worthless when travelling (esp to a country where Card payments arent the norm)
Apr 24, 2016, 11:36 am
#32
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: London
Posts: 38
Even with the 2% amex charge (now confirmed on their website) I think this is still a decent product for newcomers to the hobby like me.
With a selection of Amex, airline and hotel cards I can get near 100k avios from sign-up bonuses with a ~£6000 total ATM withdrawal (over time of course).
That works out at £120 or 0.12p/avios = a very good deal!
For everyone that has exhausted the sign-up bonuses however, I can't see this being very useful anymore as pure MS will be difficult with the 2%.
With a selection of Amex, airline and hotel cards I can get near 100k avios from sign-up bonuses with a ~£6000 total ATM withdrawal (over time of course).
That works out at £120 or 0.12p/avios = a very good deal!
For everyone that has exhausted the sign-up bonuses however, I can't see this being very useful anymore as pure MS will be difficult with the 2%.
Apr 24, 2016, 12:07 pm
#33
Join Date: Apr 2016
Location: YUL
Programs: AC E75, WS Gold, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, GHA Plat, UA Silver, SQ Silver
Posts: 215
For me its more about their credibility - having a U Turn within a month of beta launch certainly raise worries on the sustainability of the programme.
Theres lot of posts about declines in twitter in the recent days - i believe as more cards are getting distributed their auth systems are taking a hit leading to declines.
Also the 2% FUP charge + 1% fx charge makes it essential to carry a dedicated travel card - essentially challenging "one card replace all" tagline of curve.
I am also foreseeing retailers to reject Business MasterCard PAN / charge extra fee in the near future as the model becomes popular !
Theres lot of posts about declines in twitter in the recent days - i believe as more cards are getting distributed their auth systems are taking a hit leading to declines.
Also the 2% FUP charge + 1% fx charge makes it essential to carry a dedicated travel card - essentially challenging "one card replace all" tagline of curve.
I am also foreseeing retailers to reject Business MasterCard PAN / charge extra fee in the near future as the model becomes popular !
Apr 25, 2016, 3:40 am
#34
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: London
Programs: BA bronze, Hertz pres circle, Marriott Platinum, hilton diamond
Posts: 2,537
where are you all seeing the 2% amex surcharge?
https://imaginecurve.groovehq.com/kn...out-of-my-amex
I'm not seeing it on their website
https://imaginecurve.groovehq.com/kn...out-of-my-amex
I'm not seeing it on their website
Apr 25, 2016, 3:47 am
#35
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: UK
Programs: BA GGL, BA LTG/GFL, Honors Diamond, Accor Platinum, Bonvoy Silver
Posts: 717
In the Fair Use Policy at https://api.imaginecurve.com/fair-use.pdf
You can withdrawal [sic] up to £200 (or currency equivalent) for free using your American Express or other credit cards per calendar month after which there is a 2% charge. This limit does not apply to ATM debit card withdrawals.
Apr 25, 2016, 5:22 am
#37
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 8
Maybe. It's just strange that Raffles reported that Curve had informed him that they were negotiating with Amex to continue accepting the card, and a couple of hours later had him remove the comments. And Curve have all sorts of queries over Twitter that they've ignored on this Amex issue.
I quite agree that if you have your card, you should use it as much as you can and not sweat it.
If you haven't paid for your card and can't afford to lose the money if they go in to administration, then I would be sweating.
I quite agree that if you have your card, you should use it as much as you can and not sweat it.
If you haven't paid for your card and can't afford to lose the money if they go in to administration, then I would be sweating.
It's certainly possible they are having problems keeping Amex in house. A more mature company would have done a better job communicating about why the message appeared and disappeared from their webpage like that.
It sounds like they need someone working at responding on Twitter but there are lots of companies that ignore lots of tweets.
If you can't afford to lose the money, then I'm not sure MS is a game you should be playing. Hopefully most of us have already made enough in the game to cover such possibilities.
Edit: missed the latest page of developments before replying. So now it looks to me like they were considering dropping Amex when they couldn't maintain the terms they wanted. When they saw the uproar they must have panicked a bit and tried to pretend it was fine.
Now they have their agreement and are going to have a limit and a fee, but they buried that in the policy pdf instead of using their site properly. For example https://imaginecurve.groovehq.com/kn...urve-cost-ps35 still says the only cost is the initial purchase.
Last edited by Vvatts; Apr 25, 2016 at 5:36 am Reason: New developments
Apr 25, 2016, 6:30 am
#39
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Sheffield, UK
Programs: BA, Emirates, IHG, Accor, Marriott, Hilton
Posts: 637
where are you all seeing the 2% amex surcharge?
https://imaginecurve.groovehq.com/kn...out-of-my-amex
I'm not seeing it on their website
https://imaginecurve.groovehq.com/kn...out-of-my-amex
I'm not seeing it on their website
Apr 25, 2016, 6:39 am
#40
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: London
Posts: 3,500
Apr 25, 2016, 7:43 am
#42
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: London
Posts: 3,500
Other parts of the site say there's no fees for using Amex. It's all a bit too fluid when they're asking people to pay up to £75 for a card which no-one (including the company themselves) seems to know what it's going to be offering next month.
This is what they currently (Apr 25th) say (although note it's contradicted elsewhere)
Unite all your existing payments cards into one card and app, accepted everywhere. Unlock super low foreign currency rates and no conversion fees. See payments from all cards in one screen in real-time, label expenses and more.
ALL YOUR CARDS IN ONE
Only one PIN to remember, one card to fit into your bag or pocket. Choose which card you want Curve to be from your app. Keep earning all your original card reward points as normal.
USE CURVE AT HOME AND ABROAD
Curve works in every country and every place MasterCard is accepted. With zero fees and super low foreign currency rates, you don't need to do anything differently when travelling - just take Curve, life is simpler.
SEE YOUR PAYMENTS IN ONE PLACE
Your app screen shows payments from your different cards in one neat place and real-time. Tap to label them - and search them later.
USE AMEX EVERYWHERE
When you set Curve to be your Amex card, it'll work everywhere across the world that MasterCard is accepted.
USE CREDIT CARDS FOR FREE AT ATMS
In your home country, you'll never be charged to withdraw cash from an ATM even if Curve is set to a credit card. You're free to use the account you need.
SECURITY
Curve is a MasterCard, protected by bank-level security. Your original data is not stored on your card, providing an additional layer of security. If your Curve is lost or stolen, you only need to block Curve, which you can do instantly from your app or by calling us 24/7.
Register for your card via the Curve app or website. Curve is free to use, with an initial sign-up fee of £35 including shipping, only payable when we send your card.
- Carry just one card
- Access super low foreign currency rates and no conversion fees
- See and label all transactions in real-time
- Use Amex everywhere
- No credit card ATM fees in your home country
- MasterCard and bank-level security
ALL YOUR CARDS IN ONE
Only one PIN to remember, one card to fit into your bag or pocket. Choose which card you want Curve to be from your app. Keep earning all your original card reward points as normal.
USE CURVE AT HOME AND ABROAD
Curve works in every country and every place MasterCard is accepted. With zero fees and super low foreign currency rates, you don't need to do anything differently when travelling - just take Curve, life is simpler.
SEE YOUR PAYMENTS IN ONE PLACE
Your app screen shows payments from your different cards in one neat place and real-time. Tap to label them - and search them later.
USE AMEX EVERYWHERE
When you set Curve to be your Amex card, it'll work everywhere across the world that MasterCard is accepted.
USE CREDIT CARDS FOR FREE AT ATMS
In your home country, you'll never be charged to withdraw cash from an ATM even if Curve is set to a credit card. You're free to use the account you need.
SECURITY
Curve is a MasterCard, protected by bank-level security. Your original data is not stored on your card, providing an additional layer of security. If your Curve is lost or stolen, you only need to block Curve, which you can do instantly from your app or by calling us 24/7.
Register for your card via the Curve app or website. Curve is free to use, with an initial sign-up fee of £35 including shipping, only payable when we send your card.
Last edited by 710 77345; Apr 25, 2016 at 8:11 am
Apr 25, 2016, 7:53 am
#43
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: UK
Programs: BA GGL, BA LTG/GFL, Honors Diamond, Accor Platinum, Bonvoy Silver
Posts: 717
Completely pointless card for me. Every transaction over £10 is blocked. Cash withdrawals of any amount blocked.
My amex has various pending transactions (fine) but as they have all been declined by Curve, they better not mature into real charges.
All phone lines are unanswered and direct you to website, no response to email enquiries.
Not a good start. If it doesn't work later this week, sadly its getting shredded as I can't be doing with every transaction being declined. Their small limits are stupid as well (bearing in mind it's supposed to be a business use only card for EU interchange cap exemption), even if not automatically declined, any flexible air fare is £3k+, which exceeds their limits (irrespective of the underlying financing card limits).
My amex has various pending transactions (fine) but as they have all been declined by Curve, they better not mature into real charges.
All phone lines are unanswered and direct you to website, no response to email enquiries.
Not a good start. If it doesn't work later this week, sadly its getting shredded as I can't be doing with every transaction being declined. Their small limits are stupid as well (bearing in mind it's supposed to be a business use only card for EU interchange cap exemption), even if not automatically declined, any flexible air fare is £3k+, which exceeds their limits (irrespective of the underlying financing card limits).
Last edited by rjn21; Apr 25, 2016 at 9:09 am
Apr 25, 2016, 8:23 am
#44
Join Date: May 2009
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 452
Card arrived today, but with the changes in conditions it's pretty pointless for me. Have emailed (after phoning) to request a full refund. If I don't hear back soon I guess I'll have to contact Amex to dispute the charge, but hopefully it doesn't come to that.
Apr 25, 2016, 9:06 am
#45
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: UK
Programs: BA GGL, BA LTG/GFL, Honors Diamond, Accor Platinum, Bonvoy Silver
Posts: 717
The Curve PIN is generated by the app when you first activate the card. Once used (successfully - good luck with that) for 1 chip & pin transaction you can then change the PIN to one of your choice at any bank ATM.