# Amazon.com Rewards Visa Card from Chase - What's the catch? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 3, 2013, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278 "2013-08-03T21:52:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/21 "2013-08-05T13:43:29Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > I’ve had one for years. > Zero “catch”. I had one for days. Signed up for the card, bought a $58 dollar item for $8, then immediately canceled the card. Zero catch. But I disike having too many credit cards. Pain in the neck to keep track of. ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/22 "2013-08-05T14:58:23Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > And the rewards are good only on Amazon. Ignoring the rest of the post, except to say that yes I do pay my cc balance off monthly - I do all of my purchasing using cards and run up the points on Chase’s Amazon and Southwest affiliated cards. Anyhoo, the statement about the rewards being good only on Amazon is 100% not true. Chase has a whole website linked to your account that will show you where to redeem points. This includes a cash back option. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/23 "2013-08-05T15:11:12Z")
> [@howye](#): > > …the statement about the rewards being good only on Amazon is 100% not true. Chase has a whole website linked to your account that will show you where to redeem points. This includes a cash back option. The Amazon card promotion pages don’t go out of their way to explain any of this. But I won’t claim to have read every page of fine print. The genuine value of the points is still questionable, especially when you look at the whole equation. A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people make out; the rest not only pay for their “rewards” but generate profit for Amazon, Chase and everyone else involved. If your view of consumer economics is fuck-you-bub-I-got-mine, then no problem, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/24 "2013-08-05T15:29:59Z")
> [@BorgHunter](#): > > If you’re running a consistent balance on your credit cards, I’d be more apt to say you should be focusing on how to lower your spending than on getting a new credit card. This. Thiiiiiis. THIS!!! ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/25 "2013-08-05T15:56:08Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > The Amazon card promotion pages don’t go out of their way to explain any of this. But I won’t claim to have read every page of fine print. > > The genuine value of the points is still questionable, especially when you look at the whole equation. A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people make out; the rest not only pay for their “rewards” but generate profit for Amazon, Chase and everyone else involved. > > If your view of consumer economics is fuck-you-bub-I-got-mine, then no problem, I guess. My view of consumer economics is that I can take advantage of a deal that is at no cost to me, but returns a small but not completely negligible value. Your main problem seems to be that people who do not pay their balance in full each month are going to get screwed with higher interest rates than they could get from other credit cards. I am not sure how this equate to a screw them attitude on my part? Plus, enter these two words into google: chase amazon. You get this as your first non sponsored return: [https://www.chase.com/online/Credit-Cards/amazon.htm](https://www.chase.com/online/Credit-Cards/amazon.htm) Reading on that very page: > [@](#): > > Use your points to get the stuff you want > Use your points on [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com) at checkout 2 , > or **redeem for cash back, gift cards and travel.** Bolding added for emphasis. I didn’t need to dig very deep to find this information. If somebody can’t pay their balance on their credit cards every month, my view would be that they probably shouldn’t be using the damn things. But then again I am an adult who can weight the benefits and costs of a thing and make a decision based upon my individual circumstances. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/26 "2013-08-05T17:55:14Z")
> [@BorgHunter](#): > > I pay my credit cards off in full every month. I’ve never paid a credit card company a dime in interest, nor have I ever missed a payment. I’d assumed most people used credit cards this way except in emergencies. That depends on your definition of most. As of 2012, [39% of Americans](http://www.nfcc.org/newsroom/FinancialLiteracy/files2012/FLS2012FINALREPORT0402late.pdf) were carrying credit card debt from month to month. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/27 "2013-08-05T18:56:14Z")
> [@howye](#): > > My view of consumer economics is that I can take advantage of a deal that is at no cost to me, but returns a small but not completely negligible value. Your main problem seems to be that people who do not pay their balance in full each month are going to get screwed with higher interest rates than they could get from other credit cards. I am not sure how this equate to a screw them attitude on my part? You are participating in a program that \*depends \*on screwing a large number of the participants to provide benefits that may as well be outright lies for some portion of them. If you think being among the rats fast enough to grab the cheese without getting your neck broken is adequate ethically, _bon appetit_. But otherwise, it’s on the same ethical slope as, and not too far removed from, getting $1,000 for pushing a button that kills 1,000 random people. You just choose not to think of it that way, cuz you’re smart and fast and got yours. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/28 "2013-08-05T19:27:00Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > The catch is that Chase sucks. My least favorite credit card company/website And I only got $30. Plus the usual catches about opening a new credit card from anywhere. Yeah I assume you have to go to [chase.com](http://chase.com) to pay your bill. I used to have a Chase card, they are the company that wanted to charge me something like a $8 rush fee for my CC payment to go through in 1-2 days instead of 3-5 days. And this is for an online payment withdrawn straight from my bank account. It’s not my problem if it takes them days to process the transaction but I wasn’t prepared to have late payments because of it. It was easy to decide to cancel their card. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/29 "2013-08-05T19:32:04Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > You are participating in a program that \*depends \*on screwing a large number of the participants to provide benefits that may as well be outright lies for some portion of them. If you think being among the rats fast enough to grab the cheese without getting your neck broken is adequate ethically, _bon appetit_. > > But otherwise, it’s on the same ethical slope as, and not too far removed from, getting $1,000 for pushing a button that kills 1,000 random people. You just choose not to think of it that way, cuz you’re smart and fast and got yours. Nobody’s getting screwed by credit card companies when they are charged interest. It’s all in the terms and conditions you agree to when you sign up for the card. If you don’t want to pay the interest then your options are: 1) don’t use the card 2) Don’t carry a balance. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/30 "2013-08-05T19:42:53Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Nobody’s getting screwed by credit card companies when they are charged interest. It’s all in the terms and conditions you agree to when you sign up for the card. If you don’t want to pay the interest then your options are: 1) don’t use the card 2) Don’t carry a balance. It’s not just the interest. Fees, \*excessive \*interest charges and a lack of returned value from the reward systems extract money from the losers in this lottery to fund the spoils of the “winners” and produce significant extra income. I entirely agree that never carrying a card balance is a worthy thing. It’s also not possible for some people (who use cards for major purchases such as appliances, car repair or necessary travel) and like dieting, not everyone is capable of unflagging willpower. Those are all things to be addressed… but I maintain they should not be things to be exploited by “reward” and “cashback” programs that use the weaknesses of a large number of users to reward some much smaller group and generate profits. Not when many of those who fell for the come-on would do much better finding a card matched to their spending and payment habits and abilities, with lower interest, more relaxed payment schedules, lower fees, etc. It’s a lottery… but no one tells the losers that, and the winners don’t care: they just smugly say it’s not their problem. ETA: Just for reference, and to forestall the next limp-wristed argument, I haven’t carried a credit card balance in years. ---
**Author:** ![BorgHunter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@BorgHunter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BorgHunter)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/31 "2013-08-05T21:56:24Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > IIt’s a lottery… but no one tells the losers that, and the winners don’t care: they just smugly say it’s not their problem. How in Og’s name is it in any way similar to a lottery? Did I miss the bit in the terms and conditions where they use a random number generator to assign fees to cardholders? (I _do_ get letters in the mail periodically from Discover, one of my other credit cards, informing me that they _are_ running a lottery, wherein every purchase on the card in some time frame constitutes a ticket. But comparing the “x% cash back” rewards programs to lotteries is completely absurd. There’s no element of chance involved.) ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/32 "2013-08-05T23:25:10Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > It’s not just the interest. Fees, \*excessive \*interest charges and a lack of returned value from the reward systems extract money from the losers in this lottery to fund the spoils of the “winners” and produce significant extra income. You act as though Chase and/or Amazon is somehow _losing_ money on people who use their cards responsibly. Hint: they aren’t. They just aren’t making quite as much money… the same as paying off any credit card on time. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/33 "2013-08-05T23:36:51Z")
OP, not only is it not a scam, but it’s a more responsible way to shop than with a debit card. If your card account gets hacked, it’s not YOUR money that’s messed with. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2013, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/34 "2013-08-05T23:40:12Z")
Funny how paying my bills on time (the ones that post nearly a MONTH before they’re due) makes me one of “A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people.” ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/35 "2013-08-06T00:44:30Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > Funny how paying my bills on time (the ones that post nearly a MONTH before they’re due) makes me one of “A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people.” He did _not_ say lucky. Tell me he didn’t say lucky. ::rereads thread:: > [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people make out Oh Christ, he did. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/36 "2013-08-06T03:05:06Z")
I cancelled my Chase Slate card for the OCDest reason ever, and replaced it with the amazon card. It’s bright green which is fun, and I enjoy the points on things I would buy anyway. And yes, it gets paid off every month. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/37 "2013-08-06T14:31:55Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > The genuine value of the points is still questionable, especially when you look at the whole equation. A few clever, cautious, attentive and lucky people make out; the rest not only pay for their “rewards” but generate profit for Amazon, Chase and everyone else involved. > > If your view of consumer economics is fuck-you-bub-I-got-mine, then no problem, I guess. Sooooo… If I (who puts pretty much all my monthly spending on the Amazon card and others like it and pays them off in full every month, generating a few hundred dollars of cash back each year) and others like me stopped using our reward-generating cards, do you think the credit card companies would generously lower their fees and interest rates for the people who carry balances? Somehow I doubt it. ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/38 "2013-08-06T15:22:06Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > You are participating in a program that \*depends \*on screwing a large number of the participants to provide benefits that may as well be outright lies for some portion of them. If you think being among the rats fast enough to grab the cheese without getting your neck broken is adequate ethically, _bon appetit_. > > But otherwise, it’s on the same ethical slope as, and not too far removed from, getting $1,000 for pushing a button that kills 1,000 random people. You just choose not to think of it that way, cuz you’re smart and fast and got yours. What? How does my taking advantage of a program influence anybody else? I should not do something because others won’t behave? If I don’t do this then Chase will shutter its programs and not charge high interest rates to others? How you think this is some sort of lottery is baffling. Are you being willfully obtuse? ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/39 "2013-08-06T16:00:45Z")
> [@howye](#): > > What? How does my taking advantage of a program influence anybody else? I should not do something because others won’t behave? If I don’t do this then Chase will shutter its programs and not charge high interest rates to others? > > How you think this is some sort of lottery is baffling. Are you being willfully obtuse? If not obtuse then at least ignorant of the financial structure. Every transaction on a credit card has built into it a percentage or fee paid to the credit card company. Vendors are willing to give up 5%-7% of the charge to the CC issuing company for the fact that the convenience is one thing that brings the customer in. Most reward programs kick back 1%-3% of the transaction to the customer. So in a way the Credit Card company helps the customer increase his buying leverage (as an aggregated customer) power and decrease the cost of his purchase. The CC company gets a cut and the customer gets a kickback. The customer rewards are pretty much funded solely by the customers transaction. Granted some customers take a loss-lead offer and then disappear but that is few and far between and that percentage that the CC company has been taking from the vendor easily covers that. So yes, the financially stupid bring the CC company some windfall but diligent customers aren’t riding on their backs. The majority who actually know how to use credit cards are funding their own rewards. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2013, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278/40 "2013-08-06T16:08:53Z")
> [@Dr.Strangelove](#): > > You act as though Chase and/or Amazon is somehow _losing_ money on people who use their cards responsibly. Hint: they aren’t. I understand the entire spectrum of credit-card financial aspects and economics. (For one thing, I used to work for a division of Visa.) I simply see the entire process from a different viewpoint, one that does not accept that some proportion of consumers exist to be exploited in favor of others. Among other things. But by all means keep thinking yourself lucky, smart and/or ethical because you got the cheese. This time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/amazon-com-rewards-visa-card-from-chase-whats-the-catch/665278.md?page=3)