Anyone use a debit card that earns air miles?

[Imzadi]

There was a recent thread about using different envelopes and/or bank accounts for budgeting & bill paying. I've been really researching this system and am going to get another debit card / checking account.

I've only had one debit card that I use for EVERYTHING! A co-worker just told me how she just flew back & forth from Jamaica on vacation for free. She only had to pay the tax of $42. In fact she's had 5 vacation trips where she's flown free.
I knew various credit cards had perks. I didn't know DEBIT cards do too.

Has anyone used the Chase Bank/Continential Airlines debit card? Or the Citibank/American Airlines debit card? Is it worth doing? Both of them are: Earn: One mile for every $2. Are there many restrictions once you get the miles? How do the airmiles equate to ACTUAL miles of a trip? I want to go to CA which is roughly 2600 miles. If I don't have enough air miles, can I use what I have & pay the rest in cash?

What other perks/rewards can you get with debit cards? (Not credit cards.) Thanks!

 

[aka-mad4themouse]

Most airline credit cards reward 1 mile per $1 spent, which is twice what your debit cards will reward. They also offer an incentive of between 10,000 and 15,000 miles just for applying for the card and using it once.

A typical airline reward costs 25,000 miles, regardless of whether the trip is across the state or across the country. Flying outside of the continental US costs more miles, as does flying first class. That means that you would have to make at least $50,000 in debit card purchases to earn one free trip. American AIrlines will allow you to purchase additional miles at a cost of $27.50 per 1,000 miles. You must purchase in increments of 1,000. I'm not sure about Continental.

Airlines restrict the number of seats available to frequent fliers on any given flight. And there are blackout periods where you cannot get a flight at all, like Christmas and Thanksgiving time.

The CitiBank/American Airline card only rewards for signature-based transactions. Those transactions where you use a PIN to pay for the bill will not count towards your miles.

And don't forget the annual fee for the card. Both Citibank and Chase charge $30.

To be honest, I don't think very highly of rewards debit cards but for people who prefer to stay away from credit cards, they are better than nothing. However, I would look into a rewards card that offered something other than airline miles. It takes too long to earn a single reward.

 

[Imzadi]

That means that you would have to make at least $50,000 in debit card purchases to earn one free trip.

Wow, that hardly seems worth it. I do better by buying my fares from Travelocity & paying cash.

To be honest, I don't think very highly of rewards debit cards but for people who prefer to stay away from credit cards, they are better than nothing. However, I would look into a rewards card that offered something other than airline miles. It takes too long to earn a single reward.

Thanks for the info. I just did a web search, (hard to know what words to type in,) & found Wachovia Bank, near me, is offering gift card perks, no annual fee, free checking & debit card & 1 point for every $1. The gift cards given still aren't much, but it will be nice "extra" to have a free Starbucks treat every couple of months, than to try & go for airmiles that would take years.