Cash or Credit? and Delta Sky Miles ?

[clarabelle]

My bank is offering a Delta Sky Miles debit card.
To get the points you have to make signature purchases on the cash card.

I don't usually use a debit card -except at ATMs, we use credit cards and pay the balance each month to get the points.

Any disadvantages to using a debit card as a credit card?

Just wondering if there are some big disadvantages to this that I am not seeing.

Thanks!

 

[golfgal]

We use our's all the time. The only "negative" is that your purchases don't come with an extra warranty like they do with a regular credit card. We were able to accumulate enough points to cash in for $600 (we could have gotten two round trip plane tickets too). We used that $600 to pay for our hotel room when we were in DC last summer or we could have gotten 4 round trip tickets with that money.

 

[luvmy3]

I pretty much only use my debit card (as credit) because I get reward points.

 

[mtemm]

no debit card. I have a credit card that I pay off and collect the points on, and an atm card. debit cards don't offer the extra protection a credit card does, I don't see the point of them.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

We signed up for the Skymiles debit card with Suntrust about a month ago and are eagerly awaiting our miles. We actually have 2 accounts with them and debated getting 1 on each account so that we could get double the miles.

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks everyone -this helps
I will look into the protection part

 

[clarabelle]

Does anyone have any experience with delta sky smiles?

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

Does anyone have any experience with delta sky smiles?

I had elite status on Delta for years. It is very easy to use your Skymiles. Delta just sent out an email this week that they are doing away with the award redemption fees so now you don't have to pay a fee to use your miles (used to have to pay up to $150 to redeem your miles for a round trip ticket).

On the Delta website you can search for your flights by the number of miles you need to use for that flight. Minimum for a round trip flight is 25,000 miles. If you want to travel at peak times you are looking at 50,000 miles for a round trip ticket. You can book a ticket for yourself or someone else.

Before you sign up for the Skymiles debit card go to www.delta.com and sign up for a skymiles number. The number goes directly on your debit card.

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks Clarabell CF (we have a lot in common)
That helps!

 

[Mickey's Minion]

My bank is offering a Delta Sky Miles debit card.
To get the points you have to make signature purchases on the cash card.

I don't usually use a debit card -except at ATMs, we use credit cards and pay the balance each month to get the points.

Any disadvantages to using a debit card as a credit card?

Just wondering if there are some big disadvantages to this that I am not seeing.

Thanks!

We use our's all the time. The only "negative" is that your purchases don't come with an extra warranty like they do with a regular credit card. We were able to accumulate enough points to cash in for $600 (we could have gotten two round trip plane tickets too). We used that $600 to pay for our hotel room when we were in DC last summer or we could have gotten 4 round trip tickets with that money.

We have a branded debit card, ie a VISA debit card. As long as we always push credit and not debit at checkout, we have all the protections and warranties of a visa credit card.

 

[ClarabelleCowFan]

Thanks Clarabell CF (we have a lot in common)
That helps!

We have a branded debit card, ie a VISA debit card. As long as we always push credit and not debit at checkout, we have all the protections and warranties of a visa credit card.

Don't be so sure. We had a hotel (Doubletree Washington DC) charge us for a stay that we cancelled within the cancellation period. We filed a chargeback with SunTrust and lost. Our card is a debit card with a Visa logo and Doubletree ran it through as a credit card but we still didn't have the same level of protection as we would have if it was a "real" credit card. We will never use a debit card for any type of travel expenses again - tough lesson learned that cost us $226!

 

[DawnCt1]

Does anyone have any experience with delta sky smiles?

Our family of six has been to Hawaii 4 times on Delta Sky Miles. DH and I flew first class with DSs in coach three times. We would never have been able to go once if we had to buy tickets from Ct. to Hawaii for six of us. I love my Delta Sky Miles credit card. I have the gold and platinum. I get two companion tickets each year, mileage boost when I spend over X amount of dollars and I use it for EVERYTHING; groceries, gas, coffee at dunkin donuts. Anyone who takes the card, gets the card. We pay it off completely at the end of the month. I just switched electricity providers because I get 10K miles for switching and two miles for every dollar I spend on electricity. The price is cheaper than CL&P and summer is here; AC, the pool, etc. We are also redoing our kitchen. I put a deposit down on my cabinets with Amex Delta Sky Miles card.

 

[clarabelle]

Thanks again
So there is a Delta Sky Miles Amex?
off to go check that out