The Offer
Direct Link (Gaint ad page 6) Direct Link (Stop&Shop ad page 6)
- Purchase Mastercard gift cards at Giant or Stop & Shop stores and receive 2x gas points on the purchase.
Visa/Mastercard gift cards usually don’t earn gas points at all. Occasionally, they’ll run a promo offering points on them and even bonusing the purchase with extra points. This time it’s double points on Mastercard gift card purchases. As an example, if you buy one $500 Mastercard gift card you’ll get 1000 points, worth $1.00 off each gallon of gas, up to 35 gallons or a $35 value.
The Fine Print
- Offer valid from 7/31/15 – 8/6/15.
- Must use Stop&Shop/Giant rewards card in order to get the points (and to redeem them as well).
- Be sure to check out your own local stores to make sure that they are running this offer and that the details are the same.
Our Verdict
This is an awesome promo which keeps on coming. I’m loving the $.50 gas prices which I’ve been paying for the past few months straight. It’s particularly useful since buying Visa/Mastercard gift cards at supermarkets can really be a profitable venture in any event, by using a card that earns bonus points at supermarkets, such as Amex Blue Cash, Amex Everyday and so many more. See Best Credit Card For Grocery Store Purchases.
You can only do one $500 card per transaction without needing an override. (Asking to split each card into a separate transaction works.) If you’re doing higher than $2,000, you need to do it at customer service. Max $5000 per day. They usually copy down your driver’s license number on large gift card purchases.
Bear in mind that this time around the deal is on Mastercard gift cards and not Visa cards. These function beautifully as a debit cards in Target, but less so at Walmart. [There are more advanced ways to use them as debit cards at Walmart.] The PIN comes on a little slip hidden inside the packaging.
Gas Points Details
Every 100 points gets you 10¢ off per gallon at Shell, up to 35 gallons. If you have 1000 points, you’ll get $1 off. If you have 2200 points, you’ll get $2.20 off per gallon.
- Max discount in some areas is $2.20. In other areas there is no max.
- You have 30 days to use the points. Day of purchase is Day #1.
Points must be used nearby your store location – they can’t be used at a Shell far away from home. Points can only be used at partner Shell stations and those Shell stations tend to be in the area where the supermarket chain (be it S&S or Giant) is located. You can redeem the points in a completely different area from where you got the points, but only if that Shell station is a partner. Check out the gas locator for Stop & Shop and for Giant for exact listings of which Shell stations are included.- See this post and the FAQ for more details. Some of the details vary by area and store.
- Points usually are available immediately, but I’ve had on occasion where it took a day until they showed up and were usable.
Since gas prices currently hover around $2.70 per gallon, your gas will be $.50 per gallon, or free in some areas.
(Pro tip: use a Shell gift card and you’ll usually get the cash price. Those who are good at math will realize why it’s worthwhile to pay with cash or gift card when using fuel points.)
Sample Deal Scenarios
- If you think you’ll need only 1 fill-up during the month, buy two $500 gift card and get $2 off per gallon. Or buy three $500 gift cards and get $2.20 off the fill-up.
- If you think you’ll need 2 fill-ups during the month, buy five $500 gift cards for a total of 5000 points and you’ll get $2.20 off both fill-ups.
- If you think you’ll need 3 fill-ups during the month, buy seven $500 gift cards for 7000 points and you’ll get $2.20 off the 3 fill-ups.
- Etc.
This is really a good time to pull out those grocery-bonus credit cards and put them to work. It could also make sense to do one gift card run at the beginning of the offer period and a second run at the end to lengthen the life of the points. Some stores can run out of gift cards though so keep that in mind.
HT: Mileswhip
Related: 4x Fuel Points at Kroger-chain Stores (expires 8/11)
