Update 3/16/20: Card is now live, more details here.
Chase sent out a memo to bankers with a few interesting pieces of information about the United Club credit card:
- The United Club Visa Signature will be replaced with United Club Visa Infinite Card.
- The United Club Card is currently available for signup at the time of this writing, but it will apparently stop being available sometime between now and March 15th when the new Infinite card goes live.
- The new Infinite version will have a $525 annual fee. That’s higher than the current United Club Card annual fee of $450.
- From March 15 – May 17, Chase will have a special launch offer on the newly branded United Blue Infinite card of 100,000 bonus miles when you spend $5,000 in three months. After May 17th, signup bonus will go back to the standard 50,000 points with $3,000 spend offer.
- The terms are clear that the Signature Version and the Infinite version are considered one card for signup bonus purposes; if you got a bonus for any United Club card in the past 24 months, you are not eligible for the a bonus on the new Infinite card.
- Existing United Club Visa Signature cardholders can choose to keep their card or upgrade to the Infinite version. The $450 annual fee is not changing on this version.
- The language sounds like it might be possible to keep the Signature version with its lower annual fee long term. I assume they’ll eventually switch everything over, but it could potentially continue for years at the lower $450 fee if you don’t elect to upgrade.
Final Thoughts
The United Club Card has a $450 annual fee and typically comes with a 50,000 points signup bonus on $3,000 spend. Currently, the public signup bonus is showing at 75,000 on $3,000 spend. It shows an end date of 3/12/20.
If you already have the card, it could make sense to keep the old version long term and save $75 per year. It depends on how you value the Infinite benefits. To me the Infinite change sounds like a positive way of spinning the increased annual fee. I can’t think off the top of my head of any significant benefit to Infinite over Signature now that they stopped with the $100 airline benefit. We’ll have to wait to see what kind of benefits will be offered on the card.
If you don’t yet have the card and are interested in the card long-term it might make sense to apply now at 75,000. You’ll lose 25,000 on the signup bonus, but will save $75 per year, hopefully for a bunch of years.
Well, now that the link is active with details of the benefits, this is actually a horrible offer (apart from the SUB) compared to the current card. They reduce the normal point earning from 1.5 to 1, add in a 2X on restaurant and travel (which is pathetic given 3x to 5x on other cards) and offer 4x on United purchases (which is again less than the 5x on other cards). All that they added is $100 GE/Pre credit which is freely available on many other cheaper cards.
Also i was hoping that as part of the revamp, they might add some way to earn more PQP’s with spend but no such dice.
This is a solidly pathetic “revamp” of a card to be launched.
This is what they negotiated? Shame on Chase.
This card has lost what used to make it valuable. No longer can access United clubs unless flying United, and, more importantly, no longer waves the close in fee. UA instead adds a mileage surcharge which is not waived.
Hooray for an extra 0.5% (card currently earns 1.5% flat) on dining and other travel.
Higher annual fee = collect more money
Eliminating $100 discount air = save more money
Changing to Visa Infinite with higher interchage fee = collect more money
In the end, it’s all about them making more money. What benefit do we get back as consumers? Nothing. 5/24 and useless United Club benefit. Therefore hard pass.
So someone on TPG posted four months ago about a letter they received stating their discontinued card would become a United Club card with a $525 AF, 4x miles on UA purchases, and 2x miles on other travel and restaurant purchases.
Links:
https://thepointsguy.com/news/united-credit-cards-new-mileageplus-program/
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/5d52d1123fae320e2f4ce213914ab36c7c0da1d8070227cbd74681c9eefae91c.jpg
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/55acc90f53963e4b22999783d6b89ac739d3b1c73d703bd53a5003ae491a50fe.jpg
If they add that you just have to hold this card for the free baggage instead of use it, that alone is worth it for me.
What about the United club business card?
I doubt it, but its possible they could have a better trip delay / interuption protection on the VI level of the card rather than the VS level. I think that would be hard to administer in practicality and make customers made who may not understand (nor care) about what level of Visa they have.
These fancier levels of Visa are starting to get close to Amex average interchange rates btw. Merchants are going to start cringing when they see customers whip out the Visa, just like they do with Amex.
Expect more battles like the Kroger one (no visa in certain stores for like 6m last year) as this goes on.
Visa Infinite interchange fees are higher than many Amex.
Hope 5/24 doesn’t apply to this card like when the CSR first came out!
Back when the CSR first came out there were several Chase cards that 5/24 did not apply to. Unlike now. Also, the initial sign up for the CSR without 5/24 was a leaked link, if I remember correctly. When it officially launched 5/24 did apply but in-branch approvals were pretty common. There is a 99.999999% chance 5/24 will apply to this card. It will likely be pre-approved for some in branch though as both current versions of the United personal cards are.
Is Chase the issuer? BAM. 5/24.
Maybe they can include a $10 Poshmark monthly credit, so that you can look your runway best when strutting into that glamorous United club!
and hobnob with all those United employees