If you have more than a few credit cards, as many of us who collect loyalty points do, it’s a good idea to evaluate why you’re keeping each one. By doing this, you can avoid paying an annual fee for a redundant card. Last year, I realized I wasn’t using a card that I thought had a solid set of benefits. It turned out that this card overlapped with my other cards for almost every category. Consequently, despite its $95 annual fee, I stashed it in a drawer.
I decided to keep it for one more year to see if I would use it. I even took it on a trip. However, doing that only proved that I didn’t have to keep it, so now it’s on the chopping block.
Ditching the Ink Preferred
The Ink Preferred was the first business card I signed up for with Chase. It’s the card where I had to jump through hoops to prove to the bank that I had a real business. However, I now have an Ink Cash card that I use more than the Ink Preferred card.
The Chase Ink Business Preferred earns 3X points on the first $150,000 spent in combined purchases for each account anniversary (not calendar) year in the following categories.
- Travel
- Shipping Purchases
- Internet, cable and phone services
- Social media and search engine advertising
The card earns one point per dollar for all other spending, and the total number of points you can receive is unlimited.
I use the Chase Sapphire Reserve for travel expenses and receive the same 3x Ultimate Rewards points. We don’t have any shipping or social media advertising expenses, and I can put our internet and cable expenses on my Chase Ink Cash card for 5X Ultimate Rewards. I’ve also also moved our T-Mobile bill to our Venture X because we earn 2X points and also have cell phone insurance with a $50 deductible.
The card also provides travel perks like primary car rental coverage and Trip Delay and Baggage Delay, but I’m not taking advantage of those benefits. Since I already have a Sapphire Reserve card, I’ll still be able to transfer my Ultimate Rewards points to partner airline and hotel programs. I can also book through Chase Travel and get a 1.5 cents per point value, better than the 1.25 cent value with the Ink Preferred.
Downgrade Options
Some of you might be wondering why I’m not downgrading my Ink Preferred to one of the no-annual-fee Ink cards. Since I already have an Ink Cash card, which I’m not maxing out, the most obvious choice would be to get an Ink Unlimited.
I like the 1.5X points earned on all purchases that Ink Unlimited provides. However, if I do a product change, I’ll miss out on the card’s sign-up bonus, which currently sits at 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points.
Retention Offers
I am hoping that Chase might offer a retention offer to keep the card. Based on what I’ve read online, it seems that they are not highly motivated to keep cardholders, and retention offers are rare. However, it can’t hurt to ask before I decide to close the card.
Final Thought
Should I keep the Chase Ink Preferred, downgrade to a different card, consider a retention offer, or just close the card and wait for an increased sign-up bonus to earn extra Ultimate Rewards?
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1 comment
Speaking strictly anecdotally (as I would never do this myself. Ever. Well, probably not.) here you could have P2 refer you before September 3 and they get 40,000 Chase points and you get 100,000. Maybe 120,000 if you message about a match. 100,000 Chase points is nothing to sneer at, to say nothing of the referral bonus. You could cancel the existing card beforehand if you like.