John Lewis slashes perks for credit card holders

Customers will need to spend more to receive their rewards

John Lewis (Jonathan Brady/PA) (PA Archive)

John Lewis is slashing perks for its credit card holders – meaning shoppers will need to spend more to reap their rewards.

Points earned on purchases using the credit card convert into gift vouchers to spend in John Lewis and Waitrose.

Each point equates to 1p, but from the beginning of August customers will only earn a point for every £10 they spend – instead of £4.

The less generous perks will mean customers will need to spend more to receive their vouchers in the post.

The rewards for spending in the group’s own stores will remain unchanged at five points for every £4 spent. That means if you spend £100 in John Lewis or Waitrose you will get £1.25 in points.

From the beginning of August customers will only earn a point for every £10 they spend (Getty/iStock)

The company also announced that although there will be cuts to points collected elsewhere customers will get triple points in John Lewis department stores and online in August over the next three years.

A John Lewis Money spokesperson said: “Our rewards are being updated to help maintain our market-leading reward for spending at John Lewis and Waitrose, where customers earn 1.25 per cent back on every pound spent.

"Spending on purchases made elsewhere will earn 0.1 per cent from 1st August.

“These changes enable us to invest in the rewards that are most valued by our customers - alongside a new bonus to help customers earn additional points throughout August.”

The retailer said there were “many other advantages” to its card and it was “adding more for you all the time”. These included double-points promotions, competitions and special offers from its partners.

The reduced point system for spending in other stores is in line with other popular cards offered by supermarkets such as Sainsbury’s and Tesco.

It’s also not the first time John Lewis has cut reduced the offers on its cards.

In 2020, the retailer halved the number of points shoppers could gain from elsewhere from one point per £2 spent to one every £4.