FEATURES SUMMARY

• Annual fee: Low annual fee
• Purchase rate: Low p.a. purchase rate
• Cash Advance rate: Low p.a. cash advance rate
• Balance Transfer rate: Low p.a. balance transfer rate
• Interest-free days: Up to 55
• Extras:
  • Cashback

• • Price Guarantee
  • Extended warranty
  • MasterCard moments
  • Phone/Internet banking
  • 24/7 Concierge Service
  • Rewards (plus bonus points)
  • Purchase Protection insurance

With the Bankwest More Gold MasterCard being pretty good value, the pressure is on for the More Platinum MasterCard to prove itself just as worthy. So let’s see what it has to offer.

It’s only fair that first we point out the annual fee, which is  more than the Gold card. This is pretty average for a platinum credit card, but do the features and benefits measure up to this increase in annual fee?

Well, let’s see. The interest free period (up to 55 days) and the cash advance rate are the same as the Gold card. But then we see a nice little decrease in the purchase rate, bringing it down. This in turn decreases the balance transfer rate as well, so both are lower than their Gold card counterparts.

Rewards points are earned at a rate of two points for every dollar spent, with a maximum of 400,000 points able to be earned per year. To reach this maximum you’d need to spend $200,000 on your credit card in a year (or nearly $17,000 a month) so we think you should be ok! As a nice little bonus, Bankwest increases the bonus points given to platinum cardholders, with 15,000 bonus points when your More Platinum credit card is activated. As a result this credit card is the #2 place getter in the Editor’s Choice – Rewards Credit Cards category.

It also comes with all the same travel and insurance benefits, plus another addition to sweeten the deal. Your international travel insurance covers you for up to six months of travel and for things such as rental vehicle excess, unexpected travel delays or cancellations, medical expenses and even (we hate to say it) funeral costs.

Purchase security insurance also gives platinum cardholders at Bankwest up to $30,000 in claims for damaged, stolen or lost credit card purchases. Warranties of less than one year are doubled and warranties from one to four years are extended by 12 months under Bankwest’s extended warranty insurance.

It also allows up to $15,000 in claims per year. Price guarantee insurance on the platinum card means you can be refunded up to $500 on any one item that is reported within 21 days of purchase. You’ll also get a 24/7 personal concierge service as part of the rewards credit card’s benefits.

So judging by the lower interest rates, the annual fee and the additions to the many travel and insurance benefits available, we think it would be fair to say that the More Platinum Rewards credit card from Bankwest really does step up to the mark, with benefits that are most definitely proportionate to its price.

See our top credit card picks in the Editor’s Choice category

FEATURES SUMMARY

• Annual fee: Low annual fee
• Purchase rate: Low p.a. purchase rate
• Cash Advance rate: Low p.a. cash advance rate
• Balance Transfer rate: Low p.a. balance transfer rate
• Interest-free days: Up to 55

• Extras:
  • Rewards
  • Cashback
  • Purchase cover
  • Extended warranty
  • Phone/Internet banking
  • Personal Concierge Service
  • Priority Platinum phone line
  • International travel insurance

The platinum credit card from Bank of Queensland is a perplexing one. Why? Well, with all the competition out there, Bank of Queensland has still chosen to offer a credit card with all the same benefit as most other platinum credit cards, but with a high annual fee and much higher interest rates than most.

Despite these features, Bank of Queensland’s rewards program has enabled this card to be a pretty good card for cash back rewards. This card has free automatic membership to Q Rewards where points are earned at the rate of 2 points for every dollar spent on your platinum credit card. These can go towards your choice of rewards including travel, home ware, cash back, shopping vouchers, and whole bunch of retail products.

With this rewards credit card you get the majority of the usual travel benefits, including international travel insurance, personal concierge service, purchase protection (for up to $200,000) and extended warranty on purchases. Although it was interesting to see that transit accident insurance wasn’t included with this card as most platinum credit cards do tend to include this.

It’s not the highest priced platinum card out there but it is still pretty expensive. However the biggest let down on this card is the interest rates for cash advances and for purchases. Despite having up to 55 days interest free, rates like these rates could quite easily lead to accumulating interest on your bills if you don’t manage to pay it in full each month.

On a brighter note, the balance transfer offer is  for the life of all new transfer applications. Of all the low balance transfer credit cards we have reviewed, Bank of Queensland’s cards were the only ones which offered a low rate on an ongoing basis, which is probably this card’s shining light.

See our top credit card picks in the Editor’s Choice category

FEATURES SUMMARY

• Annual fee: Low annual fee
• Purchase rate: Low p.a. purchase rate fee
• Cash Advance rate: Low p.a. cash advance rate
• Balance Transfer rate: Low p.a. balance transfer rate
• Interest-free days: N/A

• Extras:
  • Rewards
  • Cash Back
  • Visa Entertainment
  • Purchase Protection
  • Phone/Internet banking
  • Four free additional cardholders

If you have a large credit card balance that you’re struggling to pay off, or you need to consolidate debts from a number of credit cards then Bank of Queensland’s Blue No Annual Fee credit card is a good option for you.

It is a very close contender for one of the top three spots in the Low Balance Transfer credit cards category. With no annual fee and only low interest for the life of the balance transfer, you’ll have your debts paid off much faster, not to mention you’ll have saved yourself a whole lot of money.

When it comes to its other features however, Bank of Queensland’s Blue No Annual Fee Visa is the epitome of over-compensation. When there are no interest free days on a ‘no annual fee credit card’ with an interest rate like this one, balance transfers are the only way in which this card will be beneficial for anyone. You’ve got no interest free days, so if you happen to make some purchases you will need to pay them off as soon as you can to avoid more debt.

Bank of Queensland’s free-to-join rewards program, Q Rewards, will reward you for spending with your Blue No Annual Fee credit card. Earning 1.5 points per dollar spent, you can build up points to reward yourself with flights from Qantas, JetStar or Virgin Blue, or vouchers for a wide range of shopping and entertainment including Dreamworld, David Jones and Myer.

You can also redeem your points as cash back, where it is credited directly back to your credit card, Bank of Queensland loan, or even used to pay your annual fee. Points are capped at $65,000 points per year which is just under $44,000 worth of spending, so you’ve got a lot of leg room when it comes to earning your Q Rewards points.

Purchase protection is another feature of this credit card which gives it value for money. If you’ve bought anything on your Blue No Annual Fee credit card that has been lost, stolen or damaged (within three months of the purchase date) then Bank of Queensland will sort out a replacement or repair for free, anywhere in the world.

However the balance transfer rate sits for the life of the balance so would be very handy if you have been racking up bills on other cards.

In general, it seems that most people would rather pay a small annual fee and get interest free days (and maybe a few more features than the Bank of Queensland Blue No Annual Fee credit card offers), as it can be easy to fall into a debt trap if you end up having to make more purchases on the credit card than anticipated. However if you use this card purely for it’s best features – the low balance transfer rate and no annual fee – then it could be very valuable.

See our top credit card picks in the Editor’s Choice category