Excellent benefits if you always clear balance (GM Card)

Member Name: Debc

Product:	GM Card
Date:	06/05/02 (726 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Up to £2500 off Vauxhalls, Good online facilities

Disadvantages: Discount varies by model, High interest rate

UPDATED; see last para.

This is NOT a card for people who have trouble clearing their balance monthly. The retail rate is 19.9% which can easily bettered elsewhere on many other cards.

However, if you always clear your balance and you are after a new Vauxhall then this is the card for ALL of your spending. It gives £3 for every £100 spent off a new car, currently up to a maximum of £2500 discount. I opened one as soon as they came onto the market some years back and have had discount off 3 cars, amounting to ~£5000 and I've never paid them (GM card) a penny.

As well as substantial discount off new cars the card also gives smaller discounts off used, Network Q, cars. Discount size depends on model but is around £500 so still worth having if you buy from dealers, as it is on top of any other discounts you can negotiate.

As I usually buy small cars such as the Corsa, the discount amounts to a substantial percentage of the negotiated price. In fact, I couldn't use all of my points on my last car change as once I had traded in my last car and then applied the discount they would have ended up owing me money!

And there's more: There are such things as 'partner points'. Basically this means that if you use your card with certain traders then you get an additional 3%, totalling £6 per £100 spent. These traders are listed on the GMCard shopping website and include Lunn Poly, Pharmacy2U, BOL, Vauxhall dealerships (some items) and a few others.

So, all in all an excellent deal if you want a cheaper vauxhall and always clear your balance. The nearest comparable 'cashback' or points scheme gives 1%, so it's a no brainer. GM (General Motors, of which Vauxhall is a brand) also give you 100 points on opening the card. The card is run by HFC Bank on behalf of GM. Currently they are also offering a balance transfer rate of 4.9% for the first six months upon opening.

Other features:
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I am particularly happy with the online facility available. You can see: your balance, recent & pending transactions, dates paid/to pay, minimum payment, credit limit, interest rates, points balance and previous statements. You can also make balance transfers, payments, change statement date and amend account details. I only wish it would let me download the statement into MS Money (I've asked and they say it 'is coming soon').

UPDATE:

Now the bad news: The scheme rules changed in February. Now, instead of always getting a discount of up to £2500 you will be limited by car type. The new limits of discount are:

Corsa, Agila, Frontera,
VX220 and all Vauxhall Vans £1000

Astra, Astra Coupé
Astra Convertible, Zafira £1250

Vectra £1500

Omega £2500


Summary of rebates:

? Rebate Point reward rate=3%
? Partner Point reward rate=3% (in addition to 3% Rebate Points)
? Partner Points can still be earned at GM Card Partners (Avis, Lunn Poly, Vauxhall Dealers and GM Card Online Shopping Centre)
? 1 Rebate Point/Partner Point= £1 off a new Vauxhall

Summary: