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anyone here using a charge card for spending?

i've been spending on credit cards for a long time, and i've never had a charge card.

i understand that with a charge card there is no opportunity to pay only a portion of the balance, and carry some of the spending balance over to a later date, but i don't do that anyway.

any thoughts or ideas as to the benefits?

AFAIK Amex and Diners were the only mainstream issuers of charge cards in the UK - and Diners is almost completely extinct here. No idea why charge cards are still a thing.

i've never seen a Diners Club card..
Amex are pretty much The provider here in the UK aren't they?
their charge cards are a significant part of their business though.
have you used one pab?

There used to be another card in the UK called Style but never very popular. Their logo was a large S in gold and blue; difficult to even find a picture now. I had one briefly, although don't recall the terms. It was common for shops like John Lewis, Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Top Shop, Burton, etc to issue store cards during the 1980s-90s but they operated more like credit cards than charge cards, usually giving a discount on first purchase and providing credit that could be paid off over multiple months (generally at high rates of interest). They're probably all replaced with MasterCard/Visa credit cards now.

How about fuel cards? I don't know much about them - are they mostly pre-paid? I presume you need to use quite a lot of fuel to make them worthwhile and perhaps linked to business expenses.

Diners - When MBNA bailed out of most affinity/affiliate cards a few years ago, Lufthansa moved to a strange model with a MasterCard (prepaid?) debit card backed by a Diners card. Spend on the debit card was instantaneously met by a transfer from the Diners.

The arrangement has now ended and Lufthansa don't have a card issuing partner in UK.


Most fuel cards are effectively charge cards. The business providing them gets a monthly statement and the balance is collected a couple of weeks later. One provider has partnered with Barclaycard, so the card is Visa branded but can still only be used for fuel and at a few related merchants.

planteria wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 12 2021 10:03am

Amex are pretty much The provider here in the UK aren't they?
their charge cards are a significant part of their business though.
have you used one pab?

Not sure they are that significant. BA, and Nectar are both credit cards, as is their new tie up with Amazon. I do have a business Amex charge card, but use it infrequently.

planteria wrote: ↑

Sun Jul 11 2021 9:52am

anyone here using a charge card for spending?

i've been spending on credit cards for a long time, and i've never had a charge card.

i understand that with a charge card there is no opportunity to pay only a portion of the balance, and carry some of the spending balance over to a later date, but i don't do that anyway.

any thoughts or ideas as to the benefits?

I use Amex for day to day spending.
Benefits = Air Miles (there are other benefits like Amex's travel service and access to airport lounges, but I don't use them. I'm in it for the points, nothing else).

Yes, you have to clear the balance each month, or incur a penalty - very much like a credit card. I clear the balance, and to all intents and purposes the Amex card is exactly the same as a credit card for me. It works with Apple Pay and as an Oyster card if you're in London.

Just beware that you always need a backup alternative payment means (eg. Mastercard/Visa) because a lot of places still don't take Amex.