AmEx launches 'supermarket' credit card

By UK.CreditCards.com

American Express has launched a new reward credit card that puts a premium on purchases made at supermarkets.

The Express Rewards Credit Card comes with a '3-2-1' payments system, with three points offered per £1 spent in supermarkets, two points for £1 of department store spending and one point per £1 for all other transactions.

In additin, all purchases carry zero per cent interest for the first six months of use.

Points can later be exchanged for gift vouchers, which are redeemed at participating retailers, including HMV and Marks & Spencer.

Katrina Cliffe, head of consumer cards at American Express, said: "The 3-2-1 point earning rate means our credit card reward programme is one of the most generous on the market.

"As much of the UK's shopping bill is spent in supermarkets and major stores, we've aligned with some of the UK's major retailers to bring richer rewards for people's everyday spending."

The Express Rewards Credit Card differs from American Express' own Platinum card, which offers direct cashback rewards linked to purchases.

Other credit cards currently on the market offer rewards including air miles, supermarket clubcard points and charity donations.

Study: Americans check credit card statements more than Britons

By UK.CreditCards.com

Attitudes to credit card security differ between the US and UK, new analysis has shown.

Adeptra, a web security specialist, points out that American consumers check their statements more regularly than their British counterparts.

This means that U.S. customers are much more likely to spot unusual payments, which is one of the main ways in which card fraud is detected.

Adeptra said that 11 per cent of U.S. bank and credit card customers check their accounts daily, while 53 per cent conduct weekly reviews.

By contrast, 67 per cent of Britons only looked at their statements each month and 10 per cent never checked them at all.

Adeptra chief executive Lou Venezia said that consumers should try to conduct the reviews regularly, especially during the festive season.

"Credit and debit fraud is more prevalent than ever," he said.

"As fraudsters look to take advantage of the volume of transactions over this busy shopping period, consumers expect peace of mind as their banks and credit issuers do all they can to stay a step ahead of fraudsters."