British Airways and Chase Card Services Announce New Card Benefits for International Travelers
British Airways Visa Signature® Card is the First Airline Rewards Card to Eliminate Fees on International Purchases
WILMINGTON, Del. - Nov. 4, 2010 - With the holiday travel season right around the corner, today Chase Card Services, a division of JPMorgan Chase & Co. [NYSE: JPM] and British Airways [LON: BAY], announced a new, compelling benefit for international travelers. Starting this month, there will be no foreign transaction fees on international purchases using the British Airways Visa Signature® Card from Chase - a one-of-a-kind offering in the co-branded airline card category. The card proposition is managed by Chase in partnership with The Mileage Company, operators of British Airways BA Miles rewards.
"Chase Card Services is continuously looking for new ways to deliver exceptional value to our customers who travel internationally," said Tony Glover, senior vice president, Chase Card Services. "The British Airways Visa Signature Card will ultimately deliver cardmembers three percent savings on every purchase made abroad."
"The British Airways Visa Signature Card was designed to reward individuals who frequently travel internationally," said Andrew Swaffield, managing director of The Mileage Company. "The new proposition, combined with the unprecedented companion redemption voucher program and significant earn-rate for BA Miles, make our program extremely attractive to our target audience.'
As part of today's announcement, Chase is offering 50,000 bonus BA miles - enough for a transatlantic flight - to new cardmembers. The first 25,000 miles will be awarded after the first purchase with the Card, and an additional 25,000 miles will be awarded after $2,500 in spend in the first 3 months.
Other key features of the British Airways Visa Signature Card include:
- More Ways to Earn BA Miles - The British Airways Visa Signature Card is one of the fastest ways for frequent British Airways passengers to earn miles towards future travel. Cardmembers earn 2.5 BA miles for every $1 spent on British Airways purchases. All other purchases made with the Card, including payments ranging from utility bills to gym memberships, earn 1.25 BA miles for every $1 spent.
- Redeem for 1, Travel for 2 - Each and every year a cardmember spends $30,000 they will receive a flight redemption voucher, valid for two years. To use the voucher, cardmembers simply redeem BA Miles for travel. The voucher can then be used to bring a companion along with them, who will fly in the same class of service, requiring no additional miles for travel.
- More Ways to Redeem BA Miles - With the British Airways Visa Signature Card, cardmembers have the option to redeem their miles for flight upgrades and future travel on British Airways or any one of its 10 oneworld® alliance partners.
The Card is accepted at millions of locations worldwide and has an annual fee of $75.00. For more information or to apply for the Card, visit www.chase.com/britishairways or www.ba.com.
About JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.1 trillion and operations in more than 60 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management and private equity. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world's most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.
About British Airways
British Airways is one of the world's largest international airlines. Operating one of the most extensive international scheduled airline route networks, together with our codeshare and franchise partners, we fly to more than 300 destinations worldwide. Also, one of the world's longest established airlines, it has always been regarded as an industry-leader. We fly our customers at convenient times to the best located airports across the world.
British Airways is one of the world's leading global premium airlines. Our principal place of business is London with significant presence at Heathrow, Gatwick and London City. We also operate a worldwide air cargo business, largely in conjunction with our scheduled passenger services. The airline operates the majority of its domestic UK, international and intercontinental flights from its home at Terminal 5, Heathrow.
Whether customers are in the air or on the ground, British Airways takes pride in providing a full service experience. For more information visit www.ba.com.
About The Mileage Company
The Mileage Company, headquartered in the UK with a US operations branch, works with over 200 brands world-wide to drive customer engagement and loyalty with compelling rewards programs. In-depth expertise provided by The Mileage Company includes research and loyalty analytics, customer relationship management (CRM) and loyalty marketing and accounting skills associated with loyalty schemes enabling clients to focus on their core business while rewarding customer loyalty and in turn driving profit and growth. In the last year, four million people have collected or redeemed miles with one of The Mileage Company's schemes, from the global BA Miles currency to UK-based Airmiles. For more information visit www.themileagecompany.com.