Chevron Credit Card a Scam?
With gas stations coast to coast, it comes as no surprise that the Chevron credit card is one of the most widely issued gas cards in America. But be warned… before you fill out an application to get your own, there are a few important things you should know. Is the card a scam? No, it is not (despite what some people have said, to the best of my knowledge what they’re doing is completely legal). But is it is a good way to save money? No, and here’s why…
The Interest Rate Shocker…
Chevron includes Texaco (they acquired the company in 2001) so they issue similar cards under each brand. Their ordinary cards are not affiliated with any major payment networks (like Visa, MasterCard, etc) so they can only be used for purchases at their stations. Two of them offer no rewards on fuel purchases, and the other one that does requires cardmembers to pay a $25 annual fee just to have the ability to earn cash back… not cool! These all carry sky-high interest rates, currently 21.49% APR and up at the time this article is being written.
The company also issues another, different category- the Visa Chevron Texaco cards. The interest rate on these is not cheap either… which can be as high as 20.49% when this post was published.
The Rewards Exposed…
Let’s be honest here. The only reason 95% of us apply for a gas card is because we are looking to get a cash back rebate on our fuel purchases. So you would think these would have fantastic rewards? Well, think again. In fact, according to their official page, it appears their “personal” cards only gives you cashback for the first 2 months only. After that, there’s no great benefits offered. For example, they list “zero fraud liability” as a benefit, when in reality, just about every credit card on the market gives you that. And if they didn’t, federal law protects consumers – you can only be held liable for up to $50 in fraudulent charges – so for them to call this a “benefit” is certainly a stretch. And if you pay the $25.00 for the “premium” card do you think it’s any better? Not much! They only offer a small rebate but it’s not even on gas… only specific travel services, and only those booked through their reservation service (which may or may not have the best prices).
Now their Visa-version does offer gas rewards, but they’re certainly nothing to write home about. It saves up to a dime a gallon, but only at their gas stations (which usually costs a lot, anyway). Also, if you do the math, at $3.00 gas, that only equals out to be about a 3% rebate per gallon.
It Gets Worse…
Our research has found complaint after complaint peppered across the net. For example, one story was by a loyal California cardholder of many years. According to her, she had always paid her bill in full each and every month, never late. While on an unexpected roadtrip, she was struck with a big surprise… GE Capital (who manages these cards) allegedly decided to cut her credit limit from $3,200 to $100 out of the blue. They cited no negative reasons for the change. Her trip was thrown into haywire, as she counted on that card to fill her tank.
The Solution
Stay away from the Chevron credit card. There are so many other options out there when it comes to rebate cards. For example, you may want to check out the no annual fee Discover More card which offers a full 5% cashback bonus in a number of rotating categories, one of them being gas (any station!) The rewards on the Chevron cards are laughable in comparison. To be completely honest with you, I want to disclose that this site does indeed have a financial (advertising) relationship with Discover. However we also do with many other banks too, so there’s many other cards I could promote here instead but I’m not, because I truly believe this is the best and you can see this for yourself…
