If you carry a Chase Platinum credit card in your wallet it’s likely you’ve had that credit account for some time. As Chase has moved heavily into the business of providing branded credit cards for major merchants and provided management for those name brand accounts, the lender has also changed its own credit card offers.
Not too long ago you had a sense of satisfaction when your Chase Gold credit card was upgraded to the Chase platinum credit card. With more benefits and higher spending limits, Chase platinum was a step above other credit accounts in status.
Today, the platinum status at Chase Bank is reserved to the Premium Platinum Banking package offered by the investment division of this large online bank. Check and savings accounts are only part of the platinum package and are bundled with investment options, insurance and annuities and certificates of deposit.
The Chase Platinum credit card has been replaced along with the Chase Golf card by Slate, Chase Freedom Visa and Chase Sapphire credit card accounts.
Advantages
The new credit card offers from Chase replace the status of Chase Platinum credit cards with the usefulness of new online management tools and user friendly credit accounts.
Slate from Chase offers a 0% APR introductory rate for twelve full months and features a management package referred to as Blueprint. Traditionally, when you made a payment on your credit card, the lender decided where that payment amount would be applied.
One frequent consumer complaint was that lenders applied all payments to the lowest interest rate balance rather than to the charges carrying higher rates. The customer had no control and no say over what items were paid off first.
The Blueprint option give you control over how your charge account payments are allocated. There are feature that allow you to avoid full interest on selected purchases by separating your purchases into categories.
Account holders have the option of tracking the spending by category such as clothing or groceries or of paying off large purchases on their own terms. The twelve month no-interest introductory rate may be six months for new card holders depending on credit of the applicant.
There is no annual fee for the Chase Slate Visa card. If compared to old style Chase credit accounts, the Sale would be the Chase Platinum credit card alternative on steroids.
Chase Freedom Visa is the new rewards credit card offered by this lender. With cash back in categories such as gasoline, participating department store chains and home improvement warehouse outlets the quarterly offers allows you to build up cash rewards while using your Chase credit card for everyday purchases.
The Chase Freedom card is available with either a MasterCard or Visa logo – your choice. The newer credit cards often carry the logo on the back of the plastic card rather than on the lower right hand corner that has been the standard for years.
In an attempt to lure new credit card account customers to the Chase Freedom card, Chase recently added a bonus $100 cash back payment and a 0% introductory APR for 6 or 12 months.
Chase Sapphire Preferred card is the choice for travelers. It’s the equivalent of the former Chase Platinum card with added benefits of bonus points that can be redeemed with leading airlines. The points transfer on a 1:1 ratio with airline and hotel bonus programs.
There is no annual fee for the first year after you open a Chase Sapphire credit account but a fee of $85 is added to your balance for the second and successive years.
The annual fee has limited consumer interest in the Chase Sapphire credit card which makes it likely Chase will sweeten the deal on this credit account by adding new benefits before long.
Disadvantages
Chase is a well respected provider of consumer credit cards. If the terms offered suit your needs, there is no downside to obtaining a new Chase account. The only exception might be Chase Sapphire where it is important to decide if the higher rewards are enough to balance the annual fee charged.
Credit card offers have been changing rapidly in recent months. Compare the introductory offers and fine print carefully with other major lenders to determine which is best for your personal requirements.
Summary
If you were a consumer with a platinum card from Chase you have already been advised of your new credit card options. The Chase Slate credit account offers the same benefits as the previous Chase Platinum credit card with attraction options for account management not previously available.
Both Chase Slate and Chase Freedom have been widely advertised and seem to be popular with the public. The Chase Sapphire card with its transfers and annual fee is not receiving the same popular acceptance. The benefits of this travel rewards card should be carefully analyzed to see if the terms will be of benefit to you personally.
