Citi Driver's Edge Platinum MasterCard

Update: Citi is no longer accepting new applications for this card.

The Citi Driver's Edge Platinum MasterCard is a card that allows you to earn 2% of everything you spend on the purchase of a vehicle, new or used, with very few restrictions. All you have to do is go out, find the car of your dreams, purchase it, and then provide proof of purchase to Citi and they will issue you a cheque for the amount you have earned on the card up until that point, not exceeding $5000. Even with these great benefits, it doesn’t get a lot of attention these days, especially since they instituted the $59 annual fee, but it is still a very good card.

When you think about it, almost everyone needs to buy a vehicle at least once in a seven year period, especially if you buy your cars used or like to buy a new car semi-regularly to make sure you are mostly covered under warranty. If you don’t like to travel on points, you want a higher rate of return than most cash back cards offer, or you want forced savings for a big purchase so you can’t easily squander your reward, then you should give some serious thought to this card. Seeing your reward credit growing month after month until you can finally redeem it for a great car would definitely be rewarding!

Positives:

• Higher overall cash back rate than the current best non-tiered cash back card.
• Can redeem on almost any vehicle including ATVs regardless of the seller.
• The reward is given to you in the form of a cheque once proof of purchase is provided to Citi Canada.
• No tiers or minimum spending limits to worry about, you always get 2%.
• Has lots of extra perks associated with being a platinum card.
• Citi is one of the only card issuers to offer price protection insurance.
• No maximum on the amount of cash back that can be earned!
• Free supplementary cards.

Negatives:

• Pseudo cash earned expires 5 years from the date it is first earned.
• Some vehicles are excluded including snowmobiles, watercrafts, motorboats, snow blowers, and lawnmowers.
• Rewards expire 7 years from the year they were first earned (starting in January of the next year).
• New $59 annual fee, which is balanced by more favourable terms & conditions (see struck items below).
• Only redeemable on vehicles purchased in Canada.
• Maximum of $5000 redeemable on any given vehicle purchase.
• Maximum of $1000 pseudo cash earnable per year.
• Cannot be used with a lease.

Insurance Package:

• Extended Warranty – up to 1 year.
• Purchase Protection – 90 days.
• Price protection - 60 days, $100 item maximum, $500 annual maximum.
• Travel Accident - $500,000.
• Baggage Delay - $300.
• Car Rental Theft & Damage (CDW & LDW).

Minor Perks:

• Call centre assistance for almost any unexpected problem while traveling:
  • Arrange payment for emergency services.
  • Find medical or legal assistance (costs paid by you).
  • Lost document and ticket replacement (costs paid by you).
  • Lost baggage assistance (costs paid by you).
  • Pre-trip planning information (entry requirements, vaccinations, etc).