One of the many spare time things I do in the UK is shop at Tesco – mainly to take advantage of their ClubCard scheme.
The scheme is simple: 1 point per pound if you’re just using the basic Clubcard, and varying amounts if you’re collecting via the Credit Card or Bank Account.
For frequent flyers one of those options is converting them into Avios or Virgin Atlantic Flying Club vouchers.
Which is all well and good – except there hasn’t been good conversion bonus in years for Avios, and (personally) Virgin Atlantic Flying Club holds little interest to me.
So what to do? To be honest, I can clock up the points quite easily in Tesco (be it from shopping or filling up the car), so getting more points is never the issue.
More the issue is expiring Clubcard vouchers – by its nature, the programme expires earned vouchers after two years.
As a result, I have a lot of vouchers that are due to expire.
So what to do? Again, I could cash them into Avios – but I’ve got a battle pile of Avios that isn’t getting any smaller. I don’t have any redemptions planned – so no point in converting them into Avios.
For me, extracting value was the main thing – and there’s one way of doing that – replacing my television.
I had a classic 32″ CRT Widescreen telly that in 2002 was… well… bargain basement as an end of line special.
And whilst it’s been a good performer, I’ve noticed the green gun was getting a bit too aggressive some nights. This needed to be addressed after 13 years or so in the flat.
Thankfully, Tesco are having a promotion where Clubcard vouchers are “boosted” in value – with vouchers double the value in store. So £5 of vouchers became £10.
Or in my case £75 became £150.
That’s a sizeable discount which I can live with.
More importantly, TV’s were included in this promotion (Which makes a change!)
So I went to the Tesco near the office, and got myself a present:
A few hours later, it was all assembled, and sitting in the place of the old telly.
The new telly installed. With a fallen over BMI Baby plane. And a Snowglobe.
Is it the most efficient use of Tesco Clubcard Vouchers? Probably not.
If I converted these into Avios, the following math would apply:
- 1 lot of 600 Avios would cost £2.50
- £75 of vouchers divide £2.50 = 30 Lots
- 30 lots multiply 600 Avios = 18000 Avios
- Cost of Avios Cash Purchase = £303
My Clubcard boost was:
- £75 vouchers multiplied by 2 = £150
- Saving on TV = £130
However, my circumstances were:
- The vouchers will expire
- I haven’t seen anything to indicate a better offer would come along
- I needed a new TV.
- And at best, that’s two Business Class Reward flight savers to Europe.
So it isn’t the best value on paper.
However, to me – it is the better value. We all know frequent flyer currencies go down as well as down – British Airways did devalue the Avios programme earlier this year.
Holding 18,000 Avios without any plan of using them (with the balance I have) is foolish. Therefore, I got something that hopefully will last a few years and entertain me whilst I work at home or just want to relax.
It’s also a matter of how we perceive the value of points and miles – and how we utilise those resources. At the moment, I’m valuing Avios less – so for me – getting something I’ll use every day is a bit more important than some miles I might use another day.
On the plus side, I got an extra 14p a litre off fuel next month, and another 269 Tesco Clubcard points for buying the television.
Upsides to everything.
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