Credit card rewards can go a long way toward attracting new customers and encouraging existing borrowers to spend.
But whether they’re earning cash back, points or miles, most consumers end up leaving some reward dollars on the table.
Now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is cracking down on some issuers’ “bait-and-switch” rewards programs. The consumer watchdog announced Wednesday that some credit card companies operating rewards programs may be breaking the law by illegally devaluing earned rewards points and airline miles, or preventing cardholders from earning or redeeming rewards.
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In fact, consumers forfeit about $500 million in rewards each year, according to a 2023 report by the CFPB.
Further, nearly 1 in 4 cardholders — 23% — did not redeem any rewards at all in 2024, according to a new survey by Bankrate, which polled more than 2,500 rewards credit cardholders in November.
CFPB cracks down on rewards tactics
About 90% of all credit card spending is on rewards cards. But according to the CFPB, an increasing number of consumers have reported that some rewards are hard to redeem or are not worth as much as they thought. In 2023 alone, complaints involving credit card rewards jumped 70% over pre-pandemic levels.
“Large credit card issuers too often play a shell game to lure people into high-cost cards, boosting their own profits while denying consumers the rewards they’ve earned,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a statement. “When credit card issuers promise cashback bonuses or free round-trip airfares, they should actually deliver them.”
According to the Consumer Bankers Association, only a small share of credit card users report problems with rewards: Complaints regarding rewards made up just 2% of all credit card complaints reported to the CFPB since January 2020.
“The only bait-and-switch that’s happening here is from the CFPB once again misrepresenting its own data,” CBA President and CEO Lindsey Johnson said in a statement.
“As the CFPB’s own research shows, credit cards are — by far — the best tool for the one-fifth of Americans that lack access to credit to begin building their financial lives,” Johnson said.
Consumer complaints about credit card rewards are exceedingly rare, the American Bankers Association also noted.
“Despite widespread evidence that credit card rewards programs are highly popular and deliver tremendous value to tens of millions of U.S. cardholders from all walks of life, Director Chopra has once again chosen not to let facts get in the way of his decision to tarnish a hugely popular consumer product,” Rob Nichols, the ABA’s president and CEO, said in a statement.
Consumers like reward cards
Even with credit card interest rates near an all-time high, when deciding on a new credit card, 83% of cardholders said their final decision comes down to perks, according to a separate report by CardRates.com.
The majority, or 58%, of credit card users polled by CardRates said they preferred cash back over miles or points. But still, not all cardholders used the credit card rewards available to them.
Travel rewards can be more lucrative but are notoriously harder to redeem, Bankrate also found. Only 11% of rewards cardholders redeemed for a free hotel stay, while just 10% redeemed for a free flight, according to Bankrate.
“Failing to redeem your rewards is a major missed opportunity,” said Bankrate’s senior industry analyst Ted Rossman. “While the best rewards can be subjective, the worst reward is getting nothing at all.”
How to make the most of rewards
In the best-case scenario, credit card rewards are “almost like free money,” said Bill Hardekopf, a credit card expert and CEO of BillSaver.com.
But that’s only if you pay your credit card off on time and in full every month. With credit card rates over 20%, on average, the benefits of cash back or other perks are quickly eroded if you carry a balance.
“If you miss a payment or are late on a payment, you get socked with a huge penalty — that interest rate will far outweigh the rewards you are going to get,” Hardekopf said.
When it comes to which reward card to choose, Hardekopf recommends a cash-back card with a low, or no, annual fee. “The best reward you can get is cash back because cash talks — it’s easy to understand and there’s no problem redeeming.”