Rewards

My bank, in addition to others, has recently cancelled its debit card rewards program. There is some speculation that the debit programs are being done away with in response to the recent legislation that would limit swipe fees.

Now, I don't use my debit card to rack up points, but rather it is how we manage and track our day to day spending (since we don't use credit cards and cash is too hard to track). But, since we've been "earning" points for years and since the program is expiring or changing, I decided to cash out the as many points as I could.

In redeeming points, cash awards (credits to our checking account) have the lowest point to reward ratio, but I went with cash vs. the other choices. I looked at the travel rewards, since we have a few upcoming trips, and I reviewed the gift cards and prepaid cards since the point to reward ratio is better. In the end, since our travel is already, generally, booked and paid for and since the gift cards can expire or be lost, I went with cash.