A new credit card has been launched by Capital One that aims to give the best of both worlds for British customers when they are at home and abroad.
Customers will not pay any commission on purchases made overseas using the Capital One Aspire World card, while they can get cashback of up to 1.25 per cent on transactions in pounds sterling.
But users should be wary not to use the card to make cash withdrawals, as this comes with a handling fee of three per cent of the amount withdrawn, minimum £3, both overseas and in the UK.
No fee: Capital One Aspire World customers will not be charge for purchases made overseas.Meanwhile in order to get the top 1.25 per cent cashback rate, you have to spend more than £10,000 on the card in the space of a year. The rate falls if you spend less than this - you'll get 0.5 per cent cashback if you spend less than £6,000 (see below).
Capital One also makes it clear that only those with an 'excellent credit history' are likely to be accepted for the card, so those without one should not apply as a rejection could affect their credit score.
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She said: 'There are too few cards that don't charge for spending when abroad. There is also a lack of cashback cards to choose from, despite cashback being very popular with consumers so this is sure to be an added attraction.
'One word of warning though, to get the marketed 1.25 per cent, you do need to spend £10,000-a-year which works out at over £800 per month.'
Personal finance expert Andrew Hagger, of Moneycomms, added: 'Credit cards that don’t levy additional fees for overseas transactions are few and far between so this new deal is likely to prove popular, even more so as it also comes with a generous cash back incentive.'
How it comparesThe amount of cashback you can get using the card depends on how much you spend, as it will pay out 0.5 per cent on purchases up to £5,999-a-year, 1 per cent for between £6,000 and £9,999, and 1.25 per cent thereafter.
Customers are given 45 days to clear their balance before interest kicks in, which stands at a reasonably hefty 19.9 per cent APR representative.
While the card has its positives, it is not as good as the card offered by Nationwide Building Society to its FlexAccount, FlexDirect and FlexPlus customers.
BEST CASHBACK CREDIT CARDSProvider Cashback* 1 Barclaycard 6% 2 Amex Platinum 5% 3 Capital One 5% 4 Sainsbury’s 5% 5 Santander 123 3% *introductory offer periods vary
Nationwide's Select card comes with zero commission on foreign purchases, 0.5 per cent cashback and an introductory 12-month zero interest period on purchases, as well as a lower typical interest rate of 12.9 per cent APR representative.
But the Aspire World card compares favourably with the majority of other cashback credit cards on the market in that it doesn't levy an annual fee on its customers.
That said, Barclaycard is currently running an offer during June in which it will waive the £24 annual fee on its High 5 Cashback Card, that gives 6 per cent cashback on the five biggest monthly purchases in the first three months of opening an account, and 2 per cent on the biggest purchases thereafter.
Michael Woodburn, of Capital One, said: 'Consumers are looking for a range of benefits from their credit card, and Aspire World hits the mark both at home and abroad.
'With summer rapidly approaching, Aspire World will be especially appreciated by holidaymakers who want to make the most of their money abroad.' and continue to benefit back home.'