How I Earned an Extra 7,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

The Chase Ink Business Cash Card is one of my favorite business credit cards. It has earned me a plethora of points and helped me with business-related expenses since I opened it last year. This is the story about how I earned an extra 7,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points thanks to my Ink Business Cash.

The Story

I use my Chase Ink Business Cash Card to help my family pay our cell phone bill each month. When I pay my bill, I usually go to the nearby phone store, which is about five minutes away from my house. The phone store has a kiosk that lets you pay your bill with a credit card. I use the kiosk each month because its more secure than doing an online or phone payment. I have been using the kiosk since we switched back to our provider for the last several months.

Last week, I logged into my Chase app and noticed that I was receiving only one point per dollar for my phone bill. The Ink Business Cash card usually rewards cardholders with a whopping five Ultimate Rewards (UR) points per dollar. Furthermore, I also noticed this was happening consistently for the last several months.

I called Chase customer service upon noticing the pattern and I told the representative what was going on. The representative who helped me was very nice and understanding of my situation. However, she did not say that I would be getting the points back for sure. She calculated how many points were missing and told me that she would escalate my issue to a manager after we got off the phone. I thanked her for everything and ended the call.

Yesterday, I logged into my Chase app and I noticed that I had over 7,000 points in my Ink Business Cash account. This was unusual because I move every point that I earn on my other UR-earning cards to my Sapphire Reserve account each month. I knew right away that Chase had given me the points that were missing from the phone bills.

An Overview of the Chase Ink Business Cash

The Chase Ink Business Cash is one of my favorite business cards for many reasons. It comes with a rare combination of a high sign-up bonus, fantastic rewards, and great redemption options. The one thing this combination lacks in an annual fee, which makes it even better.

The Ink Business Cash comes with a sign-up bonus worth 50,000 UR points. You must spend $3,000 within the first three months to get the points. This is a nice bonus for any card, especially because the minimum spend is not that high for a business card.

Furthermore, it earns 5x UR points for cell phone bills, at office supply stores, and for TV, internet, and cable bills. The card also earns 2x points for Dining and Gas. I use my Ink Business Cash for my family’s cell phone bill and for my gas purchases. The exception is if the Chase Freedom has gas as a 5x category, as it does in this quarter.

The Ink Business Cash is part of the Chase Ultimate Rewards “ecosystem”. However, you cannot redeem UR points with the travel portal or transfer to partners with this card. You will also need a Chase Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, or Ink Business Preferred.

Final Draw

I am grateful that Chase did the right thing by giving me the points that I earned fairly. However, I also learned that its worth paying the phone bill online or over the phone so I can get the points immediately.

A few lessons could be learned and shared with this post. One is to notice how merchants code (and this goes for any issuer). Knowing the different coding patterns for different merchants and card networks lets you know which cards to use when. On a more basic level, this post shows how important it is to know your card’s earning structure.

Furthermore, its also important to notice details and act immediately if you notice anything wrong or unusual. I noticed the pattern with my phone bills, and I was grateful that Chase helped me with all the transactions and not just one.

Apply Today: Chase Ink Business Cash