? Earn points from flights
? Spend points on flights
? Credit Card

…. how Nectar has become the loyalty programme for easyJet.

Mass market loyalty shopping programme Nectar has its own eStore which lets you click-through to retailers and earn Nectar points (much like the cashback sites such as Quidco and TopCashBack).

While generally not as generous as the cashback sites or as flexible (earning points rather than cash), Nectar does have some merchants for cashback that you won’t find elsewhere – such as their exclusive agreement with easyJet.

Earning:

For each pound you spend on your easyJet booking after clicking through from the Nectar eShop you will earn 1 Nectar point.

Now 1 Nectar point is generally worth only half a penny. So outside of any bonus offers you are only getting about 0.5% back – but it is better than nothing and the only easyjet cashback option available.

Spending:

As well as being an earning partner with Nectar, easyJet are also a redemption partner. For every 500 Nectar points, you will get £2.50 to spend at easyJet.

This is essentially the same spend rate as you get for most other things with nectar points if you would rather redeem them for something else. The redemption options that look like they may pay out at a higher rate generally have restrictions, e.g. theme park ticket vouchers are only good against the official ‘full price’ tickets, and are poor value when compared with ‘web prices’ and the abundant 2-for-1 offers, for which the nectar payment can not be combined with it seems.

However, there is a bonus option available for easyJet redemptions…

Collect More, Fly More  with Sainsburys

This is a promotion which you can register for that lets you earn a 10% rebate of the Nectar points redeemed with easyJet. Raising the redemption rate with easyJet to effectively £2.75 per 500 when considered over the longer term.

You must be registered for this and also must have swiped you Nectar card in Sainsburys within 12 weeks before the redemption (i.e. 3 months!)

Additionally, when you do register you can qualify for a single (one time) double points coupon for shopping with Sainsburys. [Obviously worth using with a bigger shop, not just a sandwich, if you can.]

There is also a monthly prize draw for 40,000 nectar points. All registered members of CMFM who have shopped in Sainburys at least once a month will be entered into monthly prize draws for 40,000 Nectar points.

To register for Collect More, Fly More visit:
http://www.nectar.com/collectmoreflymore

Even if you have already registered for Nectar itself, if you have not yet used their online eStore, please consider using my ‘Refer-A-Friend‘ link for the Nectar eShops – you will earn 100 bonus points for doing so.

Other travel merchants they seem to have exclusively include discount coach company MegaBus.

Credit Cards

After earning FROM flights and spending ON flights, the next thing every airline loyalty programme needs is a credit card.

With Nectar, it would be easy to limit yourself to just the main Nectar credit card issued by American Express.

This earns 2 Nectar points per £ (effectively 1% back), or 4 per pound with some Nectar partners. While it is an Amex card and so does let you take part in their foursquare deals, it does suffer form being only an Amex card – and there are some merchants who don’t accept Amex.

There are however the non-Amex cards earning Nectar points issued by Sainburys Bank to consider as well, although after their rather generous 3 month period, they become rather stingy for non-Sainburys spend.

And finally Nectar is also an Amex Membership Rewards points partner, so if you want to you can spend some of your Amex MR points on easyJet flights via Nectar. Although the exchange rate is 1MR>1Nectar, which would be a poor use of MR points unless you are MR rich and would rather save the cash – otherwise keep the MR and spend the cash.

In conclusion

if you have easyJet flights you are going to be booking anyway you might as well go via the Nectar eShop and earn some Nectar points.

Similarly if you have Nectar points and make the occasional Sainburys shop to qualify for the ‘Collect More Fly More’ rebate on easyJet redemptions, easyJet becomes one of the better value uses of nectar points.

Periodically nectar eStores have bonus offers running I’ve seen easyJet up to 3 Nectar points per £ (equivalent to 1.5% back). So if you are a ‘route commuter’ booking blocks of flights in advance look out for those.

[This content was originally published by me here on UKpoints.com in August 2012. Republished in the new system.]