If you’re looking to get more mileage from your fill-ups at the gas station, a rewards credit card could be the answer. But be aware these cards can come with a tangle of restrictions.
“As consumers, you have to know what the ground rules are before you start to play the game,’’ notes Bill Hardekopf, chief executive of LowCards.com.
There are two main ways you can go if you want a card that defrays gas costs. General rewards cards often let consumers earn accelerated rewards on select categories, such as groceries, restaurants, or travel. Most cards don’t offer accelerated rewards for gas, but of those that do, the average rate is just under 3 percent, according to CardHub.com. Companies such as BP, ExxonMobil, and Shell also issue their own cards. These cards offer richer rewards on gas, but can come with considerable restrictions. The rewards for other spending categories tend to be more limited, too.
Earning rewards The prospect of earning accelerated rewards for fuel is a powerful selling point. Just be sure you’re actually racking up those promised riches. With Chase Freedom, for example, cardholders earn 5 percent back on select spending categories each quarter. But the card requires you to sign up for the higher rewards each quarter. If it slips your mind, you can still get the points retroactively if you enroll by the end of the quarter. Customers are sent reminders ahead of each quarter to enroll, a Chase spokeswoman said, but she declined to say what percentage of customers regularly remember to do so.
Make sure you know how long accelerated rewards will last. BankAmericard Power Rewards, for instance, gives triple rewards on gas, grocery, and pharmacy purchases â€"but only for six months after the account is opened.
A higher earnings rate may not kick in until you reach a certain spending threshold. So be sure your spending habits are in sync those requirements.
And there could be caps on how much you can earn.
Redeeming rewards Not everyone follows through to claim their savings. One way to prevent inertia is to set up automatic redemptions. Some cards let you do this at certain intervals, perhaps every time your rewards reach $ 25, $ 50, $ 75, and so on. Otherwise, make a point of checking every few months to see whether it’s time to cash in. Or your rewards might vanish. With Shell MasterCard, for example, rebates expire 12 billing cycles after they are earned.
Even if points won’t expire, your rewards can be wiped clean in other ways. With CostCo’s TrueEarnings Card by American Express, cardholders are issued a rewards coupon for their accumulated rewards once a year. But those who miss payments for two or more billing periods in a row forfeit their rewards for the entire year, for example.
Candice Choi can be reached at www.twitter.com/candicechoi. 
© Copyright 2011 Globe Newspaper Company.
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