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Just about the time that I get around to getting a Chase Disney Rewards Debit Card, I find out that the program is being canceled and it is all Dick Durbin’s fault! Yes, it says right in the letter from Cshase that “Congress recently enacted a new law known as the Durbin Amendment that significantly impacts debit cards. As a result of this law…you will no longer earn Disney Dream Reward Dollars…” In fact, “After October 31, 2011, your Disney debit card will no longer be eligible for the Cardmember Perks of the Disney Rewards Program, such as the Disnsey Theme Park Perks and 10% off select Disney merchandise purchases of $50 or more.”
Man, Dick. What did I ever do to you? What do you have against me getting 10% off select Disney merchandise purchases of $50 or more??
Wait a minute. Is there a chance that this letter might be a little piece of propaganda to get me angry at Congress and to contact my representatives to encourage them to pass the pending legislation that would push back the execution of the Durbin Amendment for at least 2 years? Would Chase really play on my Disney emotions like that?
I did a little research. It turns out that Dick Durbin, and Congress in general, couldn’t care less whether I earn Disney Dollars or get Theme Park Perks. Their main goal is actually to regulate the amount of money that big banks are charging store owners every time you use your debit card as a credit card. Apparently the banks have been charging the store owners quite a bit for this, which is why Chase keeps reminding me NOT to use my debit card as a debit transaction but rather as a credit transaction if I want to earn my rewards. Tricky.
I can’t say whether I agree with the Durbin Amendment because I am not a finance kind of gal. What I do disagree with is Chase trying to blame everything on the Amendment when really it is a BUSINESS decision that Chase is making because continuing to offer the rewards would cut into their profits (which supposedly were WAY up last year). The letter from Chase places all the blame on Congress, and most people will take the letter at face value as “just another way that Congress is taking away my money.” In reality, the Amendment is meant to help consumers by keeping transaction fees down (a cap of 7 to 12 cents on each swipe), which supposedly will lead to the discounts being passed along to the customers at the store level. (Again, I’m not arguing the merit of whether that will happen. Who knows?)
I guess I’ll have to find another way to pay for my vacations to see Mickey Mouse (like earning Disney gift cards through Sunshine Rewards??) or good old-fashioned saving my pennies. What are your thoughts? Is Chase playing fair? Do you feel sorry for them?
If you honestly think that lowering these fees is going to save us as consumers money, you are delusional. Think about everything we buy that is manufactured overseas and how often do we see a company slash prices because they are now saving money? The profits will go into the pockets of the business owners; which, by the way, I am not faulting, it’s a business, people are in business to make money and banks are a business – not a non profit. “Big Banks” charge the interchange rate because the credit card companies charge! Aside from paying Mastercard/Visa, Discover, AMEX, etc these fees fund rewards programs, new products and services, lending, new branches, ATMs, online services, and on and on and on …. It’s how the world works – everyone pays at some point or another – especially for products and services they use! So the winners with this legislation is the business owner … it’s up to them as to whether they pass those savings on to consumers.
I can see Chase’s point because they use those fees to award the reward dollars but they weren’t very upfront about that in the letter you received. It seems like they should be more transparent in their hidden request for customers to contact Congress and complain.
The Disney Visa is fee free so that could be an option for people who normally use the debit card and have good money management skills like tracking their purchases and paying off once a week or once a month.
We had a Disney Visa and may switch back to it now for the rewards. Although I have to say that since we got the Disney Debit, we have been doing a much better job of only using our debit card and not using our credit cards very much. It was kind of helping us make better choices. Of course, better choices that we should have been making without the encouragement of Disney Rewards. LOL!