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John Lewis: Partnership Card reviews

Name: Partnership Card
Rating: 1.32 (862 reviews)

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1.33

Based on 862 reviews, last reviewed 24th Dec 2024

100% decrease in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

67% decrease in 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

88%

Latest highest rating:

5

Customer satisfaction They are vgery focussed and always go the extra step to ensure we are happy Reviewed on: 24th August 2024

Latest lowest rating:

1

Disaster of a credit card company - total fail! We recently tried adding our John Lewis Partnership Card to Apple Pay, only to find it blocked by NewDay, the card provider. Shockingly, this happened... Read more Reviewed on: 24th December 2024

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About this product

Read our John Lewis Finance Partnership Card reviews to help you to find out about the pros and cons of taking out the Partnership credit card. What kind of features does the John Lewis Partnership card have? What do people think of John Lewis' customer service? Does the card have great benefits?

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John Lewis Partnership Card reviews (862)

Review of the John Lewis, Partnership Card:

JLP and Newday in cahoots.

Told I'm ineligible - despite >50 years loyal JLP customer, 5 figure credit limit and score excellent - I have after communications with JLP managers concluded that this oust has been orchestrated by JLP. From sources including JLP and Newday websites,, I speculate: JL stores are in financial difficulty, currently supported by Waitrose itself on the brink. It’s not that JLP doesn't want higher spending loyal customers, it sure does; but what it wants is custom that doesn’t sap profits.    With the HBSC JL Partnership card, each £1 spent qualifies for a point, whose number depends upon whether spent at JL and/or W or elsewhere. The more elsewhere the less JLP gets the more it costs JLP. I think it used to be one point for every £1 spent in JLP, two for every £1 elsewhere. Nowadays for some eligible purchases at JL and W 5 points for every £4 spent; and for other eligible purchases at JL and W 1 point for every £4; 1 point for every £4 spent elsewhere. Fewer vouchers for spending elsewhere is not a deterrent. For example, if a card-holder with £5,000 credit limit spends £4000 a month elsewhere then JLP issues vouchers. Vouchers can only be used in JL or W but it doesn't follow the purchase price has to exceed the vouchers value. A cardholder could amass a substantial sum in vouchers without having spent a penny at JL or W. When using vouchers to buy in JL or W not have to buy anything involving any extra payment for the difference between the vouchers and price. JLP would make a loss. JLP says that over the last five years £230m has been issued in vouchers. How much of approximately £126,000 a day average has gone to customers that haven't paid JLP anything. By enlisting Newday to either render higher credit limit existing Partnership cardholders ineligible or where the applicant is eligible a substantially lower limit JLP is reducing the value of vouchers issued. JLP is probably getting a share of any interest paid by new card-holders and paying a lower commission on receivables (transaction sales). JLP I suspect envisages that where an existing Partnership cardholder is rejected that person would obtain a desired credit limit from another card provider and continue to buy from JL/W whenever. Whether enough existing Partnership cardholders would want to continue loyal to JLP is a separate issue. A JLP partner qualifying for discount told me that for most goods and services there are cheaper deals elsewhere. Not a deposit-taker Newday hasn't any revenue beyond credit cards. It borrows to re-lend, loan note interest between 2% and 6+% a year - with interest rates rising costs will go up: for how much longer its business is sustainable is anyone's guess. To finance JLP's transaction, Newday has taken out a loan of £650M. Any cardholder paying the whole balance monthly is getting an interest-free loan from the date of purchase to balance payment date - if you time it carefully then up to 45 days - so for that reason alone an existing JL Partnership cardholder is ineligible. Newday plans to float shares on the stock market next year so boosting the number of cardholders is to impress shareholders. A £5000 credit limit to one card holder (unlikely to pay interest) is akin to £500 limit to 10 card holders (likely to pay some interest). The net proceeds of a stock market float (rumoured capitalisation £2.5Bn) would provide a injection of interest-free cash. The sad part is that JLP could increase its profit margin and number of loyal customers without having to resort to destroying long-term customer relationships with JLP. Instead of the vouchers issued regardless of where a JL Partnership cardholder spends, the vouchers should be linked to the myJohnLewis and myWaitrose cards. Show or scan a my-card before paying and have the voucher value credited to the my-card - and since printing on paper is costly to administer, to issue every JL and W customer a my-card which can be produced by the customer at the check-out for credit and debit with the points/voucher value. Reviewed on: 5th September 2022

Good rewards

Love the fact that I get rewards for using my card Reviewed on: 28th May 2024

Excellent on clarity and reward

Like the reward and the very clear website and online account management. I have borrowed cash recently. This needed to show on my statement but did not appear quickly enough. However, easy to get the money! Reviewed on: 24th May 2024

Great benefits with John Lewis vouchers, with increa...

Great benefits with John Lewis vouchers, with increased cash back on spend at John Lewis and Waitrose stores. Good app for managing card account, for security checks when making on line transactions and reviewing spend against credit limit Reviewed on: 24th May 2024

Great for Waitrose customers

Great if you shop at Waitrose and John Lewis Reviewed on: 24th May 2024

As an ex JL employee, I was confident that moving to...

As an ex JL employee, I was confident that moving to the New Day card would be easy and didn’t anticipate any problems- how wrong I was…Constant issues with making payments on the app, the latest being adding a new payment card showing as a Mastercard when it’s a Visa card. That doesn’t give me confidence, I’m moving back to HSBC credit card. Reviewed on: 28th March 2024

It is alarming reading these reviews.

It is alarming reading these reviews. I joined basically for the vouchers. Must admit thought the joining instructions were hard to follow and I had to ring helpline for clarity which was surprising. Been a member about three months and the only problem I’ve found so far is that it can take a few days or more for transactions to show up in the app, especially credits when you return goods in person and it’s put back on your card in the shop. . Also when you pay the balance online it doesn’t show up for days and days. So you can’t see an accurate balance most of the time and it is stressful wondering if it will appear. I’ll give it a bit longer before I give up but this time lag is a bit worrying Reviewed on: 25th March 2024

Fair offer and good promotion on products

Fair offer and good promotion on products Reviewed on: 14th March 2024

Beautiful products.

Beautiful products. Large variety off products. Easy to get to. Reviewed on: 16th February 2024

Avoid this card at all costs they have lost my £500...

Avoid this card at all costs they have lost my £500 payment which was done via their App. Newday only seem capable of answering questions from there script,and basically say its not their problem despite the money clearly going into their bank account.What are John Lewis doing getting involved with this bunch of cowboys! Reviewed on: 22nd January 2024

Lost a payment £1200 October 23 still not received r...

Lost a payment £1200 October 23 still not received refund absolute nightmare to deal by no means get this credit card you be sorry you been warned Reviewed on: 17th January 2024

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