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John Lewis: Partnership Card reviews

Name: Partnership Card
Rating: 1.33 (876 reviews)

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1.33

Based on 876 reviews, last reviewed 25th Sep 2025

100% decrease in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

25% increase in 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

88%

Latest highest rating:

5

had a partnership card for years now. had a partnership card for years now. love the rewards vouchers on spends and the points you are awarded for using their credit card which i normally ... Read more Reviewed on: 12th June 2025

Latest lowest rating:

1

If your phone is stolen, you cannot verify anything. I had my phone and card stolen, to cancel your card you need your phone... to do anything, you need your phone. So then decided to used the chat servi... Read more Reviewed on: 25th September 2025

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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?

Find out more about the Partnership card by reading our reviews from the Smart Money People community - people like you. You can also write your own John Lewis Partnership Card review to share your own experiences.

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John Lewis Partnership Card reviews (876)

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

John Lews have lost a loyl customer

Applying for my new John Lewis?New Day card has been a nightmare. After literally hours on the phone to their helpline because I had been given wrong numbers and they could not put things right because their system always seemed to be down, I finally got a temporary card and got it registered. I was assured it would work for 7 days but I immediately tried to use it to pay for a carpet at John Lewis and it was refused. A credit card that is not accepted by its own issuer!! John Lewis has lost my carpet order and a very, very loyal customer will no longer be buying everything from them. Reviewed on: 13th November 2022

Absolutely awful

Their previous credit card was great Reviewed on: 12th November 2022

Badly handled transfer

I have been a customer for over 50 years and feel this transfer to New Day has been very badly handled. Each customer has in effect had to close one account and then open a new account with New Day, for me this has involved one call to John Lewis and 3 to New Day. I eventually managed to set up a link for telephone banking only to be thwarted by ‘face recognition’! Now not sure whether I have arranged payment or not!!! Recommend don’t do face recognition!!!! Reviewed on: 12th November 2022

Terrible service

Had a JL credit card for years, tried to set up the new card and found the whole experience a very frustrating experience. Now moved to Tesco and chatting to the Tesco help line they said they have had 100’s of people moving from John Lewis. Reviewed on: 12th November 2022

Wretched

I have tried for an hour to contact customer services, and I am told that all associates are busy. The promise that I will be answered 'shortly' is clearly a lie. This is not what you expect of John Lewis, and they have to take responsibility for their provider. Reviewed on: 12th November 2022

Appalling New Pay Credit Card

20 year plus loyal John Lewis customer. Refused the new credit card no reason given. No process for John Lewis to rectify appalled by the way this has been handled. Extremely Ill daughter, unable to pay bills resulting from additional expenses incurred. Caused extreme distress. John Lewis have lost my loyalty and respect Reviewed on: 12th November 2022

Confusing

The account number and the card number are completely different so I don't dare risk paying anything off online. There is no explanation of what happens to your old balance. It seems a pity that the move has been made to New Day day without any consultation of existing clients. I closed a New Day account years ago because it was such a mess to manage, and used only my John Lewis card. So I'm a bit gutted to find they've gone to New Day where the problems remain the same Reviewed on: 11th November 2022

Disappointing since New Day took over

I’ve had a JL credit card for about 20 year, but feel like giving up since New Day took over. My card has been declined for no reason in various shops, and my payment has been declined twice this month when I tried to clear my balance and now I face late payment charge for the first time ever, as the provided sort code and account number do not appear to work.. When I eventually got through to customer services to find out why this was happening, the guy was so rude and insisted I must have been trying to pay using the details of my old JL card... as if I wasn’t angry enough already!!! If things don’t improve soon, I’ll be cutting this card up and using my Amex instead. Reviewed on: 11th November 2022

New Partnership Card is badly managed

I entered my PIN wrongly too many times in Marks & Spencer. Because card companies have only recently required customers to occasionally enter their pin and I'd just forgotten it. Subsequently, without my knowledge NewDay (the fools that now manage Partnership Card) froze my card. I only realised this when I went to pay for something in M&S. It was just over 20 quid! And why can they not text to the registered mobile the fact that the card is frozen! I called up NewDay and after entering my date of birth and the account number I was then interrogated by their robot for ages and after shouting "something else" at it about 4 times I was finally put through to a human robot. He confirmed my address and said he'd unfrozen the card. Then he said I had to take the card to a cash point and verify I was who I said I was for "security purposes" It's always "for security purposes" isn't it. I asked him why I had to do this and he said that I might not be who I said I was. I asked how if I wasn't me I would have all this information on myself. He then said "the card may be compromised". I said why the hell don't you allow me to confirm online or alternatively actually ask questions that only I could know. Guess what said? "It's Security sir". Reviewed on: 11th November 2022

Service issues

The New Day credit card is not up to the standard of the Partnership card. Customer service is absent. The telephone system for customer service is irritating and designed to put you off seeking help I will be using my Amex card for future payments I listened to Dame Sharon White on Womans Hour - she seems to think customer service is still a focus at John Lewis - i am not sure that she is aware what is actually going on. As a long standing and loyal customer of over 40 years i am very sad to see the demise of the partnership. Reviewed on: 10th November 2022

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