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John Lewis: Partnership credit card reviews

Name: Partnership credit card
Rating: 2.06 (899 reviews)

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2.06

Based on 899 reviews, last reviewed 22nd Jun 2026

300% increase in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

No new 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

87%

Latest highest rating:

5

Problem free credit card Problem free credit card which makes it easy for me to budget my every day expenses without the worry of being saddled with unsustainable debt. Reviewed on: 12th June 2026

Latest lowest rating:

1

Poor customer experience Received a text message to call New Day urgently re suspected fraud when trying to renew my car insurance online and payment was blocked. Immediately... Read more Reviewed on: 22nd June 2026

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About this product

With the John Lewis Partnership credit card, you earn points on eligible purchases to get John Lewis and Waitrose gift cards.

You can check your eligibility in minutes without affecting your credit rating. There are also John Lewis Partnership cardholder offers, prize draws and opportunities to boost your points.

John Lewis Partnership credit card reviews help you find out what it’s really like to be a customer. If you’ve used John Lewis before, you can also leave a review and share your experience.

John Lewis Partnership credit card reviews (899)

Review of the John Lewis, Partnership credit 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

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

Disappointed

I am really cross by the fact that I have been charged a balance handling fee for transferring my balance over from my partnership card to the new JL card. Also, the number they supplied to enable customers to ring is also not recognised. What a shambles! Reviewed on: 10th November 2022

Rubbish customer service

Payments using bank transfer not showing on my account ! What is going on with this provider? Reviewed on: 10th November 2022

Such a shame :(

I've had my JL Partnership Card for over 20 years and it has never failed me. Customer services has always been easy to get hold of, you speak to someone straight away and it's been brilliant in keeping a watchful eye on my card. Since it's moved to New Day my card has been declined over 8 times for no particular reason - and now I can't even use it to renew online payments. I had to wait 5 mins to go through numerous and confusing voice options when i called the customer helpline only to be told that "there had been a few issues with some customers around payments - and perhaps you could use another card while these are sorted out". Hmmmm! I have long admired the partnership of JL - and have felt proud of it as a UK brand that stands for trust and simplicity in an ever changing and confused world. It seems that it's not just the card that is experiencing issues but the store itself as it certainly has not felt the same over the past 18 months. I will be letting this lapse. Reviewed on: 9th November 2022

Ripped me off!

After being advised that my JLPC would cease to work after 31st October and being moved to New Day, I did not expect the Customer Service to fail. What happened was that given very few options I applied for a balance transfer onto the new card only to find that I paid a whopping amount of transfer charge to NewDay. Absolutely livid that JL can rip off custyomerts like this for their gain. Whikst I accept I had a decent amount owing though well within 30 % of my balance, I nevertheless naively expected JL to waive the transfer fee for existing customers in good will. I have been a JL customer for over 50 years and this was a real kick in the teeth. I won't be staying with them longer than it takes to find a new provider! Reviewed on: 9th November 2022

Very disappointing...

After 15 years as a happy cardholder, I'll be moving elsewhere. 4 occasions now and the card hasn't worked. Why on earth did JLP move from a recognised bank to a mickey mouse fintech? Reviewed on: 8th November 2022

Why change to New Day and lose credibility?

Had a partnership card for over 30 years, always smoothly. Now New Day are involved and I get a letter telling me my emails are not reaching me. Given log in puts me on a black screen with JOHNLEEISCREITCARD.COM in blood letters with links to credit cards that have nothing at all to do with John Lewis cards. Spelling wrong and looks like it’d been done by a hacker or a child. Lost all confidence cut up my card and rang New Day they are hopeless Reviewed on: 8th November 2022

Not worth having

As others have pointed out, reducing the time between the statement being produced and payment due date from 25 days with the old partnership card to 16 days has made the new card practically unusable. I’ll be switching to another provider after many, many years as a partnership card user. John Lewis is no longer putting its customers first Reviewed on: 7th November 2022

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