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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

No new 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

Credit limit slashed 97% with nice to New Day

We've been loyal customers of John Lewis for decades and have had a JL credit card for many years with an £8k limit - always paying the balance. I'm in a very high inches bracket with an excellent credit score. Yet with the move to New Day, or card limit has been reduced to £250. So the message is clear that JL don't want us to use the credit card. We tried to get the king raised but we're just told to complain. Our response is simply not to use the card and not to shop at John Lewis anymore. The company has clearly shown how little it values us as long-standing loyal customers. Reviewed on: 11th September 2022

Rejected for new JL credit card

My wife was rejected by Newday for the new JL credit card. Similar experience to others in that we are financially secure, good income, good credit score and always paid off balance in full. We decided not to even bother complaining or querying why. It was actually quicker to apply to a new card provider than waste time querying the decision with Newday. We’ve now gone for a cash back credit card that provides better returns than the old Partnership card due to our annual spend. We will now also shop around rather than shop almost exclusively at Waitrose. Initially we were very annoyed to be dumped as a customer given our previous support for JL but the silver lining is it that this will certainly be money saving for us. Don’t bother complaining just go elsewhere. In our experience JL is not the organisation it once was. Reviewed on: 11th September 2022

Annoyed and very disappointed with JL

I have had a JL Card since it was George Henry Lee in Liverpool then It changed to a JL Partnership card. I applied for the new card, as requested, and it was declined. I pay the balance in full every month on time, I have just bought all my kitchen appliances from you and I buy all my groceries from Waitrose so I am afraid JL you have lost me as a loyal customer. Worst of all there is no explanation for the new card being declined. Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

Company values

JL&W seem to have lost the plot recently. We have had a JL credit card for many years. We recently applied for a new as requested. We were rejected, something that has never happened before. No explanation. Our situation - assets of mid single figure millions, cash in bank six figure sum, annual income six figures. What has happened? We’re now seriously considering moving to either M&S food or Ocado as the quality of Waitrose fresh food has fallen. Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

Appalling service

Like everyone else I have had to apply for a new card,but as I don't possess a mobile phone( I'm 84) I was informed that I could not have one. I now have one from American Express with no trouble at all. Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

Dark NewDay for John Lewis

I have been allowed a Newday Partnership card but with my previous credit limit halved. This despite many years of operating my J L account in an exemplary fashion, (admittedly not in a way that provided any interest income for HSBC - balance paid in full each month). This also despite a personal Experian credit rating of 996 out of 999. I concur with many others, I suspect ageism is in play here, I am 72 but with a decent pension income made up of two full state pensions and monthly drawdown from a substantial pot of personal pension investments and Isas. The credit limit they have allowed will not work for me, although over the past 18 months I would only have exceeded it on three occasions, I felt the extra confidence the higher limit provided was very valuable, especially in the event of an emergency when travelling abroad. I have not used the NewDay card yet and based on some of the horror stories I have read on the web I am reluctant to start doing so. Time for a new card provider I think, and alternate retail outlets to John Lewis and Waitrose. What a shame. Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

new account card with New Day

Have been provided with new card and set up account but it is impossible to activate the new card and there is no telephone assistance as there is clearly a technical problem as the process is going round in a loop. I wasted an hour trying to report it and get support. There is no telephone activation as previously. John Lewis has chosen a very poor provider Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

Not accecpted

Recently I signed up for a new credit card. Gave my details, and boxes duly ticked as being correct, only to be told that I have been declined for this new card. Have requested a credit card from a well-known grocery store without any problems. Reviewed on: 10th September 2022

Won't Bother

We have had joint John Lewis cards for decades. My wife used to work for them. I have had the invite to transfer but I can't be bothered, as other cards, we have, already offer better perks, kept out of loyalty for Waitrose. Looking at all the negative reviews, I assume we are not the kind of customers they want. No financial issues 25K limit cleared every month. Reviewed on: 9th September 2022

Disappointed and annoyed

Like so many people I was irritated that I had to go through the process of applying for a new credit card after holding the existing one since the card was launched in 2004. Like so many others I am now declined a new card after years of faultless credit history, paying off the monthly balance in full. It is all very short sighted of John Lewis and one more reason to shop elsewhere. Reviewed on: 8th September 2022

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