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John Lewis: Partnership Card reviews

Name: Partnership Card
Rating: 1.86 (894 reviews)

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1.86

Based on 894 reviews, last reviewed 30th Apr 2026

No new 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

700% increase in 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

88%

Latest highest rating:

4

High interest although you gain points using your cr... High interest although you gain points using your credit card whilst shopping in John Lewis Reviewed on: 17th April 2026

Latest lowest rating:

1

Zero TRUST, and HONESTY Customer service is shocking. A distinct lack of ANY rewards for points earned. You call to say you have recieved zero vouchers depite clocking up ove... Read more Reviewed on: 30th April 2026

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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 (894)

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

Quite Beyond Belief!

On 14 October 2016 I cancelled a Partnership CREDIT card because of suspected fraud and requester a replacement. In due course a CONTACTLESS card arrived. I phoned to query this change and requested a replacement CREDIT card, emphasising that I DO NOT WANT A CONTACTLESS CARD. I was assured that this was no problem and a basic CREDIT card would be forwarded. INCREDIBLY , punctuated by 10 further phone calls, I HAVE TODAY RECEIVED THE 7th identical replacement CONTACTLESS CARD, Is there an intelligent human available in John Lewis Finance? ( I am an additional card holder on my wife's account) Reviewed on: 14th January 2017

customer service totally out of sync with the actual facts

card got blocked by a pin machine error. 3 months later we are so concerned about the inaccuracies of their responses, we have felt forced to stop using the cards Reviewed on: 12th January 2017

Website Still Not Working Correctly and Still Long Phone Waits

Looking on the website at the online Statements page it doesn't add up; in my case my statement balance shown online was £21.95 more than the sum of the transactions. After 20 minutes on hold I get to speak to somebody who tells me there was a £21.95 transaction which they can see but I can't. You still can't trust this website for basics and this is 3 months after they put live. Reviewed on: 8th January 2017

No excel download on the Partnership Card is ridiculous

I simply don't understand how an otherwise sensible company can do something so unhelpful. The shop is fine, but the card is now almost useless to me. Reviewed on: 6th January 2017

Still cannot pay by BACS

Still having payment from Santander rejected . Had to pay by cheque . Being charged interest for first time in years , very humiliating , cannot get through to these idiots from HSBC Reviewed on: 6th January 2017

If you love John Lewis you need this!

The John Lewis partnership card is fantastic. Being a mastercard I've never had a problem with anybody not taking it, and the best bit is that you get rewarded with John Lewis vouchers. They've got it right with their vouchers not having a use by date (although the gift card does), which means you can't lose them by not using them. Reviewed on: 25th December 2016

No Excel Compatible Download

New software does no include the facility to download transactions in excel compatible format as before. CONSIDERING THIS IS THE MOST WIDELY USED SPREADSHEET PACKAGE IN THE WORLD, HOW ON EARTH WAS IT NOT INCORPORATED? Must have employed the duffest programmers in the country not to spot this. My rates are very reasonable if they need any consultancy. Reviewed on: 19th December 2016

2 months after new website still cannot pay bill

Website changed 9.10.16. No communication whatsoever. Old system didn't mind whether payment reference for current card or not - new one does and won't accept payments with misleading message. No acknowledgement or warning from JL Finance (actually HSBC) despite knowing about it for 9 weeks. They didn't included this scenario in their testing. Ridiculous. Rubbish. We're off to get a credit card from a proper company. Reviewed on: 12th December 2016

Terrible customer service

Horrible, horrible service. They have broken something what previously worked perfectly. Card now only works intermittently, this morning I had problems in a Waitrose store - If they can't even get their card working in their own stores, what hope is there!!! Customer services are useless and seem to have no idea what is actually going on. Different messages from every customer service representative that you speak to. For a company that prides itself on customer service, this is a real failure on behalf of John Lewis. Reviewed on: 6th December 2016

Post October, they fell apart

Worst upgrade ever! You can't use the card, you cant pay the bill, and you cant contact them. Serious brand damage! Reviewed on: 5th December 2016

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