Ever been standing behind someone in the queue who is searching through a purse/wallet/bag looking for their loyalty card or gift card?

Actually I’ve been one of those people. I had so many cards that I bought myself a special wallet with lots of compartments. And yes I was that person searching through my wallet because I did not want to lose out on collecting my points.

If you read my post about discovering treasure in your home I wonder if you came across any loyalty cards. If you did, have you claimed any of the reward points you’ve been collecting?

Stores use loyalty cards as an incentive to encourage customers to be loyal to them. Customers are offered discounts, coupons or points towards future purchases. You may not realise that stores also collect information on a customer’s shopping habits. If you have a loyalty card it is likely that the store knows more about your shopping habits than you do.

Right now you could be sitting on a goldmine of unclaimed loyalty card points. You are either forgetting to collect points when you shop or forgetting to redeem them as they build up.

When I participated in a treasure hunt for hidden cash in my home, I had over £50 on my Sainsbury’s Nectar card. I had pennies on my Co-op and Boots Advantage cards. Money, no matter how small, is money. Those few pence are better in an emergency fund than sitting under the sofa or on a card doing nothing.

I want you to collect up all your loyalty cards and redeem the points. You may have to go online or to the store to find out how many points you have and what that is worth in money.

Once you’ve redeemed those points, transfer the money to your emergency account. It doesn’t matter how small the sum is.

Continue using the cards if you use that store anyway and remember to use the points.

Do not assume the points on your card are safe forever. Unfortunately, stores close down and you’ll use any points you’ve accumulated.