The Velocity and flybuys loyalty programs have partnered up to allow you to get frequent flyer benefits for your shopping at Coles and 27 other program partners. As of 20 October 2016, you can convert flybuys into Velocity Points, at a rate of 2,000 flybuys for 870 Velocity Points. You can also earn 1 Velocity Status Credit per $100 spent at Coles, Liquorland and First Choice Liquor.
This guide looks at how you can link your rewards accounts to earn Velocity Points at Coles, the terms and conditions to be aware of and the most commonly asked questions about the flybuys and Velocity partnership.
In order to get Velocity Points and Status Credits for your shopping at Coles and other flybuys partners, you need to have active memberships for both loyalty programs. Signing up is easy and can be done online, with both flybuys and Velocity offering membership free of charge.
Once you are a member of these programs, the next step is to link your membership accounts so you can start getting frequent flyer benefits at Coles supermarkets and other flybuys partners.
How many Velocity Points can I earn at Coles?
How do I link my flybuys account to my Velocity Frequent Flyer account?
You can follow the steps below to link your flybuys and Velocity accounts online in just a few minutes:
Go to www.flybuys.com.au and log in to your account.
Click on “My Account” and then select “Linked Accounts” from the menu.
Select “Velocity Frequent Flyer” from the list of partners you can link with.
Enter your Velocity membership number, full name and date of birth, then click “Add account” to complete the process.
After you have linked your accounts, you can start enjoying Velocity reward benefits through the flybuys program.
Where can I earn points?
Your flybuys membership allows you to earn points for your spending at Coles supermarkets, co-branded Coles and Shell service stations, Kmart, Target, First Choice Liquor and other program partners. Most of these partners offer 1 flybuys point per $1 spent, and a minimum of 2,000 flybuys points are needed to redeem 870 Velocity Points.
How do I convert flybuys to Velocity Points?
2,000 flybuys points are needed to redeem 870 Velocity Points. You can convert your flybuys points using the following steps:
Log in to your flybuys account.
Select the “Rewards” tab.
Click on the “Travel & Fun” category.
Scroll down to “Travel” and select “Velocity Frequent Flyer”.
Choose the number of points you wish to convert, agree to the terms and conditions and click “Transfer now” to finalise the redemption.
Alternatively, you can make a redemption by calling the flybuys Service Centre on 13 11 16.
Note that flybuys points can only be transferred to Velocity in increments of 2,000, up to a maximum of 138,000 flybuys points per calendar year. This is equivalent to 60,030 Velocity Points.
Spending at Coles to get a Velocity flight
Let’s say you want to use your supermarket spending to redeem a one-way Sydney to Melbourne economy flight with Virgin Australia. This reward flight typically costs 7,800 Velocity Points.
Meanwhile, the conversion rate of 2,000 flybuys points to 870 Velocity Points gives you around 0.43 Velocity Points per $1 spent at Coles and other flybuys program partners. This means you would need to spend $18,140 at Coles, Liquorland or First Choice Liquor to earn enough points for your reward (rounded to the nearest $1). If you spread this spending out over a year, that works out to be $1,512 per month or $349 per week.
Earning Velocity Frequent Flyer Status Credits at Coles
Status Credits are designed to help you move up in Velocity membership levels, with each level offering more privileges such as higher point earning rates, lounge access and additional baggage allowances. Below are the key details of how to earn Velocity Status Credits at Coles.
Spending requirements. When you shop at Coles, Coles Online, Liquorland or First Choice Liquor and provide your flybuys details, you will earn 1 Status Credit for every $100 spent. Note that only whole Status Credits will be awarded.
Monthly limits. You can earn up to a maximum of 10 Status Credits per month. This is equivalent to $1,000 spending at participating stores.
Account details. At the end of each calendar month, the Status Credits you’ve earned through flybuys will be added to your Velocity account. Note that it may take up to two weeks after the end of the month for Status Credits to be reflected on your Velocity membership.
What to remember when earning Velocity Points with flybuys
Keep the following factors in mind to help you make the most of this flybuys and Velocity partnership.
Linked flybuys and Velocity accounts. Only one Velocity membership can be linked to a flybuys household at any one time. This linked Velocity Frequent Flyer member will earn Status Credits when they scan their flybuys card on eligible purchases at Coles, Coles Online, Liquorland and First Choice Liquor, and can also transfer flybuys points to their account. The linked Velocity membership can be changed at any time by any member of the flybuys household.
Minimum points transfer. There is a minimum transfer of 2,000 flybuys points for 870 Velocity Points. This works out to be 2.3 flybuys points for every 1 Velocity Point.
Points earn rate. Most flybuys partners offer 1 flybuys point per $1 spent, which works out to be 0.43 Velocity Points per $1 after conversion. This is comparable with the transfer rate for Woolworths Rewards to Qantas Points.
Points expiry. Both flybuys and Velocity have specific conditions around points expiry. For flybuys, your points will not expire as long as you collect or redeem points at least once a year. For Velocity, your points will not expire as long as you are an active member, which requires you to earn or redeem points within a 24-month period.
Eligible purchases. Eligible spending for Status Credits excludes tobacco and tobacco-related products, charity donations and gift card purchases.
Velocity status tiers. Velocity members also need to fly on Virgin Australia marketed flights to earn Eligible Sectors in addition to Status Credits to upgrade or maintain a new level of membership.
If you’re a Velocity member, this partnership gives you an easy way to earn frequent flyer points and Status Credits for your grocery shopping. If you don’t regularly fly with Virgin Australia, you may want to consider transferring flybuys points to Etihad Guest Miles or look at earning Qantas Points through Woolworths Rewards so that you can get frequent flyer benefits for your preferred program.
Frequently asked questions
Technically you will still earn flybuys points when you shop at a participating Coles store and scan your flybuys card. But once you have earned 2,000 flybuys, you can convert them to 870 Velocity Points. This works out to be around 0.43 Velocity Points per $1 spent at Coles.
Status Credits are calculated at the end of each calendar month and may take up to two weeks after that to be credited to your Velocity account.
According to flybuys, transferred points should show up in your Velocity account almost immediately.
If you forget to scan your flybuys card at a participating store, call flybuys on 13 11 16 and provide your receipt details to get eligible points and credits added to your account. Alternatively, you have seven days to return to the Coles store with your receipt and flybuys card so that you can get the points credited to your account.
No, you simply need to scan your flybuys card to earn 1 Status Credit per $100 spent.
In order to get Silver, Gold or Platinum Velocity membership, you need to earn a set number of Status Credits and have flown in the required Eligible Sectors. We’ve outlined the details in the table below:
Membership level
Status Credits for upgrade
Eligible sectors flown for upgrade
Silver
250
2
Gold
500
4
Platinum
1,000
8
You can earn up to 120 Status Credits each year by shopping at Coles and other eligible partners. Note that this would require you to make $1,000 worth of eligible purchases each month, for a total of $12,000 purchases per year.
Amy is an editor and writer at finder.com.au with more than 10 years experience covering credit cards, personal finance and various lifestyle topics. When she’s not sharing her knowledge on money matters, Amy spends her time as an actress.
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