Why now’s the best time to transfer your flybuys points
Maximise your Velocity Points before Virgin's bonus offer runs out at the end of May.
Got some flybuys points stashed away that you haven't used? Right now is an ideal time to transfer them into Virgin Australia's Velocity rewards scheme, since you'll score a handy 20% extra Velocity Points.
Virgin announced its "Record Breaking Up To 40% Bonus Points Transfer Bonanza Deal" promotion at the beginning of May, but it only runs until the end of the month. So the best strategy is to wait until you've done your final big Coles shop in May, then do the transfer, so you can score the bonus 20% on as many points as possible.
Normally, you get 870 Velocity Points for each 2,000 flybuys points you transfer. While the promotion is running, you'll score 1,044 Velocity Points. (Note you can only transfer in chunks of 2,000 flybuys points).
Converting your flybuys points into Velocity Points and then using them to buy flights offers better value than other points options, like "money off" vouchers for your next supermarket shop or buying goods from the flybuys online store. To get maximum value, aim to use the points during periods when fares are typically higher, like school holidays or Friday evenings.
flybuys has 8 million members, so there's a good chance that some Australians are sitting on flybuys points they haven't made any use of. If that's you, there's another handy feature of the current promotion: there's no limit on how many points you can transfer. Normally you can't move more than 138,000 flybuys points into Velocity in a calendar year, but that restriction doesn't apply during May.
It doesn't make a lot sense to wait around for future bonus offers. Coles' parent company Wesfarmers has announced plans to spin off Coles, and while it says there won't be major changes to flybuys as a result, existing partnerships may well need renegotiating.
Using flybuys is an effective way to top up your Velocity Points balance, but to supercharge that strategy you'll want to make sure that you have a credit card that earns Velocity Points. Check out what's currently available and take advantage of bonus points sign-up offers.
THE POINTS FINDER TAKE
Don't miss out on bonus points – if you're a regular Coles shopper, this is a great way to get your points balance boosted for that dream flight.Latest Points Finder headlines, tips and guides
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