Tesco and Sainsbury's issue loyalty card points warnings

Tesco and Sainsbury's are both urging customers to act as they risk losing out on points earned on Clubcard and Nectar cards.

Nectar is dropping its Nectar Connect scheme which allows customers to collect extra points via their debit or credit card.

The reward scheme links a person's Nectar card with their bank account allowing customers to unlock more points if they purchase items from participating retailers such as Costa, Brewers Fayre and Beefeater.

Some offers are worth up to 30 points per £1 spent – much more than the one point per £1 spent at Sainsbury’s. Nectar Connect also removes the hassle of having to remember and scan your Nectar card every time you shop.

Nectar points can then be spent with participating retailers, such as Eurostar, Caffe Nero and Esso.

However, Nectar is ending the deal at 11.59pm on October 27.

In an email to users, Nectar wrote: “We wanted to let you know that Nectar Connect is coming to an end on 27 October – this is the last date you can collect points on Nectar Connect offers.”

Take a look below to read more about how Nectar points work.

Meanwhile Tesco shoppers have just days to use up their Clubcard vouchers which are due to expire on August 31.

The supermarket says up to £11.5 million worth of vouchers could go to waste unless customers cash them in before the deadline.

The vouchers belong to three million Clubcard customers.

The warning is not for all vouchers earned - but those which were issued in August 2021.

Tesco calculates and issues Clubcard vouchers in February, May and August each year, with customers given two years to redeem them.

Shoppers get one point for every £1 spent in-store and online, and vouchers are issued once a customer hits 150 points.

They can be spent in supermarkets, or can be cashed in for twice their value for things like meals and days out, or membership to services including Disney+, RAC and English Heritage.

Tesco recently downgraded its Clubcard vouchers, which were worth three times their value for rewards until June 14 2023.

How do Nectar points work?

Nectar card holders can collect points when shopping in participating retailers.

It is most associated with Sainsbury's, which also offers cardholders discounts on hundreds of items in its supermarkets when they scan their card at the checkout.

Sainsbury's offers one point per £1 spent in-store and online, and one point for every litre of fuel at Sainsbury's petrol stations.

But Nectar points can also be collected with Argos, eBay, British Airways, Esso and more.

One Nectar point is earned for every litre of fuel bought at Esso garages, for example.

Each point collected is worth 0.5p to spend in Sainsbury's, but some partner offers give a better return.

300 points - £1.50 - will get you 5p off fuel at Esso garages. That would be worth up to £3 when filling an empty 60-litre tank, or £2.50 for a 50-litre tank.

At Caffe Nero, 350 points (worth £1.75 in Sainsbury's) can be cashed in for a hot or iced drink, saving more than £3.

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