A couple of simple changes saw this traveller earning 800 points every month. Photo / Getty Images
A couple of simple changes saw this traveller earning 800 points every month. Photo / Getty Images
Many of us swipe our loyalty cards at the supermarket check-out out of habit, but we don't often see much in the way of actual rewards.
But a bit of savvy thinking has helped Adelaide man Dwayne Leditschke to build a frequent flyer points fortune.
Mr Leditschke, 34, has found ways to turn his regular grocery shopping and credit card spending into a massive haul of points that he and his young family splash on first-class trips overseas.
And with some clever tweaks he managed to earn a million points last year alone.
Mr Leditschke, who works as a data engineer, has earned close to three million points across all his rewards programs since he first got into points hacking a few years ago, helped by advice from the website Point Hacks.
"My first point-hacking experience was accruing points through my points-earning Westpac credit card that I received from their home loan package and I've been pursuing it ever since," Mr Leditschke told news.com.au.
"Between my wife and I, we sign up to two to three points-earning credit cards a year to get the bonus points.
"The AMEX Refer a Friend program also helped me earn over 200,000 bonus American Express Membership Rewards Points, just by referring friends or family for their own new account. I was taking advantage of this method so much that I reached the maximum point cap."
Dwayne Leditschke flying business class with his wife and daughter on wisely aquired points. Photo / Supplied, Facebook.com
Mr Leditschke said he earned about 800 points every month on groceries with his Woolworths Rewards card and flybuys card, used at Coles.
"I always opt for points rather than money off my shop as this is better value," he said.
"We alter our shopping habits according to the promotions that are running. We regularly switch between household accounts to help reduce the spending requirements for the targeted offers."
In March, Mr Leditschke earnt 20,000 Woolworths Rewards points from his Woolworths home and contents insurance, which was equivalent to 8700 Qantas points or $100 off his shop.
"I also earn flybuys points from shopping at Target, Kmart, eBay and purchasing fuel at Coles Express," he said.
"One benefit of flybuys over Woolworths Rewards is that you can link your account to Velocity frequent flyer and earn status credits from your Coles shopping at a rate of 1 status credit per $100 spend. I also use Velocity's family pooling feature to credit these to one account."
So yes, it's always worth scanning those rewards cards.
"I have them saved in my phone including my wife's cards," he said. "No need to carry physical cards. I don't mind giving up my shopping data for the points."
Another way Mr Leditschke boosts his kitty of points is by strategically buying gift cards for essentials.
Charging to points-earning credit cards is a strong way to accumulate points, but make sure you're keeping up with your repayments. Photo / Getty Images
For example, he buys Google Play and Uber gift cards during promotions offering 1000 or 2000 flybuys or Woolworths points — allowing him to earn extra points for things he'd buy anyway.
He also uses the Qantas Wellbeing app to earn points while he rides to work, he books Airbnb stays through the Qantas website, books taxis through Ingogo and uses Wilson car parks to earn Velocity Points.
But if there's a top tip from Mr Leditschke, it is to opt for points-earning credit cards — but only if you can stay on top of your repayments.
"My main advice is to try and put all your purchases on a points-earning credit card, as long as you can pay it off in full each month — otherwise, accruing points this way is not worth the amount of interest that adds up," he said.
"It also always helps to have the right cards in your wallet to earn bonus points on purchases such as restaurants and cafes, groceries or fuel.
"Despite being well-versed in point-hacking, I still use the Point Hacks website if I need any additional travel-related information or anything obscure that I want to know more about. I also had a look at Point Hacks' beginners course, which I highly recommend for those just beginning their point-hacking journey."
It's one thing to build a fortune of frequent flyer points, but it's another to know how to spend them wisely.
Leditschke reaps the rewards in an Etihad first class apartment. Photo / Supplied, Facebook.com
Like all clever points hackers, Mr Leditschke knows it's always better to redeem points on flights, rather than items like blenders and headphones in the rewards store.
"Mostly, I've been redeeming them on flights, primarily on premium flights in business and first class," he said.
"I recently went to Japan with my wife and two-year-old daughter on a mix of first and business class and used my points to fund the whole trip."
Frequent flyer expert Daniel Sciberras from Point Hacks agreed flights were the best way to spend points — especially on premium classes.
"The general advice from Point Hacks and our community is to do this rather than purchasing tech items or other products, Mr Sciberras said.
"If we look at the point per dollar value, a Sydney to New York business class return flight costs 256,000 Qantas Points or 120,000 in economy. A business class ticket will set you back more than $8000 and an economy ticket is worth around $1300. Based on this, your value will increase by six times for only double the points."
