Boots cuts Advantage Card rewards for old and young

Boots is risking a customer backlash over plans to cut back the rewards on its Advantage Card loyalty scheme after revealing that the number of points per spend on its Parenting Club and Over 60s schemes will be slashed by 20%.

The Advantage Card programme, which has nearly 17.1 million members, is often cited as one of the most generous on the market.

Members currently get ten points (worth 1p each) for every £1 spent on certain Boots products compared to Tesco Clubcard which offers 0.5p for every £1 spent.

However, under new plans, which are set to come into force on March 16, Parenting Club and Over 60s shoppers will earn just eight points for every £1 spent.

In an email to customers Boots said: “We’re changing the points you get in Parenting Club, from 10 points per £1 you spend in Baby, to 8 points. However, that’s still 4 more points than the standard Advantage Card reward of 4 points per £1.

“And, as this change isn’t due until March, you can still make the most of 10 points for every £1 on Baby for the next two months. Plus, we recently extended the age range from 3-5 years – so you get to enjoy two more years of 8 points!”

A spokesman said: “The Boots Advantage Card remains one of the most generous loyalty schemes in the UK, with members earning 4 points for every £1 spent. Each point is worth 1p. We are making changes so we can further invest in what we offer our members. We want to continue to give them great value on the products we know they will love.”

Last year, Boots followed both Tesco Clubcard and Nectar by launching the Advantage Card in a digital format in a move which it claimed will give “customers more opportunities to tailor and personalise offers”.

Under the scheme, customers can scan to collect, redeem and check their points straight from their mobile via the Boots app, which will also open up further offers for the scheme’s millions of members.