Miles all locked up from 2020? Why not give these rewards a shot?

2020 and 2021 have made flight redemptions all but impossible. Find out how you can put your hefty stash of bank points to better use and give yourself a well-deserved treat.

If you can’t remember the last time you went on vacation, you’re not alone. It has been close to 18 months since that fateful travel advisory was implemented, coupled with border closures still intact in holiday hotspots across the globe. Frequent fliers and smart spenders would’ve been hit the hardest, having a large stash of bank points on hand but nowhere to go.

Converting those points to air miles used to be attractive, especially if you have a DBS Credit Card that earns points with no expiry dates. After all, who doesn’t enjoy saving hundreds to thousands of dollars on plane tickets? Unfortunately, the future of leisure travel is still murky at the moment, so it’s really anyone’s guess when free flights can be redeemed again.

However, that doesn’t mean you need to stare wistfully at your point balance while waiting for travel restrictions to lift. You can still give yourself a much-needed treat after making it through a global pandemic and economic crisis.

Whether you’re looking for instant cashback or upgrading your WFH setup, here’s how your DBS Points can supplement your lifestyle in the new normal.

1. Instant cashback on DBS PayLah!

Despite the name, the DBS PayLah! app is more than just a digital wallet for in-store payments. You can order food, make bill payments, top up your prepaid SIM card—the list goes on. The DBS PayLah! app also happens to contain the easiest method to redeem your DBS Points. It takes a grand total of just five taps before you’re granted instant cashback at any merchant.

Here’s how:

• Tap 1: Select the Rewards tab on the app
• Tap 2: Choose Offset Spending
• Tap 3: Hit Offset on any eligible transaction
• Tap 4: Select Offset Now after determining how many DBS Points you’d like to use
• Tap 5: Make a confirmation by pressing YES, OFFSET NOW

Simple, right? Forget sending over several SMSes or logging on to a separate platform just to convert your points to cashback. With DBS PayLah!, you have the flexibility of redeeming your DBS Points for any retail transaction made with your DBS Credit Card.

The conversion rate is attractive to boot, with 100 DBS points equivalent to $1. So, if you’ve paid the annual fee for your DBS Altitude Credit Card, that’s $50 cashback already. And if you have a POSB Credit Card, you can convert your Daily$ to cashback too, although the conversion rate differs.

If you’re not on the DBS PayLah! app yet, there’s an exclusive deal being offered. Get rewarded with $5 cash when you register with the promo code FIVELAH. Valid till July 31, 2021. Terms and conditions apply.

Find out more about DBS PayLah!

2. Offset spending on the DBS Apple Rewards Store

‘WFH’ entered the working world’s vocabulary in 2020 and it doesn’t seem to be an acronym that most of us would be forgetting anytime soon. Individuals have had ample time to adapt to remote work and might even be looking to upgrade their setup. Because it’s abundantly clear by now that a stopgap home office isn’t going to work if you’re in this for the long haul.

And what better tools for the modern working professional than Apple’s finest wares? On the DBS Apple Rewards Store, you can purchase anything with your DBS Points, right down to AppleCare+ coverage for your gadgets. And you don’t have to wipe out your entire supply of points because you can choose to pay with a combination of points and credit or debit card.

As for the conversion rate? 100 DBS Points for $1 again. To sweeten the deal, shipping is complimentary so you don’t need to fork out extra for that spanking new iPad Pro. And fret not about missing products, because the DBS Apple Rewards Store is just as well-stocked as Apple’s own online store.

3. Getting greater value out of the DBS Travel Marketplace

It might be dubbed the DBS Travel Marketplace, but this platform can do more than just book plane tickets. For starters, your DBS Points are worth twice as much here when compared to the options above. Specifically, 100 DBS Points is worth $2. Then there are the special rates for selected hotels when you log in using your DBS digibank details.

Take the five-star PARKROYAL COLLECTION Pickering for instance. Its Urban Junior Suite starts at $345 a night when booked on Pan Pacific’s website for a five-day staycation in late-July.

This figure drops to just $291 on the DBS Travel Marketplace. And since your DBS Points have twice their usual value here, you get to snag a free staycation for a lot less.

Not keen on staycations? How about another round of retail therapy, then? From a sublime bottle of single malt whisky to a delectable box of chocolates to go with it, there are over 2,000 items across eight categories to choose from.

The best part? Every single one of them can be paid for using your DBS Points.

4. Cash credit redemptions on the DBS Rewards Catalogue

The DBS Rewards Catalogue is packed to the gills with a variety of redemption options. With your DBS Points, you can score movie tickets, credit card fee waivers, dining vouchers, and more. However, you might want to dig a little deeper into the catalogue and redeem your DBS Points for cash credit instead. Why, you ask?

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That’s because DBS is currently offering cash credit redemptions at a discounted rate for four denominations, starting at $350 and capping out at $1,200. Ordinarily, the conversion rate for cash credit redemptions would be 100 DBS Points for $1. With this preferential rate implemented, the same number of DBS Points would be worth 29 per cent to 33 per cent more.

That might seem miniscule, but you stand to save a ton of DBS Points at these denominations. For example, 120,000 DBS Points would normally be worth $1,200.

However, that same amount can now be redeemed with just 80,000 DBS Points. You stand to save 40,000 points, which can go towards additional cash credit redemptions, instant cashback, or other rewards.

Redemptions are hassle-free too, with credits disbursed in a week and used to offset the outstanding balance in your credit card bill.

5. Shopping mall vouchers at participating venues

With nary an overseas trip to be had since March 2020, retail therapy at Singapore’s many shopping malls is one way to soothe the restless soul. Despite the prevalence of online shopping, it’s always nice to stretch those legs out and head to the mall every now and then. Nothing beats trying those joggers on in the fitting room to see just how comfy they are.

And if you’re at selected shopping malls, you won’t need to worry about burning a hole in your wallet. You can redeem your DBS Points on the spot at five shopping malls for UOL Group, NEX, and MapleTree shopping vouchers. 1,000 DBS Points nets you a $10 voucher, identical to the conversion rate for offsetting your spending on the DBS PayLah! app.

Redeeming your DBS Points for vouchers at other retailers is possible, but there are several hoops to jump through. Firstly, you need to log in to the DBS Rewards Catalogue. Secondly, your vouchers might take up to seven working days to process. That’s far from the instant redemptions you get at the aforementioned shopping malls.

In conclusion

It’s a serious bummer that leisure travel still hasn’t restarted after so long, but your DBS Points can do so much more than just be redeemed for air miles. Instant cashback, on-demand shopping vouchers, a staycation, and many more rewards await. It’s high time you gave yourself a treat, because you’ve definitely earned it while working through a very uncertain 2020 and 2021.

As an added bonus, no additional fees are charged and you don’t have to wait for weeks until your redemption is processed. We might be living in a new normal, but that doesn’t mean your spending is any less rewarding thanks to how versatile DBS Points are. In fact, you might just find your DBS Points being more valuable than ever before.Find out more about DBS PayLah!Find out more about DBS PayLah!

ALSO READ: Loyal DBS/POSB customers: Which credit card should you add to your wallet?

If you’re not on the DBS PayLah! app yet, there’s an exclusive deal being offered. Get rewarded with $5 cash when you register with the promo code FIVELAH. Valid till July 31, 2021. Terms and conditions apply.

Find out more about DBS PayLah!

Find out more about DBS PayLah!Find out more about DBS PayLah!Find out more about DBS PayLah!Find out more about DBS PayLah!Find out more about DBS PayLah!

This article was first published in SingSaver.com.sg.