Pilot/Flying J Loyalty Program

[racerchaser]

Just returned from the Tampa RV show and thought that I might pass on some info concerning the subject program. Many of you may already be aware of this information as I was told it was in the Good Sam email newsletters.
Pilot/FJ have basically turned over their loyalty program to Good Sam. If you renew your Good Sam card this year you should receive a new "Swipe and Save" card that has a magnetic strip on the back. This card looks like a credit card but it is not. You will be able to use it at Pilot/Flying J just like the current P/FJ loyalty card. However, the devil is in the details. P/FJ will cease honoring their current cards (RV Real Value Club and MyRewards card) on Jan 1, 2015. After that date you have to have a Good Same Swipe and Save card to get P/FJ discounts. If your Good Sam renewal is after Jan 1, 2015 I would suggest that you call Good Sam Customer Service (800-234-3450). They may ask you to extend your current membership. I did not have to do that since my membership runs out to 2016 and they are sending me a couple of new Swipe and Save cards.
After 2014 you will not be able to get a fuel discount at P/FJ unless you have a Good Sam card.

[BobGed]

PenFed has two cards that would be of interest to RVers.

Platinum Rewards Signature Card that currently offers the following if you have a qualifying product (see below):

5 points - fuel purchases at the pump by card swipe
3 points - supermarket purchases
1 point - all other purchases

After 4/4/14 the rewards will change to:

3 points - fuel purchases at the pump by card swipe
2 points - supermarket purchases
1 point - all other purchases

Points can be redeemed for products, gift cards and prepaid Visa cash cards.

Then they have their Platinum Cash Rewards Card that offers the following:

5% cash back (credited to your monthly invoice) - fuel purchases at the pump by card swipe.
There is a $25 annual fee after the first year, which can be avoided altogether by obtaining one of the following PenFed products:

Qualifying products:

• Active checking account with direct deposit ($250 min.)
• Money Market Certificate or IRA Certificate
• Mortgage
• Installment loan
• Equity Loan or Equity Line of Credit with a balance
• Thrifty Credit Service
• Personal Line of Credit
• Education Line of Credit
• Money Market Savings Accounts

[jimlaurie_lucy]

Thought I would take advantage of this Pen Fed Card ,so I went to the Pen Fed website an see this is only promised thru April 2014. Looks like I missed the boat. Just like cable Tv and Direct TV limited programs

[Passin_Thru]

down home, You mean you carry 15000 when you go on a trip. Hope you have a good security system built into your britches.
We use the Chase United mileage plus and get flight miles. Went to China and going to India next week on miles. More bang for the buck. There are 10,000 truckstops in the US and I think with a 55 foot rig I could find something other than a J to fuel at. GOOGLE truckstops people and plan!

[wny_pat1]

And I don't like what both Pilot and Good Sam Enterprises has done to Flying J!!!

[JD38]

Another goodbye to FlyingJ. Wait to fuel, wait to get a receipt because the paper printer at the pump is out....and in my area the price is less in towns than at the truck stops. Things have changed I used to be a loyal fan but no more

[Bill_Satellite]

I enjoy the convenience of being able to use a truck stop like Pilot and Flying J when I am 60+ feet long while towing (and I am always towing). Sometimes I have to pay more than I would at another location but if I end up causing damage at the "cheap" fueling station, how much have I saved?
I don't like what Pilot has done to my Flying J but there are many times where fueling at one location or the other is the only option that makes sense.
I look for other options but it's quite likely that unless something new comes along I will continue to use PFJ when I need fuel and they are convenient.

[psw757]

I didn't see the swipe and save. Thought they were referring to the rv plus.

[BobGed]

psw757 wrote:
On Friday I spoke with a pilot/j rep on the phone about the changes coming in Jan 2015. They made it very clear that if you had the good sam card that the pump start feature in truck and rv lanes would still work. Not sure where the rumor that it wouldn't came from.

Take a look at the first post in this thread from GoodSamFamily Good Sam Swipe & Save Card And in particular this part:
"Does it work at truck lanes?

You will need to come inside, scan your card, and prepay in order to use at the truck lanes. You will NOT need to come inside using the RV or other lanes."

I also called PFJ and the person I talked to confirmed the above, and told me their reason for doing away with the pump start is they were experiencing too many drive offs by OTR truckers that gained access to the cards. The RV Plus charge card will start the truck pumps.

[psw757]

On Friday I spoke with a pilot/j rep on the phone about the changes coming in Jan 2015. They made it very clear that if you had the good sam card that the pump start feature in truck and rv lanes would still work. Not sure where the rumor that it wouldn't came from.

[racerchaser]

In reference to the cost of a GS card you have to remember that it is now a triple use card; Good Sam, Camping World and P/FJ. Previously, you had to pay separately for the GS and CW cards and the P/FJ card was free. I do not remember what the prices used to be but I doubt the combination was less than $25 per year. Everyone has their own style of travel but there are many who use all three of these companies and the newer card gets you discount at all three. I honestly do not care how others spend their money since I do not have to pay their bills. My reason for starting this thread was to pass on some info I recently obtained in hopes it would be beneficial for some. Unfortunately, it turned into a vehicle for negativity concerning P/FJ.

[BobGed]

These are the Visa codes and descriptions.

FUEL STATIONS (Gas or Diesel)

MCC 5542 – Card swiped at pump (PFJ gas island or RV pumps, most stand-a-lone gas stations) – Qualifies

MCC 5541 – Card swiped inside by cashier – Does not qualify

If anyone is getting the discount when their card is swiped inside (code MCC 5541), that is very unusual.

[Kidoo]

Wonder why they code it as General merchandise? Is it a mistake, twice?, or is there something for them to do that? Taxes? Income deduction? Inventory adjustment? Not paying the same at PenFed when they charge general merch.?

[CA_Traveler]

On our Alaska trip last summer we used only the PenFed card and got $260 cash back - yes we spent a lot on fuel. This included western states and provinces and Alaska.

There were 2 stations in Alberta that coded their fuel pumps as general merchandise and we did not get PenFed cash back. But they were the only 2 out of many that we used.

Also both our PenFed and Capital One Visa CCs have no transaction fees in Canada and other countries. Plus the exchange rate was as expected.

[CA_Traveler]

"Nothing special about my Amex card that I'm aware of."

Additional information: Fuel has a unique code when you use a credit card which is why the PenFed card must be used at the pump. Using it inside almost always means the code will be food or merchandise, etc.

I never buy anything else at FJ when I pay for fuel. I get the 5% cash back for Amex but it is paid yearly.

Has anyone used the PenFed card at the FJ fuel desk and got the 5% cash back?

[sowego]

We got ours in the mail a few days ago. The BIG HOWEVER...it is not a free card. GS wants $54 for 3 years, and $25 for 1 year.

We figure for us using only about 6 tanks per travel season its not worth the cost of a "membership discount card"!

It went into the box of junk mail we burn in the woodstove!