Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard

Roland Bleyer

Credit Card Expert with over 15 years card experience and the founder of Creditcard.co.nz. Ask Roland a Question about this card.

The Big Review: Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard

As Westpac’s highest earning Airpoints card, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard allows cardholders to earn more Airpoints Dollars (plus Status Points) on their everyday spend. Westpac piles on the privileges with this card, offering Koru membership discounts, Koru Valet parking passes, Priority Pass lounge access, an on call concierge service, overseas travel insurance and access to a 200 Airpoints Dollars Advance. As an intro offer, the card is currently providing 5.95% p.a. on balance transfers for the life of the balance(s) transferred.

• Earn 1 Airpoints Dollar for every $65 spent on the card
• Earn 1 Status Point for every $225 spent on the card
• Waived Koru membership joining fee, plus $145 off the annual fee each year
• Two complimentary Koru Valet parking passes each year
• Priority Pass lounge access to more than 1,200 airport lounges around the world
• On Call Concierge Service
• World Mastercard privileges
• Airpoints Dollars Advance providing access to an additional 200 Airpoints Dollars
• Complimentary overseas travel insurance (up to 120 days)
• Complimentary retail cover on purchases
• Up to 44 days interest free on purchases
• 5.95% p.a. on balance transfers for the life of the balance(s) transferred
• Account Fee: $390 per year (paid in two 6-monthly instalments of $195)
• Spend $50,000 or more in a six month period and Westpac will waive your next 6-monthly fee.
• Additional Cardholder Fee: $100 per year (paid in two 6-monthly instalments of $50)
• Purchase Rate: 16.95% p.a. (variable)
• Cash Advance Rate: 22.95% p.a. (variable)

This Card: The Lowdown

Designed to suit cardholders who want to make the most of their bigger spend, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard is Westpac’s top tier Airpoints earning card. Offering 1 Airpoints Dollars per $65 spent, the card provides the second highest Airpoints Dollar earn rate for spend in New Zealand. On top of that, it provides a solid Status Points earn rate, helping cardholders reach or retain their tier within the Airpoints programme.

As you would expect from a black card connected to New Zealand’s most popular frequent flyer programme, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard provides more than just points earning. Focussing on travel-related perks, this card steps up the extras with lounge access via Priority Pass, Koru Valet parking passes, and excellent Koru membership discounts. Aside from that, there are the black ‘basics’: overseas travel insurance, retail cover, World Mastercard privileges and access to a personal concierge service.

How much you benefit from these extras will depend on how much you travel – and how much you spend on the card. Given the card’s offer – waiving the six-monthly account fee after a $50,000 six-month spend – you can see what kind of spending Westpac expects on this card. However, if you want to see if it could offer value to you, simply estimate your annual spend, work out what that equates to in Airpoints Dollars, and compare that to the card’s annual fee.

Digging Deeper

With the basics covered, it’s time to dig a little deeper into what’s on offer with the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard, so you can decide whether this card is right for you.

This Card: As a Rewards Card

The Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard offers excellent points earning potential, with both Airpoints Dollars and Status Points on offer.

Earning Airpoints Dollars

With the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard, you will earn 1 Airpoints Dollar for every $65 spent on the card. While this card is designed for the bigger spender who will likely stack up points pretty quickly, it’s still nice to know that as long as you’re a cardholder, your Airpoints Dollars will never expire. That means you can keep piling them up over time to use on larger rewards.

Redeeming Airpoints Dollars

With a redemption rate of 1 Airpoints Dollar to NZD $1, Airpoints makes redeeming points super easy, with a wide range of rewards to choose from.

• You could redeem your Airpoints Dollars for flights with Air New Zealand and select partner airlines, or you could opt for an upgrade to make travel somewhat more luxurious.
• You could check out the Airpoints Store to spend your Airpoints Dollars on a huge range of merchandise, including gadgets and beauty, homewares and gift cards.
• If you’re a DIY fan, you could redeem your Airpoints Dollars instore and online at Mitre 10, or you could stock the wine bar at the Airpoints online wine store.
• Alternatively, you could cut the cost of travel by redeeming your Airpoints Dollars for rental car hire or travel insurance from Airpoints partners.

Earning Status Points

Airpoints offers tiered membership, where members earn Silver, Gold and Elite status to enjoy added privileges when travelling. Each year, you must earn a certain number of Status Points to reach or retain each tier. You can earn Status Points when you purchase Air New Zealand flights, and when you use your Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard. Using your card, you will earn 1 Status Point for every $225 spent.

What do you get as you travel up the tiers? You can enjoy such benefits as lounge access and upgrades, extra baggage allowances, priority check-in, frequent flyer seating, hotel vouchers and more.

Airpoints Dollars Advance

A nice extra on this card is its Airpoints Dollars Advance feature. If you want a reward but don’t have enough Airpoints Dollars to cover it, you can use an advance of up to 200 Airpoints Dollars to make up the difference. You will then repay this ‘overdraft’ as you continue to earn Airpoints Dollars on your everyday spending.

This Card: As a Travel Rewards Card

Black cards such as the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard tend to focus on travel perks, allowing cardholders to enjoy extra privileges as they travel.

Koru Discounts

Koru membership can provide plenty of benefits to the frequent flyer, including lounge access, complimentary frequent flyer seating, priority check-in and boarding, additional baggage allowance, access to Fast Bag when flying domestic, and some nice extras when travelling on Alliance partner airlines.

If this is something you think you’d benefit from, you can enjoy some nice discounts on membership with your Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard. As a cardholder, the Koru membership joining fee will be waived (saving you $255), and you will get a $145 discount on your annual fee each year.

Koru Valet Parking Passes

On top of those Koru membership discounts, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard also offers two complimentary Koru Valet parking passes each year, providing 24 hours complimentary Koru Valet Parking at Auckland or Christchurch Airports. These passes come in the form of eVouchers, which are loaded automatically into your online Air New Zealand account.

Priority Pass Lounge Access

If you’re not sold on the Koru extras, but still want lounge access, you can take advantage of Priority Pass. The Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard offers annual Priority Pass membership to cardholders, providing access to more than 1,200 airport lounges around the world – plus some excellent food and beverage discounts at select airport eateries.

Car Rental Upgrades

If you need to a hire car when you reach your destination, you can travel in style when you book with Hertz. As long as you book using your Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard, you can enjoy complimentary Hertz Gold Plus Rewards membership and a free one-car-class upgrades (subject to availability).

Overseas Travel Insurance

Standalone travel insurance can be an expensive add-on for frequent travellers, especially on longer trips. Providing a way to access cover while cutting down costs, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard offers overseas travel insurance on trips of up to 120 days, for both the cardholder and immediate family travelling with the cardholder.

While certain conditions, limits and exclusions apply, you may benefit from cover on the following when you travel overseas. Note, certain claims come with a $200 excess, and you will need to use your card to pay for travel to activate the cover. See the PDS for full details.

• Cancellation of travel
• Overseas medical expenses
• Unexpected travel and accommodation expenses
• Death of a relative and resumption of journey
• Luggage, personal effects and travel documents
• Travel delay
• Missed connection
• Funeral expenses
• Accidental death
• Loss of income
• Accidental death and disablement
• Hijack and detention
• Kidnap and ransom
• Rental vehicle collision damage and theft excess cover
• Personal liability

This Card: Extras on Offer

Aside from those travel perks, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard also provides a number of other handy extras.

Balance Transfer Offer

Westpac has an ongoing balance transfer offer designed suit cardholders who need longer to pay off their transferred balance. Utilising this offer, you can transfer your balance, to enjoy a balance transfer rate of 5.95% p.a. for the life of the balance transferred.

You can transfer up to 95% of your approved credit limit, and balance transfers do not earn Airpoints Dollars. It’s also worth bearing in mind that when you make payments, they go towards the balance with the highest interest first, so new purchases and cash advances will be paid off before balance transfers. With the intro deal, any balance left unpaid at the end of the intro period will revert to the card’s purchase rate.

Retail Cover

Insurance offered on the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard is not limited to overseas cover – this card also provides cover on retail purchases too. With Extended Warranty, you will receive an automatic extension on the manufacturer’s New Zealand warranty to up to 12 months on all eligible items purchased using the card. With Purchase Protection, the items you buy on your card will be covered for up to 90 days if they are lost, stolen or accidentally damaged.

Concierge Service

As you would expect from a black card, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard provides access to a concierge. This On Call Concierge Service is available 24/7 to assist with anything from travel arrangements to taxi bookings. The card also offers access to the Home Assist service, which can arrange the services of tradespeople 24 hours a day.

Mastercard Extras

The Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard is a ‘World’ card, which means it offers a range of Mastercard World privileges. Cardholders can benefit from the World Mastercard Privileged Access Program, providing access to an exclusive range of specially selected travel, shopping and dining experiences around the world. Access to Mastercard Priceless Cities offers something similar, but perhaps not quite as exclusive.

Interest Free Purchases

As any rewards connoisseur knows, maximising your rewards means cutting down on all unnecessary expenses. Interest is an unnecessary expense. Luckily, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard lets you avoid interest on purchases with up to 44 days interest free, as long as you clear your balance each month by the due date. Note, there are no interest free days when you have a balance transfer on your account.

This Card: The Essentials

Weighing up the various features, extras and rewards on offer means taking into account the fees you will pay to keep the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard in your wallet. With an annual account fee of $390, the cost of keeping this card is not insubstantial. However, if you earn more back in rewards than you pay out in annual fees – while finding value in the extras on offer – that outgoing may be worth it for you.

It’s also worth mentioning that if you have a sizable spend, you can skip the account fee altogether. For cardholders who spend $50,000 or more on their card within a six month period, Westpac will waive their next six-monthly account fee.

And interest? As we mentioned before, rewards cards are not for cardholders who carry a balance. Carrying a balance means paying out interest – and while the purchase rate on this card is not as high as some rewards cards, it will still cut into the value you get back in rewards and features. Utilise the card’s interest free feature and stay away from cash advances if you want to make the most of all the pretty things this card has to offer.

Decision Time

Designed to reward big spenders, the Westpac Airpoints World Mastercard offers Westpac’s highest Airpoints earn rate, plus Status Points on day to day spending. Piling on the extras, the card is very much focussed on frequent travellers, offering Koru membership discounts, Priority Pass membership, Koru Valet parking passes, overseas travel insurance and more. While some cardholders might prefer a bonus points intro offer, others may find value in the current balance transfer deal.