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Discover® Open Road(SM) Card Review
Issued by Discover
  
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Overall Rating:
Benefit Rating:
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The Discover® Open Road(SM) Card, issued by Discover, is designed for those with very good credit who would like to earn cash rewards on gas and auto maintenance expenses.
Through the reward program, cardholders earn a full 5% in cash rebates for gas and auto maintenance purchases, up to 1% for general purchases, and .25% for purchases made at select warehouse clubs and discount stores.
Those who spend up to $1,500 on general purchases will receive a .25% rebate, between $1,500 and $3,000 will receive a .5% rebate, and over $3,000 will receive a full 1% rebate.*
This card also offers a variable rebate on gas and auto maintenance purchases. Those who spend up to $1,200 will receive a full 5% rebate, between $1,200 and $1,500 will receive a .25% rebate, between $1,500 and $3,000 will receive a .5% rebate, and over $3,000 will receive a 1% rebate. There is no yearly limit on the amount of rebates that can be earned, and rebates do not expire as long as the account is active within a 36-month period.
As an added bonus, cardholders can earn up to a double Cashback Bonus when redeeming their rebates for gift certificates from participating Discover® Card Partners.
In addition to the reward program, the card also provides several platinum benefits, including travel accident insurance, auto rental insurance, and various fraud and security protection services.
This card has an attractive 0% introductory rate on purchases for six months and a 0% introductory rate on balance transfers for twelve months. The APR for this card is reasonably low, although it is important to note that only higher qualifying applicants will receive the lowest rate available.
Finance charges applied use the "Two Cycles Average Daily Balance" method, which is a more costly method in applying finance charges for those who occasionally carry a balance, in comparison to the "Average Daily Balance" method used by most card issuers.
Therefore, those who plan to spend up to $1,200 a year on gas and auto maintenance expenses (to earn the full 5% cash rebate), plan to use their Cashback Bonus award at participating retailers (to earn double cash rebates), and plan to pay in full each month after the introductory rate expires (to avoid costly finance charges) will benefit most from what the Discover® Open Road(SM) Card has to offer.
*It is important to note that like many cash reward cards, the highest rebate offered will not apply to all purchases made with the credit card. In this case, 1% will be applied only to those purchases made after the cardholder spends over $3,000 in one year, so the overall cash rebate earned will be less than 1%, depending on the amount spent. For instance, if the cardholder were to spend $4,000, only $1,000 of this amount would be applied towards the 1% rebate. However, this does not take into account any promotional offers or the full 5% Cashback Bonus award.
Through the reward program, cardholders earn a full 5% in cash rebates for gas and auto maintenance purchases, up to 1% for general purchases, and .25% for purchases made at select warehouse clubs and discount stores.
Those who spend up to $1,500 on general purchases will receive a .25% rebate, between $1,500 and $3,000 will receive a .5% rebate, and over $3,000 will receive a full 1% rebate.*
This card also offers a variable rebate on gas and auto maintenance purchases. Those who spend up to $1,200 will receive a full 5% rebate, between $1,200 and $1,500 will receive a .25% rebate, between $1,500 and $3,000 will receive a .5% rebate, and over $3,000 will receive a 1% rebate. There is no yearly limit on the amount of rebates that can be earned, and rebates do not expire as long as the account is active within a 36-month period.
As an added bonus, cardholders can earn up to a double Cashback Bonus when redeeming their rebates for gift certificates from participating Discover® Card Partners.
In addition to the reward program, the card also provides several platinum benefits, including travel accident insurance, auto rental insurance, and various fraud and security protection services.
This card has an attractive 0% introductory rate on purchases for six months and a 0% introductory rate on balance transfers for twelve months. The APR for this card is reasonably low, although it is important to note that only higher qualifying applicants will receive the lowest rate available.
Finance charges applied use the "Two Cycles Average Daily Balance" method, which is a more costly method in applying finance charges for those who occasionally carry a balance, in comparison to the "Average Daily Balance" method used by most card issuers.
Therefore, those who plan to spend up to $1,200 a year on gas and auto maintenance expenses (to earn the full 5% cash rebate), plan to use their Cashback Bonus award at participating retailers (to earn double cash rebates), and plan to pay in full each month after the introductory rate expires (to avoid costly finance charges) will benefit most from what the Discover® Open Road(SM) Card has to offer.
*It is important to note that like many cash reward cards, the highest rebate offered will not apply to all purchases made with the credit card. In this case, 1% will be applied only to those purchases made after the cardholder spends over $3,000 in one year, so the overall cash rebate earned will be less than 1%, depending on the amount spent. For instance, if the cardholder were to spend $4,000, only $1,000 of this amount would be applied towards the 1% rebate. However, this does not take into account any promotional offers or the full 5% Cashback Bonus award.
Review Date: June 27, 2008
Note: The review on this card was updated on June 27, 2008. The review is believed to be accurate during the update, however, information posted may have changed since the update. We strongly suggest that you carefully read the Terms and Conditions statement that accompanies the credit card application.
| Credit Card Rate Details | |
Intro Rate (Intro APR):
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0% Intro APR* |
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Intro Applied Towards:
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Purchases, Balance Transfers |
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Additional Intro Details:
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There is a 0% introductory APR* on purchases for 6 months and a 0% introductory APR* on balance transfers for 12 months. See terms and conditions for complete details. |
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Purchase APR:
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10.99% (Variable) The APR for purchases is based on the Prime Rate. |
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Cash APR:
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23.99% (Fixed) The APR for cash advances is based on the Prime Rate. There is a minimum APR on cash advances. |
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Finance Configuration:
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Two Cycles Average Daily Balance (including new purchases) |
| Credit Card Fee Details | |
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Annual Fee:
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$0 |
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Additional Cardholders:
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$0 |
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Grace Period:
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25 Days (Min.) |
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Late Payment Fee:
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$19 on balances up to $250; $39 on balances over $250 |
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Over the Limit Fee:
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$15 on balances up to $500; $39 on balances over $500 |
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Cash Advance Fee:
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3%, $5 minimum |
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Balance Transfer Fee:
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3% for each balance transfer made under this offer, with a minimum of $10 and a maximum of $75 |
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Minimum Credit Limit:
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$5,000 |
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Maximum Credit Limit:
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$50,000 |
| Credit Card Reward Program Details (Rebate) | |
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Rebate Minimum:
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0.25% |
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Rebate Maximum:
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5% |
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Additional Rebates:
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Earn a full 5% rebate for up to $1,200 in gas and auto maintenance purchases; 0.25% for over $1,200 up to $1,500; 0.5% for over $1,500 up to $3,000; and 1% for over $3,000. Earn a 0.25% rebate at select warehouse clubs and discount stores. Earn up to doub |
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Rebate Details:
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Earn a 0.25% rebate for up to $1,500 in general spending; 0.5% for over $1,500 up to $3,000; and 1% for over $3,000. Reward is redeemable in $20 increments only. |
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Expiration:
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None (Account inactivity for more than 36 months could result in the forfeiture of some or all of the Cashback Bonus.) |
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Yearly Limit:
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None |
| Features | |
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Most Attractive Feature(s):
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| Double cash rebates at participating retailers and merchants (through the Cashback Bonus award program); no annual fee. | |
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Least Attractive Feature(s):
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| Uses "Two Cycles Average Daily Balance" method when determining finance charges. | |
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Additional Features:
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| Various card designs to select from. Various Internet account related services. No liability for unauthorized transactions. Up to $500,000 in travel accident insurance. Fraud and security protection services. Purchase protection. Flight insurance. Auto rental insurance. See website for additional benefits. |
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Important Notations
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| *The APR for purchases and balance transfers varies according to the applicant's credit history and may range from 10.99% - 18.99%. See website for complete terms and conditions of card usage and application disclosure. | |
| Additional Information | |
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Apply Online for the Discover® Open Road(SM) Card from Discover See other Gas Credit Cards See other Discover Credit Cards |
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