IndusInd Iconia American Express (Amex) Credit Card is a premium credit card offering from IndusInd Bank. This card not only provides accelerated rewards on weekend spends, but also comes with host of other lifestyle benefits like complimentary airport lounge access, golf privileges, concierge services etc.
Though IndusInd Iconia Credit Card is available on both American Express platform as well as Visa platform, American Express variant has better reward rate and benefits than Visa variant.
In this article I am going to review the American Express variant. So without further ado, let’s get started.
IndusInd Iconia American Express Credit Card comes in dark grey background with texts embossed in silver. The Amex logo is prominent at the front face of the card. The card looks okayish and there is nothing spectacular about it.
Eligibility Criteria
IndusInd Bank has not disclosed the exact eligibility criteria for this Iconia Credit Card, however after talking to their representative, I gathered following:
- Age > 18 Years
- Stable monthly income, preferably > Rs. 1 Lakh per month
- Good credit score, CIBIL > 750
Fees
The best thing about IndusInd Credit Cards is that there is no annual fees. They just charge one time joining fees which they try to compensate with welcome rewards.
- Joining Fees: Rs. 10,000 + GST
- Renewal fee: Nil
There is an option to pay a joining fee of Rs. 3,500 + GST too, but in this case no welcome benefits are provided.
Features
IndusInd Iconia American Express Credit Card sports a wide range of features like accelerated reward rate, complimentary airport lounge access, golf privileges, concierge services etc. Let’s look in to each of those features in detail below:
Welcome Benefits
On paying a joining fee of Rs. 10,000 + GST, IndusInd Bank provides gift vouchers worth Rs. 10,000 of following brands:
- Montblanc
- Luxe
- Bata
- Vero Moda
- Aldo
- William Penn
- Titan
- Pantaloons
- Hidesign
- Woodland
- United Colors of Benetton
- Yatra
- Charles & Keith
- Louis Philippe
- Hush Puppies
- Urban Ladder
- Celio
- Puma
- Kama Ayurveda
- W for Women
- PVR Cinemas
- Gini and Jony
- Chicago Pizza
- Fab Hotels
- Chaayos
Well most of these brands don’t entice me and I feel they are utterly useless. Also note that if you opt for Rs. 10,000 joining fees, you would lose the GST of Rs. 1,800 as IndusInd doesn’t compensate for that. I believe the sanest option is to just go with a joining fee of Rs. 3,500 + GST without any voucher.
Reward Points
- 1 reward point = Rs. 1
- 1.5 reward point per Rs. 100 spent on weekdays, 1.5% reward rate
- 2 reward points per Rs. 100 spent on weekends (Saturday & Sunday), 2% reward rate
- 0.7 reward point per Rs. 100 spent on Utility Bill Payments, Insurance Premium Payments, Government Services/Charges/Payments & Education Institute Fees, 0.7% reward rate
- Reward points can be redeemed for cash credit to statement
Only recently, IndusInd Bank has reduced the reward rate on insurance and utility bill payments on their credit cards, which is a little disappointing.
Airport Lounge Access
- 2 domestic airport lounge access per quarter using American Express Lounge Program
- Eligible Lounges:
- Chennai: Travel Club
- Kolkata: Travel Club
- Delhi: Plaza Premium Lounge
- Mumbai: Good Times Bar
- Goa: Port Lounge
- Hyderabad: Plaza Premium Lounge
- Bangalore: Plaza Premium Lounge
The domestic airport lounge access is limited to metro cities mostly which is a little disappointing.
Golf Program
- 1 complimentary Golf lesson per quarter
- 1 complimentary Golf game per quarter
The Golf privileges on this card are decent and will surely enlighten the Golf lovers.
Concierge
Round the clock concierge services for assistance on hotel reservations, flight bookings, and many other lifestyle requirements.
- Pre-trip Assistance
- Hotel Reservation
- Flight Booking
- Sports and Entertainment Booking
- Exclusive Events Booking
- Flowers and Gifts delivery
Protection
- Air accident insurance cover of Rs. 25 Lakh
- Lost baggage insurance up to Rs. 100,000
- Delayed baggage insurance up to Rs. 25,000
- Loss of passport insurance up to Rs. 25,000
- Lost ticket insurance up to Rs. 25,000
- Missed connection insurance up to Rs. 25,000
Note that to avail these benefits, credit card should have been used at least once for any retail purchase in 90 days before the date of loss.
Other benefits
- Buy 1 Get 1 at BookMyShow for movie tickets, limited to 1 per month up to Rs. 200 per ticket
- Buy 1 Get 1 at Sathyam Cinemas, limited to 2 per month up to Rs. 120 per ticket
- 1% on fuel surcharge waiver at all fuel station across India
- Auto assist for roadside assistance
- Roadside repair service
- Emergency fuel supply
- Flat tire services
- Keys locked inside
- Battery service
- Emergency towing assistance
- Accident management and medical assistance
Drawbacks
Even IndusInd Iconia American Express Credit Card offers a great set of benefits and features, there are certain drawbacks too as outlined below:
- Unattractive welcome benefits: Most of the brand gift vouchers offered as part of welcome benefits on this card are not so useful. IndusInd Bank should introduce better brands like Amazon/Flipkart for better redemption options.
- Limited airport lounge network: The complimentary airport lounge access on this card is limited to metro cities which is quite disappointing. I wish IndusInd Bank should expand it to other cities too for better coverage.
Verdict
IndusInd Iconia American Express Credit Card is one of the most rewarding credit cards today. With a default reward rate of 1.5% on weekdays and 2% on weekends, this can easily become your primary driver, unless you have access to super premium credit cards. Complimentary rounds of Golf and free tickets on BookMyShow will take care of your entertainment needs. However, the limited number of lounges in its network is a huge let down.
You can go for this card if you don’t like to pay annual fees and don’t travel a lot. However if these factors don’t apply to you, then you should consider going for either Diners Club Privilege Credit Card or HDFC Bank Regalia Credit Card.
How has been your experience with IndusInd Iconia American Express Credit Card? How much joining fees you are being/were asked to pay? Let me know by leaving a quick comment below.
