Union Bank of India has launched a fuel credit card ‘Uni Carbon’ that offers 5.5% cashback on fuel spends. The Uni Carbon credit card is issued in partnership with HPCL on the Rupay platform. The card offers good rewards for fuel transactions and can be useful for high fuel expenses. Here is a review of the Union Uni Carbon credit card.
Joining/Annual Fee & Waiver
Uni Carbon credit card comes with a joining/annual fee of Rs 499 plus GST. We get a Rs 300 statement credit as a welcome benefit. For this, we need to make a fuel purchase of at least Rs 300 at an HPCL outlet within 60 days.
From the 2nd year onwards, the annual fees are waived on spends of Rs 1 Lakh.
Applications for this card have to be submitted in the branches. 🙂
| Joining Fee | Rs 499 plus GST |
| Welcome Benefit | Rs 300 statement credit |
| Annual Fee | Rs 499 plus GST |
| Annual Fee Waiver | Spend Rs 1 Lakh in a membership year |
Rewards
Uni Carbon credit card provides rewards that can be redeemed as cashback. As this is a fuel credit card, the rewards are higher on fuel purchases and nominal on other purchases.
This card is more suitable for two-wheeler fuel requirements as:
- Fuel transaction cap for rewards is set to Rs 500
- The monthly cap of Rs 150 means we can use the card for fuel for up to Rs 3750 each month
The non-fuel spend reward rate should have been at least 1%. The 0.5% is too less.
| Category | Rewards | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel Spends at HPCL outlets | 16 rewards per Rs 100 for a transaction value of Rs.500 and above. Max Cap of Rs 150 per billing cycle. | 4% |
| Fuel Spends with HP Pay App | 6 Payback points on HP Pay App | 1.5% |
| Non-Fuel Spends | 2 rewards for every Rs 100 | 0.5% |
Milestone Rewards
There are milestone awards on reaching target spending as well. But, it is nothing great and there is no incentive for spending more than 1L for the fee waiver.
| Annual Spends | Cumulative Additional Reward Points | Value | Additional Return in % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rs 1,25,000 | 500 | Rs 125 | 0.1% |
| Rs 1,50,000 | 1100 | Rs 275 | 0.18% |
| Rs 1,75,000 | 1800 | Rs 450 | 0.26% |
| Rs 2,00,000 | 2600 | Rs 650 | 0.33% |
Fuel Surcharge Waiver
Uni Carbon credit card offers a 1% fuel surcharge over and above the rewards. This is in line with what other credit cards offer.
The good thing is there is no upper cap on the transaction for fuel surcharge waiver and that it is over and above the regular rewards.
Pros and Cons
PROS
- 5.5% cashback on fuel spends with HP Pay
- Low annual fee and fee waiver criteria
- Option to redeem rewards as a statement credit
CONS
- Cap on max fuel rewards for each transaction
- A low monthly cap of Rs 150 for fuel purchase rewards
- Only 0.5% rewards on non-fuel spends
Return on Spends Calculator
Final Thoughts
When used for both fuel and non-fuel spending, the reward rate for the Uni Carbon card is around 1% to 2.5%. While this is decent for its segment, we can get that kind of return with Axis Ace as well. That too, without any kind of caps and calculations. So, not much of a selling point here. 🙂
I would have liked to see a higher cap for fuel rewards which would have made this card more attractive. The annual fee waiver is at Rs 1 Lakh while rewarded fuel spends capped at Rs 45000. This means we will end up diverting our spending from other cards without any extra benefit.
If you are still looking for credit cards that offer good rewards on fuel spends, then do check out this list.
Union Uni Carbon Credit Card