MCDONALD’S is axing free coffee stamps and it means some customers will have to spend more on drinks to get a free reward.
The fast food giant has announced a huge shake-up to its loyalty scheme, and you will no longer be able to collect digital stamps.
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At the moment, McDonald’s customers can get a digital stamp when buying a beverage – known as McCafe Loyalty.
When you collect digital stamps through the My McDonald’s app, you get the sixth hot drink free after buying five.
This means if you were to buy five cappuccinos, for example, you would have to spend £10.45 before getting a free drink.
But McDonald’s is ditching this system, and rolling it into its new MyMcDonald’s Rewards scheme.
Under the new scheme, you’ll have to spend £6.27 more to qualify for a free drink after an introductory double points offer ends.
From October 31, McDonald’s fans will have to earn 1,500 points to get a free, regular hot drink.
You can get double points on hot drinks until December 31, which means you’ll need to buy only four drinks – costing £8.36 in total – to earn enough points for a freebie.
But after that, you’ll have to fork out more to get the free drink – and more than under the current scheme.
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Each £1 spent at McDonald’s gets you 100 points. So, if you buy a large cappuccino at £2.09, you’ll get 209 points.
From October 31, customers will have to spend £16.72 on eight cappuccinos to reach 1,500 and qualify for a free hot drink.
This means you will need to spend an extra £6.27 before you qualify for a reward when it changes.
McDonald’s said the new scheme means all purchases contribute to the overall points total compared to the old scheme, which was just based on hot drink spending.
For example, if you spend £4.09 on a box of six chicken nuggets, you will earn 409 points.
That would earn points for a hot drink, whereas previously it did not.
The ditching of stamps comes after the fast-food chain switched from stickers on hot drinks to digital stamps over the summer.
Now they are set to end too and anyone who currently has existing McCafe stamps will need to sign up for MyMcDonald’s Rewards before October 31.
Stamps collected in the app will be converted into points – with each stamp worth 300 points.
Any unredeemed, free McCafe drinks will appear in the offers and rewards section of the app.
It’s free to sign up to the Rewars loyalty scheme via the My McDonald’s app.
You’ll be prompted to set up an account when first downloading the app – if you already have it, you should be given the option to join when next signing in.
To collect and redeem points, show or scan your reward QR code found within the app.
You can also redeem rewards by ordering food through the app as normal, and adding your chosen freebie.
You can’t earn points from Just Eat, Deliveroo or Uber Eats deliveries though – you’ll need to be present at a restaurant to rack up points.
Your points last for a year after they are earned, so there’s plenty of time to accrue them.
KFC recently introduced a major change to its rewards scheme, ditching its loyalty points in favour of a game.
While Costa Coffee gives users who download its app a free coffee for every eight hot drinks they buy when they scan the app in-store.
And you can earn stamps each time you buy breakfast, drinks, savouries and bakes, sandwiches, sweet treats and hot food at Greggs.
Meanwhile, McDonald’s has introduced a huge menu change this week – and it’s added some pretty exciting new items.
We also reveal seven ways to save money on your order at McDonald’s including free food and half-price Big Macs.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
