Follow Us On :
Is the CRED App Useful for Customers? Should I Download it?


Is the CRED App Useful for Customers? Should I Download it?

  • By Saral Credit
  • November 22, 2021

According to the stats, there are more than 58 million credit card users in India. Most of them have a timely repayment practice. Some of them have auto-debit functionality ON, while some pay it manually. You don't get any benefit in the entire repayment process, but what if you get add-on benefits for repaying your credit card bills.

Well, Kunal Shah has made it possible with his game-changing application CRED. For first-time readers, Kunal Shah was the founder of FreeCharge and has now introduced CRED for credit card users.

What is CRED Application?

CRED is an online credit card bill payment application primarily made to make your credit card payment automated and smooth. Alongside, it also provides you with a plethora of rewards for using their application for credit card bills.

It's interesting to know that not every cardholder can take benefit of the CRED application. Presently CRED is only available for customers/users with a credit score of above 750. Once you put your phone number to login, it checks your credit history and allows/rejects you accordingly. In case you don't qualify for the application, your request will be put on the waiting list.

CRED application allows payment via UPI, Debit card, or even CRED Cash. You are given CRED coins for every payment you make on the CRED App using a credit card. You can redeem these coins to get exciting discounts, do online shopping, and even make various payments.

So, is using the CRED application beneficial for customers or not? Well, you can drive the best conclusion based on its features, pros, and cons. So, let's dive more into CRED application and extract maximum information for transparency.

Key Highlights of CRED App

Option to Add Your Credit Cards:

CRED mobile applications have no limit for the number of credit cards to add. You can add multiple credit cards and manage them all together in one place. It's important to note that CRED never stores your CVC, CVV Number, and other sensitive details of you or your card. This ensures the complete safety and trustworthiness of this app.

For authentication, every time you add a credit card, it will be credited with Rs. 1 to ensure you have entered valid card details.

CRED Dashboard:

The dashboard is only visible to the users who are permitted to use this application. The dashboard gives you everything on a single screen, including CRED coins, a number of credit cards, and the count of reward points redeemed.

This makes it easy to manage your cards and CRED coins smartly.

CRED App: Scan Score

Most of you have noticed that your credit card bill includes the total outstanding amount and the minimum payable amount. Your credit score is judged on how you repay the credit card bills, how much you pay, and when you clear the dues.

Interestingly, no one of you ever invests time in putting the details on a third-party website to check their repayment score. CRED app has this feature, offering you scores like repayment score, card utilization score, etc.

You should check these scores seriously and take appropriate actions if they are unsatisfactory.

After you acknowledge the highlights of the CRED application, it's time to check out its benefits and problems.

Pros of CRED App

Easy Credit Card Payments:

As mentioned already, you can add multiple credit cards in one place to ensure you don't miss the bill payment deadline and clear the dues on time. You are no longer needed to check the credit card payment every month.

CRED allows you to pay your credit card bills via net banking or UPI. The entire bill payment process is smooth and quick.

Cashback on Bill Payments:

Every time you pay bills on CRED, you get reward coins. You can also earn cashback on your transaction. However, it's important to note that you should make the payment of above Rs. 1000.

The cashback comes in scratch card format, where you get a chance to win up to Rs. 1000. In a calendar month, you can get a maximum of 5 scratch cards with a cashback of maximum Rs. 1000.

Remember, the amount of cashback can vary depending upon your payment amount. Here is a table giving better knowledge about maximum cashback on various payment limits.

On Payment

Earn Up to

Rs 50,000

1,00,000

Rs 20,000

10,000

Rs 5,000

5,000

 

Easy to Earn & Redeem CRED coins

As mentioned, you get reward coins (gifts) or cashback with every bill payment you make. CRED points you earn will be equal to the billing amount. E.g., for a 10K bill payment, you will get 10K CRED points.

You can use these points to get discounts on any product. However, it's important to note that the offers and cashback points change regularly.

Refer & Earn Cashback

This is a great option to get cashback without bill payment. All you need is to invite your friend to use the CRED application. You and your friend will get up to Rs. 500 cashback on your next bill payment. This refers and earns option is a supplement to other payment features.

Free Credit Report:

Last but not least, the CRED application keeps track of your expense and payment history that has a significant role in calculating your credit history.

Hence, you can check your credit score without paying additional charges. You should note that the CRED app gives you the credit score from Experian and CRIF.

Note: First report is offered free of cost. Onwards, you have to spend 1000 CRED points to get the latest credit report, which you can get with bill repayments.

Cons of CRED App?

Email Access Required:

This is a major security concern for every CRED user. Not everyone is comfortable in granting email access to third parties. Currently, CRED is working with different banking partners to get the details directly (without email access). However, this feature will require the user's consent before activation.

Lacks Better Offers:

Another issue with the CRED application is that its rewards catalog is filled with numerous offers which are least used by the customers/users. Users always expect offers that can be used in day-to-day life. CRED must expand its scope and partner with other businesses to provide exciting discounts and offers to the users.

How to Redeem CRED Coins?

Now, many of you would ask for different ways to redeem CRED Coins. So, here are some common options that you can choose to redeem CRED coins.

Option 1:

With every payment above Rs. 1000, you get a cashback up to Rs. 1000. Your redeemed CRED Coins can be used to win a cashback of up to Rs. 1000.

Presently, most people only get up to 5 scratch cards in a calendar month that can sum up to Rs. 1000 cashback.

Option 2:

Another option is the reward catalog that keeps updating from time to time. Multiple offers are enlisted in the redeem catalog that you can avail using your CRED coins. From a minimum of 10 CRED coins, you can choose from numerous rewards. Some of the renowned companies that offer you discounts using CRED coins are:

  • The Man Company
  • Ixigo
  • Wrogn merchandise
  • The Label Life
  • Big basket
  • Bookmyshow
  • Andamen
  • Dineout Gourmet Passport
  • The Mom’s Co.
  • The Moja Club
  • Zoomcar zap subscription
  • Cult.fit Membership
  • Diesel denim
  • Geomechanics
  • Levi’s Voucher
  • Gap
  • Raymond

It's important to note that some rewards have clear 'Terms and Conditions' while some come with NO T&C. All you need to do is click on the offer and claim it without any T&Cs.

What are the Security Concerns in CRED?

Security is always a priority when a user starts using the CRED application for payments or online shopping. Below are some major concerns and how CRED serves them.

Credit Card Information:

CRED never saves your CVC, Card expiry, and other sensitive information of your credit card. Hence, you don't need to worry about your personal details.

Email Access: Yes! CRED requires access to your email statements to collect your credit card statement. Except for credit card statements, CRED claims that they don't read anything in your email.

If you are conscious about your private mails, you can skip providing access to the CRED app. However, you will lose access to the feature that gives you alerts for the bill and last payment date.

Failed Payment Issues:

There are numerous reasons when your bill payment fails (technical or banking issue). In such cases, the amount is completely refunded within 1-3 days. In case you still face some issues, their customer service is available 24x7 to serve your queries.

Additional Reading- Are Instant Loan Apps Safe?

Delayed Payment:

Remember! You should never pay your credit card bills using the CRED app on the last date of bill payment. The reason is that payment made through the CRED application takes more than 1 day to credit your card.

Hence, it's always recommended to pay your bills at least 3-4 days before the due date.

With that said, you have a transparent picture of the CRED application that will help you decide whether you should install it on your smartphone and start taking its benefits. If you are more concerned about your email safety and don't shop for selective brands (mentioned in the CRED rewards catalog), you can skip this application and vice versa.