Back in June 2020, Citi started allowing its Prestige cardholders to accumulate complimentary limo rides earned each quarter through regular spend on the card and use them any time during the same calendar year, rather than during the quarter they were earned, in a nod to significantly restricted travel opportunities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately good things don’t tend to last, and the bank has now rolled back on this benefit, restoring the ‘status quo’ arrangement for rides earned in 2023 and beyond.
Limo rides earned can no longer be carried forward
Citi has now removed be ability for cardholders to accrue limo rides earned in a calendar quarter and utilise them any time during the same calendar year, in its latest update to the terms and conditions for its complimentary limo service.
Citi Prestige Benefits Terms
Cardmembers can bring forward their unused qualifying entitlement(s) from each quarter and utilize their qualifying entitlement(s) within the year in which the qualifying entitlement is given.
It means that from 2023, all limo rides earned in a quarter must be utilised in the same quarter they were earned, which was the pre-pandemic policy.
Citi defines the quarters as follows in 2023:
- Q1: 1st January to 31st March
- Q2: 1st April to 30th June
- Q3: 1st July to 30th September
- Q4: 1st October to 31st December
How it works
With this card, you book your limo rides via the Citi Prestige concierge (6337-2484) at least 48 hours before the desired pick up time.
You’ll have to make payment for the service using your Citi Prestige card, and the bank will then reimburse you (provided you met the spend criteria in that same quarter as the limo ride). Reimbursement is to your card account, in the following quarter.
Any midnight surcharge or Sentosa surcharge for the service is also reimbursed with this card, unlike some others.
| Annual Fee: | S$540.00 |
| Complimentary Rides: | Up to 8 per year |
| Direction: | To or from Changi Airport |
| Minimum Spend: | S$12,000 in each quarter |
| Provider: | Roset Limousine Services Pte. Ltd. |
| Car Type: | Mercedes-Benz E-Class |
| Maximum Pax: | 4 |
| 12am-6am Surcharge: | Nil |
| Sentosa Surcharge: | Nil |
That means if you’re going to clock at least S$12,000 of spend in Q1 2023, for example, the pair of complimentary limo rides you’ll earn for the spend must also by utilised by 31st March 2023.
You can book and use the limo(s) prior to hitting the spend threshold, since you will initially be charged for them anyway, but do bear in mind you will not receive a rebate in the subsequent quarter if the required S$12,000+ spend was not achieved in the utilisation quarter.
Citi PayAll transactions do count towards the minimum spend requirement for complimentary limo ride accrual, so a large tax, rental or other payment type can be an easy way to trigger this benefit.
Full terms and conditions for the Citi Prestige limo benefit can be found here.
Credit cards with limo benefits
We’ve updated our comprehensive guide to Singapore credit cards which provide free limo rides with your spending to reflect this latest change for the Citi Prestige card.
There are five cards in total and as you’ll see, there’s quite some disparity in how generous each one is.
Just a few weeks ago, OCBC announced it was slashing its limo ride entitlement for Voyage cardholders from 24 per year to just 8 per year, which is also reflected in the guide above.
Summary
Citi’s shift to allowing cardholders to carry forward complimentary airport limo rides in 2020 turns out to have been a COVID-19 reprieve after all, with the bank now reverting to the former arrangement requiring cardholders to utilise the benefits in the same quarter they are earned from 2023 onwards.
That means instead of being able to take any limo rides accumulated in each of the four quarters of the year at any time in the same calendar year, you’ll now have to do so in the same quarter once again, significantly reducing the flexibility of this benefit.
Be sure to plan accordingly for your limo rides in 2023!
(Cover Photo: Shutterstock)
So can you spend 12k in jan-mar, and use it to book and charge by March, for a limo ride in April??
No the ride must also be taken in Q1. The charge will be refunded to your card in Q2.
To take a free limo ride in April you will have to spend 12k in the Apr-Jun period, which will trigger the refund to your card in Q3, etc…
Going to give up on thus card, conflicting info from citibank
Thanjs for this update.
Called coincierge 2 days ago.
Now then i realised info i received is outdated, where the ride must be booked in Q1 but can be used anytime even in Q4 .
Thanks for the heads up! Do you know if it is possible to book the limo in Q1 and get it charged then, but the ride is actually on Q2?
Check with the concierge but yes this should be possible (after all, your ride may be on 1st April, so you’ll literally have to book in Q1!).
If your ride is in Q2, bear in mind you’ll have to hit S$12k+ spend in Q2 to have the charge refunded in Q3. Q1 spend will be irrelevant, even if you made the booking during that quarter.
Got it, thanks for the clarification!
Comments seem to be closed on the limo rides summary article. However, there’s an error in the HSBC Infinite benefit: you can take up to 3 accompanying guests plus yourself, not 2. That’s confirmed in the FAQs you linked.
Thanks – TnCs say 2, FAQs say 3. Will clarify with HSBC!
Ah! Thanks, it will be good to get that clarified, as we’re a family of four. Limiting it to three seems very strange to me.
Now i realised Coincierge gave me outdated info when i called two days ago.