Capital One is one of the major banks in the United States. While banks are traditionally stodgy, Capital One offers a number of perks and unique benefits that make their offerings stand out.
For instance, did you know Capital One operates cafes in many major cities?
Let’s take a look at Capital One’s offerings that help them stand out.
What’s Ahead:
Capital One Cafes
Capital One Cafes are a unique concept Capital One has introduced. Essentially, it’s a combination coffee shop and bank branch all in one. Rather than have traditional bank tellers, the Capital One Cafe locations have ambassadors to answer your questions in a relaxed environment. They also have money coaches to help you with money questions at a scheduled 1-on-1 coaching appointment.
The cafes typically offer free wifi and power outlets, Peet’s Coffee, and local snacks, and may offer a community room which is free for certain groups such as nonprofit, alumni, and student groups to book.
What’s even better is Capital One cardholders get half off Peet’s handcrafted beverages. The cafes also have kiosks where Capital One ambassadors can show you how to open a no-fee checking or savings account in just five minutes and a no-fee ATM for Capital One customers.
Current Capital One Cafe locations (or soon to open locations) include:
- Arizona – Scottsdale
- California – Bay Area; Los Angeles; San Diego
- Colorado – Denver; LoDo; Boulder
- Florida
- Illinois – Chicago
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota – St Cloud
- Oregon – Portland
- Pennsylvania – Philadelphia
- Texas – Austin
- Virginia – Richmond
- Washington – Seattle
- Washington D.C. – Chinatown; Georgetown
Capital One 360
Capital One offers checking, savings, money market and other account types under the 360 brand. These accounts try to offer benefits that many large banks don’t, such as no fees or higher interest rates.
Here are some of their more popular account types along with some highlights of each one.
360 Checking account
The 360 Checking is Capital One’s online checking account. What makes this account stand out is the fact that it’s virtually fee-free and doesn’t require a balance to keep the account open. You even get your first book of checks for free.
360 Checking offers 39,000 Capital One or Allpoint ATMs with no fees. You can also use mobile deposit and online bill pay to manage your finances.
While the account is virtually fee-free, there are some features that require fees including:
- Overdrafting on credit
- Requesting an overnight check delivery
- Requesting overnight delivery of a replacement card
- Stop payments
- Writing a rejected check
You can still set up a free overdraft protection option. Simply select the free savings transfer option to automatically transfer money from your 360 Savings or 360 Money Market account to your 360 Checking account in the event of an overdraft.
360 Savings account
Capital One’s 360 Savings account is virtually fee-free and doesn’t have any minimum balance requirements.
The 360 Savings account offers tools to help you actually save more money. You get free transfers from any external or Capital One accounts.
You also have the option to set up an automatic savings plan to keep your savings growing. You can use mobile deposit to make deposits directly to your savings account and you can even set up savings goals for your accounts.
Capital One credit card perks
Capital One credit cards offer more than just their credit card rewards. In fact, some of their cards offer some pretty amazing perks that can either save you money or make your life easier.
If you’re a cardholder or looking to sign up for a Capital One card, make sure the below perks you’re interested in are offered on the particular Capital One card you’re considering.
Card lock
Card lock is an awesome Capital One card feature to give you some piece of mind. If you can’t find your card, simply log into online banking, call customer service, or log into the app to temporarily lock your card.
If you find the card never left your possession, you can simply unlock the card. However, if it is truly lost or someone else had access to it, you can leave it locked and request a replacement card.
No foreign transaction fees
Other cards may charge you fees for making transactions overseas. Sometimes these fees are 3% or more. Capital One credit cards won’t charge you foreign transaction fees.
Auto rental collision damage waiver
If you hate dealing with renting a car due to all of the insurance add-ons, Capital One credit cards may be able to help. If you have a qualifying card and rent your rental card with the card, you may be covered under the card’s auto rental collision damage waiver coverage for collision or theft.
This can save you money from buying insurance through the rental agency. Make sure you fully understand this benefit, how it works and any exclusions before you use it.
Extended warranty
Manufacturer warranties are often short these days. It feels like products always break right after they’re out of warranty, too. Thankfully, making a purchase on your Capital One card might qualify you for extended warranty coverage. Typically, this credit card benefit will add time to your manufacturer’s warranty.
Of course, extended warranty coverage has limits. It will only extend your warranty a certain amount of time, it has monetary limits and not all items qualify. You may have to register the purchase to qualify for the benefit, too, so make sure you read the details of your specific card before you rely on this benefit.
Don’t forget to save your receipt, the manufacturer’s warranty information and any other relevant product information so you have it when you make your claim.
Price protection
Have you ever bought something then saw the price dropped after you bought it? If you made the purchase on a Capital One card, you may qualify for their price protection benefit. The price protection benefit typically covers purchases made within the last 120 days that have an advertised price lower than what you paid.
It’s limited to $250 per claim and four claims per cardholder per twelve month period. There are exclusions, as well, so make sure to read the benefit details before using this benefit.
Summary
If you don’t have any Capital One accounts yet, chances are there is at least one of their offerings that’s better than your current banking products.
Whether you love the idea of visiting Capital One Cafes as a cardholder or their offerings beat your current bank’s offerings, switching to Capital One’s 360 or credit card products may be a smart move for you.
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