Get instant GHA DISCOVERY Platinum by…buying a BYD

The BYD M6 is a 100% electric 7-seater MPV, set to launch soon in Singapore. As you’d expect with every new car launch, there’s a special package of goodies available for pre-orders including, most curiously, a GHA DISCOVERY Platinum membership.

Yes, that’s not a typo. Ever since GHA DISCOVERY relaunched in late 2021, the loyalty programme hasn’t been shy about status giveaways. You can already get free status through credit cards, magazine subscriptions and cruise bookings, so why not buying a car?

I have to give them credit for thinking outside the box, because this is the first instance I can think of earning elite status from buying a car. But even though I’m sure there’s plenty of good reasons to get yourself a BYD M6, the lure of a GHA DISCOVERY Platinum membership shouldn’t be one of them.

BYD M6 pre-order offer

The BYD M6’s price has not been unveiled yet, but customers who put down a S$1,000 fully-refundable deposit will lock in the following pre-order benefits:

• S$5,900 cash discount
• S$3,000 dining vouchers
• Up to 20% charging discount for up to 3 years
• Priority allocation
• GHA DISCOVERY Platinum status

Automotive excellence aside, it’s the last point that’s of most interest to miles gamers. Just how much of a sweetener is a GHA DISCOVERY Platinum membership anyway?

It’s certainly better than nothing. Platinum members earn 6% rebates on their stays in the form of D$ with 24 months validity, and enjoy a single-category room upgrade plus 3 p.m check-out. Keep in mind both those perks are subject to availability, however, so you’ll be fighting with fellow BYD owners (and, you know, other Platinums who didn’t buy a car). 

This kind of feels like an afterthought, and a missed marketing opportunity if you ask me. That discount could have been bumped up further but given in the form of D$, for instance, or GHA could have offered free electric car charging or valet parking to BYD owners at hotels with such a facility. That would be a more organic tie-up, rather than an Oprah-style “You get Platinum! You get Platinum! Everybody gets Platinum!”

It’s not stated how long the membership is valid for, but my assumption would be that you get status for the rest of 2024 and all of 2025.

An easier way of getting GHA DISCOVERY Platinum

GHA DISCOVERY x Mastercard

If you really wanted GHA DISCOVERY Platinum status, a much easier way would be to just get a World Mastercard.

Since 2021, GHA has been offering instant Platinum status to any World Mastercard customer, and since these cards are so easy to get, there’s no reason why anyone should waltz into a GHA hotel with anything less than Platinum.

A non-exhaustive list of World Mastercards that you probably have in your wallet already include:

• Citi Rewards Card
• DBS Woman’s World Card
• OCBC Rewards Card
• UOB Lady’s Card
• UOB Lady’s Solitaire Card

All these cards offer at least a first year fee waiver, or you could just get a CIMB World Mastercard which has no annual fee at all.

What MCC does BYD code as?

I wasn’t going to include this section at first, but I did a test transaction just for fun on the BYD website (via the Amaze block card method), and you’re not going to believe this.

Paying the deposit for your BYD codes as MCC 5812 Restaurants (it could be because BYD has its own chain of restaurants for car owners). This means you could earn up to 4 mpd with the HSBC Revolution, UOB Lady’s Card/Lady’s Solitaire (with dining selected as the quarterly bonus category), or UOB Preferred Platinum Visa. 

Now, if only they’d let you pay for the rest of your car online…

Conclusion

Pre-orders for the BYD M6 are now open, and one of the gifts being dangled is an instant GHA DISCOVERY Platinum membership. That comes with room upgrades and late check-out, though neither perk is guaranteed, and really, you could get the same status for free just by holding a World Mastercard.

That aside, an incidental finding to all this is that the BYD website codes deposits as dining, so that’s a beefy 4 mpd opportunity right there for anyone with the right cards!

(HT: Matthew)