Two big Discovery Vitality changes from January

Discovery has announced a number of changes to its Vitality behaviour change programme that rewards members for making healthier choices.

The insurer makes these tweaks annually, and while it has added new incentives as it has added products (Vitality Drive for insurance customers and Vitality Money for its banking ones), the structure of the programme has remained the same.

Vitality points are on offer for exercise and various assessments and checks, and these points earn a member a Vitality status (from Blue to Diamond) that translate into discounts at partners.

The monthly contribution for Vitality increases by 8% to R329 for one member, R399 for two members, and R465 for three or more members.

But there are two major changes from January: one related to how weekly Active Rewards work and the other to how Discovery Miles discounts are calculated.

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Gameboard overhaul, no more points to miles

The so-called ‘points to miles’ benefit where Vitality members would earn points for completing their weekly exercise, drive and spend goals falls away at the end of December. In its place are new tiles on the gameboard for each of these goals.

Reveal a tile and the corresponding number of Discovery Miles will be unlocked in that week if you achieve that goal. (For example, if your weekly fitness goal is 900 points, you could earn that back in miles.)

There are also new additional rewards for high engagement: achieve a specified goal streak and you will earn a rewards multiplier that will double the amount you reveal on the gameboard. You could also be offered a ‘sneak peek’ at a tile on the gameboard if you achieve double your exercise or spend goal or have a perfect driving week.

Rest weeks can also be unlocked after a 25-week streak.

For banking customers, there are also new spend tiles where they can earn back their weekly pharmacy, grocery or fuel spend back at partners. And there is a Discovery tile that rewards you for how many Discovery products you hold.

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Miles discounts for banking clients only

Currently, Vitality members can save up to 20% when using their Discovery Miles at partners. Having Vitality Health will earn you 5%, Vitality Money a further 5%, Vitality Drive another 5% and a Discovery Bank Suite 5%. (On the 15th of each month, this saving rate is doubled). From January, however, the 5% discounts are all earned from having bank products.

Vitality Money still earns you 5% as does holding a Bank Suite (a bundled bank account). But a salary or minimum monthly amount deposit is required to unlock a further 5% discount, and there is a new spend requirement (using a Discovery card) that also unlocks 5%.

Vitality Health members can earn a 5% saving by opening a no-fee Discovery Account and activating Vitality Money. Without this, they will get no discount. (This account is already required if Vitality members want to use their flight or travel discount.)

Following the collapse of Comair into liquidation, the Kulula booking portal no longer exists and bookings need to be made on the Vitality Travel portal. From January, this will be available in the Discovery Bank app – currently, it is only available on the web.

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A regular deposit is likely a stretch too far for someone not fully invested in the Discovery ecosystem and, by definition, they won’t have a Bank Suite.

Other changes

It will introduce a new cash back threshold for HealthyBaby, HealthyDining, HealthyFood and Team Vitality. Rewards need to be above R50 to be paid the following month. If this isn’t the case, the reward will be carried over for one month and if it doesn’t exceed R50 in that second month, the reward will be lost.

It has changed the age range for the 2 500 points that can be earned by female members for completing a pap smear. Currently, this is 16 to 65. This shifts to 25 to 65. The 2 500 points for completing a colonoscopy will now be available to members from the age of 45 (currently 50).

Finally, the full discount for international flights will only be available if a booking is made more than six weeks in advance. This was the case pre-Covid-19 and was relaxed for a few years.

This article originally appeared on Moneyweb and was republished with permission.
Read the original article here.

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