Reflex® Platinum MasterCard® With Up to $1,000 Credit Limit
REVIEW

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
4 Different Offers for Variety of Credit Profiles Track record of credit limit increases BK friendly Can pay with debit card Can pay at the pump Free Vantage Scores Mobile App	Monthly Fee on $300 and $500 versions Higher annual fee compared to peers Have to Pay By Phone if you want to use Debit Card

4 Possible Offers

If you are pre-approved for the Reflex Mastercard (after going through the pre-approval process with no impact on your credit score), there are four offers and versions that you could possibly be offered. The table below highlights these four possible versions and we will go through each of them.

Card	Annual Fee	Monthly Fee	Credit Limit
Reflex $1,000	$125	$0*	$1,000
Reflex $750	$125	$0*	$$750
Reflex $500	$125	Year 1 = 0 Then $12.50/month	$500
Reflex $300	$75 Y1, then $99	Year 1 = $0 Then $12.50/month	$300

Overall Terms and What to Expect After Pre-approval

The Reflex Mastercard allows you to go through a pre-approval process with no impact on your credit score. You will be presented with four offers, each with a different credit limit and fees. Before I go through each of them, here are the overall terms and conditions for every one of these four offers.

Starting Credit Limit - As far as the credit limit goes, the terms and conditions say the minimum starting credit limit is $300 and the maximum is $1,000. In reality, you may be presented with offers with a $300, $500, $750 and $1,000 credit limits.

Monthly Fees - The terms and conditions also states that you "may" be charged a monthly fee from the second year onwards ranging from $0 to $10 a month. In reality, if you are offered the version with either $750 or $1,000 credit limit, there will be no monthly fee. If you are offered the $300 or $500 credit limit version, you will be charged a monthly fee of $12.50/month from the second year onwards. This works out to $150 annually.

Annual Fee - The annual fee for the $500, $750 and $1,000 version is $125. The $300 credit limit version has a first year annual fee of $75, which increases to $99 from the second year onwards.

Purchase APR - The regular purchase APR for all four versions is 35.9%.

Other Features

Reflex has these other standard features that come with all Continental Finance credit cards.

• Free Vantage 3.0 Score - Cardholders will get access to their Vantage 3.0 credit score free of charge from Experian. The only requirements are that you have to sign up for e-statements.


• Mobile App - Continental Finance has a slick mobile app where you can manage your card.


• Online Account Management - You can manage your account online through the Continental Finance Online Portal.

Credit Score Needed and Other Requirements

As Reflex could offer you any of the four offers mentioned above, it stands to reason that there are slightly different requirements for each of them. But note that you do need a checking account to be approved.

Requirements : Reflex $750 and $1,000 Versions

To get pre-approved and ultimately approved for the Reflex $750 and $1,000 versions, you would need to be on the higher end of the "bad credit" spectrum. We are talking about Vantage credit scores around the 650 area. Your credit utlization should be no more than 35%. You ideally should have been rebuilding for the last one to two years and your absolute debt levels should be trending down. You should also have no delinquent account during this period and settled any charge offs that you have. You should ideally have an income of at least $50,000 and your rent or mortgage should be no more than 25% of income. This last point is very important because subprime issuers are putting more emphasis on your monthly free cash flow (ie your monthly income has to exceed your expenses) and they do use third party verifiers to double check and verify your income.

Requirements : Reflex $300 and $500 Versions

The requirements for the Reflex $300 and $500 are slightly less stringent. You may be approved with Vantage score of 600. While you may be a new rebuilder, your credit utilization should not be too high. Anything exceeding 45% is a red flag. You should also have no delinquencies or late payment during your repayment journey and ideally have an income that is at least $50,000. Once again, your rent or mortgage should be no more than 30% of your income.

Benefits That We Like

• Generous Starting Credit Limits - Reflex may offer you a credit limit of either $300, $500, $750 and $1,000. Both the $750 and $1,000 limits are very generous for a credit card targeting people with bad credit.


• Maximum Credit Limit of $4,000 - The maximum credit limit you can get on the Reflex is $4,000. This is a very decent limit (if you do reach it) for a subprime rebuilder credit card.


• Will approve you after you are discharge from bankruptcy - Like many subprime credit cards, Reflex will approve you even if you have just been dischaged from bankruptcy. In fact, your credit profile is probably better and in a cleaner slate than before your BK.
  
  

  I applied for this card in February 2023. My bankruptcy was discharged in November 2022. I got my first statement with a balance of $125 (the annual fee). When I got the card I was approved for $500. My last statement was August 2023 and when I checked, my card available balance is now $1000. I will continue to keep my utilization at 30% or below. Just love this card. So far, I have had no problems with payments or with the app.



• 2nd Chance Credit Card - Reflex has also been known to approve you even after you have had a charge off with them and burned them in your BK. People have been approved just months after their BK even though they burnt Continental Finance. This makes Reflex a true second chance credit card.


• You can get more than one Continental Finance Credit Card - Continental Finance actually allows you to get more than one of their credit cards. However, if you do get more than one CF card, you need to get along login and password for the online portal and mobile app (which is a real IT issue).
  
  

  I have had this card for over 2 years now and have received 2 limit increases so far. Started with a $500 limit at my 6 months of on time payments got a raise to $1,000. I got another increase 6 months later to $1300. At my two year anniversary they offered me a Surge card with a $1500 limit. I pay online and payment post to your account the next day as well as to your available credit. My score has improved from 490 to 670.



• Soft Pull Pre-approval - Before you actually apply for this card, you have to get pre-approved. Pre-approval results in a soft pull and not a hard inquiry. You will know the terms of the card being offered to you (or you might be denied). If you are happy with the terms, you can then proceed to apply (which will result in a hard inquiry but getting pre-approved increases your chances of getting approved). If you are not happy with the terms offered, then simply do not proceed with the application.


• Modern Features Like Mobile App, Free Credit Scores Etc - The Reflex Mastercard comes with features found in prime credit cards. This is in contrast to many sub prime issuers who are behind on the technology side. Reflex has a mobile app on both Android and IOS and is eligible for use on your digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay. They also offer a free Vantage 3.0 credit score from TransUnion if you choose to get e-statements. Some cards like Indigo and Milestone do not have mobile apps or free credit scores.


• Reports to Three Major Credit Bureaus - Reflex Mastercard reports your payments to the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion). This will help you build and rebuild your credit if you pay on time and if you keep your credit utilization low.


• Can Pay via Debit Card - Reflex is one of the few credit cards that allow you to pay with your debit card. However, you have to do so over the phone by either a live rep or set up your debit card and use the automated virtual assistant to pay. You cannot use your debit card to pay from the online portal or the mobile app (even though it is linked to the same checking account you will use if you paid online or with the mobile app).


• Pay be used At-The-Pump - The Reflex credit card can be used at the pump when you are at the gas stations. I mention this because many subprime credit cards do not allow you to use the card at the pump but rather require to pay the cashier inside the gas station.

Fineprints You Should Be Aware Of

• Paying by Debit Card has to be done over the phone - If you choose to pay by debit card (and I know many of you like using your debit card to pay), you can only do so over the phone. You cannot use debit card if you want to set up autopay or pay online or with the mobile app.
  
  

  This is a very good card to rebuild your credit. If you pay your bill on time and over the minimum amount due for 6 months they raise your limit. My only complaint is that you cannot pay with your debit card using the online site. You have to pay via phone, which is quite inconvenient for me because I would like to set up autopay but it cannot be done with my debit card.



• Need 2 Logins if you have 2 Continental Finance Credit Cards - Continental Finance allows you to have more than one of their credit cards. But if you have say two of their credit cards, you need two separare logins for their apps. This is an IT flaw in their app development and I hope they resolve this.


• Payment Hold for the first 6 months - One very important thing to note is that for the first 6 months, you WILL experience a hold on your credit limit even if your payment has been processed. Your credit limit will no longer be subject to payment holds after paying on time for the first 6 months. The only payment method where you will see your credit limit refleced immediately is if you pay via phone with a live rep using expedited payment.

Analysis and Competition

Because Reflex offers four versions of their card, we will analyze the $700 and $1,000 version together and the $300 and $500 limit version together. The reason is that the $700 and $1,000 version do not charge any monthly fee whereas the $300 and $500 credit limit versions do. A key measure that we use to analyze unsecured credit cards for bad credit is the Total Fee to Credit Limit Ratio. We do this by adding up all the fees charge and divide it by the credit limit. This shows us what percentage of our credit limit are we paying in fees. For the Reflex Mastercard, we have to calculate this ratio twice for each version because the initial credit limit will double. Ideally, you would want a TFCL ratio of 15% or less. Aside from looking at the TFCL ratio, we also look at the absolute total fees you have to pay.

Analysis of $700 and $1,000 versions

Both the $700 and $1,000 limit versions charge an annual fee but no monthly fee. You are mostly like going to be approved for these versions if your credit score is in the "higher end of the bad credit spectrum". We are talking about having Vantage scores of at least 650. The table below shows the "total fees to credit limit" ratio of these versions and their competition.

Card	Annual Fee	Monthly Fee	Credit Limit	Fees/Credit Limit Ratio
Reflex $1,000	$125	$0	$1,000	$125/$1,000 = 12.5%
Reflex $750	$125	$0	$750	$125/$750 = 16.67%
Merrick Bank Double Your Line	$0 - $72	$0	$550 - $1,350 $1,100 - $2,700 after paying on-time for 7 months	$72/$2700 = 2.67% $72/$1,100 = 6.5%
Mission Lane	$0 - $59	$0	$300 - $1,500 Increase after 6 paying on-time for 6 months	$59/$1,000 = 5.9%
Upgrade Select Card	$39	$0	$500 - $2,000	$39/$1,000 = 3.9% $39/$2,000 = 1.95%
Arro Mastercard	$36	$0	$50 - $2,500	$36/$1,000 = 3.6% $36/$2,000 = 1.8%

The table above shows the calculation of the "total fee to credit limit" ratio of the Reflex $750 and $1,000 versions. I have also decided to compare it with both the Merrick Bank Double Your Line Mastercard and the Mission Lane Visa. Merrick Bank is very explicit in stating that they will double your credit limit. I have also chosen the Upgrade Select Card and Arro Mastercard as comparison because they both have credit limit ranges that are comparable to Reflex.

All the cards above have good TFCL ratios and are less than 15%. In the case of the Reflex $1,000 limit version, it is 12.5%. But despite the fact that the Reflex $750 and $1,000 limit version have low TFCL ratios, they have competitors with much lower fees. For example both the Upgrade Select Card and Arro Mastercard have $39 and $36 in fees respectively vs the $125 annual fee that the Reflex $750 and $1,000 charges.

Analaysis of $300 and $500 Versions

Both the Reflex $300 and $500 version come with monthly fees from the second year onwards. Hence, we will compare them with similar cards with similar credit limits.

Card	Annual Fee	Monthly Fee	Credit Limit	Fees/Credit Limit Ratio
Reflex $500	$125	Year 1 = $0, then $12.50/month	$5,00	Y1 = $125/$500 = 25% Y2 = ($125 + $150 = $275)/$500 = 55%
Reflex $300	Year 1 = $75, then $99	Year 1 = $0, then $12.5/month	$300	Y1 = $75/$300 = 25% Y2 = ($99 + $150)/$300 = 83%
Total Visa	Y1 = $75, then $48	Y1=$0, then $8.25/month	$300	Y1 = $75/$300 = 25% Y2 = ($48 + $99[$8.25 X 12])/$300 = 49%
First Access Visa	Y1 = $75, then $48	Y1=$0, then $8.25/month	$300	Y1 = $75/$300 = 25% Y2 = ($48 + $99[$8.25 X 12])/$300 = 49%
First Digital	Y1 = $75, then $48	Y1=$0, then $8.25/month	$300	Y1 = $75/$300 = 25% Y2 = ($48 + $99[$8.25 X 12])/$300 = 49%
Fit Mastercard	Year 1 = $99, then $125	Y1=$0, then $12.50/month	$400 $800 after paying on-time for 6 month	Y1 = $99/$400 = 24.75% Y2 = ($125 + $150[$12.50 X 12])/$800 = 34.4%
Upgrade Select Card	$39	$0	$500 - $2,000	$39/$500 = 7.8%
Arro Mastercard	$36	$0	$50 - $2,500	$36/$300 = 12%

When we compare the TFCL ratio of the Reflex $300 and $500 versions to the $750 and $1,000 versions, you will see a stark contrast. It is much higher. For the Reflex $500 version, teh TFCL ratio is 55% from the second year onwards after the introduction of monthly maintenance fees. The TFCL ratio for the Reflex $300 limit version is a whopping 55%.

Most of their competition aren't any better at all. I have included both the Upgrade Select Card and Arro Mastercard in the table above to show you the sharp contrast of TFCL ratios and absolute fees you are paying compare to both these much lower fee cards.

Compare Reflex vs Arro Mastercard

Our Take: $750 and $1,000 Limit version OK

If you are offered the Reflex Mastercard $750 or $1,000 credit limit version, I have no problems with you applying for either and getting them. The credit limits are good and high enough to compensate for the $125 annual fee.

If you are offer either the $300 or $500 credit limit versions, I would suggest that you give it a skip because the fees that you have to apy for the credit limit you get is too high (as measured by the TFCL ratio) and not worth it. From the second year onwards, you have to pay $275 in fees for the $500 limit version and $249 for the $300 limit version. That is a lot of fees and you could instead have used that amount to get a no annual fee secured credit card as a security deposit instead.

If you get offered the $300 or $500 limit version, I would suggest you consider either the Upgrade Select Visa or the Arro Mastercard. Both have significantly lower fees than any of the versions of the Reflex Mastercard. In the case of Arro, there is no hard inquiry and the only requirements are that you have a minimum monthly income of $1,800 and link your bank account to Arro for income and cash flow verification. It is ideal for those who have low to mid 500 credit scores but have at least $1,800 in monthly income.

To sum up, based on our review and evaluation of the Reflex Mastercard, we are giving it a 3.8 stars out of 5 rating for it's generous credit limit and the modern features like free Vantage score, mobile apps and the ability to pay via debit card. The high fees (especially for the $300 and $500 limit versions), payment holds during the first 12 months prevent us from giving it a higher rating. If you have just emerged from bankruptcy and are looking for an unsecured credit card or if your Vantage score is at least 600 and you are looking for a high limit unsecured credit card for bad credit, then you may want to consider the Reflex Mastercard (especially the $750 or $1,000 limit version). If you are fee sensitive, then other cards like Arro Card or the Ugrade Select Card are much cost effective alternatives.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Can I apply with a co-applicant or as a joint account?

Can I apply with a co-applicant or as a joint account?

How long does it take Reflex Mastercard to approve my application?

How long does it take Reflex Mastercard to approve my application?

When will I receive my new Reflex credit card?

When will I receive my new Reflex credit card?

How do I activate my Reflex credit card?

How do I activate my Reflex credit card?

Can I manage my Reflex card account online?

Can I manage my Reflex card account online?

How do I check my Reflex Mastercard application status?

How do I check my Reflex Mastercard application status?

Can I get a cash advance with a Reflex credit card?

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What is the minimum payment each month for the Reflex card?

What is the minimum payment each month for the Reflex card?

Customer Service Information

Phone

Automated Account Information

1-866-449-4514
(Available 24 hours a day/7 days a week)

Customer Service

1-866-449-4514
(Customer Care Specialists are available 7 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon–Fri, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. Sat/EASTERN TIMES)

Payments

1-800-518-6142
(7 a.m.–10 p.m. Mon–Fri, 8 a.m.–4 p.m. Sat/EASTERN TIMES)

Lost/Stolen Card

1-800-556-5678

Mail

Inquiries Reflex Card
P.O. Box 3220
Buffalo, NY 14240-3220

Payments on Account

Reflex Card
P.O. Box 6812
Carol Stream, IL 60197-6812

How To Apply?

Below is a screenshot of the Reflex Mastercard pre-qualification page. You will have to fill in the usual information about yourself, name, address, email, phone number, SSN and income etc. It will also ask you if you intend to use this card for cash advance. I suggest you say no for this. The basic terms are also listed on the page and you should just go through them. After you press "see my offers", you will know if you have been pre-approved and if so what terms you will be offered. If you are happy with the terms, you should proceed to apply.