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Group One Platinum Card
REVIEW

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Picture of Group One Platinum
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Key Highlights

  • Regular APR = 0%
  • Annual Fee = $0
  • Membership Fee = $14.77/month which include benefits like Roadside and Legal Assistance, Pharmacy RX Plans
  • Starting Credit Limit of $750 - which has a track record of increasing up to $3,000
  • No Credit Check, No Employment Check - all you need is a valid debit card
  • Easy and Quick Application and Fast Guaranteed Approval


Pros Cons
No Annual Fee Can only be used at www.thehorizonoutlet.com
0% APR Does not report to credit bureaus
Reports to Equifax  
Track Record of Credit Line Increases  


At a Glance

The Group One Platinum Card is a merchandise catalog card from Horizon Card Financial Services. There is no interest when you decide to carry a balance on your purchase (ie APR is 0%) and the starting credit limit is $750. For a monthly fee of $14.77, you get benefits like roadside assistance, discounts on prescription meds, legal services and free credit score. There is also no credit checks or employment checks and you will definitely be approved if you have a debit card.


Card Can Be Used At Horizon Outlet

Group One Platinum Card is not a Visa or Mastercard and can only be used at their online store thehorizonoutlet.com. They sells a variety of goods including electronics, apparel, beauty products, kids and baby products. Below is a screenshot of their online store.

horizon outlet


Buying and Paying with Group One Platinum

When you make use of the Group One Platinum at www.thehorizonoutlet.com, you can choose to pay in full or over time. You must pay shipping and processing fees in full, using your Bank Account, prior to items being shipped. The minimum payment is either 10% of the balance or $25. If you buy something that is $25 or less, you have to pay in full. You can set up autopayments with Group One Platinum


Card Details

Annual Fee $0
Regular Membership Plan $14.77/month
Regular APR 0%
Minimum Payment $25 or 10% of Balance


Annual Fee : $0

Monthly MembershipFee : $14.77

Interest Rate (Regular APR) : 0%

Minimum Payment : $25 or 10% of balance.





Membership Plan Benefits

From the details above, you have to pay $14.77 a month to join the Group One Platinum membership shopping portal. You get benefits like

  • Free roadside assistance - Members are eligible to receive up to 1 service call or towing request every 30 days and no more than 3 within a twelve-month period.

  • My Universal RX - You can receive up to 50% discount on prescription drugs.

  • My Legal Assistance - Free 30 minute consultation with legal professional in your area (it does not include criminal defense).

  • Credit-Hawk Free Credit Report - You can get a free credit report (called Credit-Hawk) with this program (and you can access it any time).


Comparables and Comparison With Other Cards

Card Details
Group One Platinum Card Monthly Fee=$14.77
APR=0%
No Credit Check
No Credit Reporting
Starting Limit=$750
Merit Platinum Monthly Fee=$14.77
APR=0%
No Credit Check
No Credit Reporting
Starting Limit=$750
Buy On Trust Monthly Fee=$0
APR=varies
No Credit Check
Reports to 3 Major Bureaus
Starting Limit=Up to $5,000
Extra Debit Card Monthly Fee=$7
APR=0%
No Credit Check
Reports to Equifax, Experian
Starting Limit=N.A.
Unique Platinum Monthly Fee=$19.95.
APR=0%
No Credit Check
Reports to TransUnion
Starting Limit=$1,000
Opensky Secured Visa Annual Fee=$35
APR=17.39%
No Credit Checks
Reports to 3 Major Bureaus
Starting Limit=$200-$3,000


Group One Platinum competes with other online store cards that guarantee approval. Most of them are from two issuers, Horizon Card Services (which issues Group One Platinum) and Unique Card Services. And there are also a couple of secured credit cards that do not do any hard inquiry.

Compared to Other Horizon Card Services Cards

Horizon Card Services issues Group One Platinum and other cards like Merit Platinum and Freedom Gold Card. If you look at the table above, you will see that they have identical features and fees. They all come with a monthly fee of $14.77 and start you off with a $750 credit line. So for all intents and purposes, there is no difference between these cards from Horizon. However, from 25th January 2022, cards from Horizon Card Services including Group One Platinum no longer report to any credit bureaus.

Compared to Cards from Unique Card Services

Horizon Card Service main competitor is Unique Card Services. The most issued card is the Unique Platinum. It is identical to those from Horizon Card Services except for two things. The first is that they have a higher monthly membership fee ($19.94 vs $14.77). Secondly, while cards from Horizon Card Services no longer report to any credit bureaus, cards from Unique Card Services report to TransUnion.

No Credit Check Secured Credit Cards

Aside from online store credit cards like Group One Platinum, there are a couple of secured credit cards which offer guaranteed approval (ie no hard inquiries or credit checks). You do have to put down a deposit and pay an annual fee but you can use them anywhere where credit cards are accepted unlike Group One Platinum.

The two examples I gave in the table above are cards from Opensky and First Progress Prestige. Secured credit cards are appropriate for you if you can afford the security deposit needed to secure your credit limit.

Compared to other no credit check credit cards

There are two other cards that I want to compare Group One Platinum to. The first is the Buy On Trust Lending, which is a buy now pay later online electronics store where you can pick up your purchases at Best Buy stores. This makes their selection superior to thehorizonoutlet.com. There are no credit checks and you can get up to $5,000 in credit lines. They also report to all three major credit bureaus unlike Group One, which no longer reports to any credit bureau.

Another card worth comparing to is the Extra Prepaid Card, which is one of the rare prepaid credit cards that builds credit and reports to both Equifax and Experian. The monthly fee is only $7 and there is no risk of getting into debt because it is a prepaid credit card. For credit building purposes, the Extra Card is superior to the Group One Platinum.


What We Like About Group One Platinum - No Credit and Employment Checks

  • 7-Day Free Trial - Group One Platinum will give you a free 7-day trial before charging you the monthly membership fee. You can cancel anytime before 7 days.

  • Unsecured $750 Credit Limit - Group One Platinum gives you a very generous $750 unsecured starting credit line.

  • 0% APR On Purchases - Group One Platinum is a "buy now pay later online store" credit card and hence, your APR is 0%. That means that you do not accrue an interest charges even if you do not pay in full for your purchases immediately. However, as mentioned earlier, you will have to pay a minimum payment that is the greater of either 10% of the purchase price or $25. If you buy something that is $25 or less, then you have to pay in full.

  • No Credit, No Employment Check- Guaranteed Approval - There are no hard inquiries or proof of income required. You will definitely be approved for the card as long as you have either a debit card or checking account to pay for your monthly membership fee.



What We Do Not Like About Group One Platinum - Can Only Be Used at TheHorizonOutlet.com

  • Can Only Be Used At thehorizonoutlet.com - You can only use this card at Horizon's online store www.thehorizonoutlet.com and cannot be used elsewhere like a regular Visa or Mastercard

  • Membership Fee - As mentioned earlier, you do have to pay a $14.77 a month membership.

  • No Credit Bureau Reporting - At this moment, Group One Platinum does not report to any credit bureau though they used to report to Equifax.


Our Take: Ratings Lowered and No Longer Recommended

We once recommended the Group One Platinum as a last resort to rebuilders who have exhausted all possibilities and have been denied other credit cards and cannot afford another hard pull. The reason was because it does not check your credit report and will approve you as long as you have a debit card. The $750 credit limit is rather generous and it reports to Equifax. However, as of 25th January 2022, Group One Platinum (as with all Horizon Card Services cards) have stopped reporting to credit bureaus. Hence, this card is no longer useful to rebuilders.

To sum up, based on our evaluations and review, we have lowered the ratings of Group One Platinum from 3.5 to a 2 star out of 5 rating because it no longer reports to any credit bureaus. Hence, we cannot recommend this card if you are looking to rebuild your credit. Instead, we suggest you consider other no credit check credit cards. A good alternative is the Buy On Trust Lending, which is an online lease to own electronics store where you can buy branded electronics and have them picked up at Best Buy stores. There are no credit checks and you can get up to $5,000 in credit limit. Buy On Trust reports to all three major credit bureaus.

Another great choice is the Extra Debit Card, which also has no credit checks. It is one of the rare debit cards that actually reports to both Equifax and Experian and is great for rebuilders. It also has a low $7 a month fee.




Application Page

Here is a screenshot of the Merit Platinum application page.
merit platinum application

On the next page, you will have to fill in your name, address, phone number, monthly pay, how often you are paid, your next pay date. Once you submit this information, you will get the offer and confirmation. You will be instantly approved (within 60 seconds) once you submit your online application.

group one platinum application group one platinum application group one platinum application




Customer Service Information

Mail

Horizon Card Services
P.O. Box 1275
Indiana, PA 15701

Customer Advocacy

1-800-837-4997
5 days a week from 8:30 a.m. until 9:00 p.m

Cancel Membership

1-800-251-6144
Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. EST, and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST (excluding holidays)
Or online at www.memberbenefitaccess.com.