McDonald's is set to axe its popular coffee stamp scheme in a major shake-up to the loyalty scheme that could now see caffeine fans paying more for their favourite hot drink.
The fast-food giant has unveiled a major overhaul to its rewards based scheme that will see customers unable to obtain digital stamps when they purchase a hot drink.
Currently, McDonald's fans can collect digital stamps when they purchase a hot beverage - known as a McCafe Loyalty. When collected through the My McDonald's app, they can get the sixth free after they purchase five.
For example, customers who purchase five cappuccino's would find themselves spending just £10.45 to nab the free drink, reports The Sun. However, this is set to change from the end of the month, with the global food brand set to introduce a new wider points system that could find them paying much more than they are used to.
From October 31, the current points system will be rolled into the new My McDonald's Rewards Scheme, that will see customers have to earn points that can be redeemed across food and drink items on the menu.
And this new scheme means that customers could be forking out £6.27 more in order to qualify for a free drink under the new scheme after an introductory double points offer, reports The Mirror.
Hot drink lovers will now have to earn 1,500 points to get a free, regular-sized drink. Adding it up, each £1 spent at the fast-food chain will earn you 100 points. This means buying a large cappuccino for £2.09 will lead to 209 points.
So instead of the £10.45 spend before a free drink in the current scheme, customers will now have to spend £16.72 on eight drinks - equating to 1,500 points - to qualify for the free reward.
The double-points bonanza means that thirsty customers will only need to buy four drinks - totalling £8.36 - to nab a free drink when the new scheme rolls out, but this only lasts until the end of the year.
McDonald's explained that the new system allows customers to tally up all of their purchases in the new loyalty scheme, meaning that you aren't just limited to hot drinks when earning points.
Which means that, unlike the current scheme, customers can now earn points from their favourite food orders, including McNuggets and the brand new McCrispy chicken burger.
The changes come after McDonald's announced that they were ditching the old stickers on hot drinks for digital stamps over the summer.
Now the system is having a complete overhaul, any patrons with existing McCafe stamps will need to sign up to the new MyMcDonald'sRewards scheme before October 31.
Each existing stamp will convert to 300 points over on the app, which is free to download. Any free drinks that have yet to be redeemed will show on the offers and rewards section on the app.
For anyone used to the sticker system looking to venture into the new digital version, all you need to do is show or scan your reward QR in the app to collect and redeem your points. Your points will last for an entire year on the app too.
Customers can also earn points as normal when ordering food and drink via the app, but you can't earn points from third-party delivery companies like Uber Eats and Deliveroo.
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