This would be the true market they aim for. Those for who the annual fee is somewhat immaterial.
i disagree. while i imagine there is a segment of the centurion market that would pay any price for the card solely because it makes a nice piece of wallet jewellery, the invitation letter i received asking me to join centurion was centered on two key two points. first, how selective and exclusive centurion is and second, the value it provides. the quote from pierric beckert (md of amex australia who signed the letter) i remember most was all about "how the centurion card provides exceptional value -- at $4300 per year."
last year we lost the only frequent flyer status offered by the australian version of amex centurion (mh enrich gold). this year they quietly excised the free nights for the mandarin oriental hotels in hong kong, boston, miami and las vegas (new york and london were taken away previously). ironically, the las vegas mo is not even open yet. the free nights at the mo was one of the best benefits in my opinion, but it, like so many other centurion benefit downgrades has eviscerated the "exceptional value" that mr. beckert talks about. i often have to wait on hold for someone to answer the call when i dial the centurion number (the cent number is routed to the same call staff that platinum card holders use). coupled with the fact that after they answer the phone, centurion service is spotty and unreliable (sometimes you get exceptional service, often people give you completely wrong information and/or never call you back as promised), i don't see how many people can justify the card other than the kerplunk factor from the noise it makes when you place it on the counter to pay a bill. it does look pretty but even if you are uber-rich and can easily afford it, is paying $4300 for marginal to bad service something that this type of clientele tolerate?
in answer to one of the previous posts asking about the differences between platinum and centurion benefits, the insurance benefits, hotel statuses and lounge benefits of the australian centurion are very similar to those that the platinum charge card provides -- at fraction of the cost.
centurion provides starwood preferred guest gold (same as platinum), hilton honors gold, priority club platinum (pretty useless unless you love staying at at a holiday inn express as i have never received an upgrade when using it at one of the card's nicer properties such as intercontinental hotels (platinum provides priority club gold level), access to american airlines, delta, northwest and continental airlines' clubs (all same as platinum) and priority pass lounge access (same as platinum provides). centurion does offer one complimentary qantas club membership but i find this a moot point since i (like i presume many centurion card holders) travel extensively, we already have frequent flyer status with the airlines we are booked on or are travelling in a fare class that entitles us to use the club anyway. with few exceptions (such as a one room category upgrade (if available--and they are not always available) that can be confirmed at the time of booking at hotel properties such as the penninsula and the mandarin oriental), the amex centurion fhr benefits are very similar to those that a platinum cardholder receives. insurance coverage appears almost identical.
here are the travel insurance benefits provided from centurion (taken from the website).
Medical Expenses = Unlimited (with lots of footnoted exceptions)
Trip Cancellation = Up to AUD50,000
Baggage = Up to AUD5,000 per article
Personal Liability = Up to AUD3,000,000 (doesn't cover rented vehicles and LOTS of other footnoted exceptions)
Baggage Delay = Up to AUD700
Flight Delay = Up to AUD700
Missed Connection = Up to AUD700
Accidental Death resulting from Transport Accident = Up to AUD1,000,000 (many footnoted exceptions)
as i remember, platinum coverage was very similar.
all in all, i think, as i mentioned in a previous post, that american express is forcing their centurion card to die by a death of a thousand (benefit and service) cuts. before they raised the annual fees from $2800 to $4300 and started amputating benefits, amex centurion used to be in a class by itself and, as mr. beckert states in the invitation, provide a centurion cardholder with "exceptional value."
unfortunately, with the australian centurion card, i now find that value and good service are the exceptions. the australian version of the centurion card has (as far as i can tell) the worst benefits and is one of the highest priced centurion cards in the world.
i hope this gives some of you additional information to consider should you receive a centurion invitation.
regards,
alem
ps--for anyone interested in how the australian centurion benefits (or lack thereof) compare to other countries, have a look at the current discussion on flyertalk about the centurion benefits upgrade (and fee hike) that just occurred in the uk. the uk centurion cardholders are spitting nails and complaining loudly about benefits that are considerably better than those that australian centurion provides for an annual fee that is considerably less than the annual AUD$4300 we australians pay.
