Qantas Amex Ultimate Card

[lagmagnet]

Hi Everyone,

I'm a "Frequent Reader" of the AFF forums but a first time poster. Apologies if this is posted in the wrong section.

I am currently living in Brisbane and moving to Melbourne for a year in a few weeks time. As such, I expect to be doing the Brisbane<->Melbourne trip fairly frequently to see family & friends.

Today I saw an ad for the Qantas/Amex Ultimate Card
Introducing the new Qantas American Express Ultimate Card

My interpretation of this is:
- I can use this card to purchase a Qantas flight
- I can then receive 17,500 FF points
- I can also receive a return Bris->Mel flight
effectively getting 3 Bris->Mel return flights (after redemption of 16000 of the 17500 points) for the cost of one (+any applicable card fees)

One phrase that concerns me on that page is "Card fee of per annum" (an omission of the card fee.. typo?). Does anyone know what the card fee is for this particular promotion? Is there a fee free period?

I also do not meet the minimum requirement of $65,000pa salary. How flexible are American Express on this requirement? I can prove a good employment/credit/AMEX repayment history.

Does anyone have any comments or suggestions on the flights / requirements?

Thanks

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I think you will find them rigid on the income.




I noticed the card too....and applied....hoping that it is free as normally a $xx_ amount is shown where the fee is.

Figured that all will be revealed when I get the card..as it comes with terams and conditions letter (or at least my free fora year Qnats premium card did) that I would see what the amount is...and if worth less than the points would not activate it.


I received a call last Friday to varify my application...and since I had a human..and they did not say what the fee was..I queried them on this.

They confirmed that it was free for a year. But I will believe this when I see it.

If it eventuates I will be most pleased...as having taken the Premium promtion in July for my wife and I this will mean that we will have gain ina few months for no cost

60000 points plus 2 domestic aifares.

In addition my wife has already received her bonus 2500 points plus 2 QC passes.

So I will get my 2500 points too prior to activating the Ultimate card....plus 2 more passes

Which will I hope soon have netted 70000 points, 8 QC passes andd 2 free domestic airfares with myself now being on an earn rate of 1.5 (2.5) for Qantas services)...all at no extra cost.

My happiness is also compounded as I have also recently obtained the free for life Citibank with an eran rate of 1.0 and so am covered for my purchases that do not take AMEX.

This is all much better than my previous free for life-of- my- loan Westpac AMEX and VISA with earn rates of 1.0 and 0.5.and no bonus points.






However there is still an IF..i will believe the Ultimate part when I see the letter with the card. However not much harm in applying, with I hope a good upside.

I will keep the forum posted.

 

[M_Wilson]

My experience with them re income has been hopeless. They refused because my income was $150p.a. short of the requirement from my day job and they wouldn't even consider the fact that i derive income from more than one source! Very surprising given the types of people they're trying to attract. i spoke with everyone there was because i didn't want a bad aplication to show up in my credit history to no avail.

 

[JohnK]

- I can also receive a return Bris->Mel flight
effectively getting 3 Bris->Mel return flights (after redemption of 16000 of the 17500 points) for the cost of one (+any applicable card fees)

Not sure how you worked out that you will get 3 return BNE-MEL flights, unless I have missed something or misunderstood your statement. A return BNE-MEL award flight with QF is 24,000 FF points not 16,000 FF points. Are you also including a paid return BNE-MEL flight in the above equation?

..and they did not say what the fee was..I queried them on this.

They confirmed that it was free for a year. But I will believe this when I see it.

I hope you are right. There is no mention on the website of the fee being waived in the first year! Just that there is a "Card fee of per annum". There appears to be a number missing between "Card fee of" and "per annum"!

 

[lagmagnet]

Not sure how you worked out that you will get 3 return BNE-MEL flights, unless I have missed something or misunderstood your statement. A return BNE-MEL award flight with QF is 24,000 FF points not 16,000 FF points. Are you also including a paid return BNE-MEL flight in the above equation?

Oops.. well spotted. I had Bris->Sydney on the brain. Sorry about that.

Call it 2.5 trips then

 

[lovetravellingoz]

I still have not received my card yet....with that vital letter.

Has anyone???

Despite being told it was free for the first year during the AMEX phone check..I will belive it when I see it on the hard copy.

 

[Rick93]

Getting the card is one thing... being able to use it, is another!!!

Has anyone else had their AMEX card go down?

Over the past week, I've been embarressed SIX times now, especially at petrol servos & supermarket check outs.

It comes up as DECLINED.

I've had to phone the AMEX 1800 number, and get a manual authorisation.

AMEX have not been able to identify and rectify the problem for nine (9) days now!!!

Apparently, they are claiming only a "few" cardholders are affected.

They also have refused to reissue me another card, stating "that won't fix your problem".

So, it sounds to me, like there is something 'sinister' about the whole matter....

comments???

regards,

 

[oz_mark]

Getting the card is one thing... being able to use it, is another!!!

Has anyone else had their AMEX card go down?

Over the past week, I've been embarressed SIX times now, especially at petrol servos & supermarket check outs.

It comes up as DECLINED.

I've had to phone the AMEX 1800 number, and get a manual authorisation.

AMEX have not been able to identify and rectify the problem for nine (9) days now!!!

Apparently, they are claiming only a "few" cardholders are affected.

They also have refused to reissue me another card, stating "that won't fix your problem".

So, it sounds to me, like there is something 'sinister' about the whole matter....

I doubt there is anything sinister about the whole matter, as I can't see that it would be in AMEX interests to decline authorisation. I have been through a phase where an AMEX card I had was continually declined but the issue whatever it was ultimately got resolved.

The intiguing thing is that you report them as saying that they don't know what the problem is, but they also say that reissuing the card won't fix the issue. Seems to me they may know (sort of) what the problem might be.

 

[Rick93]

Yes, precisely!

They must know what the problem is...

I call it 'sinister', because I'm concerned, that there may be some type of 'hacking' into the system, or my personal details file may have been somehow 'corrupted'.

You just don't expect AMEX to fail without some significant problem being the cause!

regards,

 

[JohnK]

I call it 'sinister', because I'm concerned, that there may be some type of 'hacking' into the system, or my personal details file may have been somehow 'corrupted'.

A few years ago my Amex blue card was being DECLINED whenever I tried to use it. After a few failures I called Amex to find out the problem and they were being truthful with me in saying that my card details had been compromised and they took the precaution of putting a stop on the card. At the time I called them they had decided the card needed to be cancelled. I had a new card within the next couple of weeks.

I could not get too much information from them but apparently one of the businesses where I used my card had been under investigation for fraud.