So much for "Platinum Service"

[aschmid]

Getting back on topic of this threat I have another gripe ...

I just noticed that my brand new Platinum card account has a statement cycle of mid of the month. I prefer statement cycles end of month so I have monthly statements.

Had that before on many cards and thought I just call them to change it as I do with EVERY other credit card company I ever had a card with - guess what?

I was told by AMEX Platinum card service that they can NOT change the billing cycle on my account! If I want to change I have to apply for a complete new card on a new account and close the old account!

WHAT THE ...?

I am getting so frustrated with the Platinum card and service. Now in my experience this service is actually LESS than I get from Westpac on my stock standard Visa card. What's wrong with this picture? Other companies can attend to customer needs to, AMEX can't?

I acknowledge that the people are very friendly and trying to be helpful but it seems their policies and system are just in their way to deliver outstanding service to customers.

 

[drewbles]

Getting back on topic of this threat I have another gripe ...

I just noticed that my brand new Platinum card account has a statement cycle of mid of the month. I prefer statement cycles end of month so I have monthly statements.

Had that before on many cards and thought I just call them to change it as I do with EVERY other credit card company I ever had a card with - guess what?

I was told by AMEX Platinum card service that they can NOT change the billing cycle on my account! If I want to change I have to apply for a complete new card on a new account and close the old account!

WHAT THE ...?

I am getting so frustrated with the Platinum card and service. Now in my experience this service is actually LESS than I get from Westpac on my stock standard Visa card. What's wrong with this picture? Other companies can attend to customer needs to, AMEX can't?

I acknowledge that the people are very friendly and trying to be helpful but it seems their policies and system are just in their way to deliver outstanding service to customers.

Strange. I've had them change my Platinum (credit not charge) card to another cycle after they were pissed off at my payments being a few days late due to my salary deposit not coinciding with their required payment date.

Took a few months to 'sync up' or something, but now it's spot on.

As a side note, I'm not impressed with Amex at all now. They suddenly decided to lower my credit limit 'due to the global financial turmoil' with no notification to me, and exactly a week after i made an extremely large deposit to my card to fund a trip (which was to be paid in the next 48 hours). They're now "Seeing if they can re-instate your previous credit limit". They also said that if I signed up for direct-debit of monthly repayments, this may help the situation, despite the fact i over-pay my monthly amount regularly (read: every month) and they never call me for money.

Are Amex really that paranoid that a customer who pays their account early, and well-over the minimum, is going to take them for a ride?

They've thrown my travel plans into total turmoil, and i'll probably now have to cancel a planned trip that I was going on for a wedding. Way to go Amex!

(and completely o/t, does anyone know the rules for them dropping credit limits to customers with or without notification? they've not advised me of anything because apparently (and this is what they told me) if they did, I may feel inclined to abuse my available credit until they drop my limit and then not pay it back )

 

[flymehome]

It's my understanding that Amex can change statement cycles on charge and credit cards.

With credit cards, the change can be made without the need to change card numbers however changing the statement cycle on a charge card necessitates changing the account number - the statement cycle code (1-9) is actually one of the digits in your charge card account number...

 

[rwatts]

It's my understanding that Amex can change statement cycles on charge and credit cards.

With credit cards, the change can be made without the need to change card numbers however changing the statement cycle on a charge card necessitates changing the account number - the statement cycle code (1-9) is actually one of the digits in your charge card account number...

When I got my Qantas Ultimate credit card I mentioned that the cycle date was the same as my existing charge card and that it might have been convenient to be offset. I was told it would be no problem to change, but 16 months later and I havnt bothered.

Richard.

 

[aschmid]

This keeps getting better and better ...

I finally went through all the trouble to apply for my FREE Platinum Credit Card and it showed up in the mail yesterday. When reading through it I noticed that the credit limit was only $3,000. I don't think I have to say this is useless!

Yep, that's $3,000 no zero missing. I thought that's strange maybe a mistake as I had credit card with them before years ago and limit was $25,000 no questions asked.

So called them up and ask what's going on. Of course they looked into the history found the $25k card and said they check with the "backoffice" and get back to me.

Today I received a email asking me to fill out a credit limit increase assessment form providing all sorts of financial details. That pretty much broke the camel's back.

I have been a customer with them for over 8 years now, put $2-3k private expenses a month and probably $5k+ on business expenses every other month through their system, never missed a single payment in all my history.

Have they gone nuts or do they just want to get rid of customers? All my cards with them will be canceled today. Bye, bye AMEX.

 

[simongr]

Did you want the card or just the free flight? If the just the free flight - why do care about the credit limit?

Also things have changed dramatically in the credit arena over the past year. Access to funds is restricted, lenders are more risk averse and internal policies and procedures will be being tightened. I understand why they are cutting back on credit limits (see the other threads on people having limits cut on EXISTING cards without even being told :shock:

Out of interest what benefit is it to you if you cancel the card? Do you have it for simply managing money or do you enjoy the Membership Reward benefits? If the latter then you will be hurt as much by cancelling the cards as Amex will - possibly more...

 

[aschmid]

Did you want the card or just the free flight? If the just the free flight - why do care about the credit limit?

Also things have changed dramatically in the credit arena over the past year. Access to funds is restricted, lenders are more risk averse and internal policies and procedures will be being tightened. I understand why they are cutting back on credit limits (see the other threads on people having limits cut on EXISTING cards without even being told :shock:

Out of interest what benefit is it to you if you cancel the card? Do you have it for simply managing money or do you enjoy the Membership Reward benefits? If the latter then you will be hurt as much by cancelling the cards as Amex will - possibly more...

I don't know if people understand that but it's about dignity and being treated with some respect. Why would I stay with a company who thinks they can treat their customers like dirt on their shoes and just do to them whatever they want?

It seems to me that other people have a higher threshold than me what they tolerate in terms of unacceptable treatment just to collect reward point.

I think this is also the reason why AMEX is as bad as they are because a lot of people just take up with all their incompetence instead of voting with their feet.

 

[simongr]

I think this is also the reason why AMEX is as bad as they are because a lot of people just take up with all their incompetence instead of voting with their feet.

To be fair though some people may consider their business practice acceptable and not incompetence and consider your expectations to be unrealistic.

The only real incompetence that I see in this thread is Amex posting something to an incorrect address. The rest for me is perfectly reasonable business practice - much of it clearly documented on Amex's website.

In relation to the change of statement date - I personally would not expect a CC agency to do this and am surprised that they do.

 

[aschmid]

To be fair though some people may consider their business practice acceptable and not incompetence and consider your expectations to be unrealistic.

I am sorry but I don't really see how having the expectations to get more than a $3,000 credit limit on a Platinum card is unrealistic?

To put this into perspective I applied about 3 months ago for a Wizard Clear Advantage Mastercard, got approved on-line with a 6,000 limit, no questions asked.

Now back to the point. I never had any credit relationship with Wizard (GE Money). I have a 8+ years relationship with AMEX. Had several cards with them, put several thousand dollars through with them every month, never missed a payment.

How is it "unrealistic" to expect from them to give me more than 3,000 dollar credit limit?

Also note that I called them today and asked what's going on. They said my relationship with them is based on my charge card but the credit card is a different card. I told them this is BS because I am still the same person using the card. How can you say we happy to let you spend thousand of dollars each month on the charge card but we won't allow you to do the same on the credit card because it's a different card we are not sure you will be able to pay us back?

Probably I am way to unrealistic in expecting people to have some common sense and not only follow blindly policies and procedures, is it?

 

[Mal]

I finally went through all the trouble to apply for my FREE Platinum Credit Card and it showed up in the mail yesterday. When reading through it I noticed that the credit limit was only $3,000. I don't think I have to say this is useless!

That is surprising, because I believed the Plat card had a minimum Credit Limit of $10K. (when mine was opened though, they gave me a little less than that amount).

Times are obviously tough at Amex. I wonder when they'll start seriously cutting credit limits to credit card holders.

--edit- Just checked and it seems they've reduced the min credit limit to $5K. Not sure when that occured.
Like all credit cards tho, mins and max limits are more guidelines than set in concrete.

 

[oz_mark]

Have they gone nuts or do they just want to get rid of customers? All my cards with them will be canceled today. Bye, bye AMEX.

Take your flight first

 

[lovestotravel]

Okay my gripe!

I went to use my trusty Plat credit card today in the same business that I use it every few days and it was declined, it said call for phone authorisation. The clerk said I must have gone over my credit limit, I said "OK' as I knew I had about $15,000 available to spend.

I pulled out the Plat charge card and it went through fine.

I called up Amex around 6:30pm and asked why my card was declined. The person I spoke to was polite and found the answer by calling the fraud department, and said due to an "attempted charge in another Country that I have never been to my card has been suspended until the Fraud department get in contact with me" Now this attempted charge (which Amex declined :mrgreen was 2 days ago!!!!!!

I have not received any phone calls on my only contact number with Amex which I am contactable on at all times. I asked why this was the case and I didnt' get an answer. She said that usually card holders need to call when charges are declined. I politely told her that even my basic VISA card with a bank will call me about a declined or suspicious charge within about a minute of the transaction to verify this. All for an annual fee of around $80, where as the Plat card costs me $900. Again she didn't have an answer to this.

So, I said please re-instate the card.. She advised me that this was not possible at the moment as I needed to speak to the fraud department when they re-open tomorrow at 8am and that I would need to call Amex back and explain the situation again and speak to the fraud department.

At this stage I told her that, it is totally unacceptable and why should I need to call back AGAIN when my card has been cut off for at least 40hours ++++ I also asked who she had just spoken to in the fraud department and why they couldnt' re-activate my card. She fumbled her way through that answer...

In the meantime of couse a few direct debts have been declined as well so I now need to pay these bills manually when the companies sent me a declinded letter, probabaly with a dishonor fee as well.

Eventually, after expressing my disapointment once again, she offered to call me back when she starts work tomorrow. I declined her offer and asked for the cancellation team to call me back.

She was very sorry that she couldn't help, I made it clear that I was not upset at her, but moreso the pathetic lack of contact after just cutting my card off.

I will wait for the call from the cancellation team, but my patience with Amex is pretty much up. From the bungled and very rude suspension letter I received, to non-calls back, no reply my letter yet, at day 26 so far so they have 4 days to reply. I will also add on the cancellation of one of my cards by accident, the suspension of my card while travelling in the USA and the lenghty phone calls needed to get the card re-activated to the bungled delivery of my replacement cards. I will also add the poor "companion fares" which are really of no value to me on the airline that I would use them on.

Reall not interested in what the cancellation team will say, all they will probably offer is a few hundred $$ to try to keep me, explain the 1.5 points per $ spent for redemption etc etc.

Not really alot going for them anymore in my books. For the sake of a few thousand $ in rewards/flights they are not worth the hassle.

I will probably end up cancelling all my Amex cards, both business and personal now. Enough is enough.

All I expected is a phone call once someone in fraud decided to "suspend" my card due to a fradulent transaction. Someone manually looked at the transaction and declined it, but didn't have the courtesy to ring me.

I have had no missed calls on my phone as I have answered every call ove the past few days, and otherwise they would have had my voicemail.

:evil:

 

[russ]

Now that you mention it, I recall that my wife's supplemental card was stopped due to potential fraudulent activity and, like you, they didn't bother to contact us.

Clearly my expectations are too high!

 

[lovestotravel]

Now that you mention it, I recall that my wife's supplemental card was stopped due to potential fraudulent activity and, like you, they didn't bother to contact us.

Clearly my expectations are too high!

Yep $900 a year gets you cut off without warning, when a $80 (or thereabouts) standard bank VISA card will get you a courtesy call.

Since I was unable to speak to the fraud department, what happens to transactions that appear fraudelent outside of Australian business hours. :shock:

 

[simongr]

Yep $900 a month gets you cut off without warning, when a $80 (or thereabouts) standard bank VISA card will get you a courtesy call.

Thats an expensive card - $900/month - would be cheaper to get the Centurion

Also note that I called them today and asked what's going on. They said my relationship with them is based on my charge card but the credit card is a different card. I told them this is BS because I am still the same person using the card. How can you say we happy to let you spend thousand of dollars each month on the charge card but we won't allow you to do the same on the credit card because it's a different card we are not sure you will be able to pay us back?

Probably I am way to unrealistic in expecting people to have some common sense and not only follow blindly policies and procedures, is it?

Three months is a long time in the banking industry at the moment. Frankly at the moment I would expect Amex staff to have no latitude in awarding credit limits. Banks have stricter limits on ratios of debts and assets so your history doesnt matter - every new credit assessment is a new transaction. Also CC is different to a charge card. The expectation with a charge card is that the debt is short term - a CC is generally a more long term debt instrument.

 

[lovestotravel]

Thats an expensive card - $900/month - would be cheaper to get the Centurion

Whoops and yes it is

 

[simongr]

Okay my gripe!

< snip >

:evil:

Now this gripe is something I actually agree with. This is not what I would expect from Platinum service and would be cause for me to cancel the card.

S

 

[drewbles]

Times are obviously tough at Amex. I wonder when they'll start seriously cutting credit limits to credit card holders.

They already have. They've cut mine. I made a very large deposit to pay for some flights, went to pay to find I had $100 odd available credit. When I called, they said it had been reduced due to the "global financial crisis" (what utter BS).

I now have a case open with their Customer Relations department, and the BFSO.

They cut my limit well over a week ago, and yet, no formal notification of it (nor can I find where they are allowed to do it in the T&C's). It infuriates me that someone who overpays their minimum monthly payment each month and has done for well over 2 years, can have this happen when they are funding amex with interest charges. Once I have my credit back, i'm making the purchase i needed from the large deposit, and canning the card. Free flight or not, i'm not going to put up with being treated like some kind of bankrupt destitute who doesn't make payments, when I obviously do. Looks like GE Are doing the same to a lot of their customers too.

 

[simongr]

They already have. They've cut mine. I made a very large deposit to pay for some flights, went to pay to find I had $100 odd available credit. When I called, they said it had been reduced due to the "global financial crisis" (what utter BS).

Why is it BS - banks have stricter lending rules (due to liquidity ratios and value of assets vs debt etc.) so if they see a credit limit not in use then they can use that to sell credit to someone who will pay the fees...

Their customer service in this regard is cr4pola and you should cane them for that but (and I keep repeating this but it seems to fall on deaf ears) - the lending world has changed - just as it changed a few years ago when banks became willing and able to lend to people massive amounts - prior to that it was hard to get credit - I dont see why people think nothing has changed when in reality everything has changed...

 

[serfty]

ISTR drewbles posted he made a substantial payment onto his Account in order to pay for some travel; before they could do so, the CC limit was trimmed to near the balance.

FWIW, I posit Drewbles was a Revolver in regard to this account.