While reading this thread , and also in other situations, I’ve noticed there is an occasional sentiment that some people have AmEx to be cool or feel superior.
I don’t get this, why is there that feeling?
I mean, I’ve had an AmEx card as my primary credit card since college, and I’m nobody special. The main reason I like it is that the rewards are good, customer service has been great, and the online tools for looking at my spending and stuff are better than any other card I’ve had.
Was there some time in the past when AmEx was “elite”? Because it doesn’t seem that way to me anymore…
It is often used in business because their traditional cards don’t have a defined spending limit. They also aren’t real credit cards. A business person can rack up $30,000 in charges to pay for a trade show and be all set as long as it is payed back right away. They also tend to have very high credit rating standards for their more exclusive cards. Combine that with good and seemingly exclusive customer service and that is most of the answer.
Plus I think it offers more levels of cards for people. The highest level, the black or something, is only available to people who move some absurd amount like $50 or $100 grand each month.
I’m not gonna peruse their site to find whether or not those numbers are remotely accurate, but that’s what a friend who’s dad owns a hotel chain (and an AmEx black) told me.
Amex is pickier. You have to have fairly good credit to get one and they don’t license their name to fly-by-night banks. There’s some form of Visa or Mastercard are available to almost anyone with a pulse, be it secured card or 78.56% APR.
The Centurion Card. It’s not $250,000 a month, it’s $250,000 a year. It used to be by invite only, but I guess you can apply now. I’ve seen one in the restaurant I work at.
He tipped less than 15%.
Also, AMEX used to offer services for travelers (maybe they still do) for example, you could pick up your mail at overseas AMEX offices. Back in the day this was a bigger deal when you couldn’t get Fedex to your door pretty much anywhere in the world. I think it gave the AMEX card a sophisticated patina that lasts to this day.
All of these services are still available and then some. Some products give you unlimited use of a 24-hour luxury concierge service. There are a lot of travel related services that even people who pay their card fees do not even realize since they do not usually read the glossy little booklet they get every year.
I’m no big spender, but I’ve always noticed that AmEx’s customer service is far superior to any bank’s Visa or Mastercard service. When I lost my wallet, AmEx FedExed me a new card for free overnight. Citi sent a new Mastercard via regular mail a week later.
When I’ve needed to dispute charges, AmEx takes my report over the phone in two minutes, other cards have me fill out paperwork and send it in.
This is all with AmEx’s traditional card (charge card as opposed to credit card.) I imagine their credit card offering (the “blue” line currently) is more in-line with the banks’ Visa and MC offerings.
Actually, my experience with just using their credit cards is the same as yours. When I had a disputed charge, I just filled out a complaint online and they dealt with it. Whole thing resolved and my account credited in maybe a couple minutes, and no further issue after that.
It’s a better card for all of the reasons mentioned, I just wish they had a better hold on the market than Visa or MC, still not enough places take it.
Is that the metal one? I get one of those every once in a while at work, maybe once a month or so. They always freak me out because I’m never prepared for the card to be so heavy and I usually end up dropping it. :o
I believe their customer service is still in the United States. Ft. Lauderdale, Greensboro, and Phoenix are the locations I’ve gotten when I’ve called them over the years.
When my locker was thieved from at the Y a few years back, the thief took my cash and MasterCard – but left the two (personal, business) AmEx cards alone.
In filling out the police report, the cop told me that AmEx is much more stringent on requiring their vendors to verify ID, and in tracking cardusers’ spending habits. So much so that it is not considered worth the thief’s while to snatch the things.
That’s why I have an AmEx as well. It also has a much higher spending limit than my Visa, so when I need to buy something big, I’ll use it, where as I use my Visa for day to day stuff. The AmEx is through Costco, so it’s fee free, which is nice. The interest rate is less nice, but as I never carry a balance, it could be 100% and I wouldn’t care.