While I (thankfully, and I am sympathetic to those of you have had the "declined" issue) have not had the issue of my Plat card being rejected, I am getting frustrated more and more with merchants that used to take Amex, and now don't. For one thing, I wish it was consistent where an establishment posts a list of what they take at the front, because I only have an Amex card, and no other companies. I went to the H&M store in Los Angeles a few weeks back (I've shopped there numerous times and spent bundles there in the past on my Amex), only to wait in line and find out that the store no longer takes Amex. Embarrassed for having waited in line and did not have anywhere near enough cash to cover the transaction, I walked out and haven't gone back since. I understand, from a merchant's standpoint, that higher fees result in a loss of profit, but in this example, H&M lost a $40 sale as opposed to losing a few dollars in the transaction.
From a business standpoint, when will merchants realize that there ARE people out there who won't shop/eat at places that don't take Amex, and they are losing more money from potential customers avoiding their establishments than they would with just the higher transaction fee that Amex charges. That's my rant, sorry for being a bit OT, but I'm always plenty happy with the service and security Amex gives me, and becoming more and more frustrated with merchants that are no longer (or never did) taking Amex.