Amex slamming Green Card holders into SPG card? [Inaccurate notice sent.]
#1
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Amex slamming Green Card holders into SPG card? [Inaccurate notice sent.]
My wife and I hold plebian Amex Green Cards for the sole purpose of buying things at Costco. It's my wife's account. She received an overnight email this morning informing her: "American Express is pleased to present you with your newly redesigned Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card. We are excited to issue you a new Card for your account ending in XXXXX."
She has no Starwood loyalty account or stay activity, and no interest in same. (We're Hilton / Hyatt mainly.) We think this is weird. If she can't maintain her regular Green Card she is inclined to cancel everything.
Has this happened to anyone else? Are Green Cards being force-turned over to Starwood (or other affinity) cards on a wholesale basis?
The incoming new cards (which we will not activate) are chipped, and we speculate over morning coffee that with Amex taking big hits this year over the lost Costco and JetBlue relationships, they are pushing their remaining affinity cards hard as a way to spread out the costs of upgrading to chipped cards. Thoughts?
She has no Starwood loyalty account or stay activity, and no interest in same. (We're Hilton / Hyatt mainly.) We think this is weird. If she can't maintain her regular Green Card she is inclined to cancel everything.
Has this happened to anyone else? Are Green Cards being force-turned over to Starwood (or other affinity) cards on a wholesale basis?
The incoming new cards (which we will not activate) are chipped, and we speculate over morning coffee that with Amex taking big hits this year over the lost Costco and JetBlue relationships, they are pushing their remaining affinity cards hard as a way to spread out the costs of upgrading to chipped cards. Thoughts?
#2
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This sounds like an IT error. It would be very unusual for American Express to replace a charge card with a credit card, and I very much doubt they would create a new card account without an application and inquiry. I would call to ask for clarification. They may simply be sending a Green card with an EMV chip.
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Thanks, Mia, that's a very plausible scenario. We will wait to see what arrives in the mail and update here as warranted.
#5
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The question mark in the thread title makes it a query, not a "dramatic" statement. I wanted to know if anyone else has had this happen before we rang Amex. Still do. Feel free to go read other threads you approve of.
#6
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This all sounds strange, but if it were me, my biggest gripe would be that you would be receiving a new personal SPG card, but won't be getting the usual sign-up bonus of 25K (currently 30K) SPG points. If that happens, assuming this is a personal card, you just missed your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pick up 25K/30K SPG points. Yeah, you probably also missed an HP, but still...I wouldn't like it.
#7
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Why wouldn't you call them first? There's no way this has every happened and no way any consumer would ever approve of this. It is a mistake, and I'm sure they will fix it quick enough and save you the hassle of following this thread for hours.
#8
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In other words, even if Amex doesn't force-convert your Green Cards, what will you do with them come next spring, once your "sole" reason for having them evaporates?
But don't Green cards earn MR points? Do you each have other cards that earn MR points? I can't see the sense of Amex converting a card that earns MR points to a card that doesn't, since what happens to the MR points?
#9
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Originally Posted by sdesearch
...even if Amex doesn't force-convert your Green Cards, what will you do with them come next spring, once your "sole" reason for having them evaporates?
#10
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Have you checked your account online to see if the Green card is still listed,or if it's actually been changed to a Starwood card?
The one thing that makes me think this is a notification error is the fact that one is a charge card and the other credit-obviously a big difference.
Please report back once you have confirmed either way,as I am leery of Amex right now because they are being less than forthcoming about options for the Costco card.
The one thing that makes me think this is a notification error is the fact that one is a charge card and the other credit-obviously a big difference.
Please report back once you have confirmed either way,as I am leery of Amex right now because they are being less than forthcoming about options for the Costco card.
#11
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American Express has the option to sell the Costco card portfolio to Citi. Until they decide they won't be able to tell you whether your account will be transferred to Citi or converted to another American Express product.
#12
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There are reports here and there of Costco card holders being offered cards as replacements with differing amounts of bonuses. It seems targeted to those who only have the one card at this point.
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#14
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EMV aside, it seems to me highly unlikely that they'd switch a customer from a charge card to a credit card, and equally unlikely that they'd switch someone from MR to SPG. I would make an educated guess that dollar-for-dollar, MR is far more profitable to Amex than SPG is. Many of the redemption opportunities seem to be set at a value of $0.005/point, which is almost certainly less than they pay SPG. Also, Amex gets the benefit of all breakage on MR points, whereas SPG profits on point breakage from the affinity card.