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Put a fork in it 5.1.2014: One bonus per personal card per person "lifetime" [USA]

Old Mar 14, 2014, 10:48 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: beltway
It is essential to read the terms of the specific offer, but in general:

This offer is also not available to applicants who have or have had this product.
  • You can only earn one new account bonus for each personal card issued by American Express in the USA. We do not know precisely how far back American Express looks to see if you have previously held the same card, but there is anecdotal evidence that the Customer Service database looks back only seven years. This means that if you cancelled a card in 2007 or earlier, and have not held it since, you will probably qualify for a new account bonus in 2015.
  • Holding a related card does not disqualify earning a new account bonus. Examples: Green, Gold, and Platinum are each separate products. Delta Gold, Platinum and Reserve are each separate products. The Hilton credit card is a different product than Hilton Surpass.
  • Holding a Supplementary Card (authorized user) on someone else's account does not disqualify you from earning a new acount bonus if you open the same card type in your own name.
  • This rule does not apply to business cards. As of mid-February 2016, Amex appears to be adding the same restriction to its business card products.
  • If you receive a targeted offer, online or through the USPS, for a card which you have previously held you may, or may not, actually receive the bonus. Be certain to save a copy of the offer, and to read and save every screen which appears during the application process.
  • Upgrade offers are different from new account offers. You may be offered a bonus to upgrade (for example) a Gold Card to a Platinum Card, and you may be eligible for that bonus even if you previously held a Platinum card. It is still essential to read and save the terms of the offer.

If we identify you as currently having an American Express Card account, you may not be eligible for this welcome bonus offer.
  • This language appeared in the Spring of 2013, a year before the once-in-a lifetime policy was announced. The key term is "may", which gives American Express discretion to award or withhold the bonus.
  • To reduce the risk that the automated system will deny a new account bonus, RIGHT click the application link and open the application in a Private or Incognito browser window. American Express will still know that you are a current cardholder, but the system will not flag your application.

Points will be credited to your Membership Rewards account within 6 - 8 weeks after the spend requirement has been reached.
  • In practice it is not possible to know when American Express's system will credit a bonus to your rewards account. It may happen immediately after you meet the target spend, or it may happen when the next statement (or the following statement) is generated, or it may take the full eight weeks.
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Put a fork in it 5.1.2014: One bonus per personal card per person "lifetime" [USA]

Old Mar 12, 2014, 7:24 am
  #31  
 
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Of course, we can't be sure until we see new terms from Amex but from what I am reading this might only apply to personal cards...is that correct?
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 7:37 am
  #32  
 
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My own sense of things is that the number of people who churn cards for bonuses is a small (though vocal) % of all credit card users. So, I doubt that this change will have much affect AMEX overall ability to obtain and retain customers. They will just lose most of the churners, who aren't profitable to them.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 9:15 am
  #33  
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Originally Posted by dieuwer2
When people want to cancel for whatever reason, they will not return as they do not get the bonus. This mean that the AMEX user base inevitably will shrink. Eventually, this will means bankruptcy for AMEX.
If the competitors follow suit, all of them will get card applications from serious people who intend to use the card. Giving out bonuses for people who do not use the card is a loss for them. It's better to have 50 people who use the card rather than 100 who have the card but out of which only 10 use the card.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 11:46 am
  #34  
 
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Originally Posted by TheBOSman
Well, until May 1, I hold to the possibility of it not happening. Until people start getting declined for bonuses, it can't quite be a certainty. But, honestly, it looks pretty certain .
Of course, we all hope for that.
But we know that:
1. There is definitely internal AMEX documentation about 05/01 being D-day.
2. That AMEX has the capability to flip a switch and stop awarding bonuses.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 11:47 am
  #35  
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Originally Posted by UA Fan
If the competitors follow suit....
They won't.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 11:49 am
  #36  
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Originally Posted by dieuwer2
They won't.
What makes you so sure? More and more banks are frowning on churning and more people are resorting to churning.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 11:51 am
  #37  
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Originally Posted by UA Fan
What makes you so sure? More and more banks are frowning on churning and more people are resorting to churning.
Many cc issuers don't waive the annual fee. For them, churning doesn't matter as they collect the $$$ regardless.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 12:10 pm
  #38  
 
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The point is that the Amex Platinum really, really, really isn't worthwhile for the average, everyday consumer. It's only good if you fly a lot, and enjoy lounges...a lot. Other than that, there is absolutely 0 reason to get the Amex Platinum. There's BARELY any reason to get any Amex cards now (or say...the last decade). The signup bonuses are so-so at best, the cards aren't churnable, and the benefits they provide are meager.
With many airline lounges dropping the Platinum entirely, Chase and other bank signup bonuses FAR surpassing the that of Amex's, and the fact that Amex is finally desperately scrambling to find a way to catch up (see Everyday Cards released recently), TOPPED off with the fact that Amex cards are officially no longer churnable May 1st of this year, I really don't see any reason to get any Amex card anymore.
It's just ridiculous and insane to see a credit card company that was so on top of their game into the early 2000's devolve and implode so easily. Meanwhile other banks like Chase are absolutely crushing it.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 12:14 pm
  #39  
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Originally Posted by Strawboy1230
The point is that the Amex Platinum really, really, really isn't worthwhile for the average, everyday consumer. It's only good if you fly a lot, and enjoy lounges...a lot. Other than that, there is absolutely 0 reason to get the Amex Platinum. There's BARELY any reason to get any Amex cards now (or say...the last decade). The signup bonuses are so-so at best, the cards aren't churnable, and the benefits they provide are meager.
With many airline lounges dropping the Platinum entirely, Chase and other bank signup bonuses FAR surpassing the that of Amex's, and the fact that Amex is finally desperately scrambling to find a way to catch up (see Everyday Cards released recently), TOPPED off with the fact that Amex cards are officially no longer churnable May 1st of this year, I really don't see any reason to get any Amex card anymore.
It's just ridiculous and insane to see a credit card company that was so on top of their game into the early 2000's devolve and implode so easily. Meanwhile other banks like Chase are absolutely crushing it.
Thanks to management greed?
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 12:19 pm
  #40  
 
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Wouldn't a simpler solution to this is to charge all of the cards a first year AF instead of the first year waived? This would eliminate churning for a lot of people but Amex could also throw in terms like must have paid the AF for 3-4 straight years before applying again 2-3 years later to receive the bonus.

I would have probably never applied for the PRG card if i knew i had to pay 175 up front the first year.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 1:52 pm
  #41  
 
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Originally Posted by Strawboy1230
It's just ridiculous and insane to see a credit card company that was so on top of their game into the early 2000's devolve and implode so easily. Meanwhile other banks like Chase are absolutely crushing it.
I keep reading these types of posts, but the facts are otherwise.

Amex has increasing revenue, and keeps increasing their dividend. I would state this is hardly an implosion +/or a bank being crushed.

Originally Posted by dieuwer2
Eventually, this will means bankruptcy for AMEX.
As much as many on this board hate Amex for potentially eliminating their ability to churn their cards, I doubt eliminating a few churners will bankrupt American Express.

Last edited by mia; Mar 12, 2014 at 2:22 pm
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 1:56 pm
  #42  
 
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Originally Posted by UA Fan
If the competitors follow suit, all of them will get card applications from serious people who intend to use the card. Giving out bonuses for people who do not use the card is a loss for them. It's better to have 50 people who use the card rather than 100 who have the card but out of which only 10 use the card.
Originally Posted by dieuwer2
They won't.
Have you spoken to all the CEOs of the other credit card issuers to confirm?
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 2:03 pm
  #43  
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Originally Posted by drwilliams
Have you spoken to all the CEOs of the other credit card issuers to confirm?
Have you spoken to all the CEOs of the other credit card issuers to deny?
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 2:24 pm
  #44  
mia
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Originally Posted by Strawboy1230
Meanwhile other banks like Chase are absolutely crushing it.
Where's the evidence? American Express is now the #2 credit card network by transaction volume in the USA, having passed MasterCard. If they were being "crushed" how could they accomplish this?

Chase hired away a couple of executives from American Express. A market share battle ensued, and consumers benefited. This phase ended, and the issuers became more interested in margin than in raw numbers of accounts. We are well past the peak new account offers, and we saw higher new account spend requirements and more emphasis on features such as no foreign transaction fees, EMV chips, automatic year-end bonuses, etc.

Now American Express is apparently trying to consolidate their position and reduce account turnover. This will only work if the other large issuers follow. In a diverse market someone is always hungry. If it is Chase or Citi I think American Express will have trouble making this stick, but if they adopt similar policies I don't think Bank of America, Barclays, CapitalOne or Wells Fargo have sufficient footprint (in the rewards card category) to ignite another market share battle anytime soon.
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Old Mar 12, 2014, 2:40 pm
  #45  
 
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I thought this was already policy with Chase.
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