American Express Membership Rewards - card upgrade vs. re application

Im wondering if AMEX incorporates the concept of upgrading your card. Ive been issued a Green Amex and want to upgrade it to a Platinum. I know I match the criteria that Amex uses in granting Platinum cards, but I dont want to go through the standard application process.

Do you guys know if there's a number I can call at Amex and ask to speak to some credit supervisor, send him/her a complete package of my credit/financial situation and have them look at granting me a Platinum card?

------------------
Gaucho100K

They always make you 're-apply', unfortunately. You don't have to send in a new application but you do have to give them your SSN and everything again. Why, i don't know since they clearly have it in front of 'em but, who knows?

For what it's worth, I got a call from AMEX the other day about my Centurion account. They wanted to update their financial information since they claim to have done that last in 1999. The data she read to me was over 10 years old! She just wanted my bank name and annual income. I gave her the name of the bank I've been with for the last 7 years - the same bank name I've given them before. Oddly, the annual income they had was roughly correct for 1999. Their various departments are pathetically disconnected. So, don't get too frustrated.

------------------
If A equals success, then the formula is A = X + Y + Z. X is work. Y is play. Z is keep your mouth shut. - Albert Einstein

[This message has been edited by BigTexasRugger (edited 03-02-2002).]

If you try to go the upgrade route (which may or may not exist), start off from call 1 by getting people's names and departments. I attempted to do the green->plat upgrade about a year ago and it turned into a big fiasco. After being told that my account was upgraded and the card was basically in the mail, all of a sudden the request completely disappeared from system, reappeared days later, I got different information from each different person I spoke to, etc. I ended up terminating the process. (I wrote the story up and sent it to AmEx via PlanetFeedback.com. Another AmEx cardholder said the same thing happened to her, so I'm not the only one.)

AmEx has offered to upgrade me to Gold on a few occassions, keeping the same account and everything. With Platinum they're about 50-50 between saying it's possible and saying it's not.

d

I just upgraded from Green to Platinum a little over a month ago. I called the number on the back of my Green card and explained that I wanted to get the Platimun card, he looked up my acoount and said I qualified. Got transferred to a Platinum line and completed the process over the phone. Nt sure what information I had to provide, but is was quick and card showed up within 2 weeks.

Did they establish a new account for the Plat, or did your exact Green account get turned into a Platinum account (the way airlines upgrade FFers to elite status)?

As I mentioned, AmEx reps go back and forth between telling me I can upgrade and telling me they'll have to establish a completely new account, so I'll have two AmEx accounts.

d

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Doppy:
Did they establish a new account for the Plat, or did your exact Green account get turned into a Platinum account (the way airlines upgrade FFers to elite status)?

</font>

Doppy,
When my basic green turned to PLAT. via a call requesting the new card, AMEX issues an entirely new account and told me to call to cancel the green when the PLAT. arrived in the mail. I actually had both active for a period of time.

-Dan P.

Actually, they don't mind at all if you have multiple accounts open as they all pull from the same 'exposure-limit'. At one time I had green, gold and platinum due to upgrading and needing to keep the old accounts out of laziness (not wanting to call umpteen million people to change card #'s and such). I found out the hard way that the exposure limit is for ALL cards when I ran afoul of it on my Plat and promptly got a call from an additional cardholder (off the Gold account) complaining that their card wouldn't work!

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by kanebear:
At one time I had green, gold and platinum due to upgrading and needing to keep the old accounts</font>

I was in the exact same situation (have cancelled gold since), and the green had a higher limit than the gold, which in turn had a higher limit than the plat http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif . One would think Amex would adjust the respective limits for the cards' target markets.

Thanks for all the information. I will probably call Amex sometime this week.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by monahos:
I was in the exact same situation (have cancelled gold since), and the green had a higher limit than the gold, which in turn had a higher limit than the plat http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/frown.gif . One would think Amex would adjust the respective limits for the cards' target markets.</font>

I think the issue is the order in which you apply for the various cards. For example, if you apply for a regular Optima card and are granted a $10,000 revolving limit, then 2 years later apply for a Platinum Optima and get a $2000 limit, this is because they determined that your overall exposure after two years of the green card should be $12,000. You certainly wouldn't want them just moving the available credit to the Platinum card just because the platinum brand has a higher prestige. But, if you ask, they are very willing to reallocate available credit among multiple credit card accounts per your request. I don't know how this process works with respect to charge accounts that for whatever reason have a specific pre-assigned credit limit.

While several Amex departments can process upgrades, the one specializing in this stuff is called MCS, which is their retention dept.


Saar

[This message has been edited by Saar (edited 12-21-2002).]