American Express Membership Rewards - The further cheapening of Platinum

Anyone seen the mailshot going out over the last couple of weeks? Get two return flights to Paris by signing up for Platinum.

Not sure whether it's targeted at existing Green/Gold cardmembers or specific income groups.

Either way, expect a big expansion in the number of UK Plats over the coming months.

Perhaps this means that AmEx intends to migrate some of its higher-yield Plats to Centurion?!?

My observation with Amex is that it doesn't matter if your green, gold or Plat no one cares less when they take the card, in fact most don't even want to take the card because of 2 important reasons:

1. Amex charges more than other cards to the merchant
2. Amex takes longer to pay the merchant

Over priced and underserviced that's my opinion of any of Amex products or services and I have been with them for 29 years.

Guess I must have Stupid on my forehead.

Anyone seen the mailshot going out over the last couple of weeks? Get two return flights to Paris by signing up for Platinum.

In my experience they often do these special offers through targeted mailshots to a limited number of people and these offers are "invite only". I guess the best way to find out is to read fine print in the mailshot. :p

I got hold of a mailshot about the new Amex Platinum Credit Card (no annual fee, 2% cashback) a couple of years ago and phoned Amex to ask for one. They wouldn't give me one, (invites only) even though I was earning over £100k a year at the time and spending a fair percentage of that on my card. I ended up cancelling my card because of this. It was about 12 months later that they made the card generally available so I got one.

As for cheapening the brand, that was done long ago. No one ever looks twice at the colour of your card and often enough Amex gets a negative reaction "we don't take Amex" (even though there is a big blue sign on the door) or "do you have another card you can use" or "we charge a surcharge on Amex". I only got mine for the 2% cashback and for the perverse pleasure of knowing that the retailer is paying a higher merchant fee for the privilege of accepting Amex.

The platinum credit card does have an eye catching hologram on the face of it. Not as funky as the Blue card, but it impressed the girls in Marks and Sparks. :D

'Cheapening' is hard to define. In any event, it is hard to take Amex too seriously when Boots and John Lewis won't take it.

Only a small minority are ever going to pay £275 for a charge card. I've had a Plat for 5 years and rarely use it - I charge 1 item every 2 months so I keep getting the promo leaflets with the statements, but thats all.

I can, however, justify the £275 fee because of: the travel insurance (worth £200+), a heavily used Priority Pass (£150), the SPG Gold card (got me a free suite upgrade in Kyoto last week), the Hilton Gold card (free suite upgrade in NY last August), a free BA Amex (which is where all my spending actually goes), free Membership Rewards access for my corporate card (£38), very occasional use of the FHR programme and the occasional invites to drinks parties (Christies last month, Boodle & Dunthorne jewellers late last year and a fantastic Louis Vuitton party two years ago).

Offering a couple of free flights to Paris, which BA will sell you for £32 return each plus tax if booked far enough ahead, is unlikely to swing many people in my view.