American Express Membership Rewards - Large Spending but useless benifits *Help*

I own a business and currently hold a Platinum Amex. 1 of my biggest suppliers DO NOT take amex so im forced to pay with Visa or MC

So I got the chase debit card with United Miles.

Couple things that suck are that
*United does not fly out of Dallas much at all.
*I cant get another Visa or MC that will give me a large enough spending limit like my amex a month. 40k a month
*If they took amex i could get the black :/

Any suggested as what to do in this situation?

Also important is that I have multiple stores and the accounting is done seperate so getting 1 card with 2 names is fine but year end summery has to show the exact breakdown for the accountant.

if this thread needs to move no problem

THANKS ALOT IN ADVANCE!!

<< chase debit card with United Miles.>>

I understand you mean the Mileage Plus Visa Check Card (http://www.chase.com/ccp/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/individuals/debit_cards/page/united_miles_plus) which earns 0.5 miles per dollar (1 mile for two dollars). Is that correct? It appears that mileage is capped at 60,000 per year unless you are a United Mileage Plus Premier®, Premier Executive®, Premier Executive 1K® member.

Inasmuch as you are in Dallas you might prefer the corresponding AAdvantage debit card (http://www.aa.com/apps/AAdvantage/ViewMileageProgramsPartnerDetail.jhtml?fileName=de bitcardOffer.xml&repositoryName=AAdvantagePartnersContentRepository&repositoryId=16002683&itemDescriptor=AAdvantagePartnersContent) issue by Citibank. "If you elect to enroll in the Premium Citibank® / AAdvantage® Debit Card you'll get 4,000 bonus miles, earn 1 AAdvantage mile for every $1 you spend on signature-based transactions and pay a $65 annual fee." However, this is capped at 100,000 miles per year with no apparent waiver for elite members. (Bear in mind that all AAdvantage miles count toward lifetime Gold or Platinum status.)

Do you have to use one account for all the purchases? One strategy would be to put as much as possible on a mileage earning credit card and the excess on a debit card. Over time the payment history would probably lead to an increased credit limit.

dennis

<< chase debit card with United Miles.>>

I understand you mean the Mileage Plus Visa Check Card (http://www.chase.com/ccp/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/individuals/debit_cards/page/united_miles_plus) which earns 0.5 miles per dollar (1 mile for two dollars). Is that correct? It appears that mileage is capped at 60,000 per year unless you are a United Mileage Plus Premier®, Premier Executive®, Premier Executive 1K® member.

Inasmuch as you are in Dallas you might prefer the corresponding AAdvantage debit card (http://www.aa.com/apps/AAdvantage/ViewMileageProgramsPartnerDetail.jhtml?fileName=de bitcardOffer.xml&repositoryName=AAdvantagePartnersContentRepository&repositoryId=16002683&itemDescriptor=AAdvantagePartnersContent) issue by Citibank. "If you elect to enroll in the Premium Citibank® / AAdvantage® Debit Card you'll get 4,000 bonus miles, earn 1 AAdvantage mile for every $1 you spend on signature-based transactions and pay a $65 annual fee." However, this is capped at 100,000 miles per year with no apparent waiver for elite members. (Bear in mind that all AAdvantage miles count toward lifetime Gold or Platinum status.)

Do you have to use one account for all the purchases? One strategy would be to put as much as possible on a mileage earning credit card and the excess on a debit card. Over time the payment history would probably lead to an increased credit limit.

dennis
Im a business Chase account holder so i get 1-1dollar. But United doesnt fly much out of DFW


one bank account or one credit card account? explain what you mean by last paragraph

thanks alot!

<<i get 1-1dollar>>

Thank you for the clarification. In Dallas American Airlines' miles would seem to be more useful than United Airlines' miles, that's why I suggested that you consider using a Citibank AAdvantage card in lieu of (or in addition to) the Chase card. Citibank offers both AAdvantage debit and credit cards.

<<explain what you mean by last paragraph>>

From your original posting I understood that you were using a Chase debit card only because you could not obtain a Visa or Mastercard credit card with a sufficient line of credit to cover $40,000 per month. My suggestion is that you could use two cards, a credit card which would earn miles on the airline of your choice plus the debit card. You would use the credit card until you reached the credit limit, then switch to the debit card. If you can make frequent payments to the credit card issuer you might be able to charge more than the credit limit in one billing cycle.

You may also wish to investigate Diners Club Mastercard (http://dinersclubus.com/dce_content/home). Like American Express it is a charge card with no predetermined credit limit, but because it is a Mastercard your vendor would accept it. Diners Club Rewards points can be converted to most domestic US airlines, excluding CO, NW, UA and US, and to several international carriers.

dennis

Thanks alot for your reply!

A charge card is great only becouse I pay off the balance every month. I usually send checks for these amounts 40k but since I want miles I put it on a charge card. Paying off the balance early is easy.

What is the best visa MC charge card that I can pay in the middle of my billing cylcle?


thanks again!

Thanks alot for your reply!

A charge card is great only becouse I pay off the balance every month. I usually send checks for these amounts 40k but since I want miles I put it on a charge card. Paying off the balance early is easy.

What is the best visa MC charge card that I can pay in the middle of my billing cylcle?


thanks again!

Have you spoke with the vendor / AMEX about them accepting the card? I had the same issue a while back and talked to the CS rep about it. A month later the merchant was accepting AMEX. I wouldn't say thats the norm, but its still worth a shot.

<<What is the best visa MC charge card that I can pay in the middle of my billing cylcle?>>

There is no meaningful answer to this question. It depends on the type of rewards you want to earn. Most airline and hotel programs have a linked credit card. Most airlines offer awards not only on their own flights, but also on partners (e.g. United miles can be redeemed on any Star Alliance carrier, American miles on any OneWorld carrier, Continental miles on any Skyteam carrier).

We use Diners Club Mastercard as our business card because the points can be transferred to a couple dozen different airlines. However, inasmuch as you have a banking relationship with Chase (http://www.chase.com/ccp/index.jsp?pg_name=ccpmapp/card_acquisitions/unsolicited/page/PFSCreditChooseCategory&cat=travel) you might look there first. Chase issues cards that earn miles or points with these travel partners: British Airways, Continental Airlines, Marriott, Intercontinental Hotel Group (Holiday Inn) Priority Club, Southwest Airlines or United Airlines.

dennis

they will not allow amex:

They recently merged companys and one of the companys sighned something like 14% on amex cards contract. Until that contract expires they will not accept amex....

Should I just try to call amex and see what they say? Who should I call? Im sure amex would love to earn the business.

thanks again guys!

I had this same issue with one of my vendors. I accept Visa/MC/and AMEX at my business. I called my local AMEX account rep and gave him the name/city of my vendor. He sent the lead to his counterpart. The counterpart contacted the vendor who within 15 days started accepting AMEX.

<<one of the companys signed something like 14% on amex cards contract>>

You're saying the vendor has a contract with American Express, but is declining to accept the card because the terms are unfavorable? This seems somewhat different than merely not accepting American Express, but I don't know that I would want to be identified as the one who brought it to Amex's attention.

dennis

Have you tried talking to Citi Business about getting an AAdvantage card? They seem pretty eager to make a big break into the Business Creditcard scene and a talk with them might lead to a credit line of $50000 (or whatever you need). That earns you AA miles, which count for lifetime status as well as are far more useful with their DFW hub/hq.

You could also prepay the card - make a $40k payment and then process the charge, which should make your avilable credit the credit line + whatever your credit balence is. Just doublecheck with the card provider to be sure they allow this, I've never done it with Citi Business.

Mastercard World level and Visa Signature level cards also have "No Preset Spending limit" like the Amex, although you are assigned a credit line. I'm not sure if there are business versions of these.