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Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

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Old Oct 25, 2013, 7:07 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: ericdabbs
Please read the wiki before posting a question.

UPDATE 01/17/15

BeFrugal: 1.5%
Big Crumbs: 0.9%
TopCashBack: 1.5%


For other cash back or airline portals, check here: http://www.cashbackmonitor.com/Cashb...erican+express

Public Service Announcement: Do NOT use fee-free codes if you want portal cashback / miles. CB/Miles will post and then be clawed back.

FAQ

Will it post as a cash advance (CA)?

Citi - Yes.

Cards from Chase, BoA, FIA, Barclay, AMEX, CapitalOne, US Bank, Discover, HSBC, etc., have posted as purchase. PNC Visa Cashbuilder - posts as purchase but does not earn CC rewards

Note: Some issuers (Discover, US Bank, etc.) will decline the authorization if it exceeds your CA limit. This does NOT mean it will post as CA. It simply means you need to lower the purchase amount below your CA limit for authorization, but it ultimately posts as a purchase.

How do I set PIN on AMEX Gift Cards and use as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc.
You cannot set PIN or use them as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc. You can only use them as credit where AMEX is accepted.

How do I cash out AMEX Gift Cards?
Use manufactured spend techniques (load RB, buy Visa/MC GCs, VRs, AP, AFT, etc.) or normal spend where AMEX is accepted.

Why buy AMEX Gift Cards then?
To reduce the cost of manufactured spend, to mask your manufactured spend (i.e unusual high spend at Target or CVS), earn additional cash back on spend, or meet minimum spend targets faster.

Next day shipping that isn't?
The next day shipping is from when they ship the cards to UPS, which can be as long as 10 days from the order submission if you order personalized cards (more recently this has been under a week). For next day shipping, you are notified late night (once your card finishes processing, see above) and the package arrive that same morning before 10:30AM in your area.

What is with the charge disappearing from my credit card?
Once the order is placed you will see a pending charge on your CC account. Quite often once the card ships this pending is removed but does not show as a charge. Don't panic (or celebrate) it will show up as a charge within a day or so.

Personalized GCs?
Either Biz or Personal GCs can be personalized with your name. This helps when shaky cashiers who demand to see your card are prevalent. These take approximately 4 biz days to arrive compared to the non personalized which arrives as quickly as the next day.

UPS Tracking?
If you logged in to your AMEX account when placing the order you can get tracking info by logging in to your AMEX account and clicking on cards > gift cards > order history > order details. Unfortunately tracking information may not appear until well after your order has shipped so it's best to sign up for UPS My Choice to get faster tracking info and reroute your package if needed. Since UPS may drop your package off at the door if you're not home, it will be useful to know when your package will arrive.

The portal terms indicate that coupon codes will invalidate cash back. Is this true?
Yes (as of July 2014)

What are the purchase limits? (Updated Dec 2014)
10K personal every 14 days
100K business every 14 days

Do declined orders count toward the purchase limits?
YMMV

Do fees and shipping count toward the purchase limits?
No

Why was my purchase declined by AMEX?
There are several possibilities:
- Your billing address does not match 100% with what the credit card company has on file. This could be anything from apt/suite/condo # on the wrong line to zip code requiring 9 digits instead of 5. If your first purchase does not go through, call your bank or login to your acct to verify that this matches what you used.
- You have gone over the $10k every 14 day limit on personal gift card purchase.
- Even if you are sure the first two are correct as you have ordered before on that card and it's been more than 14 days, you might still get declined. No one has any idea why.
- You placed a business order and you don't really have a business (at some point AMEX does a background check for a valid business) or you have exceeded the 14 day limit for business orders.

My order was declined but my credit card still shows a pending authorization. How long until this falls off and my credit line is freed up?
I typically takes 1 week for the pending authorization to fall off after a declined order.

Can I order from the business side using a personal card? Or does it need to be a business card?
You can use whatever credit card you want to pay for business or personal orders. About the only restriction is you can't use an AMEX GC to buy another AMEX GC.

How long will it take the portal to track my order and confirm the pending cash back or points?
For non-Cartera portals (TCB, BC, Befrugal, etc) your order will usually track within a day or two.
For Cartera portals (Barclay Reward Boost, Lucky Rewards, USAA, Alaska, Delta) it will take 3-4 weeks to track.

My orders are not tracking. How can I maximize the chances the portal will track my order properly?
Use a browser you do not normally use (Chrome, Firefox, Opera), reset all browser settings to defaults, clear all browser cookies, disable all browser add-ons, and close/re-start your browser before navigating to the portal and placing your order. Do NOT use promotional coupon codes. The vast majority of tracking issues result from use of coupon codes, a bad browser cookie, improperly configured browser settings, or add-ons that interfere with cookie tracking.
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Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

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Old Mar 28, 2014, 2:17 pm
  #3841  
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: DFW
Posts: 478
Originally Posted by skitch23
Does anyone know off the top of their heads how many cards can be used at Kroger in a single transaction without the need for the cashier to hit the override button? I've got a bunch of these cards with $1-2 left on them and figured I'd grab some amazon gc's while the 4x fuel promo is on.

I've only liquidated the small amounts at Kroger once before and I can't remember if it was the 4th or 5th swipe that needed the extra approval.
Max 10
spgbus is offline  
Old Mar 28, 2014, 9:01 pm
  #3842  
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 908
So I tried to buy 5k worth of AGC (business) with my SO Amex account and Blue Cash. Got the dreaded "we received your order". It's been a few hours, and no response yet. Not looking good.
sosamo is offline  
Old Mar 28, 2014, 9:32 pm
  #3843  
 
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 188
Does anyone have data on the current coding of Club Carlson cards? There is a bunch of reader confusion on a couple of recent posts on frequentmiler and FreequentFlyerBook claiming it's now treated as a CA (which contradicts the wiki).
cashcow is offline  
Old Mar 28, 2014, 11:46 pm
  #3844  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 920
Apparantly US Bank initially goes through as a CA, then posts as a purchase.

I'd try a small test purchase first to be safe.
hitman1420 is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2014, 7:11 am
  #3845  
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 8
Originally Posted by cashcow
Does anyone have data on the current coding of Club Carlson cards? There is a bunch of reader confusion on a couple of recent posts on frequentmiler and FreequentFlyerBook claiming it's now treated as a CA (which contradicts the wiki).
Just put a 2K order on a Club Carlson card through BeFrugal and was coded as purchase. Hope this helps.
hpfiend is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2014, 12:16 pm
  #3846  
 
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Las Vegas
Programs: DL DM, AA PlatPro, Hilton DM, Hyatt Glob, Marriott Titanium, Hertz PC, National EE
Posts: 1,532
Originally Posted by HikerT
Is CBH still 1% for VGC at GCM? Looks like the base rate dropped to 0.5%. The conditions still say 1% for VGCs, that seems to be a carryover from when the base rate was also 1%.
Indeed, they are only paying 0.5% and have corrected the web site to show that.
bworrell is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2014, 10:51 pm
  #3847  
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 563
No more VR at CVS

Did everyone see that CVS will stop accepting credit cards as a form of payment for VRs starting 4/01/2014? Just wanted to throw that out there for those counting on BB to liquidate.
Milezjunkie is offline  
Old Mar 29, 2014, 11:30 pm
  #3848  
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 85
Originally Posted by Milezjunkie
Did everyone see that CVS will stop accepting credit cards as a form of payment for VRs starting 4/01/2014? Just wanted to throw that out there for those counting on BB to liquidate.
Just throw that out there!?! Any supporting documentation? Hopefully this is just an early April fools....
jayfi1976 is offline  
Old Mar 30, 2014, 4:35 am
  #3849  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: WAS
Programs: SPG Plat. Marriott Plat. Hilton Diamond. Hyatt Diamond. IHG Plat.
Posts: 2,580
Originally Posted by jayfi1976
Just throw that out there!?! Any supporting documentation? Hopefully this is just an early April fools....
http://boardingarea.com/pointsmilesa...cvs-cash-only/
f0xx is offline  
Old Mar 30, 2014, 6:39 am
  #3850  
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 563
Originally Posted by jayfi1976
Just throw that out there!?! Any supporting documentation? Hopefully this is just an early April fools....
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manuf...k-day-412.html
Milezjunkie is offline  
Old Mar 30, 2014, 1:32 pm
  #3851  
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 85
Damn this does look for real.... AGC<VCG Not the end of the world....
jayfi1976 is offline  
Old Mar 30, 2014, 1:43 pm
  #3852  
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: KWI
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 806
TopCashBack: 2.25% on Amex Gift Cards, but changes in fees, BigCrumbs 2%.

Worst case scenario, there's always the Target Amex to unload with. At least what I have left.
LoneTree is offline  
Old Mar 31, 2014, 4:44 pm
  #3853  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 434
Anyone getting payment from BC yet?
xoxx is offline  
Old Mar 31, 2014, 4:49 pm
  #3854  
 
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 192
Originally Posted by xoxx
Anyone getting payment from BC yet?
This!!
shingu79 is offline  
Old Mar 31, 2014, 4:59 pm
  #3855  
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: S Cal
Programs: AA Lifetime Plat, United Silver, Marriott Plat, IHG Plat
Posts: 1,142
Originally Posted by xoxx
Anyone getting payment from BC yet?
Not yet. However, my BC earnings summary now shows zero. The following message is there indicating that the payment is in process:
Note: On or just prior to payday, the payment shown here may be $0.00 as payments are being processed.
GetawaysRus is offline  


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