Last edit by: rrgg
The Aspire Flight Credit benefit terms (below) specify reimbursement for purchases of airfare made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com. However, it is likely that any purchase billed directly by an airline using their main merchant account will qualify. Transactions processed by third parties, such as points.com (mileage purchases) or Cashstar (giftcards) or GoGo (Internet service) will not qualify. You need to know how your airline bills for specific services.
Benefit Terms:
Aspire Reports:
For the quarterly $50 Aspire airline credit, the following are also reported as working:
Benefit Terms:
$200 Flight Credit
Basic Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card Members can receive up to a total of $50 in statement credits each calendar quarter (January through March, April through June, July through September, and October through December), for up to $200 annually for eligible purchases of airfare made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com. To be eligible for this benefit, an airfare purchase must be for a scheduled flight on a passenger carrier and purchased directly from the airline or through amextravel.com.
Eligible purchases do not include: charter flights, private jet flights, flights that are part of tours, cruises, or travel packages or ticketing or similar service fees, ticket cancellation or change fees, interest charges, or purchases of cash equivalents. Purchases of scheduled flights made with third party travel agents or websites may be eligible for this benefit if the airfare is charged directly to your Card account by the airline. Please visit americanexpress.com/rewards-info for more information.
Eligible purchases can be made by both the Basic and any Additional Card Members on the Card Account. However, the total amount of statement credits for eligible purchases will not exceed $200 per Card Account per calendar year. Please allow 8-12 weeks after the eligible purchase is charged to your Card Account for statement credit(s) to be posted to the Account. To receive this benefit, your Card account must not be cancelled or past due at the time of statement credit fulfillment. Statement credit(s) may not be received or may be reversed if the purchase is cancelled or modified, or if you engage in abuse or misuse in connection with the benefit.
American Express relies on the merchant's processing of transactions to determine the transaction date. The transaction date may differ from the date you made the purchase if, for example, there is a delay in the merchant submitting the transaction to us or if the merchant uses another date as the transaction date. This means that in some cases your purchase may not earn the statement credit benefit for the benefit period in which you made the purchase. For example, if an eligible purchase is made on December 31st but the merchant processes the transaction such that it is identified to us as occurring on January 1st, the January statement credit would be applied. American Express also relies on information provided to us by the merchant to identify eligible purchases. If American Express does not receive information that identifies your transaction as eligible for this benefit, the Basic Card Member will not receive the statement credit. For example, your purchase will not be eligible if it is not made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com (e.g. if a purchase is made through a third party travel service). Basic Card Members may not receive the statement credit if we receive inaccurate information or are otherwise unable to identify your purchase as eligible, if a transaction is made with an electronic wallet or through a third party (such as an app store), or if the merchant uses a mobile or wireless card reader to process it.
Basic Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card Members can receive up to a total of $50 in statement credits each calendar quarter (January through March, April through June, July through September, and October through December), for up to $200 annually for eligible purchases of airfare made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com. To be eligible for this benefit, an airfare purchase must be for a scheduled flight on a passenger carrier and purchased directly from the airline or through amextravel.com.
Eligible purchases do not include: charter flights, private jet flights, flights that are part of tours, cruises, or travel packages or ticketing or similar service fees, ticket cancellation or change fees, interest charges, or purchases of cash equivalents. Purchases of scheduled flights made with third party travel agents or websites may be eligible for this benefit if the airfare is charged directly to your Card account by the airline. Please visit americanexpress.com/rewards-info for more information.
Eligible purchases can be made by both the Basic and any Additional Card Members on the Card Account. However, the total amount of statement credits for eligible purchases will not exceed $200 per Card Account per calendar year. Please allow 8-12 weeks after the eligible purchase is charged to your Card Account for statement credit(s) to be posted to the Account. To receive this benefit, your Card account must not be cancelled or past due at the time of statement credit fulfillment. Statement credit(s) may not be received or may be reversed if the purchase is cancelled or modified, or if you engage in abuse or misuse in connection with the benefit.
American Express relies on the merchant's processing of transactions to determine the transaction date. The transaction date may differ from the date you made the purchase if, for example, there is a delay in the merchant submitting the transaction to us or if the merchant uses another date as the transaction date. This means that in some cases your purchase may not earn the statement credit benefit for the benefit period in which you made the purchase. For example, if an eligible purchase is made on December 31st but the merchant processes the transaction such that it is identified to us as occurring on January 1st, the January statement credit would be applied. American Express also relies on information provided to us by the merchant to identify eligible purchases. If American Express does not receive information that identifies your transaction as eligible for this benefit, the Basic Card Member will not receive the statement credit. For example, your purchase will not be eligible if it is not made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com (e.g. if a purchase is made through a third party travel service). Basic Card Members may not receive the statement credit if we receive inaccurate information or are otherwise unable to identify your purchase as eligible, if a transaction is made with an electronic wallet or through a third party (such as an app store), or if the merchant uses a mobile or wireless card reader to process it.
For the quarterly $50 Aspire airline credit, the following are also reported as working:
- Foreign carriers are eligible as expected. Confirmed for Air Canada, Aer Lingus, Transvia
- Delta ticket with purchase split between 2 payment methods works.
- Award fees. These are ticket charges and confirmed working for Air Canada, American, Delta, Southwest
- Bag fee on JetBlue bag works
- Redeposit fee on Air Canada works
- United Airlines TravelBank works. UA posts this as a fare, and it can only be used for fares.
- Alaska Airlines gift cards: 1+ report of it working and 1 not working
- American Airlines gift cards work
- Southwest gift cards: unknown
- Delta gift cards. Bills as Cashstar, even when purchased in a Skyclub
Report Hilton Aspire $50 x 4 Flight Credit experiences (All Airlines)
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: 718
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Platinum, IHG Diamond
Posts: 967
Report Hilton Aspire $50 x 4 Flight Credit experiences (All Airlines)
Just want to point out a distinction that for AMEX plat you will still need to choose "United Airlines" as the airline for the credit whereas Hilton Aspire, this is no longer the case and that Aspire's $50/quarterly credit applies directly towards airfare
#4
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 49
So for those with the Hilton Aspire, there shouldn't be any need to play these shenanigans going forward, now that the credit has shifted to $50 per quarter and is good for all flight costs. For Southest, you should be able to buy a ticket for ideally slightly more than $50 (but for any amount really) and then just cancel it and have it refunded as a non-expiring Southwest flight credit to your Southwest account. I'm also experimenting to see if I can book a flight, and then cancel within 24 hours (which will fully refund to my Aspire), and see if they still process the $50 credit despite the refunded amount. Will let everyone know if I have success with that. I think it would be a more elegant solution for redeeming the $50 quarterly credit than having a bunch of Southwest flight credits to keep track of and use.
Last edited by TrojanFan; Jan 4, 2024 at 6:14 pm
#6
Join Date: Nov 2006
Programs: Marriott Platinum, Hilton Diamond, IHG Platinum
Posts: 3,722
#7
Join Date: Feb 2006
Posts: 1,065
I would advise against it. See https://frequentmiler.com/uh-oh-amex...ental-credits/ for an example of what could happen.
#8
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Miami, FL
Programs: UA 1MM, AA Plat, Marriott LT Titanium, Hyatt Glob, IHG ♢ Amb, Hilton ♢, Hertz Pres
Posts: 6,018
Tracker no longer on website (for me). It shows resort credit tracker instead. Made an air booking on Jan 1 (yes, transacted on Jan 1 not Dec 31) and no $50 credit posted as of today (Jan 5). Anyone else have their $50 credits for the new quarter yet?
#9
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 303
Hi, for the new Aspire quarterly airline credit of $50 has it triggered for anyone who booked award airline tickets towards associated tax/fees? I used the aspire card to pay for about $180 in fees for american airlines aadvantage points booking on 12/26 and still awaiting to see a $50 credit from that.
#10
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Pittsburgh
Programs: Whoever Has the Best Bonus
Posts: 5,183
Can confirm that Jan 1 purchase of Southwest $45 ticket has not been reimbursed , but the airline tracker DOES show for me (along with resort credit tracker). You just have to click Rewards and Benefits to see both trackers. As of 1/6, both show $0 used at this time.
#11
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: Miami, FL
Programs: UA 1MM, AA Plat, Marriott LT Titanium, Hyatt Glob, IHG ♢ Amb, Hilton ♢, Hertz Pres
Posts: 6,018
Thanks, I see both trackers now. Same here, no Southwest reimbursement as of today 1/6 for purchase made 1/1.
#13
Join Date: Nov 2016
Location: SFO
Programs: Hilton Diamond, Marriott Gold, IHG Plat
Posts: 756
Good to know it's a last resort option, but not a fan of flying United. Hoping someone confirms for AS or DL.
This was written back in 2020, yet a certain airline's workaround is still alive to this day. They would close the loopholes if they really wanted to. Instead Amex would rather come up with all these quarterly/biannual statement credits to make it harder to redeem in the first place.
I would advise against it. See https://frequentmiler.com/uh-oh-amex...ental-credits/ for an example of what could happen.