Just wanted to share my experience with the American Express Purchase Protection program.
I was in Paris last week and bought a new wallet at the Louis Vuitton store on the Champs-Élysées (the street was very beautifully lit for the holidays, Paris is indeed the City of Light). After visiting a few more stores and the Marché de Noël (awesome!) at the bottom of the street, we decided to take the metro back to the hotel via Line 1.
I guess Line 1 is heavily populated with tourists and we were taking the train at approximately 7PM, which means that it was also packed with Parisians headed home. While getting on the train we were surrounded by a large number of teenage girls, and because the train was so full we were all right next to each other with almost no room to breathe.
After a few moments I notice something near my left hand where I was holding the Louis Vuitton shopping bag. I look down and the bag is empty. I immediately suspect one of the girls. Since there was a large group of them there was no way for me to tell which one of them had it. Our stop comes up and we get off, saddened that such evil exists in the world.
Immediately after getting off the train, I remember that I bought the wallet with my American Express card, and I vaguely remembered something about stolen items being protected. So I frantically search online with my iPhone to see if it is covered and find
this webpage, which states:
Just use your Card and Purchase Protection can protect eligible purchases against accidental damage or theft for up to 90 days from the date of purchase
As soon as I get back to the hotel (I didn't call right away because I was using Skype to call the 1-800 number so I waited until I had wi-fi), I called American Express and explained the situation to them. They were very sympathetic and told me that they would forward the claim on to their insurance company. I was initially disappointed that they didn't immediately credit my account, but I guessed that there was some sort of process they had to go through.
I'm back in Hawaii now and just received e-mail that my claim was approved and my account credited the full amount of the purchase. I plan on going to the Louis Vuitton in Ala Moana today to buy a replacement wallet.
I have been an American Express cardholder since the mid-80's and after the great experience I've had with their American Express Purchase Protection program I intended to remain one for life.