Caution: A Question of Morals
 

Here's the setting.

You are at YYZ. You have had a long day. You arrive 90 mins early for your domestic flight home.

You are not SE.
You are not E.
You are not P.

Heck, your monthly ESSO fillups (and Tropicana orange juice purchases) generate more AP mileage than your actual flying.

The lounge beckons.

Inside your wallet is a cancelled (but not expired) AMEX Platinum card, which when it was not cancelled provided access to the MLL.

Do you buy yourself a magazine and sit at the crowded gate area - or give into the dark side?

If you HAVE to ask.... ;)

No brainer... LOUNGE :p

Should be a question of: how can I get my money's worth from that damn $500/year fee. :p

Lounge on.

How does the MLL attendant know the AMEX card is cancelled?

they don't. that's the point. ;)

I figured as much. And further to that, if you cancel the card before expiry, do you get any pro-rated refund on the annual fee? Being a financial instituion, I doubt not. Therefore, just because a card was cancelled so as to not incur more charges, say, from a shop-happy spouse, but the fee was paid, I wouldn't even call into question the morals of using the card for the benefits paid for.

True, you did pay your dues.

So I guess it's a matter of "I paid therefore..." vs. "What do the Terms and Conditions say?"

Theoretical morals ...
 

So has anyone here signed up for an AMEX-MLL or CIBC Aerogold-MLL card, then cancelled once the card has been received and ultimately gone into the MLL?

Would you receive back any of your sign-on fee to these cards?

(Don't know myself as I use my status to get in)

you paid for the service!!! also consider this as a amex aeroplat you pay just as much as one would pay for MLL access membership but don't get all of the benefits (ie admitance to rcc or other * lounges) so really they are getting they are really fleecing the card holder! head for the lounge!! :-D

To the OP,

Is this a trick question? Your profile indicates that you are a lawyer so if anyone knows, it would be you. If you paid the annual fee and did not get a pro-rated rebate when you cancelled then this is a no brainer. IMHO you should be entitled to the full benifit period, regardless.

Everybody seems to focus on the annual fee being paid.

Ok, that's true for the first year. However, the expiry dates on those cards are for several years. How about when the next "unpaid" year rolls around?

Good point.

Actually, the point of my question. The card was initially valid for four years (and that was 2 years ago....).

Well AC does not, I presume just allow such people in for free but charges Amex. I also would expect Amex to require card numbers from ac and if so then you may be opening yourself to a question from them later on.