r0gerthat

Just as a data point, I got a 300 EUR discount on the 600 EUR fee for Amex FB Plat. I had used it quite a lot, but not anymore due to not traveling.
Last year I had a bit more, but they wouldn't do that anymore..

Took the offer and got it credited already

carnarvon

Do you mean 300 € discount on top of the 90 then another 200 cash back for expenses in designated shops ?

mfkne

There was never a cashback offer in NL, where I assume r0gerthat is based.
Another data point about AMEX acceptance in NL: At Prenatal (a baby store), where you can easily spend two grand on a stroller alone (if you're crazy enough to do that), AMEX is not accepted in-store. Online they do accept it.

arjen05

Would it be an idea to split this thread in different topics for NL and FR? Data points are useless when unspecified whether it concerns NL or FR and the products have proven to be very different in the past months. Leads to a lot of confusion unless every post starts with whether it concerns FR or NL, except for the acceptance-related posts. But these posts are not specific for the flying blue amex cards, so they overlap with the amex forum anyway.

Masterfrog

Probably a good idea to separate NL and FR.

The more I think about Amex the more I think it is pretty pointless to upgrade above a Silver one. The insurance is nothing special and you pay a big premium comparing to VISA or Mastercard. They still have their crap little lines with AXA.
Foreign fees are bad. You have to pay to withdraw. You can't use it everywhere. That is the opposite of premium to me.
You basically pay for a few extra miles and XP and a concierge service for Platinum. The only real perk is the extra Platinum card if you qualify and can make use of it. The offer is seriously overpriced comparing to the USA.
I think it is better to get a premium VISA or Mastercard in most cases. Revolut and N26 offer better value for cheaper price and you can sometimes get cashback which compensate partially the miles you don't get. If you really want the XP, the difference of price pays for a business flight.
The Silver is still good for me, I can keep my miles balance alive without flying (which I appreciate to maintain my 200k miles in this covid time), get some discounts, some referrals and leave my amex on my paypal and amazon accounts without thinking and without paying a big premium for that. And I also have a backup card when travelling. But the premium offer in Europe is seriously poor value nowadays.

bostontraveler

it does but try to actually use it. The POS machines in my experience don’t work with it. They also don’t work most of the time contactless. 👎

bostontraveler

i agree. The product in Europe is terrible. The most recent experience with Amex refusing to dispute airline charges was what really annoyed me since purchase protection is a big selling point.
then there is AXA- sometimes effective, other times incompetent.
That said, why do you think their travel
insurance is bad? I’ve spoken to several industry people who say it’s the best available. I’m just curious.
what would be better?

r0gerthat

Not that I know off actually. Just 300 off the regular 600/year.
Forgot to mention they also offered double miles for 3 months with it, which I took

Indeed, this is through Amex NL

Fine, happy to contribute where ever. As mentioned, this is a NL product. Wasn't aware there's such a difference in product, so might be good to clarify yes.

Yolow

Fully agreed. The only benefit I see are the 30XP/165Eur per year if you need to secure your buffer.
Regarding the insurance point of view, the actual situation demonstrates that Amex/Axa (for french cards) reached a limit.

Yolow

*for gold card holder

emviflyer

I am not sure. I like to see the different views in the same place. Both cards should offer very similar benefits, and if not, we should perhaps have that addressed.

emviflyer

I agree, but in part.

• My experience is that the Platinum insurance is very good. I have been looking at getting the insurance directly from AXA, but the price differential is not very big. However, doing so, one gets rid of the ridiculous requirement that all airfares have to be paid using the AMEX card. [This has cost me dearly, as problems with an KLM ticket, paid with FB AMEX, were not accepted, because the entire return fare was not paid with AMEX]
• For the rest, given that KLM has already cashed in millions from AMEX, they have no interest in doing anything to improve the card that bears their name, or rather that of the obscure Flying Blue, instead of KLM/AF. For those who are Platinum for Life and travel in business class anyway, the platinum card doesn't offer much extra
• It's even worse with the classic Platinum card, with unachievable marketing claims and benefits that do not exist.

harry0233

Is it the case that one could get extra XP points by upgrade/downgrade the FR Gold/Platinum card? Renew Gold for 30 XP, then upgrade to get an extra 60 XP. I saw comments for the NL card but not sure about the FR version. Thanks a mil

canadavid

Yes you can. Did it a few years ago.
By the way, usually there is a referral/subsription bonus of 50k miles for the plat card every fall (mid-October up to mid-December).
However, this year and depending when is your “xp-reset date” and your status situation, it might be worse waiting for the reset because xp can be “lost” if you are below the threshold anyway.v

mfkne

For those with an NL AMEX, Apple Pay is finally available.