Don't use Amex for large upcoming foreign charge?
 

I hold an Amex Plat and an MBNA MC. I have a signficant foreign charge coming up and it seems pretty obvious that the MC (1% total foreign exchange fee) is the way to go vs. Amex (2% foreign exchange fee). Amex gives me those allegedly valuable points, but the MC gives me 1% cash back, so that's at best a wash.

Am I missing something in this evaluation?

Alternatively, has anyone had any success calling up Amex and bargaining for some equivalent refund on this extra exchange fee?

I didn't realize that MNBA was one of the "good guys" who didn't add their own charge on top of the card company's 1%. If you're sure that's the case, and you get 1% cash back besides, and they use an acceptable exchange rate, that's the way to go. Afaik the only thing Amex has going for them is MR's, valued as you personally wish but in reality 1.5% or a bit less.

Yes, the MBNA cards (be it the affiliate cards with Amtrak or your almameter) are typically what you want to use when traveling overseas as they do not tack on the standard 2% foreign conversion charge. Other examples: Capital One, and Visa/MC cards issued by your local community bank or credit union.

Hope this helps
Jamester

I thought of calling customer service and telling them that I wanted extra points or a rebate on my annual fee, but my experience is that Platinum customer service has gone from "really helpful" to "really ordinary" over the past 5 years.

I asked the questions above in case someone knew of a way to reach someone at Amex who could understand the point I was making and had the power to do something about it.

MBNA also has a MC which gets you a mile for each dollar spent in the Amtrak frequent traveler program. No foreign currency charge (beyond the 1%) and from Amtrak, you can move miles to UA, up to 25k per year.

MBNA in the UK charge a total of 2.75%including the card company's charge.

I use my credit union Visa for overseas travel. I get points for using the card & they only charge 1%. If I need to carry a balance, I only pay 8.9%. (I pay it off every month).