Jan 18, 2016, 10:57 am

FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides

Last edit by: MaxVO

This thread is a continuation of: Airline fee $200/$100 reimbursement reports: DL only [2011 - 2015]

Credit posting delays range from several business days (typical) to several weeks (seen in Oct 2015). The T&Cs state that it could take up to four weeks, so wait at least that long before worrying, and certainly don't contact Amex prematurely

Caution: effective from 22 June 2019, gift card purchases from Delta do not get reimbursed.

Read this primer first

In the Amex Membership Rewards family, both the Consumer and Business versions of the Platinum and Centurion cards qualify for a $200 airline credit. The Premier Rewards Gold (PRG) card is eligible for a $100 airline credit.
You must ~~click here to~~ <--(link dead) select Delta as your enrolled airline before you make a reimbursable purchase, else the benefit won't apply. The feature is activated immediately upon airline designation. Try logging in to your AMEX account and selecting the airline. This link may work
If you've selected DL in the past and don't wish to change airlines, there's no need to select again; current selection rolls into future years until modified.
The T&Cs state the eligible charges, but YMMV, so don't call and ask especially about the fuzzier cases below because that will probably hasten closing of any loopholes.
The credit is per account, not per card. If the main account has authorized users with additional cards, eligible charges may still be made on those cards, but they'll count jointly towards the same account limit.
Credits are capped per calendar year, meaning you could tap the full amount on Dec 31st and again on Jan 1st in the extreme. Transaction date, not posting date, determines the year. Note: This is not my experience. I purchased Dec 31, 2016, posted Jan 1, 2017 and went against my 2017 credit. (TheMadBrewer)
You will get a partial credit to bring your total annual reimbursements to the limit exactly if a qualifying charge takes you past the limit.
After four weeks, if you've read this Wiki carefully and posted here seeking assistance but the credit still has not arrived, consider chatting with Amex online. Politely mention the "Delta extras" you thought would be reimbursed within four weeks and they'll handle it.

additional collections/split tender

THIS IS A LOOPHOLE. BE DISCREET

Anything coded as an additional collection (aka add/collect or a/c), including difference in fare when changing flights, and accepting an FCM offer, also triggers the credit and will be reimbursed; this may (insufficient data) only happen if the additional amount collected is below ~$250 (regardless of card type, e.g. there have been reports of full $100 credit for Gold card on a/c over $100 and full $200 credit for Plat on a/c over $200 but less than $250)

Relevantly, split tender where you partially pay with a gift card, existing credit, VDB voucher etc. and partly charged to your card, are processed by DL as an add/collect and trigger the credit per above.
Thus if you anticipate actually buying, say, a $200 DL ticket, you could buy a single $50 gift card, then buy the ticket using $50 GC and $150 on your card (the $150 will be reimbursed)
Canceling a ticket within the 24-hour risk-free period generally results in funds being returned to where they came from (GC back to GC and CC back to CC). If you have no immediate travel plans but anticipate travel in the next year, consider buying a fully refundable ticket and then changing it later once you know your future travel dates. IF a lot of people suddenly start refunding tickets after getting the credit reimbursement this may hasten the demise of this particular loophole.
Caution when buying multiple tickets: for example if you buy two $125 tickets in one transaction (total $250) and use one $100 GC or even two $50 GCs, they will all be applied to the same ticket and you would see one additional collection for $25 on that ticket and a separate "normal" charge for $125 for the second ticket. In this scenario only $25 will be reimbursed (instead of the $150 you might be expecting)

other non Gift Card options

baggage and other service fees (same day change/standby, change fees, etc.)
taxes on award flights
in-flight purchases (EXCEPT wifi)
SkyClub access/guest fees (but NOT gift cards purchased at a SC, which are actually activated at a 3rd party web site)
mileage boosts (post 2499)
The $59 for Delta Skymiles Select is reimbursed (posts 2180, 2182)
seat assignment fees (may need to call in to have processed manually)

(DEAD) eGift Card (eCert) details
This Section is not applicable effective 2019/06/22!

Delta eGift Cards (eCerts) have been reimbursed in practice, even though technically they do not meet the criteria listed by Amex for reimbursement. The name on the eCerts doesn't matter and need not match your card, but you must purchase using an eligible Amex card and meet the other criteria detailed in this Wiki.
Denominations over $50 will not generate the credit. Multiple $50 eCerts will. The smallest denomination available is $50.
To order, use this direct link to the eGift cert order page, or navigate via Delta.com>Shop>eGift Certificate.
No need to place separate orders using multiple carts/checkouts. By adding multiple certs to one order (e.g., 4 x $50), even though they are in the same cart, the certs will post as separate transactions and still generate a credit for each.
eCert purchases may initially authorize (show pending) as ticket purchases before posting to (finalize on) your statement. Multiple-eCert orders may authorize the combined value as a single pending ticket purchase. Don't worry; they'll post later as separate eCert charges in the qualifying amounts.
eCerts are generated instantly, but the codes are not valid for use until 72 hours after purchase, so don't order expecting to use them in a pinch.
A maximum of three eCerts may be redeemed per online transaction. Splitting a round-trip into two one-ways will allow you to use additional eCerts, but in some cases two one-ways may cost more than a single roundtrip so compare carefully to decide whether using more than 3 certs on a single trip is worthwhile.
If purchasing a ticket for more than 1 person, splitting the purchase into a separate transaction for each person would also allow the use of more than 3 certs on a single trip at (usually) no additional cost. However this could have an adverse effect on ability to upgrade, upgrade priority, and other elite benefits, and on the likelihood of being reaccommodated on the same flight in the event of a flight cancellation.
There is one recent REPORT of a telephone agent allowing more than three eCerts to be used when purchasing one ticket.
eCerts do not expire. Their T&Cs are listed here.

For other airlines:
AA Thread
AS Thread
B6 Thread
DL Thread
F9 Thread
HA Thread
NK Thread
UA Thread
WN Thread

Airline fee $250/$200/$100 reimbursement reports: DL only (2015-2019)

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Aug 27, 2018, 11:02 am

#946

Pianoman109876

Join Date: Jul 2017

Programs: Delta Platinum; Hilton Diamond; Marriot Gold

Posts: 1,116

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gig103

It works (and is subject to change without notice so do report your success in the thread linked above). Remember though that you can only use 3 gift cards per transaction and the can't be used for anything except flights. Probably not a problem if you fly delta regularly or don't mind booking a trip in separate PNR.

I posted this in the other thread but in case others are interested, I just had a full $200 reimbursed for DL, even though I didn't purchase gift cards. I did just book about 4 flights each under $200 (around $175-$225 eachfor a total of around $825). It gave me a statement credit of $200. But it was well over the supposed $50 limit.

Aug 27, 2018, 3:41 pm

#947

koreanair720

Join Date: Jan 2010

Location: Mid Atlantic

Programs: Delta Plat, one-time United Plat, Amex Plat, Marriott Plat, Hertz Prez Circle, Bus Pass

Posts: 1,237

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pianoman109876

Whoa, really? Isn't the supposed restriction that you'll be refunded for everything BUT airfare?

Aug 27, 2018, 3:54 pm

#948

MSPeconomist

A FlyerTalk Posting Legend

Join Date: Sep 2009

Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM

Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM

Posts: 100,369

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gig103

When I called the DM line recently for help with an international ticket where I also wanted to use some of my DL gift cards (from my regular Plat charge card) and had the numbers nice and handy to give to the agent, the DM agent volunteered to send me to manual ticketing so that I could use the fourth card too. I declined as I was concerned that my good fare would disappear, so I didn't verify that this was indeed now possible. YMMV but it can't hurt to ask.

Gig103 likes this.

Aug 27, 2018, 8:55 pm

#949

DiggerDog

Join Date: Jul 2016

Posts: 18

Quote:

Originally Posted by RumPatrol

Amex just reimbursed me for an actual ticket, not an upgrade charge or gift card. Purchased a $220 ticket, used $100 of eGC (which themselves were purchased with an Amex reimbursement for a different card) to lower the actual cost to $120 and put the $120 on my Platinum. A day after the charge hit, it showed a reimbursement for the full $120 charge. When I click the charge, it says "additional collection" but it is most definitely a ticket and shows the ticket number in the Amex dashboard. There was also a second reimbursement, which was for an upgrade charge on the same reservation and also shows the ticket number.

That's the first time I've ever had an actual ticket reimbursed. I have a feeling that because I used gift cards on the ticket itself, something weird happened in the coding to make it *think* it was an additional collection for the ticket rather than paying for the ticket itself. Not complaining one bit though, this is one of those good problems.

Anyone have this happen before?

I just had the same thing happen! Aug 24th I made a $260 ticket purchase with $100 in eGC, the remainder put on the platinum. Aug 25th I was reimbursed for the remaining $160.

RumPatrol likes this.

Aug 28, 2018, 6:53 pm

#950

jeffreymrimd

Join Date: May 2018

Posts: 5

Booked award tickets at DL web site..Tax was $83 x 2. Both reimbursed next day on Amex Biz Platinum.

Aug 29, 2018, 9:43 pm

#951

flaco

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: NJ, USA

Posts: 423

I chatted with customer service to change my airline selection (from United), waited until the change to Delta showed up online and then purchased 1 x $50 gift card (using a PC).
Posted on 8/24
Has not been reimbursed.

Aug 29, 2018, 10:08 pm

#952

flaco

Join Date: Mar 2001

Location: NJ, USA

Posts: 423

Quote:

Originally Posted by flaco

My post should be disregarded because I went back and saw that the selection was not changed for the account I made the purchase on.
I was under the impression that the selection was the same for all cards (and I thought I checked this account and saw Delta as the selection).
After I posted I checked again and saw that on another card the selection was Delta, but on the card I used for the gift card it was still United.
I just chatted with Amex again and requested this one be switched, but I'm sure it won't help for a prior purchase.

Aug 30, 2018, 1:31 am

#953

RumPatrol

Join Date: Feb 2017

Location: Everywhere and Nowhere

Programs: DL GM

Posts: 515

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiggerDog

I just had the same thing happen! Aug 24th I made a $260 ticket purchase with $100 in eGC, the remainder put on the platinum. Aug 25th I was reimbursed for the remaining $160.

Did your ticket show up as "additional collection" on your Amex account online? Wonder if we are on to something now. Use the gift cards from one year or from another card to pay for part of a ticket which will hopefully trigger the credit for another

Aug 30, 2018, 6:44 am

#954

pallhedge

Join Date: Sep 2011

Posts: 1,857

Quote:

Originally Posted by RumPatrol

This has worked for me on a couple of occasions. The last time was earlier this year.

Aug 30, 2018, 4:22 pm

#955

cpmp

Join Date: Aug 2018

Posts: 46

Food purchases on a recent flight was refunded to me within a couple of days. text chatted with customer service and was able to get the fees from mileage rewards booking refunded as well.