trmbn65

Gift cards from a supermarket (to get gas rewards). So it just looks like a very large grocery purchase.

mcdullhk88

Looks like the CFPB process allows AMEX to close a complaint by simply responding to it (which is perhaps why I received such a blanket response). All I could do is submit "feedback" to the AMEX's response, which I did.

Anyone know of another way to prompt more responses from AMEX?

shimps1

So I had an odd thing happen to me today.

Was applying for the SPG Business card, which I should easily be approved for, and there was a pop-up notifying me that I was not eligible for the welcome bonus. How is that determined? I have never held this specific card, and I haven't applied for an Amex card since 4/2017. Any reason for this? I hold two active Amex cards, and Everyday and a Blue Cash card. I have cancelled 5 cards with them, but I have not heard this having bearing on bonus eligibility before.

mia

It's right there in the terms of the offer, though not with numerical precision:

I have moved your question into the thread discussing this policy.

Note also, that SPG cards have additional bonus exclusions based on your history of Marriott cards issued by Chase.

sdsearch

Then it sounds like you haven't been reading the thread that your post has been moved into. Since these pop-ups started last year, lots of people have gotten those "no bonus for you" pop-ups with no obvious reason other than cancelled cards. And very often with just 1 or 2 cancelled cards, so I'm not surprised with 5.

It's just that this policy is fairly new (June 2018 as the thread title mentions), so if you haven't applied for an Amex card since before then, then this is the first time that this new policy could have applied to you.

And in case you're not aware of it being part of a general trend, let me alert you: Banks are continually increasing the number of measures they employ against credit card churning. So just because you could open and close cards whenever you wanted in the past with little "danger" does not mean that's still necessarily true today. Ie, it's not just at Amex that such policies are changing.

shimps1

deleted

joer1212

Let's face it guys, the miles & points game, as we've known it, is effectively OVER. Anyone who wants to refute this glaringly obvious fact is either delusional or in denial.

All these cynical credit card rules didn't exist just 5 years ago. Now, they're suddenly all the rage. Banks have been tripping over each other to come up with creative ways to curb our hobby. BOA was one of the last holdouts until recently, when it finally succumbed with rules of its own. After all, they couldn't just sit idly on the sidelines, while every other bank was busy tweaking the terms and conditions of their credit card offers. No. The temptation to be aligned with everyone else was just too great.

Kind of reminds me of the airlines' push to reduce legroom and seat width several years ago. They basically all copied each other. Who needs collusion, when companies nowadays all act in solidarity against consumers?

mia

You may be interested in this thread:

The beginning of the end of travel rewards?

joer1212

Thanks

joer1212

Looks like Amex is going rogue, like a shyster or three-card monte scammer. Let's sit back and see how long it takes Chase, Citi, BOA, etc. to follow in Amex's footsteps. Shouldn't take too long.

mikesyr18

To get rid of all rewards would be a bad move on any bank's part. Without credit card rewards, there would be no reason to use a credit card - other than to borrow money and pay 15% or higher interest on balances. Someone would be better off attaching a checking line of credit to their account, which in most cases has a lower interest rate.

Banks also need an incentive to get people to use credit cards whenever possible. Banks make more money off of credit card transactions than debit card transactions.

Perhaps let the free market do its work - would people still use credit cards if they paid 0.5% cash back and offered no sign up bonuses? I probably would, because that little bit of cash back is still better than nothing.

mia

We take so much for granted now . There were no credit card rewards until Citibank invented them ~1984, and there were ample benefits to using cards with no need to pay interest.

satman40

bgriff

I'm sorry, but

Yes, the game is over. Because the game of churning cards and opening dozens of cards to get sign-up bonuses, was just that -- a game. And at times, practically fraud (in the spirit of the idea of fraud, if not the letter of the law), the way that some people executed it. I am sure some of those who were heavy churners are mourning the loss of that habit, but did anyone really think banks giving away many thousands of dollars for virtually no value in exchange was sustainable?

By contrast, the points earning potential from routine spending has quite literally never been better (and may indeed be in a bubble which pops at some point or another, back down to more 2x points per dollar rather than the 3-4-5x points per dollar we're now seeing on many cards).

That said, those benefits only really work for those who actually spend a fair amount of money on their cards, and thus actually make a fair amount of money for the banks issuing the cards. Which is how most consumer products manage to exist...

mikesyr18

Right but with today's world, losing the rewards means the card gets cut up and thrown in the trash. The younger generations would avoid credit cards completely without rewards because they're afraid of debt.

Banks would then be forced to settle for a fraction of the current profits generated now. It's not like the large banks would be able to make up for it on the back end - the younger generations hate overdraft and monthly fees (i.e: Wells Fargo Greenhouse, Chase Finn, Citi Access Checking). I think the large banks would have a hole burned into their pocket if they took away credit card rewards completely.