BenSenise

i had occasionally wondered if anyone would think my Cobalt Amex was a Centurion card. Yesterday it was confirmed. Was checking out at the grocery store and when the cashier saw the card I was putting up to the terminal, she said "oh, black amex card." I quickly told her that is was not a black card and that if it were, i probably wouldn't be shopping there. just for clarity, the few people i know with the black card don't do grocery shopping. they have people doing it for them.

so i just got to wondering, have any other cobalt card holders encountered this situation? did you say anything or let them believe it was a centurion card? i haven't used the card anywhere outside of Canada yet but I was wondering if people in the US were unfamiliar with the card, they too might mistake it for a Centurion card.

somedude3210

I use the Cobalt for dining in the US and have not yet had it mistaken for the Centurion. At least no one has commented or asked about it. This includes a full range of dining establishments (fast food to Michelin star rated). Even if I had a Centurion, I wouldn't expect to hear a comment at a high end establishment.

imnotalawyer

Just as a story from the other side of the transaction, in high school I worked at a book store in an extremely wealthy town. The only time I commented on a Centurion was the very first time I held one. At that time customers handed over cards and we swiped them through the POS and I am pretty sure this was the only metal card on the market. All I said was "neat!". After that the surprise factor was gone and, while it still blew my mind as a teenage working retail, I never thought to comment on the card again.

On my Platinum/Gold I might get a comment once every 100 times I pass it over to a clerk, if that... usually in the drive-through hah.

To OP's post, maybe in border states someone may recognize the Cobalt card for what it actually is? The Cobalt card isn't really known around here (hell, I am at least generally interested in Amex and I still had to google it) so I can see it possibly confusing a clerk given its dark color scheme. Also, I thought it was funny that OP seems to think Centurion holders all have their own personal assistants or that they don't shop in normal stores with the rest of us peasants...

Eastbay1K

If I were to have a Cobalt card, the only time I'd really care for it to be mistaken (or even otherwise amused by it) would be upon entry to the Lounge, and being misdirected to the ultra secret part of the lounge (for those that have such a section, i.e. EZE), and then, I'd not share on FT

And the likelihood of that occurring is nil!

BenSenise

That is not at all what I said. I said "the few people i know with the black card don't do grocery shopping. they have people doing it for them" and that is true. I never said all centurion cardholders have PAs. The ones I know have housekeepers that do the shopping.
I intended this post to be an amusing anecdote but of course someone has to shoot it down. This is FT after all.

garykung

All I can see is you know what you have. Just because a cashier mistakenly identifies the Cobalt Card as a Centurion Card, there is nothing worth to be emotional.

Cobalt or Centurion - you still have to pay what you spend.

BenSenise

so was being amused too emotional for you? and wondering if anyone else had had a similar experience also too emotional?

really? i didn't know that. thank you for the fascinating information.

pgary

When I shop for groceries the clerk never sees the card. I just shove it into the machine on my side.

TravelingZoomer

Maybe not emotional, but incredibly condescending. “I wouldn’t associate myself with the likes of you if I had the black card” is essentially what you told the grocer.

mia

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