Thanks. Actually I never got the cashback either - wasn't available when I signed up for them and they wouldn't let me switch to it. Also I use their debit card for drawing cash - no currency loading on that too.

The only other card I've come across without a currency loading (in the UK) is the Morgan Stanley i24 card.

I'm without Amex right now, but am looking to go back to a card with insurance + PP thrown in. Probably will be Amex because of the number of the days away their insurance allows. But could be another one - especially if the card isn't loaded for foreign stuff so I could use it for payments too.

The Audi Mastercard doesn't have the FOREX commission charge.
http://www.audi.co.uk/audi/uk/en2/fi...audi_card.html

Thanks,
Richard

That looks like an interesting alternative, though the fee is around NatWest black card level IIRC.

There is also the card from the Post Office, free and with no currency loading, operated I think by Bank of Ireland. Nothing else special, except for the 0% balance transfer offer.

I keep the Natwest Black for the package, which is in my view unbeatable. Its no real problem using another card for whilst I'm abroad.

Whenever I'm abroad and use the call people at natwest black they're great, since I always make sure that i go through to concierge anyway, and get them to sort things out.

I get up to 90 consecutive days away for cover under the insurance that it provides, Amex 120?


I'll try and cover what are some of the main points of the Natwest policy.

Policy value £3.5m

Though I notice (i'm looking through my policy now) that there are little things that natwest is better on, eg delayed luggage, £350 after 4 hours delay, and if it hasn't arrived after 48 hours, another £2500. I believe Amex is a little less.

The delayed departure is £250 for meals and refreshments as opposed to £150 (will you have a lobster with that steak Sir...? :) )

However I notice that the Amex car cover is quite a bit better, with a value of £50k as opposed to £35k, and a long list of exclusions (don't know if Amex has this?)

Anything else you need to know, just shout.

Thanks very much for the detailed reply. Actually its the "days away" thing that is the killer. Amex is indeed 120, or 240 in a year. When I had Amex before, you could top it up - giving a trip of 180, or 270 in a year (I think). The top-up gave other benefits as well (which were useless to me) and cost around £75.

When I last looked, there was no other travel insurance policy I could find that would be so generous in terms of days away. If the medical cover was the only benefit (ie no baggage, other people covered, PP etc) I'd probably still go for it. At the time of writing I haven't stepped foot in the UK for 140 days. I think the only other way to get insured is with an expat scheme which as a different product is much more expensive.

I find the benefits worth it or I wouldn't pay the fee-- Delta gold status (although this is not as valuable as it used to be now that Delta doesn't give FC upgrades at booking anymore), Virgin Gold ^ and Gold in Skyteam & Star Alliance, Priority Pass membership, free MO nights, FHR upgrades, Hertz CDP extra 4 hours, concierges who will make time-sensitive reservations for me (no more setting my alarm for 7 am Pacific to make Nobu rsvns. a month in advance)

I am a little shocked that the service is so poor. When I call the Cent number I am often put on hold before someone answers (that NEVER happens on the Starwood Plat line), and the reps aren't as knowledgable or helpful as even Plat reps were 10 years ago.

I have a weird feeling that there are CENT customers and then there are Cent customers. Cent customers help foot the bill for CENT customers (CEOs, celebrities) who actually receive the "extraordinary benefits and services" and "high level of personalized service" that's advertised.

I'm really not complaining-- my cost benefit analysis confirms that we come out ahead. But if we didn't travel as extensively as we do there is no way the card would be worth it.

For me, the card paid for itself last year with only the MO and Ritz benefit. Just my $0.02. Other than that, better customer service with the airlines and *G was a nice perk but with no value above faster call answering and better CS agents.

J.

Here is one thing I am SUPER curious about... I just got platinum about 3 months ago... and just want to know if American Express has a Canadian Centurion card?

Any help would be appreciated... and yes i know you cannot apply and need to be invited...

Value of a product is in the eye of the beholder. If you are happy with a yugo great or if you have a porsche ,uh well obviously.:cool:

NO NO NO - there is no Canadian Centurion card available. You can go as high as Platinum, though. Check the website at www.americanexpress.ca. Apparently, we Canadians do not spend enough (= are too cheap), so many airlines do not offer F class service to/from Canada and there's no Centurion. Sorry to disappoint you!

^

I've got a Nationwide VISA for purchases and a Nationwide current account (NO cash advance fee, NO exchange rate loading) which I use for cash abroad. I put money in the NW current account using online banking just before I travel.

Oh dear, next you'll be telling us how much you enjoy reading the Guardian.

Where was this? If I'm ever passing I'd like to try and pay with Amex there :)

:) British people never fail to amuse me with the way they judge people based on what news paper they read. For the record, I enjoy reading The Sunday Sport. :p

It was the Majestic Wine Warehouse. Have fun! :D

I am in precisely the same position as the OP. I was so fed up with the downgrading of the benefits that I wrote in March last year. During 2006 I was promised that a "revitalisation" would appear. It didn't. So in Jan, I told Amex that I was going to go. The offered downgrade to Platinum, but the demonstrated such a lack of concern that I decided to quit altogether. I then got a letter expressing regret that I'd decided to leave. :rolleyes: Told them that I would stay to see whether the "revitalisation" appeared, but only if they halved the annual fee. No dice, so that's the end of the road. This is either remarkable complacency or really stupid business. Lose customer of 10 years' standing for a temporary £300 hit, pending a long overdue and much promised "revitalisation".

The person I spoke to had the audacity to think it important to remind me that Centurion was an invitation only card. I told him that given I was not going to have any further relationship with Amex, I doubted they would have any idea where to send the invite or any basis on which to make the decision.