Canadian Centurion (2008 - 2023)
Dec 15, 2017, 3:24 pm
#766
Join Date: Apr 2005
Programs: Starwood:Lifetime Platinum, Air Canada:Basic, Asiana:Lifetime Diamond Plus, ANA: Basic
Posts: 980
I think they are trying to "massage" the year end numbers so they have a stronger case when the duty free shops come to negotiate transaction fees
Dec 17, 2017, 6:16 am
#767
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: NB, Canada
Programs: Fairmont, Amex MR, Marriott
Posts: 2,531
Looks like it has come to an end. 10th year anniversary and they have cancelled FPC Platinum starting in 2018.
only confusing thing is that it says if we qualify it will continue for next year. Since we "automatically" qualify does that mean we have it for one more year? or are they speaking about really qualifying......
May need to cancel the card, we definitely used this benefit the most!
only confusing thing is that it says if we qualify it will continue for next year. Since we "automatically" qualify does that mean we have it for one more year? or are they speaking about really qualifying......
May need to cancel the card, we definitely used this benefit the most!
Dec 17, 2017, 1:34 pm
#768
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: AMX CENT
Posts: 188
Looks like the certs will remain until Feb 2019. Hoping they sort out their relationship with Accor and we keep similar benefits. Now I know why the $500 credit at Pearson was released the same day :O
Dec 17, 2017, 2:01 pm
#769
Join Date: May 2007
Location: YYZ, but my heart is in Asia
Programs: AC-SE, CX-DM, DL-G, Hyatt-DM, Hilton-DM, Fairmont-Plt, Marriott-S, Accor-Plt, SPG-G, IHG-Plt
Posts: 4,396
I think we used to have the Accor Platinum status. I never bothered to sign up. Now it seems that the Accor benefit is gone too.
Dec 19, 2017, 4:47 am
#770
Join Date: May 2010
Location: YKF
Programs: AC*E, DL Gold Medallion, HH Diamond, Fairmont Platinum, SPG Gold, IHG Platinum
Posts: 8
I emailed Amex to complain and received this:
We understand your concern regarding the discontinuation of the Fairmont Platinum benefit and forwarded your important feedback to our Marketing department. The benefit is being removed because the program is being changed by Fairmont given its merger with Accor Hotels. This change does not only impact American Express but all other financial institutions which offer Fairmont President's Club status and benefits.
The Centurion Card insurance has been recently enhanced and the new benefit of $500 Annual Travel Credit benefit which will be available on the anniversary date of your membership each year. You have currently a $500 Travel Credit which will expire on September 01, 2018. We are continuously evolving and striving to add more value to the Canadian Centurion product and we hope that we will continue to surprise and delight you with our service and enhancements.
We value your business and appreciate taking the time to bring these concerns to our attention.
The Centurion Card insurance has been recently enhanced and the new benefit of $500 Annual Travel Credit benefit which will be available on the anniversary date of your membership each year. You have currently a $500 Travel Credit which will expire on September 01, 2018. We are continuously evolving and striving to add more value to the Canadian Centurion product and we hope that we will continue to surprise and delight you with our service and enhancements.
We value your business and appreciate taking the time to bring these concerns to our attention.
Last edited by mia; Dec 19, 2017 at 8:03 am Reason: Formatting
Dec 20, 2017, 6:38 am
#771
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: YYZ
Posts: 954
Fairmont was a huge benefit and it is too bad that they are merging. Finally they did something right in communicating the change ahead of time by email - at least that is appreciated.
Dec 21, 2017, 11:26 am
#772
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: YYZ
Posts: 954
Yeah, that was removed in 2016 and I somehow got back to Platinum status with them....too bad about FPC but there is a challenge to stay 5 nights and get the status back. I will be doing that for sure.
Dec 29, 2017, 12:25 pm
#773
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: YYZ
Posts: 954
Just curious, who has taken advantage of the $500 duty free credit and what did you buy??? Heading out Monday morning and going to make use of this!
Jan 1, 2018, 8:41 pm
#774
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: AMX CENT
Posts: 188
Thanks/
Jan 2, 2018, 8:27 pm
#775
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: YYZ
Posts: 954
Take a trip to the States instead of International. Bought a nicet Tissot Watch and a jacket for my wife, all happy!
Bermuda is nice and close too...
Last edited by yyz-kin; Jan 3, 2018 at 1:58 am Reason: Whoops
Mar 3, 2018, 9:08 pm
#776
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 22
Am I a realistic candidate for the Canadian Centurion Card?
Hi all,
I just wanted to get your opinions on whether or not you think I'm a realistic candidate for the Centurion Card (Canadian version).
I've been a member since April 2017 with a Platinum card, and my spend is JUST about to cross $250,000 (CAD). My enrollment date was April 23 2017, so the way I figure, I've got almost 2 months from today to surpass that minimum. I just wanted to outline some points and see if you guys think I'll realistically be invited, or if I'm way off.
A few things:
- Currently at a spend of $220,000. Much of it is business expenses, but much of it is also luxury travel (some of the most expensive, outrageous hotels in the world -- the card has been charged in 12 countries this year.
- I am about to make a $32,000 "purchase" which will put me over the $250k minimum. However, this is actually a corporate government tax payment. I found out that the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) accepts tax installments through credit cards via a vetted third party called Plastiq. I am curious as to your opinions on whether or not Amex views this as "cheating". For the record, I called Amex's credit department and they said they are well aware of the Plastiq service and yes, you get points for these purchases, and no, it's not considered a cash advance. There is a 2.5% fee but I personally think this is worth the points and DEFINITELY worth it if it will help me look better in the eyes of the Centurion team. Just wondering if anyone else thinks this might be flagged as "suspicious" (in the context of Centurion spending minimums).
- I checked, and I've made 500 transactions this year on my Platinum. I'm not sure if my logic is correct, but at an average per-transaction spend of $500 and given the fact that this is clearly a "daily driver" card for me, do you think this helps my case? Or is even this not enough? I personally would imagine 500 transactions of $500 would be better in their eyes than say 10 $25k transactions.
- I have immaculate history with Amex (albeit only one year). I pay my card multiple times a month and it is always paid early.
- One interesting piece of info: I have called Amex a few times just to inquire about the Cent, and a couple times I've had a weird situation where they sort of talk to me as if I'm crazy, saying I've only spent $90-$100k and that I'm way off from the minimum. I obviously know this is not correct and each time this has happened, I've nicely requested that they manually go in and calculate my total spend. Even easier, if I just log in and filter my transactions by "Payments Received", I see my over $200k spend. When the reps manually calculate, to their surprise they can see I am over $200k. I'm just concerned as I wouldn't want the Centurion team to not have my account flagged due to this strange issue? The reps btw are always clueless as to why this is the case and it sort of frustrates me that I cannot get an answer on that.
- I've seen some threads on Centurion here where people spend $100k PER MONTH and still haven't gotten invited. Is this all a pipe dream for me? I sort of feel like the Canadian card might be a bit easier to get given our market here but I am not sure. I ditched my Visa Infinite Privilege card (the highest-calibre Visa here in Canada) to help accomplish this goal.
- Credit score is 795 and I have good net worth. Curious as to whether or not anyone knows how (or if at all) they verify your "net worth"?
Anyway, feeling a little discouraged after reading some posts here that I might not be as high-roller as I thought given that people spending more than me haven't got an invite. I'm also wondering if the fact that I have inquired numerous times (albeit none yet while I am ABOVE $250k spend, only inquiries when below/not there yet) would be viewed as desperate, or potentially a good thing as it shows my interest in the brand?
Interestingly enough, I contacted a girl I went to business school with who is the "Product Owner" of the marketing department within the Centurion product line at Amex Canada. Unfortunately she said they're not allowed to invite their personal prospects -- bummer as she would have been the perfect in!
Thanks guys! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
I just wanted to get your opinions on whether or not you think I'm a realistic candidate for the Centurion Card (Canadian version).
I've been a member since April 2017 with a Platinum card, and my spend is JUST about to cross $250,000 (CAD). My enrollment date was April 23 2017, so the way I figure, I've got almost 2 months from today to surpass that minimum. I just wanted to outline some points and see if you guys think I'll realistically be invited, or if I'm way off.
A few things:
- Currently at a spend of $220,000. Much of it is business expenses, but much of it is also luxury travel (some of the most expensive, outrageous hotels in the world -- the card has been charged in 12 countries this year.
- I am about to make a $32,000 "purchase" which will put me over the $250k minimum. However, this is actually a corporate government tax payment. I found out that the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) accepts tax installments through credit cards via a vetted third party called Plastiq. I am curious as to your opinions on whether or not Amex views this as "cheating". For the record, I called Amex's credit department and they said they are well aware of the Plastiq service and yes, you get points for these purchases, and no, it's not considered a cash advance. There is a 2.5% fee but I personally think this is worth the points and DEFINITELY worth it if it will help me look better in the eyes of the Centurion team. Just wondering if anyone else thinks this might be flagged as "suspicious" (in the context of Centurion spending minimums).
- I checked, and I've made 500 transactions this year on my Platinum. I'm not sure if my logic is correct, but at an average per-transaction spend of $500 and given the fact that this is clearly a "daily driver" card for me, do you think this helps my case? Or is even this not enough? I personally would imagine 500 transactions of $500 would be better in their eyes than say 10 $25k transactions.
- I have immaculate history with Amex (albeit only one year). I pay my card multiple times a month and it is always paid early.
- One interesting piece of info: I have called Amex a few times just to inquire about the Cent, and a couple times I've had a weird situation where they sort of talk to me as if I'm crazy, saying I've only spent $90-$100k and that I'm way off from the minimum. I obviously know this is not correct and each time this has happened, I've nicely requested that they manually go in and calculate my total spend. Even easier, if I just log in and filter my transactions by "Payments Received", I see my over $200k spend. When the reps manually calculate, to their surprise they can see I am over $200k. I'm just concerned as I wouldn't want the Centurion team to not have my account flagged due to this strange issue? The reps btw are always clueless as to why this is the case and it sort of frustrates me that I cannot get an answer on that.
- I've seen some threads on Centurion here where people spend $100k PER MONTH and still haven't gotten invited. Is this all a pipe dream for me? I sort of feel like the Canadian card might be a bit easier to get given our market here but I am not sure. I ditched my Visa Infinite Privilege card (the highest-calibre Visa here in Canada) to help accomplish this goal.
- Credit score is 795 and I have good net worth. Curious as to whether or not anyone knows how (or if at all) they verify your "net worth"?
Anyway, feeling a little discouraged after reading some posts here that I might not be as high-roller as I thought given that people spending more than me haven't got an invite. I'm also wondering if the fact that I have inquired numerous times (albeit none yet while I am ABOVE $250k spend, only inquiries when below/not there yet) would be viewed as desperate, or potentially a good thing as it shows my interest in the brand?
Interestingly enough, I contacted a girl I went to business school with who is the "Product Owner" of the marketing department within the Centurion product line at Amex Canada. Unfortunately she said they're not allowed to invite their personal prospects -- bummer as she would have been the perfect in!
Thanks guys! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Last edited by theultimate; Mar 3, 2018 at 9:17 pm Reason: Forgot something
Mar 5, 2018, 5:03 pm
#778
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: AMX CENT
Posts: 188
Hi all,
I just wanted to get your opinions on whether or not you think I'm a realistic candidate for the Centurion Card (Canadian version).
I've been a member since April 2017 with a Platinum card, and my spend is JUST about to cross $250,000 (CAD). My enrollment date was April 23 2017, so the way I figure, I've got almost 2 months from today to surpass that minimum. I just wanted to outline some points and see if you guys think I'll realistically be invited, or if I'm way off.
A few things:
- Currently at a spend of $220,000. Much of it is business expenses, but much of it is also luxury travel (some of the most expensive, outrageous hotels in the world -- the card has been charged in 12 countries this year.
- I am about to make a $32,000 "purchase" which will put me over the $250k minimum. However, this is actually a corporate government tax payment. I found out that the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) accepts tax installments through credit cards via a vetted third party called Plastiq. I am curious as to your opinions on whether or not Amex views this as "cheating". For the record, I called Amex's credit department and they said they are well aware of the Plastiq service and yes, you get points for these purchases, and no, it's not considered a cash advance. There is a 2.5% fee but I personally think this is worth the points and DEFINITELY worth it if it will help me look better in the eyes of the Centurion team. Just wondering if anyone else thinks this might be flagged as "suspicious" (in the context of Centurion spending minimums).
- I checked, and I've made 500 transactions this year on my Platinum. I'm not sure if my logic is correct, but at an average per-transaction spend of $500 and given the fact that this is clearly a "daily driver" card for me, do you think this helps my case? Or is even this not enough? I personally would imagine 500 transactions of $500 would be better in their eyes than say 10 $25k transactions.
- I have immaculate history with Amex (albeit only one year). I pay my card multiple times a month and it is always paid early.
- One interesting piece of info: I have called Amex a few times just to inquire about the Cent, and a couple times I've had a weird situation where they sort of talk to me as if I'm crazy, saying I've only spent $90-$100k and that I'm way off from the minimum. I obviously know this is not correct and each time this has happened, I've nicely requested that they manually go in and calculate my total spend. Even easier, if I just log in and filter my transactions by "Payments Received", I see my over $200k spend. When the reps manually calculate, to their surprise they can see I am over $200k. I'm just concerned as I wouldn't want the Centurion team to not have my account flagged due to this strange issue? The reps btw are always clueless as to why this is the case and it sort of frustrates me that I cannot get an answer on that.
- I've seen some threads on Centurion here where people spend $100k PER MONTH and still haven't gotten invited. Is this all a pipe dream for me? I sort of feel like the Canadian card might be a bit easier to get given our market here but I am not sure. I ditched my Visa Infinite Privilege card (the highest-calibre Visa here in Canada) to help accomplish this goal.
- Credit score is 795 and I have good net worth. Curious as to whether or not anyone knows how (or if at all) they verify your "net worth"?
Anyway, feeling a little discouraged after reading some posts here that I might not be as high-roller as I thought given that people spending more than me haven't got an invite. I'm also wondering if the fact that I have inquired numerous times (albeit none yet while I am ABOVE $250k spend, only inquiries when below/not there yet) would be viewed as desperate, or potentially a good thing as it shows my interest in the brand?
Interestingly enough, I contacted a girl I went to business school with who is the "Product Owner" of the marketing department within the Centurion product line at Amex Canada. Unfortunately she said they're not allowed to invite their personal prospects -- bummer as she would have been the perfect in!
Thanks guys! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
I just wanted to get your opinions on whether or not you think I'm a realistic candidate for the Centurion Card (Canadian version).
I've been a member since April 2017 with a Platinum card, and my spend is JUST about to cross $250,000 (CAD). My enrollment date was April 23 2017, so the way I figure, I've got almost 2 months from today to surpass that minimum. I just wanted to outline some points and see if you guys think I'll realistically be invited, or if I'm way off.
A few things:
- Currently at a spend of $220,000. Much of it is business expenses, but much of it is also luxury travel (some of the most expensive, outrageous hotels in the world -- the card has been charged in 12 countries this year.
- I am about to make a $32,000 "purchase" which will put me over the $250k minimum. However, this is actually a corporate government tax payment. I found out that the CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) accepts tax installments through credit cards via a vetted third party called Plastiq. I am curious as to your opinions on whether or not Amex views this as "cheating". For the record, I called Amex's credit department and they said they are well aware of the Plastiq service and yes, you get points for these purchases, and no, it's not considered a cash advance. There is a 2.5% fee but I personally think this is worth the points and DEFINITELY worth it if it will help me look better in the eyes of the Centurion team. Just wondering if anyone else thinks this might be flagged as "suspicious" (in the context of Centurion spending minimums).
- I checked, and I've made 500 transactions this year on my Platinum. I'm not sure if my logic is correct, but at an average per-transaction spend of $500 and given the fact that this is clearly a "daily driver" card for me, do you think this helps my case? Or is even this not enough? I personally would imagine 500 transactions of $500 would be better in their eyes than say 10 $25k transactions.
- I have immaculate history with Amex (albeit only one year). I pay my card multiple times a month and it is always paid early.
- One interesting piece of info: I have called Amex a few times just to inquire about the Cent, and a couple times I've had a weird situation where they sort of talk to me as if I'm crazy, saying I've only spent $90-$100k and that I'm way off from the minimum. I obviously know this is not correct and each time this has happened, I've nicely requested that they manually go in and calculate my total spend. Even easier, if I just log in and filter my transactions by "Payments Received", I see my over $200k spend. When the reps manually calculate, to their surprise they can see I am over $200k. I'm just concerned as I wouldn't want the Centurion team to not have my account flagged due to this strange issue? The reps btw are always clueless as to why this is the case and it sort of frustrates me that I cannot get an answer on that.
- I've seen some threads on Centurion here where people spend $100k PER MONTH and still haven't gotten invited. Is this all a pipe dream for me? I sort of feel like the Canadian card might be a bit easier to get given our market here but I am not sure. I ditched my Visa Infinite Privilege card (the highest-calibre Visa here in Canada) to help accomplish this goal.
- Credit score is 795 and I have good net worth. Curious as to whether or not anyone knows how (or if at all) they verify your "net worth"?
Anyway, feeling a little discouraged after reading some posts here that I might not be as high-roller as I thought given that people spending more than me haven't got an invite. I'm also wondering if the fact that I have inquired numerous times (albeit none yet while I am ABOVE $250k spend, only inquiries when below/not there yet) would be viewed as desperate, or potentially a good thing as it shows my interest in the brand?
Interestingly enough, I contacted a girl I went to business school with who is the "Product Owner" of the marketing department within the Centurion product line at Amex Canada. Unfortunately she said they're not allowed to invite their personal prospects -- bummer as she would have been the perfect in!
Thanks guys! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
The card isn't worth that much trouble especially since the benefits have been deteriorating ....
As an FYI - I've never spent anywhere close to that amount but have been with Amex for > 10 years with no late payments and lots of personal spend on travel. Been with Centurion around 8 years.
Mar 5, 2018, 5:49 pm
#779
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 22
The card isn't worth that much trouble especially since the benefits have been deteriorating ....
As an FYI - I've never spent anywhere close to that amount but have been with Amex for > 10 years with no late payments and lots of personal spend on travel. Been with Centurion around 8 years.
As an FYI - I've never spent anywhere close to that amount but have been with Amex for > 10 years with no late payments and lots of personal spend on travel. Been with Centurion around 8 years.
Did you call 10 years ago, or did they invite you on their own?
Thanks for the insight!
Mar 5, 2018, 5:52 pm
#780
Join Date: Nov 2010
Programs: AMX CENT
Posts: 188
Hey Alveoli! Thanks for the response. That's really interesting -- do you think maybe its because 10 years ago the minimum spend was a lot lower? Not sure but just wondering. Care to give Centurion a call and recommend me? Ha!
Did you call 10 years ago, or did they invite you on their own?
Thanks for the insight!
Did you call 10 years ago, or did they invite you on their own?
Thanks for the insight!