vxmike

I'm posting in the DL forum since this is somewhat Delta specific.

I currently have a personal Amex Delta Platinum that I'm considering upgrading to a Reserve. If I do this am I still entitled to the 10K MQM and 10K RDM bonuses or will they be reduced?

If the bonus is reduced for upgrading, would another option be to apply for the Reserve card separately then cancel the Delta Platinum that I would no longer want?

Alternatively I have a Delta Business Gold card with a limit of 10x that of my personal card that I'd like to keep but otherwise offers me little in terms of benefits. Any thoughts on upgrading this card to a Business Reserve and ditching the personal card?

I have a good chance to hit $60K spend this year, and have determined the Reserve is probably the best in terms of rewards despite the fee. $60K spend would yield 60K RDM + 30K bonus RDM + 30K MQM in addition to the signup bonus plus the free companion certificate.

I'm a bit overwhelmed by all the choices and somewhat new to the Amex family of Delta cards. I used to be a loyal Citicard/TYP guy but the program is on it's last legs of usefulness.

Seabilly

If you upgrade from the DL Plat to the DL Reserve, your bonus will be less (they will subtract what you already earned when you got the DL Plat). Don't know about the other questions.

MSPeconomist

If possible, wait for a good MQM and bonus miles offer before applying for the Reserve Card and then be sure to save/keep the email or webpage detailing the offer under which you apply. You're likely to receive only the "normal" miles until you document the special offer you use.

LADELTA777

if you have a plat delta card right now, you will not get 10k miles for upgrading to the dl reserve card, you will only get 5000mqm miles.

vxmike

Had another thought.

I'm not actually eligible to upgrade my Amex Delta Business Gold until August when I've had it a year. I do recall that Amex wouldn't let a friend of mine upgrade his Delta card until he'd had it for a year. Upgrading my personal Delta Platinum is kind of pointless for this endeavor since it has a terrible limit relative to my biz card and Amex can be stingy with credit lines if one doesn't have a long and expensive personal history with them.

I have to pull the trigger on a $15K purchase tomorrow, and I'm debating which card(s) to use. The best I can do is 2% presently on Citi and I'd rather not accumulate more TYP.

So the question is...if I spend $15K now (and of course more before I do the upgrade) on my Business Delta Gold Amex and then eventually upgrade to the Reserve in August, will this spending count towards my annual spend and the MQM bonus thresholds? If it doesn't then even worrying about the Reserve this year is pointless.

WalkinPneumonia

It counts. I did this last year.

Lackey99

I upgraded in July 2010 from the Gold to the Reserve. Your spend does not transfer from card to card. I ended up in a mad rush at the end of 2010 finding creative ways to spend $15k in Nov/Dec to get the 15k MQM's. You will also only get the difference between what you already got for your Plat and the 10k MQM for the Reserve.

The value of the card is the upfront MQM bonus, if you can spend $60k the 30k MQM's, the included lounge access, and the companion ticket. To me they easily are worth the extra fee over the Plat.

vxmike

Frustrated with Amex service here.

I initially contacted service via the online message center, and the rep indicated to me that any spending that did not already qualify for a mile boost bonus under the old card would carry over to the upgraded version. Also if a bonus threshold was $20K for example and someone spent $28K they would roll over $8K in spending that never applied to a bonus threshold onto the upgraded card.

I wasn't entirely pleased with the accuracy of some of the other details in the messages, so I called. The phone rep claimed that NONE of the spending on the pre-upgraded account would qualify.

I have to make a $20K purchase tonight, so I guess I'm going to put $14K on the card just in case it will qualify later on. If it doesn't then I can always just spend another $1K and get the 5,000 bonus RDM from hitting $15K in spending.

Frustrating how inconsistent the reps are. I will save all the correspondence I have in writing in case I have to fight with Amex later on if I end up upgrading.

jtrue28

YMMV, but this is false.

We had already earned the miles for the $25K threshhold on the Platinum DL AMEX and had accumulated another $3K on top of that. That $3K most certainly transferred to the Reserve card where we only needed to spend another $27K to reach the $30K threshhold for the Reserve card. If you're truly upgrading your account, everything transfers over...new account, not so much.

trader61

I just got off the phone with Amex. Apparently, the new laws no longer allow upgrades whereas a member shifts to a card with a higher annual membership fee unless they have had the initial card for a minimum of 13 month's. I was forced to apply for an entirely new reserve card and will cancel my platinum card once it arrives. They did give me a $125.00 credit on my reserve card as I only had the platinum card for 3 month's. Prior to the new laws, they would have simply upgraded me and prorated my $150 platinum membership fee that I paid in October towards the higher fee. I guess the big difference here is that old spend won't transfer to the new card thus it's better to change early in the year.

bcj1949

For business reasons I have a PLT AMEX and DL Reserve. The customer service is entirely different in my experience. PLT AMEX A++++++ and then DL Reserve somewhat clueless. The DL reserve is just for the MQM's in my opinion.