Last edit by: Renes Points
On 26SEPT17 Delta changed the MQD AMEX exempt requirements. $25,000 only exempts you to Platinum or lower. $250,000 spend needed across ALL the DL AMEX cards you hold (personal and business in your name) for Diamond exemption for 2019 elite year.
If all you are interested in is the discussion starting when the announcement occurred on Tuesday, September 26, 2017, start here.
The Delta announcement is here https://www.delta.com/content/www/en_US/skymiles/news-and-updates.html
There are many data points that Delta will allow a one time exception under the 2017 qualification rules if you request this for the 2019 Medallion year.
If all you are interested in is the discussion starting when the announcement occurred on Tuesday, September 26, 2017, start here.
The Delta announcement is here https://www.delta.com/content/www/en_US/skymiles/news-and-updates.html
There are many data points that Delta will allow a one time exception under the 2017 qualification rules if you request this for the 2019 Medallion year.
Delta increasing Diamond MQD Waiver to $250,000
#526
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,417
I miss the old starbucks program. But like with the old Southwest program (I had a companion pass every year and at least 20 free flights a year and only made a couple cheap revenue flights of DTW/MDW or BNA a year) they were losing money on customers like me and I totally understand the change. Now Delta is making money on my flights being a hub captive.
With Best Buy it is possible to get points without spending money in their store. There is a best buy rewards credit card that earns best buy points on every purchase (not sure how good the return is on non-best buy purchases) and E-rewards used to allow you to convert their survey points into best buy points.
With Best Buy it is possible to get points without spending money in their store. There is a best buy rewards credit card that earns best buy points on every purchase (not sure how good the return is on non-best buy purchases) and E-rewards used to allow you to convert their survey points into best buy points.
#527
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: ATL
Programs: DL Scattered Smothered Covered Medallion, Some hotel & car stuff, Kroger Plus Card
Posts: 10,746
#528
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: LAX
Programs: Fallen DL DM (PM) 2MM
Posts: 4,783
When status and rewards are purely revenue based, SkyMiles really becomes nothing more than a rebate program. It is not hard to see purchasing entities requiring those "points" being returned to them. The old answer was "it is my butt in the seat, I deserve the rewards" but with a totally revenue based program the butt doesn't matter...
#529
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Naples Florida and San Diego, California
Programs: Delta Diamond, Starwood Platinum
Posts: 73
I have been a Diamond since the beginning and I have grown increasingly ambivalent about the program. As Delta once proclaimed "When everyone is elite no one is".
If this change happens it will either propel me to leave or step up my spending and stay. I had a lot of Amex Membership Rewards points with the 50% back on Amex Platinum Card. I used them for two flights in 2018...a China Eastern flight JFK-SIN in J and an Air France JFK-BCN flight in F. As I understand it I will get MQDs based on miles flown so I should easily requalify for 2019. I want to try one year with a "thinner herd" before I make a long term decision. I hope this change happens.
If this change happens it will either propel me to leave or step up my spending and stay. I had a lot of Amex Membership Rewards points with the 50% back on Amex Platinum Card. I used them for two flights in 2018...a China Eastern flight JFK-SIN in J and an Air France JFK-BCN flight in F. As I understand it I will get MQDs based on miles flown so I should easily requalify for 2019. I want to try one year with a "thinner herd" before I make a long term decision. I hope this change happens.
#530
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Twin Cities
Programs: Delta DM MM, IHG Plat, Hilton DM, Marriott SE, Emerald EE, Oakdale Gun Club, NRA & GOA Life Member
Posts: 3,870
The program fills my needs and probably will until retirement. Then I'm not sure. Like I said before in the beginning of this thread, I don't need the waiver. I will, I'm certain, after I retire. I don't have $15K budgeted for travel right now.
#531
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Minneapolis: DL DM charter 2.3MM
Programs: A3*Gold, SPG Plat, HyattDiamond, MarriottPP, LHW exAccess, ICI, Raffles Amb, NW PE MM, TWA Gold MM
Posts: 100,417
Either you're much older than I suspect or you're failing to consider that the DL FF program will change many many times before you retire.....and most of those changes will not be in your favor.
#532
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Twin Cities
Programs: Delta DM MM, IHG Plat, Hilton DM, Marriott SE, Emerald EE, Oakdale Gun Club, NRA & GOA Life Member
Posts: 3,870
I'm 52. I plan on checking out at 56-58. I've weathered all the other storms and my MegaCorp thinks of me as a superstar. I'm not worried.
#533
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: CLE
Programs: UA Gold, DL DM, UA 1K, MR PP
Posts: 352
... Not allowing a Diamond waiver at all seems misguided to me. In my case, it would certainly result in the cancellation of at least one of my Amex cards, and a six figure reduction in the amount of spend I put on the remaining card. I may an outlier such that neither Amex nor Delta really cares. But Amex's reaction as reported in this thread suggests it does care.
If the latter is the case, you only need 25K as it stands now.
If the former is the case, then you should currently be only spending 25K on a delta amex, and the rest of your spend should be on higher return cards, no?
What I'm saying is that if you value the Amex program regardless of the waiver, why would you leave? And if you only value the Amex program for the waiver, why are you spending 6 figures when you only "need" to spend 25K for your perk?
#534
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2008
Programs: Formaldehyde Medallion DL DieMiles
Posts: 12,646
#535
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: ATL
Programs: DL Scattered Smothered Covered Medallion, Some hotel & car stuff, Kroger Plus Card
Posts: 10,746
When status and rewards are purely revenue based, SkyMiles really becomes nothing more than a rebate program. It is not hard to see purchasing entities requiring those "points" being returned to them. The old answer was "it is my butt in the seat, I deserve the rewards" but with a totally revenue based program the butt doesn't matter...
#536
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Atlanta
Programs: Delta Diamond; HHonors Diamond
Posts: 655
I'm puzzled a bit by this. Would your "six figure spend" go away out of spite, or because you only spend on Amex for the waiver?
If the latter is the case, you only need 25K as it stands now.
If the former is the case, then you should currently be only spending 25K on a delta amex, and the rest of your spend should be on higher return cards, no?
What I'm saying is that if you value the Amex program regardless of the waiver, why would you leave? And if you only value the Amex program for the waiver, why are you spending 6 figures when you only "need" to spend 25K for your perk?
If the latter is the case, you only need 25K as it stands now.
If the former is the case, then you should currently be only spending 25K on a delta amex, and the rest of your spend should be on higher return cards, no?
What I'm saying is that if you value the Amex program regardless of the waiver, why would you leave? And if you only value the Amex program for the waiver, why are you spending 6 figures when you only "need" to spend 25K for your perk?
Again, my situation may be so unusual that Delta isn't going to worry about people like me in designing its program. That's fine. Given how generous Chase is right now, it might make sense to shift more spend to Chase even if Delta doesn't change its MQD waiver rules. Upgrades have been so sparse lately that pushing for Diamond may not be worth it. On the other hand, Diamond has been very helpful for getting rebooked in a couple weather or mechanical travel disasters over the years. It's tough to put a value on those kinds of soft benefits when evaluating Amex versus Chase.
#537
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: MEM
Programs: Starbucks Green Card
Posts: 5,431
When status and rewards are purely revenue based, SkyMiles really becomes nothing more than a rebate program. It is not hard to see purchasing entities requiring those "points" being returned to them. The old answer was "it is my butt in the seat, I deserve the rewards" but with a totally revenue based program the butt doesn't matter...
#538
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Toledo, OH
Programs: Delta DM & MM, Hilton DM, Marriott gold, Hyatt Globalist, Alaska 75K, Wyndham Diamond,
Posts: 15,400
Please delete posted in error
Last edited by jamesteroh; Aug 4, 2017 at 7:50 am Reason: posted in error
#539
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Toledo, OH
Programs: Delta DM & MM, Hilton DM, Marriott gold, Hyatt Globalist, Alaska 75K, Wyndham Diamond,
Posts: 15,400
I fly and spend at a Platinum level. I max two reserve cards (one personal, one business -- $60,000 each) for the MQM bonuses to make Diamond. I typically go over the spend threshold a little on each card and thus put about $125,000 to $130,000 on Amex skymiles cards each year. If I no longer need so many MQMs because I can't make Diamond through a spend waiver, I'll downgrade one reserve card to a delta plat amex, put only $25K on it (one MQM bonus and a spend waiver just in case my ticket spending falls a little short of the Plat requirement), and cancel the other card. If I no longer need MQM bonuses, the money would be better spent on Chase.
Again, my situation may be so unusual that Delta isn't going to worry about people like me in designing its program. That's fine. Given how generous Chase is right now, it might make sense to shift more spend to Chase even if Delta doesn't change its MQD waiver rules. Upgrades have been so sparse lately that pushing for Diamond may not be worth it. On the other hand, Diamond has been very helpful for getting rebooked in a couple weather or mechanical travel disasters over the years. It's tough to put a value on those kinds of soft benefits when evaluating Amex versus Chase.
Again, my situation may be so unusual that Delta isn't going to worry about people like me in designing its program. That's fine. Given how generous Chase is right now, it might make sense to shift more spend to Chase even if Delta doesn't change its MQD waiver rules. Upgrades have been so sparse lately that pushing for Diamond may not be worth it. On the other hand, Diamond has been very helpful for getting rebooked in a couple weather or mechanical travel disasters over the years. It's tough to put a value on those kinds of soft benefits when evaluating Amex versus Chase.
If there are a lot of people in our situation that is going to hit Am Ex. If there are only a few people likes us in that situation won't be a huge loss, but if there aren't that many DM's depending on the waiver why would they spend all this time making the change?
There are a LOT better cards to use the spend on than the 1 skypeso/$. Even for Delta purchases the 4.5% on the CSR is a better return most times than 2 skypesos/$.
I'm looking for PM to get hit next. I wouldn't be surprised if they eliminate the MQD waiver in a couple years for that and/or raise the MQMs back up to 100K.
#540
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: MEM
Programs: Starbucks Green Card
Posts: 5,431
The weirdest part about this all is everyone is mad at Amex. I'm gonna stop my amex spend. Amex gonna lose my annual card fees.
If this change happens, it's 100% Delta's decision. There's no way Amex wants this to go away. Yet nobody seems to have plans to hit Delta in the wallet.
If this change happens, it's 100% Delta's decision. There's no way Amex wants this to go away. Yet nobody seems to have plans to hit Delta in the wallet.