Upgrading to American Express Plat Charge Card ?
 

Hi Guys,

Long time reader here... have finally broken the inertia and managed to create an account. Work as a consultant so points and miles have kinda got in the blood :P

Had a question on the American Express Plat Charge Card. I currently hold the Gold charge card and the Jet airways card and have been spending tonnes on them (Mainly corporate expenses to the tune of 4-5 Lakhs a month).

Am thinking of asking American express to upgrade the gold card to platinum based on the spend history. Anyone who has tried that in the past and succeeded? If not then is it worth to pay th 50K annual fee ?

Thanks and Regards,

there are very few cards in my opinion that are worth the inr 50k fee....it all depends on how much value you get from the card to make up that annual fee spend....

Its not worth 50K, instead you should consider AI SBI Signature (5K) and CITI Prestige (20K) .

This would be the best combo for you.

agree with the rest, 50k is a big ask for any CC. even at 4-5l a month spent, its costing you quite a bit per lac compared to any other card out there.

Does the Amex 50k card give you the right rewards for the buck spent? I think the HDFC jet card is great (it gives you tier points as well) OR

citibank premier miles/Prestige card have great transfer options:
https://www.online.citibank.co.in/po...tners-Page.pdf

way cheaper then 50k!

Thanks guys for your comments ! Agree totally that the fifty thou fees is unreasonable. Checking with Amex to see if they are willing to waive it off.

If not plan to continue using my Jet Amex and the Gold cards.
Have recently got the Axis Bank Signature card (as a part of my account) although that seems pretty redundant points wise.

AI signature is a great card - but the hoops you need to go through to get the card seem too much !

Am looking at the HDFC Diner's club black though as a nice card to have. However the lack of POSs for Diner's Club seems to be a problem with racking up spends there.

Any thoughts ?

AI SBI Visa signature might be worth the hassle in your case, just spend 10 lakh and enjoy *A Gold.

Beyond 10 lakh spending Citi Prestige will be the best card for you in terms of miles earning and benefits.

Hi Guys,

Quick update for anyone facing a similar quandry in the future - After multiple calls with American Express - I have finally been told that it would not be possible to offer the Platinum charge card without the fees - They insist that the fee would be removed from the second year onwards if the spend pattern I have demonstrated continues.

They have although offered me to get any other card (I am thinking the Platinum Reserve Credit card) first year free. Any thoughts ?

As an aside the HDFC black seems like a really nice card (allows 1:1 points transfer to Mariott and Hyatt!) however it seems that they have some super high criteria for it being invitation only. Any thoughts on how to get that ? I remember reading on threads here that Keyser and A2A had it - Would appreciate if you guys can share your experience!

Where would your Plat card be based? The AmEx card offerings are different in different countries and different versions of their Plat charge card can carry very different benefits (as well as different annual fees, typically stated in local currency).

When you mention the Reserve card, do you mean the Delta Airlines affiliated AmEx Reserve credit card? If so, AFAIK it's only USA based, so it's not clear that you would be eligible. It's also a credit card rather than a charge card.

chiming in. I think Citi Prestige hits the right price point and in my own experience Amex Plat is BS in India. I paid them the fee and then I had to get a refund since their concierge was weak and their benefits were not uniformly executed. No waivers on Amex Plat is what has always been the case. HDFC Black, I got it after much chasing and following up with my RM and so on. they don't sanction it for a less than 10 L limit.

They offer the platinum reserve as a credit card in India AFAIK based on their website!

Thanks for the quick response A2A!

It seems then that the Black is more easier gotten if you have an account with HDFC (I don't ) through the RM. I don't know if opening an account with them is worth the hassle !

Woud you know if the Diner's premium has the same transfer partners as the Black? I understand that you will make less points (4 on INR150 vs 5 with the black) but anything helping to add to my mariott and hyatt points kitty is welcome !

Quick update - Finally applied and got the Diner's black card approved !

I guess will now be cancelling the Gold charge card from Amex - Will continue to use the Jet Amex for flight miles and now the Diners black for Hotel points.

The only issue I seem to see with this card portfolio is acceptability - :( There are no visa cards! Have one Axis Lifestyle signature card - which is pretty useless with the edge reward points.

On a different note moving to dubai soon prefessionally - Would anyone here have any clues about Dubai cards ?

Can I ask how easy/hard was the process of getting approved for this card?

Do you have a Preferred account or an Imperia one? People have posted about having to go through a lot of hoops and getting their RM to work hard for this card.

And finally, did you upgrade an existing HDFC card to this one or was it a first-time application?

Thanks.

Data point: I also applied for and got approved for diners club black (HDFC) card.
I have a classic account and it took about 9-10 days from application to delivery of card at home.
No verification calls or visits.
Paperwork:
1. Pay Stub (I only had 1 month as I was transferred to India office in August)
2. Copy of offic ID
3. Copy of PAN

I have held the HDFC account for about 10 years now.

Thanks for the info :)
I assume you filled out a paper application, as it cannot be applied for online.