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Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

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Old Oct 25, 2013, 7:07 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: ericdabbs
Please read the wiki before posting a question.

UPDATE 01/17/15

BeFrugal: 1.5%
Big Crumbs: 0.9%
TopCashBack: 1.5%


For other cash back or airline portals, check here: http://www.cashbackmonitor.com/Cashb...erican+express

Public Service Announcement: Do NOT use fee-free codes if you want portal cashback / miles. CB/Miles will post and then be clawed back.

FAQ

Will it post as a cash advance (CA)?

Citi - Yes.

Cards from Chase, BoA, FIA, Barclay, AMEX, CapitalOne, US Bank, Discover, HSBC, etc., have posted as purchase. PNC Visa Cashbuilder - posts as purchase but does not earn CC rewards

Note: Some issuers (Discover, US Bank, etc.) will decline the authorization if it exceeds your CA limit. This does NOT mean it will post as CA. It simply means you need to lower the purchase amount below your CA limit for authorization, but it ultimately posts as a purchase.

How do I set PIN on AMEX Gift Cards and use as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc.
You cannot set PIN or use them as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc. You can only use them as credit where AMEX is accepted.

How do I cash out AMEX Gift Cards?
Use manufactured spend techniques (load RB, buy Visa/MC GCs, VRs, AP, AFT, etc.) or normal spend where AMEX is accepted.

Why buy AMEX Gift Cards then?
To reduce the cost of manufactured spend, to mask your manufactured spend (i.e unusual high spend at Target or CVS), earn additional cash back on spend, or meet minimum spend targets faster.

Next day shipping that isn't?
The next day shipping is from when they ship the cards to UPS, which can be as long as 10 days from the order submission if you order personalized cards (more recently this has been under a week). For next day shipping, you are notified late night (once your card finishes processing, see above) and the package arrive that same morning before 10:30AM in your area.

What is with the charge disappearing from my credit card?
Once the order is placed you will see a pending charge on your CC account. Quite often once the card ships this pending is removed but does not show as a charge. Don't panic (or celebrate) it will show up as a charge within a day or so.

Personalized GCs?
Either Biz or Personal GCs can be personalized with your name. This helps when shaky cashiers who demand to see your card are prevalent. These take approximately 4 biz days to arrive compared to the non personalized which arrives as quickly as the next day.

UPS Tracking?
If you logged in to your AMEX account when placing the order you can get tracking info by logging in to your AMEX account and clicking on cards > gift cards > order history > order details. Unfortunately tracking information may not appear until well after your order has shipped so it's best to sign up for UPS My Choice to get faster tracking info and reroute your package if needed. Since UPS may drop your package off at the door if you're not home, it will be useful to know when your package will arrive.

The portal terms indicate that coupon codes will invalidate cash back. Is this true?
Yes (as of July 2014)

What are the purchase limits? (Updated Dec 2014)
10K personal every 14 days
100K business every 14 days

Do declined orders count toward the purchase limits?
YMMV

Do fees and shipping count toward the purchase limits?
No

Why was my purchase declined by AMEX?
There are several possibilities:
- Your billing address does not match 100% with what the credit card company has on file. This could be anything from apt/suite/condo # on the wrong line to zip code requiring 9 digits instead of 5. If your first purchase does not go through, call your bank or login to your acct to verify that this matches what you used.
- You have gone over the $10k every 14 day limit on personal gift card purchase.
- Even if you are sure the first two are correct as you have ordered before on that card and it's been more than 14 days, you might still get declined. No one has any idea why.
- You placed a business order and you don't really have a business (at some point AMEX does a background check for a valid business) or you have exceeded the 14 day limit for business orders.

My order was declined but my credit card still shows a pending authorization. How long until this falls off and my credit line is freed up?
I typically takes 1 week for the pending authorization to fall off after a declined order.

Can I order from the business side using a personal card? Or does it need to be a business card?
You can use whatever credit card you want to pay for business or personal orders. About the only restriction is you can't use an AMEX GC to buy another AMEX GC.

How long will it take the portal to track my order and confirm the pending cash back or points?
For non-Cartera portals (TCB, BC, Befrugal, etc) your order will usually track within a day or two.
For Cartera portals (Barclay Reward Boost, Lucky Rewards, USAA, Alaska, Delta) it will take 3-4 weeks to track.

My orders are not tracking. How can I maximize the chances the portal will track my order properly?
Use a browser you do not normally use (Chrome, Firefox, Opera), reset all browser settings to defaults, clear all browser cookies, disable all browser add-ons, and close/re-start your browser before navigating to the portal and placing your order. Do NOT use promotional coupon codes. The vast majority of tracking issues result from use of coupon codes, a bad browser cookie, improperly configured browser settings, or add-ons that interfere with cookie tracking.
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Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

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Old Jul 22, 2014, 5:55 pm
  #7636  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 378
Anyone having issues getting into TCB right now? Can't get past the homepage.
Frindle is offline  
Old Jul 22, 2014, 7:28 pm
  #7637  
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 563
Originally Posted by Frindle
Anyone having issues getting into TCB right now? Can't get past the homepage.
Same here. The mobile site seemed to work.
Milezjunkie is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:11 am
  #7638  
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: NYC
Posts: 5,025
Originally Posted by dboston1
I called about a business order that was declined. My personal orders always go through now but for whatever reason biz orders with my EIN and Ink card always get declined. The rep told me that biz orders must be a minimum of $3k. Hadn't heard that before, and I had been starting small(er) with $2k orders to try it out. Just tried again with an order for two $2k cards using my EIN and that was also declined. Also tried again using SSN and again declined. No idea how to get the biz orders to go through.
Have you tried ordering 1k cards? That is the only way I can get a business order to go through.
Domat is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:27 am
  #7639  
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 126
Originally Posted by Domat
Have you tried ordering 1k cards? That is the only way I can get a business order to go through.
Just a data point.
I've had success ordering anywhere from 1 to 4 3k cards in a single business order. Using EIN and purchasing on personal cards (Arrival and Fidelity Amex), logged into personal Amex CC account. Billing and ship to address matches CC, business is a different address.
met152 is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:31 am
  #7640  
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: PDX & PHX
Programs: AA,AS,HH,HY,IB,LH,IHG,MAR,WN
Posts: 199
Originally Posted by met152
Just a data point.
I've had success ordering anywhere from 1 to 4 3k cards in a single business order. Using EIN and purchasing on personal cards (Arrival and Fidelity Amex), logged into personal Amex CC account. Billing and ship to address matches CC, business is a different address.
Is your EIN for a sole proprietorship or LLC?
HiYoSilver is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:37 am
  #7641  
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: LAX
Programs: Delta, AA, USairways, BA, United, Hilton Honors Diamond, SPG Plat , Marriott, Sixt Platinum
Posts: 122
Originally Posted by met152
Just a data point.
I've had success ordering anywhere from 1 to 4 3k cards in a single business order. Using EIN and purchasing on personal cards (Arrival and Fidelity Amex), logged into personal Amex CC account. Billing and ship to address matches CC, business is a different address.
Can you explain this a little more thoroughly? I don't understand exactly which steps you took. Where did the business come into play other than ordering business cards? Based on your post it sounds like everything was done using your personal info.
queensgambit is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:54 am
  #7642  
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 126
Originally Posted by HiYoSilver
Is your EIN for a sole proprietorship or LLC?
LLC
met152 is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 11:57 am
  #7643  
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: PA
Posts: 126
Originally Posted by queensgambit
Can you explain this a little more thoroughly? I don't understand exactly which steps you took. Where did the business come into play other than ordering business cards? Based on your post it sounds like everything was done using your personal info.
No offense, but my post wasn't meant to be a step by step tutorial. I didn't think it was that hard to follow. I logged into the Amex GC site using my login info for my personal Amex CCs. I then ordered business gcs using my business info on my personal credit card.
met152 is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 6:20 pm
  #7644  
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 13
6 straight orders declined, tried personal,business; 1K, 2K, 3K orders; USPS address, credit card address...any other ideas to get an order through?
latetotheparty is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 6:29 pm
  #7645  
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 74
Originally Posted by latetotheparty
6 straight orders declined, tried personal,business; 1K, 2K, 3K orders; USPS address, credit card address...any other ideas to get an order through?
Yes, wait for $5k/14 days. I have an EIN and can't even get around this limit. It took me probably 20 declined orders in a row and multiple calls to realize that this is my OVERALL limit.
jimbo18 is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 6:32 pm
  #7646  
 
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 13
Originally Posted by jimbo18
Yes, wait for $5k/14 days. I have an EIN and can't even get around this limit. It took me probably 20 declined orders in a row and multiple calls to realize that this is my OVERALL limit.
Isn't it $75K/14 days for business and $5K/14 days for personal?
latetotheparty is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 6:53 pm
  #7647  
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Midwest
Programs: Southwest CP, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Platinum, Club Carlson Gold
Posts: 69
I've only recently been buying Amex GCs. My experience has always been that when I get the email confirming shipment I get delivery the same day. Today I got the email but not the delivery. Does anyone have experience with the package trailing the email by a day once in a while?
WhoGoesThere is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 7:07 pm
  #7648  
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 572
Originally Posted by WhoGoesThere
I've only recently been buying Amex GCs. My experience has always been that when I get the email confirming shipment I get delivery the same day. Today I got the email but not the delivery. Does anyone have experience with the package trailing the email by a day once in a while?
Sign up for UPS My Choice (it's free) and you'll be able to see all the scheduled deliveries
Zgirl is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 7:11 pm
  #7649  
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 74
Originally Posted by latetotheparty
Isn't it $75K/14 days for business and $5K/14 days for personal?
This is also what I thought and is the reason I subjected myself to 20 declined orders. Some people seem to get away with more, but for me it is $5k combined despite an EIN and Amex business card.
jimbo18 is offline  
Old Jul 23, 2014, 8:05 pm
  #7650  
Suspended
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: ILG/PHL
Programs: Amex Plat, AA Gold, SPG Gold, Hyatt Gold, HHonors Gold, Carlson Gold
Posts: 1,075
Originally Posted by jimbo18
This is also what I thought and is the reason I subjected myself to 20 declined orders. Some people seem to get away with more, but for me it is $5k combined despite an EIN and Amex business card.
Weird. No EIN but I also have a Amex business card. I can't ever seem to get business orders for card denominations larger than $1k but I can order pretty much as many of the $1ks as I want. I've ordered $17k so far this week and they've all been approved.




Another weird thing I just noticed. Anyone else notice BF orders over $5K get rounded down 1 cent? I was just looking at my history and all my orders over $5k are what I'd expect the CB to be minus 1 cent. No fee free codes or anything were used.

Code:
7/10/2014	American Express Gift Cards and Business Gift Card	000001122421	$6,000.00	$149.99	
7/22/2014	American Express Gift Cards and Business Gift Card	000001153839	$5,000.00	$125.00
7/23/2014	American Express Gift Cards and Business Gift Card	000001156195	$9,000.00	$224.99

Last edited by payeco; Jul 23, 2014 at 8:12 pm
payeco is offline  


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