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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 Mar 6, 2014, 4:54 pm
  #3241  
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Murica
Posts: 344
Originally Posted by ashap
Is there anyway on twitter to see what people are tweeting to them, rather than just what they are tweeting?
I didn't know this either so I googled it. Just search "@TopCashBackUSA" and it will pull up tweets with them mentioned.
jewsus is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:10 pm
  #3242  
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 26
Is it possible to recieve CB purchasing GC's via BC and TCB?
jackal3000 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:12 pm
  #3243  
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Murica
Posts: 344
Originally Posted by jackal3000
Is it possible to recieve CB purchasing GC's via BC and TCB?
Not if TCB locks you out of your account and wipes all transaction history.
jewsus is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:16 pm
  #3244  
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: SEA
Posts: 1,887
My TCB account is still open. Perhaps it's because I tipped $1 when I cashed out my ~$1K from December, lol. Seriously though, I suspect the reason my account is open is I didn't use TCB during the Feb. promo. For one I don't trust them. They claim "100.0% satisfaction" with AMEX (note the number of decimal places). In January I asked on FB why they were misreprenting the AMEX sasisfaction numbers. The next day they offered to give me 50% of my denied cash back. I think TCB's business model is destined to fail. Apparently they pass on 100% of the cash back and hope to make money on ads, etc.
HikerT is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:18 pm
  #3245  
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Murica
Posts: 344
Originally Posted by HikerT
My TCB account is still open. Perhaps it's because I tipped $1 when I cashed out my ~$1K from December, lol.
LOL! I actually tipped them like $2 last time I got paid! Totally regret that decision.
jewsus is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:29 pm
  #3246  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 322
Originally Posted by jewsus
LOL! I actually tipped them like $2 last time I got paid! Totally regret that decision.
I gave them 20 cents. Oh well.
flyertalkingallday is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:37 pm
  #3247  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: PVD/BOS
Posts: 879
TopCashBack: 2.25% on Amex Gift Cards, but changes in fees, BigCrumbs 2%.

I tipped the jerks too!!! Regret!
ashap is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:50 pm
  #3248  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 920
Originally Posted by GetawaysRus
Sometimes I get just a little bit frustrated with AmEx....
Get in line. I had been snapping screenshots of every order for 5 months. There's no rhyme or reason to why they get denied except for that ~14 day rule for personal card.
hitman1420 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 5:51 pm
  #3249  
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 245
I am still able to get on TCB. I just placed a $5k @ 3% a couple days ago so I saved all the screens as PDF files in case I get locked out. I won't use them again if they lockout others and don't pay them.
nmp0 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:06 pm
  #3250  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 434
Are you a protected class under title 9?
If so, in USA head over to your states title 9 office and they will file a lawsuit on your behalf against topcashback (assuming they have US assets).
It's illegal to offer a promotion to the general public and exclude certain individuals (ie lock their accounts).
xoxx is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:15 pm
  #3251  
 
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 866
Originally Posted by xoxx
Are you a protected class under title 9?
If so, in USA head over to your states title 9 office and they will file a lawsuit on your behalf against topcashback (assuming they have US assets).
It's illegal to offer a promotion to the general public and exclude certain individuals (ie lock their accounts).

Now this could make things interesting. I'm getting the popcorn machine out.
Father-of-3 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:22 pm
  #3252  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: CLT
Programs: US Silver, IHG Platinum
Posts: 62
Club Carlson Card

Tried to buy $3,000 gift card using my Club Carlson card and it was denied. I finally got a response from US Bank as to why it was denied. Turns out it exceeded my cash advance limit. The wiki states that it shows up as a purchase on this card so, if possible, the wiki should be updated.
tigermark82 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:24 pm
  #3253  
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 563
My account works fine but has anyone attempted to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau? They seem to have a lot of power when it comes to things like this. It's worth a shot.
Milezjunkie is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:25 pm
  #3254  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 920
Originally Posted by tigermark82
Tried to buy $3,000 gift card using my Club Carlson card and it was denied. I finally got a response from US Bank as to why it was denied. Turns out it exceeded my cash advance limit. The wiki states that it shows up as a purchase on this card so, if possible, the wiki should be updated.
US Bank reps will always tell you it's a CA, but it has gone through as purchase in the end from other people's experience. Don't believe what the USB reps tell you, they're brainwashed to read scripts and know nothing else.
hitman1420 is offline  
Old Mar 6, 2014, 6:34 pm
  #3255  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: PVD/BOS
Posts: 879
Originally Posted by xoxx
Are you a protected class under title 9?
If so, in USA head over to your states title 9 office and they will file a lawsuit on your behalf against topcashback (assuming they have US assets).
It's illegal to offer a promotion to the general public and exclude certain individuals (ie lock their accounts).
No we are not a protected class. There is nothing in title 9 about non discrimination of miles accumulators

After a few days of social media bombardment I plan to file with BBB.

If still nothing is resolved it goes to small claims court.
ashap is offline  


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