I got my new Amex card today...you know, the 10,000-gets-you-75,000 miles promo.

The downside is this: Amex customer service is awful awful AWFUL! I mean horrendous. In fact, I have been unable to get through to Amex on ANY phone number to even ACTIVATE the card! Activation line, Gold line, Platinum line, international (toll) line - NONE of them work.

First of all, if I have a Gold or a Plat card that I'm paying $80-135 per year for, it is UNACCEPTABLE for me to EVER be on a long hold. For ANY reason. Diners Club has figured this out. To be unable to even activate the card (most companies have figured out an automated way to do this) is even worse.

The massive mileage bonus sure looked good in print, but I'm not sure if I'll ever get to the point where I can cash in.

AMEX rejected me for a card, they said that their card is a more prestigous card but I think AMX has the one of the worst customer service in the industry. They suck.

I had no problem at all when it came to the activation line. I got right through. Did you dial the 800 number that was taped to the card? If you are having trouble, call new accounts at 800-343-3331.

I got rejected for the Corporate AMX card through my new employer last month. When I called to find out what the mistake was, I only got rude treatment. They told me, that I would have to send away for a credit report and dispute it with the credit report as they weren't allowed to tell me why the denied my application.

Well I didn't want one to begin with, but my boss made me fill it out. I had applied for a Diner's Club card at the same time. I wasn't going to use it as the Corp AMX doesn't give points. My new Diner's with the 12,000 miles came in the mail a week before my AMX rejection. I have several Visa cards and just got a second mortgage a few months back. After that experience with them, I will NEVER get an AMX card. Well maybe if I got a million miles for signing up. My co-workers now make fun of American Express for turning me down for a pathetic corporate card. My co-workers have to charge their airfare and car rentals to the corporate card, while I get the Diner's points. Maybe, I should thank AMX.

Last night, I tried about 15 different numbers (including the one taped to the card and the new account line) and all led to phone agents who either couldn't transfer me or led to a dead end.

This morning, I finally got the card activated by calling the international global assist line and getting transferred to a couple different customer service reps - finally to one who knew how to activate a new card.

Of course, this begs the philosophical question: "How much will you let a business disrespect you just to get a juicy reward?"

AMEX is a protracted customer service decline - just read the threads!
http://www.flyertalk.com/forumcgi/fo...e=5&LastLogin=

I've been an Amex member since 1995, first with the credit card then in 98 with the green charge card. Until I got the charge they were good, since then they've been nothing but trouble. I've got 8 different issues I am currently trying to rectify with them. I first contacted them 2 years ago and it is only on this 5th attempt that I actually got a response. At least the guy who is now dealing with my complaints seems to be making an effort!

SUPERCAT - Your coworkers might want to check with AMEX to see if they can get miles for their AMEX corporate card use. I was able to do this when I worked at a place that forced me to use the AMEX corporate card. I even was able to get the miles for original amounts that zeroed out in my billing statement(direct bill to corporate account for airfare and rental cars). I also used to work for AMEX. I'm sure they are swamped with the Delta AMEX promo double miles offer they've been running the past couple weeks. They are available 24/7 365 days a year...why don't you try calling off hours?

Even in the off-hours, you can't get through to them without being on hold for a long time. The only way to talk to someone at Amex is to call an "unusual" number (one of the int'l assist numbers, etc.) and get someone nice enough to connect you straight in to whoever you need to talk to. Even at midnight.

But enough Amex bashing for now. As for the corp direct bill thing: I know both Amex and Diners can do this. With my company, airfares get auto-billed through our travel agency to either a corporate Amex or a corporate Diners, and the traveler gets the points. I picked Diners, and I get a separate "Air and Rail Summary" with my Membership Rewards points from auto-billed charges.

It's sort of funny...my company makes a big deal about how they've set up this perk for us. The points are nice, but c'mon - it's not like stock options or something .

If memory seves, when a credit provider turns down an application based on a report by a credit service, they are required to tell you which credit reporting service they relied on, and based on the turn-down, that service is required to give you a free copy of the report. Seems to me there are some significant penalties for not complying.