I think that the AmEx junkies have already figured this out, but I've never been able to untangle the Membership Rewards
Express program that comes with the Blue, and how it differs from the full Membership Rewards program that comes with the charge cards. (No, MV, I'm not app'ing; this is for my planned 2009 switch!)
Just got off the phone with CS. With the Express program, you have the same access to the Bonus Points Shopping Mall that you do with the full program, but you can't trade your AmEx points for your frequent flyer/ frequent guest airline and hotel programs. If you want to use them for travel, you have to book through the AmEx travel site, and you get fewer dollars for points. For instance, 25,000 points will only switch to $200 in travel.
I did stumble across a screen that mentioned a $40 fee. Per the CSR, if you want to upgrade your Express program to the full thing, you pay this annually, unless you also have a charge card that you want to link it to.
What this looks like to me is that by paying this fee, you are turning your Blue into the equivalent of a charge card with full access to the rewards program, but with "only" a $40 annual fee instead of the usual higher fees on the charge cards.
If you're not a big traveler, you can skip the $40 fee and just use the regular bonus points shopping mall.
Am I reading this right? As I told the CSR, whenever I spend extended time on the AmEx site, I have to go take a nap afterwards.
* Credit is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master. * Who's the boss --you or your credit?
FICO's: EQ 781 - TU 793 - EX 779 (from PSECU) - Done credit hunting; having fun with credit gardening. - EQ 590 on 5/14/2007