AMEX Waived My Platinum Card Annual Fee!?

[Anonymous]

You may downgrade your account at any time, it's only upgrading to another product with a higher annual fee that you must wait 13 cycles of account aging for. This is for compliance reasons.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
You may downgrade your account at any time, it's only upgrading to another product with a higher annual fee that you must wait 13 cycles of account aging for. This is for compliance reasons.

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Does that apply when you're applying for a new card and not upgrading? Ex: I got the PRG in Feb and want to add the Platinum. No upgrade.

[Anonymous]

If you are applying for a new account, that restriction does not apply as you are specifically accepting the increased annual fee on the application and it's corresponding Cardmember Agreement.

[Berk]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Lucky you. I've had my platinum for the same amount of time as you and I was charged the whopping AF on my first statement cut. Good to see you being honest and upfront with the CSR about you not being charged your annual fee and actually documenting it. I would be paranoid not paying my AF I'll probably overthink and feel like it'll ruin my internal scores with them or come back later to haunt me and have Amex tell me I didn't pay such and such etc. but hey in your case the CSR said it was waived so document and record it and consider yourself lucky lol.

btw even tho they're both platinum cards. Except one is the Mercedes Benz version, I thought PC weren't allowed until your card is at least 1 year old? Maybe cause they're both platinum versions so it was allowed? I may want to PC to the gold prg whenever I'm allowed to. 

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Two observations:

1. If the anual fee is "whopping" then maybe one should reconsider the benefit to having this card. This is a travel card. The AF is more than offset by the breaks on hotels, resorts, hotel and rental car upgrades, and airport lounge access. Plus the Pre Check and airline charges reimbursements you get. I get more benefit out of this card than what Amex charges for the use of the card. In other words, I make money off of this card rather than having to pay to use the card. Consider, 9 visits to the Delta Sky Club in a year will pay for the AF on this card. If you can't maximize the benefits then why have the card?

2. It is hard to pay the AF if Amex does not bill you for it. Nothing to be paranoid about. Eventually, they will get around to it. I, for one, fail to see where all this paranoia surrounding Amex comes from. I have been dealing with them for years and have yet to have the first issue with them. Why would one put oneself through all the stress, fear, and discomfort of dealing with Amex if that is the case? I know that were I in that position I wouldn't even think of applying for an Amex. It just isn't worth "having them in my portfolio" if I have to live day to day with the fear that today might be the day that Amex drops the hammer.

[Anonymous]

***I am providing an update.***  

I realize that this post is from back in March, but I feel like my experience is helpful in a sense.  

As of today (12/4/16), I still have not been charged my annual fee for my Platinum card (opened on 1/3/16).  

As stated in the original post, I originally got the Amex Mercedes-Benz Platinum card and then switched to the regular Platinum card shortly after.  I have never been charged an annual fee and I did inquire with a CSR about this in the past to which he told me that because I am a new cardholder, I would not be charged an annual fee for the Platinum card.  

***Keep in mind***  Two months after I opened this card, I also opened up a large CD and HYSA with American Expres... Whether this had any influence on that matter... I do not know?  Maybe?  Possibly?  I tell myself that it is quite possible because of my experience of not being charged an annual fee.  

Now it is December and as of January 3rd (my anniversary), I still have not been charged anything...  

Lucky Me?  Or was this a courtesy of American Express and my extended relationship outside of their credit card platform?

[Geordi]

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@Anonymous wrote:

***I am providing an update.***  

I realize that this post is from back in March, but I feel like my experience is helpful in a sense.  

As of today (12/4/16), I still have not been charged my annual fee for my Platinum card (opened on 1/3/16).  

As stated in the original post, I originally got the Amex Mercedes-Benz Platinum card and then switched to the regular Platinum card shortly after.  I have never been charged an annual fee and I did inquire with a CSR about this in the past to which he told me that because I am a new cardholder, I would not be charged an annual fee for the Platinum card.  

***Keep in mind***  Two months after I opened this card, I also opened up a large CD and HYSA with American Expres... Whether this had any influence on that matter... I do not know?  Maybe?  Possibly?  I tell myself that it is quite possible because of my experience of not being charged an annual fee.  

Now it is December and as of January 3rd (my anniversary), I still have not been charged anything...  

Lucky Me?  Or was this a courtesy of American Express and my extended relationship outside of their credit card platform?

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Good for you.

Happy Holidays

[austinguy907]

I know they like to keep paying customers happy when it comes to issues.  Like people getting approved having to call in when it's not an instant resulting in an overnight shipment of the card.  Sometimes due to an account issue a waived fee and some bonus points.  Getting a waived AF though sounds like a glitch in the system between the PC it may have excluded the AF thinking it had already been charged.  I'm shocked though that you asked them repeatedly to take $450 of your money and they didn't oblige!  Now if it were another company I'm sure you would have been calling to ask why they took 2 or 3 times that from the opening to the PC and then a happy CSR taking it a 3rd time for no apparent reason.  

[Anonymous]

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@austinguy907 wrote:

I know they like to keep paying customers happy when it comes to issues.  Like people getting approved having to call in when it's not an instant resulting in an overnight shipment of the card.  Sometimes due to an account issue a waived fee and some bonus points.  Getting a waived AF though sounds like a glitch in the system between the PC it may have excluded the AF thinking it had already been charged.  I'm shocked though that you asked them repeatedly to take $450 of your money and they didn't oblige!  Now if it were another company I'm sure you would have been calling to ask why they took 2 or 3 times that from the opening to the PC and then a happy CSR taking it a 3rd time for no apparent reason.  

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It is very odd... I see product changing being an issue, but I literally did a product change within the first 2 weeks, and then I had the regular Platinum card.  I waited several months before contacting American Express and I actually did it quite a few times - asking when my annual fee was going to be posted.  I thought it would have been in the first or second cycle.  Finally on the last attempt (after I had opened my other accounts), I was told that my fee was waived.  

[Anonymous]

Looking forward to an update after 1/3/17 op!

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
Looking forward to an update after 1/3/17 op!

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I will definitely be updating this next month!