Lil_Me wrote:Has anyone heard about this prepaid card with American Express? Does anyone have any experience with this card. I would like to know as much as possible about this card. I had an American Express back in 1991 and I paid it on time, but it is a Charge Card and I didn't feel I was responsible enough to pay in full every month, so before I messed that account up I closed it.
This prepaid card has nothing to do with any credit products that AMEX offers. If you're looking to get back with AMEX, i'm fairly certain that getting an AMEX prepaid will not help you. The best way to build a relationship with AMEX is to get one of their credit/charge cards and build a good history wth them.
AMEX generally check EX but have been know to check other credit report.
- When you apply for a card with AMEX, they will pull your credit and see if it meets their minimum requirement for approval (no credit check for the prepaid)
- As per your siggy, it would be better if you wait for your scores to be above 650 to apply for an AMEX (no minimum score required)
- Their charge cards (Zync,Green etc) are 'easier' to get than their revolving credit cards. So you would want to start with a charge card
Starting Score: ~470 preBK(8/2010)
SoulMaster wrote:Me too. (Lil knows this, I've been PMing her) But for the rest of you, I'm testing the waters to see if Amex will let me in w/ a BK reporting if I "build a history with them". I doubt it, but why not try?
-SM
You must want to get in with Amex way more than I do! I have their prepaid card (somewhere...) but I'm not going to go through the hassle of using it just to get a chance at maybe getting a card from them. Transferring money onto a prepaid card to use it is a hassle, and it opens you up to the same problems as using a debit card (at least in my opinion).
But I guess it's a smart move from Amex, it's like a carrot on a stick. They'll probably get more people signing up and using their prepaid card by giving the potential for an easier approval down the line.
Probably, If I can get an account open it will backdate to 1993 when I had my Amex Green. (Closed in like 1997, when I had no clue what I was doing). That's why I've made it my mission to get an (ANY) Amex card while my BK is still showing up. Plus, if I can pull it off, I can let others know how to do the same thing.
As for the prepaid, it might help, it might not. Either way, it's no sweat of my back to use it for $500/mo worth of purchases.
-SM
steve23111 wrote:
CS800 wrote:
Lil_Me wrote:Has anyone heard about this prepaid card with American Express? Does anyone have any experience with this card. I would like to know as much as possible about this card. I had an American Express back in 1991 and I paid it on time, but it is a Charge Card and I didn't feel I was responsible enough to pay in full every month, so before I messed that account up I closed it.
This prepaid card has nothing to do with any credit products that AMEX offers. If you're looking to get back with AMEX, i'm fairly certain that getting an AMEX prepaid will not help you. The best way to build a relationship with AMEX is to get one of their credit/charge cards and build a good history wth them.
AMEX generally check EX but have been know to check other credit report.
- When you apply for a card with AMEX, they will pull your credit and see if it meets their minimum requirement for approval (no credit check for the prepaid)
- As per your siggy, it would be better if you wait for your scores to be above 650 to apply for an AMEX (no minimum score required)
- Their charge cards (Zync,Green etc) are 'easier' to get than their revolving credit cards. So you would want to start with a charge card
CS800,
AMEX recently enhanced the prepaid product with the "Make Your Move" program, which after a period of responsible use of the prepaid card can lead to an invitation to apply for a charge card, presumably Zync. The prepaid card itself doesn't establish any credit, and doesn't report to a CRA, but apparently AMEX is watching usage internally, so it is potentially an "in" for people with less-than-marginal credit.
+1
Prepaid cards aren't really the best idea if you aren't having problems with chexsystems. It's much better to open a checking account and use the debit card linked to it if you want to control your spending. Prepaid cards have monthly fees, fees for online banking, usually fees for check deposits, and sometimes even fees for ATM withdrawals and POS purchases. Most bank debit cards don't have those fees.
The best solution of all is to get a checking account with a linked credit card. You can keep track of your spending through online banking and use your credit card for purchases. Credit cards are much better for dealing with fraud. With debit cards, if you report the fraud within two days of occurrence, you will be responsible for the first $50 and the rest will be covered. But if you don't catch it within two days, you are responsible for the first $500 of the fraudulent purchase. Most credit cards offer 100% fraud protection and you aren't responsible for a single cent of the fraudulent purchase. That's something to keep in mind while you consider a prepaid debit card.
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