topic Re: Fidelity Amex in Credit Cards

Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 04:24:58 GMT

Thinking about applying for the fidelity amex since I have a fidelity acct & 2% cash back on everything sounds pretty sweet. What type of benefits does the card come with? There's not a lot of info on the fedilty website. Extended warranty? Purchase protection? Trip delay? Etc. Rewards aren't everything. How is FIA w/ disputes? My mother has a Macy's Amex & DSNB is beyond horrid when it comes to disputes- you can't dispute charges online, you have to call them & then fax over a form & copies of id & in the end they don't reverse the charges anyway. Just wondering if the Fidelity Amex makes you go thru the same hassle. I never had a cc issued by FIA so just wondering what their cust service is like.

Also, are they generous with CL & what type of scores do they look for? Which report do they usually pull? Is it better to apply in person at a Fidelity branch?

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 04:29:07 GMT

FIA = BoA

No thanks!

Re: Fidelity Amex

cardslayer — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 04:54:35 GMT

I read somewhere that they have 5.99% fixed for life, is that true?

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 06:40:36 GMT

@cardslayer wrote:
I read somewhere that they have 5.99% fixed for life, is that true?

never heard of that. Where did you see it?

Re: Fidelity Amex

surfnspy — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 16:23:17 GMT

I was interested in this this card as well however, after reading the comments by card holders it looks like a real mixed bag.

There doesn't seem to be anyone who isn't pleased with the rewards program but, the fraud department (FIA or something?) sounds like a nightmare. Also, it doesn't appear the card integration with the Fidelity account is satisfactory either. A less common but loud complaint is the foreign transaction fees (3%?).

Im going to pass for now based on the FIA fraud-department factor even though the 2% cash going towards my Roth is awful tempting.

Re: Fidelity Amex

cardslayer — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 21:44:21 GMT

I'm appologize, I mixed up two different banks / cards.

The one I was referring to was the Ameriprise World Elite MC, which offers a 5.99% fixed rate. Please disregard.

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 14:08:30 GMT

CDW

$100,000 travel accident insurance

AMEX extended warranty by 1 year

Purchase protection for 90 days

Concierge

FIA fraud protection

etc.

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sun, 12 Aug 2012 14:18:13 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
CDW
$100,000 travel accident insurance
AMEX extended warranty by 1 year
Purchase protection for 90 days
Concierge
FIA fraud protection
etc.

thanks!

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 01:46:02 GMT

I know that FIA manages this card, and that FIA is owned by BofA, but would does anyone know if I could PC my current BofA BankAmericard MC to the Fidelity Amex? Or would that be many degress of change (MC -> Amex plus BofA -> FIA)?

Re: Fidelity Amex

brother7 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 00:48:37 GMT

I applied today. After getting a call from Fidelity's fraud department a few hours later, I was approved.

They pulled Experian but I was told it varies depending on the credit analyst.

Re: Fidelity Amex

Anonymous — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 01:03:35 GMT

CONGRATS!!!
What was your score and the limit?

Re: Fidelity Amex

brother7 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 02:25:17 GMT

U know, it totally slipped my mind to ask what my limit and EX score are :/

I pulled the free annual reports from all 3 CRAs a few days ago and my EX and EQ reports are very similar. My FICO EQ (thru ScoreWatch) is 767.

Re: Fidelity Amex

CreditScholar — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 02:57:41 GMT

@surfnspy wrote:
I was interested in this this card as well however, after reading the comments by card holders it looks like a real mixed bag.

There doesn't seem to be anyone who isn't pleased with the rewards program but, the fraud department (FIA or something?) sounds like a nightmare. Also, it doesn't appear the card integration with the Fidelity account is satisfactory either. A less common but loud complaint is the foreign transaction fees (3%?).

Im going to pass for now based on the FIA fraud-department factor even though the 2% cash going towards my Roth is awful tempting.

I was considering this card previously, but after reading the comments I also was forced to reconsider.

The one benefit that people don't speak very much of with this card is the ability to transfer 1:1 into Aeroplan miles. That means you're earning 2 aeroplan miles per dollar spent. Furthermore if you use points.com, you can transfer aeroplan points into US Airways miles at a 1:0.85 ratio. Essentially you'll be getting 1.7 US Airways miles per dollar spent, which is unsurpassed by any other card.

I decided in the end to hold off though, because I expect high quality customer service on the cards I use. The tradeoff of higher earning rate vs. tons of hassles (fraud and CSR issues) wasn't worth it for me. For those who are willing to put up with these issues, the rewards can be excellent.

Re: Fidelity Amex

navigatethis12 — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 03:09:33 GMT

I have not had to deal with the fraud department, but their customer service was excellent the few times I needed something. On Fatwallet a lot of people reported their cards being compromised, but that has also not been a problem with me.

It kind of is not really integrated into the Fidelity account at all. You can see the card when you go to Fidelity, but can not really do anything. The balance somtimes takes a few days to update, you can look at the rewards you have redeemed, and can see your limit. Everything else requires you to go the FIA website, but you can just click and from Fidelity it will already have you logged in.

Re: Fidelity Amex

youngandcreditwrthy — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 04:46:41 GMT

Good luck... Boa isn't all that great atm. Im fact, their most recents earnings report showed them earning NOTHING...0 cents per share... And they got slapped with another federal lawsuit today.

However, Ive heard good things about this specific card and division of boa (this fia you mention).

Best wishes:-)

Limit btw?!?!

Re: Fidelity Amex

CreditScholar — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 04:59:45 GMT

@youngandcreditwrthy wrote:
Good luck... Boa isn't all that great atm. Im fact, their most recents earnings report showed them earning NOTHING...0 cents per share... And they got slapped with another federal lawsuit today.

However, Ive heard good things about this specific card and division of boa (this fia you mention).

Best wishes:-)

Limit btw?!?!

I wouldn't say they're great, but I wouldn't say they're horrible either. I've banked with them for most of my life, and my experiences have been satisfactory. The treatment I get from Chase is noticably better, but I can't criticize BofA and say they're horrible because they're not.

Re: Fidelity Amex

TheConductor — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 15:46:37 GMT

@surfnspy wrote:

Im going to pass for now based on the FIA fraud-department factor even though the 2% cash going towards my Roth is awful tempting.

Just want to point out...to be getting the maximum benefit of a Roth, you want to be making the maximum contribution every year, usually eitther with a lump sum or with regularly scheduled contributions.

If you're dumping your cashback rewards from a credit card into your Roth, one of two things is going to happen: 1) You exceed the maximum annual contribution limit, or 2) If you're so far below the maximum you don't have to worry about that, then you're not getting the full advantage of having the Roth in the first place.

In short, I wouldn't advise it.

Open a second, non-tax-advantaged account, and use that to invest your cashback.

As for the main topic of the thread....the cashback rewards are nice, but yeah....FIA. Poster children for poor customer service. Even AmEx's 2nd-tier outsourced Zync customer service is miles beyond FIAs customer service in my experience.