topic Re: advice on getting "right' with amex in Credit Cards

advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 22:34:26 GMT

Hi, im new to the board but have been spectating many topics on here for a while. Just thought it was time to post my situation and see what kind of insight i could get.

Timeline: applied and approved for amex zync in nov 2011....made first couple of payments in full and on time. my last 2 were fairly larger and the bank refused all attempts from amex to get the payment and ended up sending a money order and more or less cussing the bank out. My acct ended up getting cancelled a few weeks after the last returned payment and left me with a balance of $664. Of course i called and tried pleading my case at that time but they wouldnt re-instate my acct and could only reccomend that I reapply. I have just recently paid that past balance thru amex website and wondering what my chances maybe on getting a new acct with amex. i blindly tried applying for another amex card before i had paid the balance and the only reason i got on my denial letter was "amex had recently closed one of your accounts". Does this mean that otherwise i would have been approved?

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

LS2982 — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 22:40:49 GMT

That's an interesting situation. So your saying the bank refused to pay AMEX? Why did the bank refuse??

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

Cageym — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 22:52:05 GMT

I thought I saw this before. OP has another post with more info here: http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/rebuilding-opinions-and-advice-wanted/td-p/1617350

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 23:03:59 GMT

you have seen that before because that is my post also. i posted in that topic with some rebuilding questions and included the same brief description. i posted all the details here since it was purely a CC question.

Yes the bank refused to pay the EFT. Amex informed me that the note on the returned payment was " refer to maker" or something like that. it was NOT a NSF situation at all. My account was restricted due to some past Chexsystems crap. i knew about the $400/day limit but didnt realize it applied to EFT transactions.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

LionLaw — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 03:06:44 GMT

Amex has a history of being pretty forgiving if you've actually paid in full. I had an account closed with them in early 2009 when I was late with a payment (that was a BAD time to make creditors nervous, apparently). I paid the account in full shortly thereafter. When I called up the Amex reserves department while planning my recent Zync app (that number is in the backdoor numbers thread), all they could tell me is that the account went to collections and that it was paid. I was a little surprised that the account had a "collections" status, but the rep told me that any time an account is closed with a balance still outstanding, it may be classified that way. Amex has an internal scoring system, and the data from that account was obviously a big factor in my internal Amex risk score. But, I apped anyway, and I was approved.

No one seems to know much about Amex's cardmember risk score, but I imagine a lot of it is common sense. As long as your old account is paid in full, you won't be blacklisted. If your old account was closed or paid recently, it will probably be more damaging than if it had happened a few years ago.

If I were you, I'd call the reserves department at Amex and find out what the status of your old account is. Then, once the rest of your credit file is as cleaned up as it can be, drop an app for the Zync.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

LS2982 — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 03:42:16 GMT

@rpss4844 wrote:
you have seen that before because that is my post also. i posted in that topic with some rebuilding questions and included the same brief description. i posted all the details here since it was purely a CC question.

Yes the bank refused to pay the EFT. Amex informed me that the note on the returned payment was " refer to maker" or something like that. it was NOT a NSF situation at all. My account was restricted due to some past Chexsystems crap. i knew about the $400/day limit but didnt realize it applied to EFT transactions.

Thats just ridiculous!!! Have you talked to AMEX executive office about this??

AmEx Executive Office: 800-297-6197

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

creditnocash — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 03:54:51 GMT

@rpss4844 wrote:
you have seen that before because that is my post also. i posted in that topic with some rebuilding questions and included the same brief description. i posted all the details here since it was purely a CC question.

Yes the bank refused to pay the EFT. Amex informed me that the note on the returned payment was " refer to maker" or something like that. it was NOT a NSF situation at all. My account was restricted due to some past Chexsystems crap. i knew about the $400/day limit but didnt realize it applied to EFT transactions.

did you use your debit card as payment?

or did you give them your checking account number with routing number?

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

wedd — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 00:26:34 GMT

No I havent told them about it yet. I have been waiting to try and call until i paid the past due. I gave the acct# route# for the payment. never was charged any fees by the bank, just thought it was taking a while for amex to withdraw the funds since my acct with them was new i was still unsure of soon they took payments. after swapping banks i was able to pay one bill with no issues and they cancelled during my 2 bill cycle.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 00:47:36 GMT

sorry but this is going to be real confusing.......but the previous post (wedd) is mine, i was just signed in under a different email address i used for my wifes myfico acct. mods will you please adjust this and sorry again for the confusion

I had figured calling the exec offince maybe my best bet. what should i expect when contacting them? is the first person that answers who i need to talk to, or should i ask for a different dept. or specific person?

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

webhopper — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 00:48:34 GMT

Did you take your time to pay back that 664 dollars? If so then that will hurt you for a while. The rebuilding post labels your past amex account was charged off. Typically lenders will not charge off a debt that is timely paid; even if the account is closed...

This is an odd scenario.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 00:54:46 GMT

unfortunately i did, i just paid it off recently so it was about 6 months. sorry had failed to mention that in previous post. dont know if it matters or not but i was able to pay via the amex website and didnt have to go thru a CA.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

webhopper — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 01:03:33 GMT

Well; the main problem you have now is that your consumer file is now labeled as "bad" with them. Especially since they charged off the account. Try calling customer service and/or send letters asking them to change the status to paid or paid as agreed instead of charged off.

The prognosis is not good. At least you paid though.

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 20:37:58 GMT

update: well I got this letter a few days after I paid my balance. I think they had already sent me the letter before i paid up. I am just waiting on my optima app and see how it goes. sorry it sideways!!

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

webhopper — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 20:42:13 GMT

@rpss4844 wrote:
update: well I got this letter a few days after I paid my balance. I think they had already sent me the letter before i paid up. I am just waiting on my optima app and see how it goes. sorry it sideways!!

The good news is that the Optima will help you rebuild your relationship with Amex

Nice job!

Re: advice on getting "right' with amex

rpss4844 — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 02:29:26 GMT

latest update: filled out the optima app with name and such and returned it. It said "pending " for a few days and then approved with $500 limit. just waiting on the card to get here now.

What is the final word on applying for a different amex product while having the optima acct? I have seen a lot of post where people were auto declined and several post where people were approved while still having the optima? I know i will need to give it at least 6mos -1yr or before applying for a new card. Also, is it possible for CLI while having an optima, or is what you start with what you get? i have seen different people with different limits and some of them seem to be pretty high. Lastly, what would be the best strategy on using the card? should i spend high and run a lot of money thru to show im responsible enough to keep it paid down amd on time, or should i just use it in small amounts and pay in full every month? i know keeping utilization low is a plus for my score, i just want to balance out keeping my score in check and make amex happy at the same time.