Offer from AmEx - Too Good To Be True?

[SKBirdmind]

In the mail last week was a letter from AmEx, addressed to my ABN name (not me personally). I have incorporations with the state, a business checking account, and so on. They are offering me a Business Gold Card with "80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $10,000 on eligible purchases." $295 annual fee for a card of this caliber ain't too bad, IMHO.

The letter includes an offer expiration date, an RSVP code, and a "POID." Also inside was a "Business Class" brochure and a single page of rate/fee summaries. I've read through everything about 3 x different times now and nowhere do I see the words "pre-approved," or any sort of real "subject to X-Y-Zed" language.

As I've indicated elsewhere on this forum - when I filed my Chapter 7 in 2019 I included a force-closed/charged-off AmEx balance of around $1,400 that was unpaid. Sources here tell me that this small fact alone pretty much blackballs me from "all things AmEx," potentially for eons upon eons.

So, is this offer indeed too good to be true? Am I really just looking at some nice scratch paper,  making of some pretty origamis, or perhaps a few colorful bookmarks?

[SouthJamaica]

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@SKBirdmind wrote:

In the mail last week was a letter from AmEx, addressed to my ABN name (not me personally). I have incorporations with the state, a business checking account, and so on. They are offering me a Business Gold Card with "80,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $10,000 on eligible purchases." $295 annual fee for a card of this caliber ain't too bad, IMHO.

The letter includes an offer expiration date, an RSVP code, and a "POID." Also inside was a "Business Class" brochure and a single page of rate/fee summaries. I've read through everything about 3 x different times now and nowhere do I see the words "pre-approved," or any sort of real "subject to X-Y-Zed" language.

As I've indicated elsewhere on this forum - when I filed my Chapter 7 in 2019 I included a force-closed/charged-off AmEx balance of around $1,400 that was unpaid. Sources here tell me that this small fact alone pretty much blackballs me from "all things AmEx," potentially for eons upon eons.

So, is this offer indeed too good to be true? Am I really just looking at some nice scratch paper,  making of some pretty origamis, or perhaps a few colorful bookmarks?

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1.  If it was a preapproval, which it isn't, there's nothing "too good to be true". It's just standard Amex fare.

2.  I don't know what an "ABN" and a "POID" are.

3.  $295 a year is a lot of money to spend unless you're going to get a lot of extra benefit out of the card.

4.  Probably you are blacklisted by Amex at this point anyway, and will continue to be, unless you find the wherewithal to pay them the $1400 that was discharged.

[pizzadude]

I agree, this is likely a "preapproval" / marketing mailer and you'd just be going through the usual process if you apply.

It's possible that you could be approved, I've seen one or two people recently who've gotten back in with AMEX after burning them in BK / Chargeoffs.   However there are many others who have reported being blacklisted and / or asked to repay so YMMV with this.

[SKBirdmind]

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@SouthJamaica wrote:

1.  If it was a preapproval, which it isn't, there's nothing "too good to be true". It's just standard Amex fare.

2.  I don't know what an "ABN" and a "POID" are.

3.  $295 a year is a lot of money to spend unless you're going to get a lot of extra benefit out of the card.

4.  Probably you are blacklisted by Amex at this point anyway, and will continue to be, unless you find the wherewithal to pay them the $1400 that was discharged.

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1. Again, I don't see those words anywhere on it. What caught my attention here as opposed to "just standard AmEx fare" (like those generic Delta Airlines SkyMiles brochures) was the inclusion of personal RSVP codes, and the fact that it was addressed to my corporation name filed with the state - not ME personally.
2. ABN = Assumed Business Name, aka sole proprietorship. I don't know what "POID" is either, but it was another RSVP-looking code on said letter from AmEx. Personal ID?
3. Getting my foot back in the door with AmEx and broadening further options for me = "a lot of extra benefit out of the card."
4. Would paying them said amount really be all that's needed for whitelisting again?

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@pizzadude wrote:

I agree, this is likely a "preapproval" / marketing mailer and you'd just be going through the usual process if you apply.

It's possible that you could be approved, I've seen one or two people recently who've gotten back in with AMEX after burning them in BK / Chargeoffs. However there are many others who have reported being blacklisted and / or asked to repay so YMMV with this.

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Furthermore, I'd wager that those "who've gotten back in with AmEx" had previously "burned" them for much more than a hefty $1,400... I think others on here have reported a denial without AmEx even doing a hard inquiry - which is good because then you'd know for sure you are blacklisted, any without any actual dings on credit reports. So, maybe I'll try just for the fun of it.

[pizzadude]

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@SKBirdmind wrote:

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Furthermore, I'd wager that those "who've gotten back in with AmEx" had previously "burned" them for much more than a hefty $1,400... I think others on here have reported a denial without AmEx even doing a hard inquiry - which is good because then you'd know for sure you are blacklisted, any without any actual dings on credit reports. So, maybe I'll try just for the fun of it.

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You're right, someone recently reported they'd burned them for over $10K and gotten back in.

I wouldn't read anything into this though, I don't know that the amount is a good indicator of success.  

Good luck if you decide to go for it !

[BlueMystic]

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@pizzadude wrote:

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You're right, someone recently reported they'd burned them for over $10K and gotten back in.

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In almost every case I've ever seen (including my own), it required repaying the full amount of the chargeoff. The official line from AmEx (a few years ago now) was that paying the old chargeoff didn't guarantee you'd get back in, but paying it generally gets you off the blacklist. That is, it would allow you to be considered for cards based on the same criteria they'd apply to anyone else.

[SKBirdmind]

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@pizzadude wrote:

You're right, someone recently reported they'd burned them for over $10K and gotten back in.

I wouldn't read anything into this though, I don't know that the amount is a good indicator of success.

Good luck if you decide to go for it !

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Who's to say I couldn't read at least something into this, and use it as potentially a small data point in indicating success? I'd wonder if "burning them $10K" was followed by a repayment or bankruptcy... I would think that my $1,400 charge-off is probably about as much as what AmEx earns by the day, from charging fees/interest alone to some of their larger clients and cardholders. Am I missing something here??

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@BlueMystic wrote:

In almost every case I've ever seen (including my own), it required repaying the full amount of the chargeoff. The official line from AmEx (a few years ago now) was that paying the old chargeoff didn't guarantee you'd get back in, but paying it generally gets you off the blacklist. That is, it would allow you to be considered for cards based on the same criteria they'd apply to anyone else.

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Interesting - I suppose that kind of defeats the purpose of my Chapter 7 filing, but if said official line from AmEx still stands it's something to ponder. I'm still trying to fathom (or at least understand) receiving a specialized offer if for-all-I-know I may still be on a blacklist.

[FinStar]

Just keep in mind, as echoed by upthread comments, receiving an offer has no bearing on the final outcome.  Anyone, including those who may not be (or may have been) past cardmembers can still receive marketing or promotional solicitations.

It's when you click submit on the RSVP application where AmEx will cross-check internal records to determine whether you are still on the BL or not.  If not, then you'll see the HP.  If still on the BL, it will be automatically declined. I wouldn't read too much into the offer regardless how it was presented to speculate on the odds.  You'll have to try it and overcome the BL hurdle if you're still on it -- regardless whether the burn was $1,400 or $10K.  A BL is a BL.

All you can do is try and see what it yields.

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@BlueMystic wrote:

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@pizzadude wrote:

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You're right, someone recently reported they'd burned them for over $10K and gotten back in.

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In almost every case I've ever seen (including my own), it required repaying the full amount of the chargeoff. The official line from AmEx (a few years ago now) was that paying the old chargeoff didn't guarantee you'd get back in, but paying it generally gets you off the blacklist. That is, it would allow you to be considered for cards based on the same criteria they'd apply to anyone else.

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I burned them for 11k and never paid them back. I also know the account still exists because they added it by accident instead of my new gold card. 

[SKBirdmind]

Just for a lark, I keyed my RSVP code into their internet application today. For all I could really tell, that was only good for auto-filling my business name and mailing address...not much else. Then, I filled out the rest of the application and hit submit. It pointed me to a page labeled "Pending Review," then seconds (seconds!) later I got an "We've finished reviewing your application" email which struck me as odd.

Next, I clicked the "Review Decision" link and after even more prompts/security checks I got "Status of App - Declined" then a wonderfully-insightful "Sorry, your application cannot be accessed. Please try again later." error message. It all seems a little fraudulent to me, but maybe they'll eventually send over a proper letter in the mail? Should I call their "reconsideration line?" From what I can tell, they never even checked my credit history which has me suspicious of blacklisting...

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@FinStar wrote:

regardless whether the burn was $1,400 or $10K.  A BL is a BL.

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...................So again, MAYBE I MISSED something here. !!!!!

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@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

I also know the account still exists because they added it by accident instead of my new gold card.

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Can you explain this more? What happened exactly...like it showed up as active on an account/profile page?

To my initial inquiry, I guess this sort of offer IS INDEED too good to be true. Instead of anything really promising or worthwhile - I seem to have fancy notepads, tinder to start a campfire/BBQ, stock for making origamis/collages/artwork, or maybe even something to use as toilet paper should I really want to give them that sort of "vibe."