AMEX Blue Cash Preferred Changes Coming

[kdm31091]

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@ChargedUp wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
A category that eludes AMEX is entertainment--movie tickets, bowling, pool halls, concerts, sporting events, axe throwing, paintball, go karts, arcades, etc.

Would be killer as a 3x category on the Blue cash & ED or green.

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^^^ THIS, would have me blowing the dust off my BCE... Especially if they threw amusement parks in. There really isn't a great card for Disneyland, Six Flags, etc. and the amount of card swipes happening in these parks should be quite provocative to a CC issuer.

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I think the problem with theme parks is that the park ticket itself will code as one thing, the gift shops another, the counter service dining another, the sit down food yet another, etc. and issuers aren't going to want to give generous rewards on so many categories at once.

[-Wright-]

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@Anonymous wrote:
A category that eludes AMEX is entertainment--movie tickets, bowling, pool halls, concerts, sporting events, axe throwing, paintball, go karts, arcades, etc.

Would be killer as a 3x category on the Blue cash & ED or green.

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YES! That should be the 2nd bonus category on the Green card 4x back on Gas and 2-4x back on "Entertainment"; not Streaming Services. 

[Anonymous]

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@kdm31091 wrote:

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@ChargedUp wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
A category that eludes AMEX is entertainment--movie tickets, bowling, pool halls, concerts, sporting events, axe throwing, paintball, go karts, arcades, etc.

Would be killer as a 3x category on the Blue cash & ED or green.

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^^^ THIS, would have me blowing the dust off my BCE... Especially if they threw amusement parks in. There really isn't a great card for Disneyland, Six Flags, etc. and the amount of card swipes happening in these parks should be quite provocative to a CC issuer.

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I think the problem with theme parks is that the park ticket itself will code as one thing, the gift shops another, the counter service dining another, the sit down food yet another, etc. and issuers aren't going to want to give generous rewards on so many categories at once.

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Savor covers all of that stuff except for gift shop which no issuer is going to cover as far as I’m aware and should be thrown on a non-cat card. 

Even Marvel should actually cover the same purchases. 

[Anonymous]

I really hope the Blue Cash Preferred and Everyday Preferred have some changes, they've been collecting dust in my wallet for a good while due to how great the gold card is.

[Anonymous]

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@UncleB wrote:

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For new applicants they took 3% cash back for department stores away completely. 

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/american-express-blue-cash-preferred-no-longer-earns-3-cash-back-at-d...

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I'm pretty sure that was just speculation. As I suspected back when it was originally brought up, it looks like they just removed it from marketing materials. The benefit itself is unchanged.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-cards/amex-blue-cash-preferred-ends-3-percent-back-department...

"Asked to clear up the confusion, American Express representatives said that the department store benefit is unchanged, even if it has been de-emphasized on the issuer website."

EDIT: Just noticed the title of the article is different from the link. They must have run with the original speculation, then silently updated at some point later after they got word from Amex. hmmm....

[DaveInAZ]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@kdm31091 wrote:

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@ChargedUp wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
A category that eludes AMEX is entertainment--movie tickets, bowling, pool halls, concerts, sporting events, axe throwing, paintball, go karts, arcades, etc.

Would be killer as a 3x category on the Blue cash & ED or green.

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^^^ THIS, would have me blowing the dust off my BCE... Especially if they threw amusement parks in. There really isn't a great card for Disneyland, Six Flags, etc. and the amount of card swipes happening in these parks should be quite provocative to a CC issuer.

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I think the problem with theme parks is that the park ticket itself will code as one thing, the gift shops another, the counter service dining another, the sit down food yet another, etc. and issuers aren't going to want to give generous rewards on so many categories at once.

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Savor covers all of that stuff except for gift shop which no issuer is going to cover as far as I’m aware and should be thrown on a non-cat card. 

Even Marvel should actually cover the same purchases. 

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Yeah, I think dining & entertainment are pretty well covered with Savor, Uber, Marvel, etc. My Amex BCE is one of my least used cards because 1% rewards doesn't cut it and they're too restrictive on the 3% grocery category to pretty much only chain grocery stores. Open it up to include Walmart, Target & wholesale clubs grocery purchases and they'll see a lot more swipes. And make gas 3%, even my lowly Barclays Rewards MC, closed to new apps for years, gives 2% on gas.

[UncleB]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@UncleB wrote:

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For new applicants they took 3% cash back for department stores away completely. 

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/american-express-blue-cash-preferred-no-longer-earns-3-cash-back-at-d...

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I'm pretty sure that was just speculation. As I suspected back when it was originally brought up, it looks like they just removed it from marketing materials. The benefit itself is unchanged.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-cards/amex-blue-cash-preferred-ends-3-percent-back-department...

"Asked to clear up the confusion, American Express representatives said that the department store benefit is unchanged, even if it has been de-emphasized on the issuer website."

EDIT: Just noticed the title of the article is different from the link. They must have run with the original speculation, then silently updated at some point later after they got word from Amex. hmmm....

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They have completely removed all mention of it from the website, which makes no sense if the benefit is still provided to new applicants. 

DoC is usually pretty good about getting these things right, but of course it's possible the benefit is still being offered to new applicants after all.  Hopefully we'll have someone who has received the BCP since late November of last year come by and clarify for us one way or another.

[Anonymous]

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@UncleB wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@UncleB wrote:

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For new applicants they took 3% cash back for department stores away completely. 

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/american-express-blue-cash-preferred-no-longer-earns-3-cash-back-at-d...

---

I'm pretty sure that was just speculation. As I suspected back when it was originally brought up, it looks like they just removed it from marketing materials. The benefit itself is unchanged.
https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/credit-cards/amex-blue-cash-preferred-ends-3-percent-back-department...

"Asked to clear up the confusion, American Express representatives said that the department store benefit is unchanged, even if it has been de-emphasized on the issuer website."

EDIT: Just noticed the title of the article is different from the link. They must have run with the original speculation, then silently updated at some point later after they got word from Amex. hmmm....

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They have completely removed all mention of it from the website, which makes no sense if the benefit is still provided to new applicants. 

DoC is usually pretty good about getting these things right, but of course it's possible the benefit is still being offered to new applicants after all.  Hopefully we'll have someone who has received the BCP since late November of last year come by and clarify for us one way or another.

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Removing the benefit from the marketing materials, but keeping it (for new customers) is a little strange.   Does that mean that there are other "hidden" benefits?   Perhaps we get 4% at selected swimming pool manufacturers?   Guess I will have to try everything to see!

[Anonymous]

It's still shown on the BCE. It would be really strange to remove it from one and not the other. I really think it was just a marketing thing to stop promoting it on the main page. If you click through the links on the main application page for that card to view the cardmember agreement (updated 3/31/2019) it is still listed.

[T0]

I'm interested to see what the new changes are. The BCP is on my chopping block. The 6% on supermarkets was great when I lived next to a qualifying store that had a small but diverse selection of general merchandise in addition to the grocery. Getting 6% on things like office supplies, hardware, home goods, computer and phone accessories was really nice. But I've since moved, and now I do most of my grocery shopping at Fred Meyer, which doesn't qualify. All of the stores near me that do qualify are at least 15% more expensive. Also, I only get gas at the one gas station in my area that sells non-ethanol gas. At some point in the last few months, the station stopped qualifying for 3%, probably because it's attached to a farm and garden supply store. The department store bonus is nice but hardly essential for me. Given the limited scope of their categories I just can't justify the AF.