AMEX FR Curiosity

Jaylima91 · ‎09-01-2014

Hello fellow myFico users,

i am curious to see what the actual percentage of cardholders that have been hit this "notorious" FR by Amex. It seems to me that it isn't common and the percentage that actually go through this is under 2%.

I'm sure the main reason why we see a lot of FR threads is because of the fact that this is a Credit Forum where members can post about their concerns as well. I'm sure it's like general customer service surveys, nobody posts positive feedback on those surveys, only when you're mad at that company that you post negative feedback. lol. I'm sure it's the same way with the FR threads.

How many FRs have actually occured this year and what has triggered "skiddish" amex to initiate a FR?

MACFRME · ‎09-01-2014

I got FR'd by AmEx last week because I tried to transfer money to myself using Square. I wanted to do a BT to my AmEx card for the 0%, but they wouldn't let me, so I tried using my Square account. Square asked for documents and so did AmEx. Word of advice to others: just don't do it. It is not worth the drama. The rep said that I should not use Paypal, Square, or any other payment aggregator service in the future because they will be monitoring my account for it.

Cards I Carry

$7.5K

$23K

$5k

$300(SEC)

$500

$300

$1,500

$800

$800
Total Available Credit: $39.7k | FICOS: EX 659 | EQ 661 | TU 673

Open123 · ‎09-01-2014

Very few people are ever flagged for Financial Reviews. The best advice is to not worry about it and use your cards as intended.

Jaylima91 · ‎09-01-2014

@Open123 wrote:
Very few people are ever flagged for Financial Reviews. The best advice is to not worry about it and use your cards as intended.

Oh I am not worried. I use my card all the time. i was just curious to know the statistics

Anonymous · ‎09-01-2014

I've read a lot of wild stories about Amex, and I think they're all overblown. For the first couple of months after I got my Amex Green, I didn't use it at Walmart because of all the stories about cardholders getting FR'd or their accounts closed after shopping there. Since then, for the past 6 months, I've used it literally almost every day at Walmart on my way home from work without any negative effects (knock on wood). I've also used the card to buy a half dozen gift cards ($100-$200 ranges) and to pay a dozen ebay merchants via paypal. Also put a several thousand dollar transaction on the card 4 months in (which was waaay outside my spending pattern), which I was sure would trigger an FR, but nope.

Maybe I don't fit into the demographic of those who typically get FR'd. For example, maybe only those with revolvers and/or six-figure reported incomes/high limits are more easily targeted. Amex probably doesn't care about peons like me.

Open123 · ‎09-01-2014

Pure speculation here, but I suspect fewer than 1% ever get FR'ed.

The triggers appear to be:

1. Cash-like transactions that appear to have a high correlation with potential fraud and money-laundering activities, e.g. loading GCs, paypal, amazon payments, serve, etc...

2. Expenditures far exceeding reported income.

3. Multiple AUs with no apprarent relation to the Basic cardmember.

4. AUs spending far more than Basic cardmember.

5. CR changes.

6. Suspect payment history, e.g. bill pay from 3rd party owners and 3rd party checks.

7. Obvious instances of pyramiding debt.

8. Internal scores.

9. Too many Amex apps in a short time.

10. Strategic BK score.

Obviously, internal Amex metrics aren't public information. The above is just what I've noticed over the years on purported reasons by those posting on public forums, which may or may not be true. After all, everything we read on the net should always be taken with a healthy grain of salt.

Anonymous · ‎09-01-2014

I totally agree with the FR being over blown here. I love these forums for many reasons but the paranoia about amex FR on here kills me. I have had no problems. (Yet) no one I know has had problems yet I now can't help but be somewhat paranoid and cautious because of all the posting. I love amex and as many others have stated if you are honest, use the card as intended what's to worry about?

Jaylima91 · ‎09-01-2014

@Open123 wrote:
Pure speculation here, but I suspect fewer than 1% ever get FR'ed.

The triggers appear to be:

1. Cash-like transactions that appear to have a high correlation with potential fraud and money-laundering activities, e.g. loading GCs, paypal, amazon payments, serve, etc...
2. Expenditures far exceeding reported income.
3. Multiple AUs with no apprarent relation to the Basic cardmember.
4. AUs spending far more than Basic cardmember.
5. CR changes.
6. Suspect payment history, e.g. bill pay from 3rd party owners and 3rd party checks.
7. Obvious instances of pyramiding debt.
8. Internal scores.
9. Too many Amex apps in a short time.
10. Strategic BK score.

Obviously, internal Amex metrics aren't public information. The above is just what I've noticed over the years on purported reasons by those posting on public forums, which may or may not be true. After all, everything we read on the net should always be taken with a healthy grain of salt.Let

Do you think that if one of my other CC from another CCC is reporting at 15% UTIL and then jumps to about 40% UTIL one month that would cause an FR from amex? Or would it have to be Maxed out on my cards?

Open123 · ‎09-01-2014

@Jaylima91 wrote:
Do you think that if one of my other CC from another CCC is reporting at 15% UTIL and then jumps to about 40% UTIL one month that would cause an FR from amex? Or would it have to be Maxed out on my cards?

If it were just one card, no.

Even if your aggregate utility were to reach, say, 70%, Amex would need more than just that to initiate a FR. It would have to be in conjunction with other factors, such as a late payment, income uncertainty, and internal risk metrics.

Jaylima91 · ‎09-01-2014

@Open123 wrote:
@Jaylima91 wrote:
Do you think that if one of my other CC from another CCC is reporting at 15% UTIL and then jumps to about 40% UTIL one month that would cause an FR from amex? Or would it have to be Maxed out on my cards?
If it were just one card, no.

Even if your aggregate utility were to reach, say, 70%, Amex would need more than just that to initiate a FR. It would have to be in conjunction with other factors, such as a late payment, income uncertainty, and internal risk metrics.

Makes sense