AMEX Financial Review

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

My company has strict rules about earning rewards. We have corporate cards for fuel and expenses. We are not allowed to earn rewards through them (like our vons rewards at pumps) or use our personal cards for expenses to get rewards and then be reimbursed for them. Though the way I look at it is, if I have to use my personal card for any kind of reason, I should be able to get those rewards as I'm the one fronting the money. They don't actively check, but it cn be a terminal offense due to them looking at it as me getting free money on their dime. I would assume that it would it would trigger an AF if youre company uses AE corporate cards.

[K-in-Boston]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Let unpack RedPat's response a bit more;

Amex, doesnt care about you using your personal card to buy post-it notes at Office Depot for your business. Regardless of how your business reimburses you, via check, petty cash, whatever, Amex doesnt care. And truthfully, even from an accounting perspective, is NOTB. 

What Amex frownes on is you swiping any card issued to you, business or personal, through your business' merchant account. As in, you have an Amex Gold Rewards card, and you swipe your own card, through the credit card machine your own business' Point Of Sale. This is the No-No. 

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This exactly.  Amex is actually fine with you using your personal cards for business expenses, and even for using your business card for personal expenses (for the latter, this is not true of many other lenders).

[GeorgiaBulldog]

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@QuakerOatmeal wrote:
So then to be clear, am I in “dangerous territory”? Because that’s precisely what I’m doing, charging business expenses every now and then (like the cable bill or the electric bill) just to keep on track to make the “spend 3,000 dollar SUB”. It’s not *huge* charges every day. Maybe 3 per month. Don’t intend on doing this normally just until I get that SUB really.

Reimbursing myself for business expenses, that is.

I’ve worked hard to be in American expresses good graces again, and don’t want to jeopardize that. If it’s an issue then fine, but if I can use it to get that SUB then even better!

Unless what you all are saying is that it’s a YMMV situation then well, I’ll stop because it’s not worth the trouble, I don’t want to lose my cards with them.

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You're fine.  My workplace reimburses us for meals on work trips, mileage, and cell phones.  I am pretty sure I am the only one in the office who ever puts any of these expenses on a business card.  The "using your card at work" thing sounds like swiping your card at a business you own--that will get you shut down quick.  Paying bills is totally fine.  I wish my employer would let me run more of their expenses through my own cards!

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

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@K-in-Boston wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Let unpack RedPat's response a bit more;

Amex, doesnt care about you using your personal card to buy post-it notes at Office Depot for your business. Regardless of how your business reimburses you, via check, petty cash, whatever, Amex doesnt care. And truthfully, even from an accounting perspective, is NOTB. 

What Amex frownes on is you swiping any card issued to you, business or personal, through your business' merchant account. As in, you have an Amex Gold Rewards card, and you swipe your own card, through the credit card machine your own business' Point Of Sale. This is the No-No. 

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This exactly.  Amex is actually fine with you using your personal cards for business expenses, and even for using your business card for personal expenses (for the latter, this is not true of many other lenders).

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U.S. Bank allows it as well, but my company does not. I have a co-worker that paid for his Vegas trip with his corporate card and paid it off next statement. He just got a slap on the wrist and they sent a company-wide memo. Lol

[Anonymous]

OP said:

Another example, my mom is self employed and has an AMEX platinum card.... for years, since about the early 80s and she's a travel agent. Oftentimes when customers pay cash, she'll do the transaction through her AMEX and over the years shes accrued tons and tons of points, would this be bad for her too? Or has she just not triggered this?

Just wondering what "do(es) the transaction" mean here?   Does she, e.g. book the trip with an airline using her card or does she have a merchant account (in which case the previous warnings apply).   If she is just booking with third parties, to me the danger would be that spend appears too high for declared income, which could generate an FR.

[Anonymous]

I recall a post can't recall if was here or on another board about person who charged co stuff in their amex and then compnay did not pay  back for 60 days and the poster did not have cash to pay bill.  So long Amex.

Using the biz card for personal  is a no no.  DW  is involved on the board of directors of a group where this happened.   Person was fired police report filed. Even if they pay back personal it is no no. 

[Anonymous]

Some here are getting confused with the terms.

YOU CAN use your personal card to purchase business related items (AMEX doesn't know if you're buying pencils for you or your business)

YOU CAN'T use your personal card to swipe it using your merchange account.

[UncleB]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I recall a post can't recall if was here or on another board about person who charged co stuff in their amex and then compnay did not pay  back for 60 days and the poster did not have cash to pay bill.  So long Amex.

Using the biz card for personal  is a no no.  DW  is involved on the board of directors of a group where this happened.   Person was fired police report filed. Even if they pay back personal it is no no. 

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A company I worked for 'back in the day' had a similar prohibition on using a corporate card for personal charges; generally it was grounds for termination.  However this was the company policy, not Amex policy. 

A friend I had during that same period who was with another company could use his corporate card for personal purchases with no problems whatsoever, as long as the bill was paid.

What we're trying to drill-down here is if Amex has any issues with what goes on a card... the consensus seems to be that swiping any Amex card on one's own merchant account is always a no-no, however reasonable spending in either direction shouldn't be an issue.

What I do see as a problem (and I think this was mentioned further up by @Anonymous) is if one has spending on a personal card that's wildly out-of-line with what Amex thinks you can pay back based on your income, regardless of if you're being reimbursed or not.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I recall a post can't recall if was here or on another board about person who charged co stuff in their amex and then compnay did not pay  back for 60 days and the poster did not have cash to pay bill.  So long Amex.

Using the biz card for personal  is a no no.  DW  is involved on the board of directors of a group where this happened.   Person was fired police report filed. Even if they pay back personal it is no no. 

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Far from the truth with Amex.  They have encouraged business card card holders to use their business cards for personal expenses.

[wasCB14]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I recall a post can't recall if was here or on another board about person who charged co stuff in their amex and then compnay did not pay  back for 60 days and the poster did not have cash to pay bill.  So long Amex.

Using the biz card for personal  is a no no.  DW  is involved on the board of directors of a group where this happened.   Person was fired police report filed. Even if they pay back personal it is no no. 

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Far from the truth with Amex.  They have encouraged business card card holders to use their business cards for personal expenses.

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We have two separate issues here...

A business with multiple owners or many employees may have a policy that forbids employees from putting personal spend on a card that is in the business's name (like a corporate card). If the employee pays the card off with personal funds, it's not theft but it may confuse the business's accounting records and still be against the business's rules. If the employee has the business pay the card off, it's theft from the business. Any theft, regardless of the amount, may easily lead to dismissal or legal action. If the business pays the card off and claims a deduction, it could also lead to problems with the IRS if the tax return is incorrect in some manner.

At the other extreme, a sole proprietor may put personal spend on a small business card in the sole proprietor's name. So long as the bill gets paid and the personal spend is not claimed as a business tax deduction, no one really cares.