American express, be afraid, be very afraid

[jake619]

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@lithium78 wrote:

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@jake619 wrote:

Are you just perpetuating general forum fears or did you actually have AA levied against you?

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I've heard enough horror stories from this forum to know what kind of shenanigans AMEX likes to pull.  As far as I'm concerned, credit/charge card companies should feel privileged that I've decided to make them some money and as long as I am doing that and paying my bills on time and not carrying massive balances all the time, the rest of my personal financial information is none of their darn business.  As long as AMEX is the kind of company that is going to hit people with FR and other nonsense, they aren't going to get my business.  There are plenty of other companies who would enjoy making money from me that aren't going to make me jump through hoops.  Since I care primarily about the service that credit/charge card companies provide and the benefits they give me, I could care less what somebody thinks about the "brand" of card I carry.

As a side note, I've gotten a lot of entertainment from businesses misinterpreting my financial status based on my pragmatic ways.  It's really funny when someone misjudges me and then they miss out on sales.  I make sure they are well aware of what they missed out on as well.  It's really amusing.

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 Fair enough.  It's interesting to see somebody take something that hasn't happened to them so personal.  We're all unique

[cashnocredit]

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@jake619 wrote:

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@lithium78 wrote:

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@jake619 wrote:

Are you just perpetuating general forum fears or did you actually have AA levied against you?

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I've heard enough horror stories from this forum to know what kind of shenanigans AMEX likes to pull.  As far as I'm concerned, credit/charge card companies should feel privileged that I've decided to make them some money and as long as I am doing that and paying my bills on time and not carrying massive balances all the time, the rest of my personal financial information is none of their darn business.  As long as AMEX is the kind of company that is going to hit people with FR and other nonsense, they aren't going to get my business.  There are plenty of other companies who would enjoy making money from me that aren't going to make me jump through hoops.  Since I care primarily about the service that credit/charge card companies provide and the benefits they give me, I could care less what somebody thinks about the "brand" of card I carry.

As a side note, I've gotten a lot of entertainment from businesses misinterpreting my financial status based on my pragmatic ways.  It's really funny when someone misjudges me and then they miss out on sales.  I make sure they are well aware of what they missed out on as well.  It's really amusing.

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 Fair enough.  It's interesting to see somebody take something that hasn't happened to them so personal.  We're all unique

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Jake619,

I am sympathetic with lithium78's pov but find the benefits outweigh the risks. While initially skeptical of the NPSL I have actually found Amex surprisingly flexible. The price of that flexibility is the FR risk.

I've had an Amex for a year and have run up balances over 75k yet about two years ago  I was declined both a prescreened Amex and Discover card.

I have two AUs, one of which charges a lot of obvious business expenses. Oddly, they both have way better credit scores than me even after the negative impact of my relatively short Amex history on their reports. (kind of an inverse of the usual AU pattern).

And I'm retired and have no CRA record of having worked anywhere.

However, I do have the resources to spend above what I actually spend, some of which can be verified in public records even if it doesn't appear in the usual CRA places.  Does Amex go through those? I'm guessing they must or I really can't explain their flexibility in my case without some sort of formal FR.

To me the ability to, charge large amounts on occasion, have seperate AU accounts with controlled CLs, and reporting that is broken down for accounting purposes, is a highly valuable feature set.  I doubt I would have been able to do that with one of the usual cards with as thin and short history as I have. Especially as I also have no employment history.

[astritaho1979]

You do need to be afraid from a lender that treat you like a suspect and not like a customer

[astritaho1979]

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@lithium78 wrote:

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@jake619 wrote:

Are you just perpetuating general forum fears or did you actually have AA levied against you?

---

I've heard enough horror stories from this forum to know what kind of shenanigans AMEX likes to pull.  As far as I'm concerned, credit/charge card companies should feel privileged that I've decided to make them some money and as long as I am doing that and paying my bills on time and not carrying massive balances all the time, the rest of my personal financial information is none of their darn business.  As long as AMEX is the kind of company that is going to hit people with FR and other nonsense, they aren't going to get my business.  There are plenty of other companies who would enjoy making money from me that aren't going to make me jump through hoops.  Since I care primarily about the service that credit/charge card companies provide and the benefits they give me, I could care less what somebody thinks about the "brand" of card I carry.

As a side note, I've gotten a lot of entertainment from businesses misinterpreting my financial status based on my pragmatic ways.  It's really funny when someone misjudges me and then they miss out on sales.  I make sure they are well aware of what they missed out on as well.  It's really amusing.

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you gave everyone the best reason not to care to much about amex.Thank you and i agree with you 1 milion percent

[chnceit]

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@GangnamFICO wrote:

It's not personal, its just business.

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+1,000,000 

AMEX is a business and when they think or notice you are a risk they will do whatever it takes to ensure their business seems appropriate.

Come on now when you are new to AMEX they will SP you every week or month!

[android01]

Honestly, people, if you are afraid of using the credit that was given to you by any lender, then you shouldn't hold any credit cards at all. This whole notion of not using XX card for fear of AA or FR or whatever, is ridiculous.  Use your credit the way it was extended, pay all your bills on time, stop asking for CLI, and keep a low profile .  All good things come in time.

If you are worried about AA or CLD or any host of things that close your accounts because of actions you have taken, then shut the **** up.     All of this has been gone over ad nauseum, and the results are always the same.  

P.S. This is meant in the spirt of being supportive, friendly and whatever the third one is...

[Shogun]

There are many people that have bad experiences with certain lenders, but there are also many people that have had wonderful experiences with those same lenders.  It's just the nature of the beast.  AMEX has been around a long time and must be doing something right to stay in business the way they are.  I would say it's OK to vent a little, but remember, your experience may not be the same for the next person.  If you have any questions if this is true or not, just ask my ex-wife.    

And that's all I have to say about that.

[Anonymous]

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@chnceit wrote:

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@GangnamFICO wrote:

It's not personal, its just business.

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+1,000,000 

AMEX is a business and when they think or notice you are a risk they will do whatever it takes to ensure their business seems appropriate.

Come on now when you are new to AMEX they will SP you every week or month!

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Not only just when you are new to AmEx, Id say.  I've been with them for light years and I see at least 2 -- and often 4+ -- softs from them each month.  

[ryanbush]

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@Shogun wrote:

There are many people that have bad experiences with certain lenders, but there are also many people that have had wonderful experiences with those same lenders.  It's just the nature of the beast.  AMEX has been around a long time and must be doing something right to stay in business the way they are.  I would say it's OK to vent a little, but remember, your experience may not be the same for the next person.  If you have any questions if this is true or not, just ask my ex-wife.    

And that's all I have to say about that.

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Best sentence all day!! 

[kimmiller112]

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@astritaho1979 wrote:

You do need to be afraid from a lender that treat you like a suspect and not like a customer

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Really, you think they are treating you like a "suspect" because they won't approve you because you have a bankruptcy that is less than 8 years old?  I have a bankruptcy that will be 8 years old in October and I am looking forward applying for an Amex at the end of the year.  You want to say how wonderful Citi is, especially since you got approved with a bankruptcy, but that is the reason I have been declined with them.  Amex is very conservative and I can appreciate that, after all, it is my fault that I had to claim bankruptcy - don't bash them because you can't get approved given your circumstances.  They just see people with bankruptcies less than 8 years old as too risky, and that is just the way they do business.