@Anonymous wrote:
@iced wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:thanks
yeah, seems like best thing is to cancel again..
I do attend Laker games and the Centurian lounge at Staples would come in handy, but I was also in it for the flights and without the 60,000 kickstart, seems like a lost cause
they only asked why i wanted to close it and i said because I'm trying to make purchases to get the sign up bonus but i'm being blocked from pursuing the bonus.. after that, they didn't say or read anything. they just said okay and closed it.
when you canceled, did you have to pay the annual fee?
You basically just confessed to Amex you're milking them for their bonus, and you're surprised they weren't interested in working with you?
interesting take, however, i've been with AMEX for three years and my everyday card has a $4000 limit and the points from it haven't been a factor at all
kinda strange a company would offer 60,000 points and all those benefits for a $550 annual fee, and then consider themselves getting milked by customers who want all those points and benefits.. essentially, your position is that amex is saying "oh, you didn't get our charge card because you love us as a company, you just wanna use us for the benefits we dangled in front of you to sign up, so screw you!"
You have to keep in mind that many rules are being put in place by credit card companies to mitigate churning. It's why there's a once per card per lifetime rule with amex. They want to lure new business, but not if it means they're losing money. Not saying that happened here. Just in general.
@iced wrote:
@CJ7 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
The color of the card has no influence on its spending power.There was a time when it did. In the day, I believe the Gold was backed by at least 25K
through a separate financial institution. If someone whipped out their Platinum to pay for something,
it meant they had excellent credit and significant resources and could basically buy the whole store
or even a car with it. It was a thing of prestige. Now, they'll dole one out to anyone with a 650 score and
$550 they're willing to part with. And get assigned some laughable internal limit.
Imagine if one or more of your major revolvers cut your limit because they saw a new auto loan on your report.
People would be fuming. But when AX does it to a charge card, it's somehow OK because it's mitigating risk.
The next time I see someone insert their Platinum into the chip reader, I'll know there's a decent chance that
any card in my wallet actually has more buying power. So much for prestige.
If one of my banks, revolving or charge, cut my credit because of my recent financial actions, I'd still think it was mitigating risk. Cutting a limit and reducing "spending power" on a charge card is the same thing. And I'd have nobody to blame for them doing it except me - they didn't make me seek new credit or extend myself further. Why should I (or anyone) take it out on a bank? Own your financial decisions and consequences rather than blame entities that are basically lending you their money on faith.
If I loaned $10,000 to a friend and he went and borrowed another $10,000 from another friend, I'd be pretty concerned that my money is at risk, and if I could pull that money back I probably would.
As for prestige, it's something that should have had and continues to have no place in the credit world. It's an archaic, meaningless concept created by the insecure for the insecure. The next time I see someone whip out a card in a fashion that screams "hey look, I'm a baller!" I'll continue to roll my eyes like I have every other time I see such insecure behavior.
Good points though i gotta say im sure the banks themselves have a huge part in creating the image of prestige through countless advertising and promoting. Amex didnt get that old image that many in john q public still hold onto from the 80's by happenstance
@Anonymous wrote:
@blindambition wrote:Sorry about the situation OP.
Amex has certainly changed, like most. I won’t get into whether good, or not. However, it is no longer a prestigious card to have. As stated, they want to charge that $550 to as many people as possible. They seem to cut corners where they can.
So, are you saying people would pay $550/yr for Prestige? No, people pay $550 a year for the benefits the card offers. That has nothing to do with the spending power on the card. Again, you’re paying for the benefits.
Actually, yeah. Almost everyone I know with a platinum has no idea how to maximize their benefits. My coworker put $300 of food on it to "get my points". I told him he could get more with a different amex, but he likes to use his platinum for everything. And, he makes sure that everyone knows it's going on his platinum.
@AverageJoesCredit wrote:Good points though i gotta say im sure the banks themselves have a huge part in creating the image of prestige through countless advertising and promoting. Amex didnt get that old image that many in john q public still hold onto from the 80's by happenstance
I completely agree.
People's susceptibility to marketing and being told they're special is what makes this work. Today's version of this is the "influencer" who has throngs of fools who will blindly accept and imitate whatever crap they peddle. Psychics also thrive on this weakness.
American Express didn't become presitgious on its own merits or through word of mouth. They advertised the crap out of it and painted the picture of luxury so long it stuck. A century ago, nobody went xmas shopping for gifts, proposed with diamond rings, or made girls wear pink and boys blue or used mouthwash - these are all entirely things today because people got told they were by marketers and they bought it.
@iced wrote:
@CJ7 wrote:
@Anonymous wrote:
The color of the card has no influence on its spending power.There was a time when it did. In the day, I believe the Gold was backed by at least 25K
through a separate financial institution. If someone whipped out their Platinum to pay for something,
it meant they had excellent credit and significant resources and could basically buy the whole store
or even a car with it. It was a thing of prestige. Now, they'll dole one out to anyone with a 650 score and
$550 they're willing to part with. And get assigned some laughable internal limit.
Imagine if one or more of your major revolvers cut your limit because they saw a new auto loan on your report.
People would be fuming. But when AX does it to a charge card, it's somehow OK because it's mitigating risk.
The next time I see someone insert their Platinum into the chip reader, I'll know there's a decent chance that
any card in my wallet actually has more buying power. So much for prestige.
If one of my banks, revolving or charge, cut my credit because of my recent financial actions, I'd still think it was mitigating risk. Cutting a limit and reducing "spending power" on a charge card is the same thing. And I'd have nobody to blame for them doing it except me - they didn't make me seek new credit or extend myself further. Why should I (or anyone) take it out on a bank? Own your financial decisions and consequences rather than blame entities that are basically lending you their money on faith.
If I loaned $10,000 to a friend and he went and borrowed another $10,000 from another friend, I'd be pretty concerned that my money is at risk, and if I could pull that money back I probably would.
As for prestige, it's something that should have had and continues to have no place in the credit world. It's an archaic, meaningless concept created by the insecure for the insecure. The next time I see someone whip out a card in a fashion that screams "hey look, I'm a baller!" I'll continue to roll my eyes like I have every other time I see such insecure behavior.
>Cutting a limit and reducing "spending power" on a charge card is the same thing.
Oh, agreed! But my point was that I have never in my life heard of revolving limits being reduced due to the
addition of a car loan by any major issuer. But in the case of AX and a charge card it's somehow justified.
I, also, will continue to roll my eyes. But now it won't be accompanied with the perception that this person
has excellent credit and is beyond financially well-off.
