Really AMEX? Really?

Last night, I came home from to a letter from American Express. At first, I though it was something they were selling me.

They weren't sell me anything. The letter was one of the most awkward I have ever received from a credit card company:

 Dear JD Teitelman

      We're writing to let you know that we mistakenly issued additional reward points to your 
       account in September 2013. Although these points are in your rewards account and 
       available for you use, they are twice the amount you should have received for your 
       August billing period.

       In order for us to offset the extra points you received, we will not issue additional points 
       to your account until you have earned more points than you received in error. This means 
       that your points balance on your American Express statement may be zero or negative 
       until your balance shows the correct number of points. We apologize for any 
       inconvenience this may cause.

       You can always check your earned rewards and review your account activity online at
       americanexpress.com/managemyaccount.

       Thank you for your Card Membership.

       Sincerely,

       American Express Customer Care


Some of you may have received a similar letter in the past. American Express made a mistake and I am being punished? However, what really steams me isn't that they sent the letter. Rather, how many points they are trying to recover. My September AMEX deposit into my Delta account (the AMEX in question is my Delta AMEX Gold) was 13 miles:

AMEX is trying to recover 6.5 miles. Trying to recover 6.5 miles makes AMEX look cheap and makes me feel less like a member, but a more like a customer. AMEX should have had a cut-off level of points that they weren't going to recover. I understand trying to recoup 500, 1000, or 5000 miles give erroneously, but 6.5, 20 or 100, that just is greedy. Yes, I understand that they were trying to be fair by taking points back from everyone. Even worse, I went back to my August credit card statement and I spent exactly $13.30 and earn 13 Skymiles. I wasn't given any extra points.

I can forgive you AMEX, because mistakes happen. However, don't punish me because one of your employees screwed up. Sometimes you let mistake pass . . . 

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 Follow us on Twitter @doit4thepoints! Have a question for me? E-mail me at jd@doitforthepoints.com

My Thoughts on Picking Your First Points or Miles Credit Card

Keri at Heels First Travel wrote an amazing post about Picking out Your First Points or Miles Earning Credit Card. The post has 6 questions to determine how to pick your first credit card out. I agree with most of the questions, disagree with one of them and have one more important suggestion. 

One of the most important things to consider before getting your first points/miles credit card is your ability to pay your credit card on time. If you do not pay your monthly balance off every month, please do not get a points and miles credit card. The interest on the monthly balances will wipe out any benefit you might earn from the points and miles earned. Please read my post Young People and The Chains of Credit Cards to learn about the effects of credit card debt on your life.

The question that I disagree with is, "How many are you comfortable having?" This question leads you to think applying for more than one credit card at a time is what you need to do. I doubt this was Keri's intention. My belief is one credit card is the correct number to apply for the first time.  Don't feel pressured into needing to apply for more than one credit card. Its ok to apply for one credit card. This month was the end of my 90 day applying period and I only applied for the Chase Ink Bold. The only way to feel comfortable about credit cards is actually to use them. Can you handle the minimum balance in the required time? The points/miles is not a race, but a marathon. Slowly and steady is a great tactic.

My final suggestion in picking your first points/miles credit card is to pick one without an annual fee. Why you might ask? One component that comprises your credit score is the length of time of your credit history. The longer that you have a particular credit card the better your credit score will be. In the points & miles game, you frequently get a credit card and one year later close it before paying the annual fee. This type of opening and closing credit cards won't destroy your credit, but it won't help you obtain the highest potential score.

To help you achieve your highest potential credit score, I would recommend getting a points/miles credit card with no annual fee. By getting a credit card with no annual fee, there is no reason to cancel the credit card ever. As years pass, this one credit card will help grow your credit score higher and higher. This especially true for young people with limited credit. The longer you hold onto a credit card, the more attractive you will be to future credit card issuers. Win-Win situation for all.

Here are three suggestions for no annual fee credit cards:

1) Hilton American Express - 40,000 mile sign-up bonus

2) Barclay's Arrival - 20,000 Point Sign-Up Bonus

3) Chase Freedom - 15,000-25,000 Sign-Up Bonus

Keri's post on the 6 questions to ask yourself before getting a points/miles credit cards was dead on. I wish I had come across a post like this when I first entered the game. All I would add is caution to go slowly with new credit cards and add a no annual fee credit card to your wallet.

Welcome to the Game! It's a fun ride....

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 Follow us on Twitter @doit4thepoints! Have a question for me? E-mail me at jd@doitforthepoints.com

Whats in My Wallet & Sock Drawer

The Frequent Miler had an article about which annual fee cards he is planning on keeping. It got me thinking about my own credit cards.

Quite a few are up for their annual fee and its time to make some decisions. Do I keep the credit card and pay the annual fee or singing “na na na, hey hey good-bye,” to it. The decision is not easy, because I deduct credit card annual fees from my travel budget. They are an expense to my travel hobby/addiction. Keep to many and the annual fees can add up quickly.

Here is a list of all the credit cards in my possession and my thinking at the moment of keeping or canceling:

Keeping:

Banana Republic (no annual fee)

Hilton AMEX (no annual fee)

US Airways World Mastercard (no annual fee – oldest credit line)

Capitol One Card (no annual fee)

Chase Hyatt ($79 annual fee – free night on anniversary)

Chase Priority Club ($49 annual fee – free night on anniversary)

US Bank Club Carlson ($75 annual fee - 40,000 point anniversary bonus)

Undecided:

Chase Sapphire ($95 – 7% dividend every January – last years’s: 1500 points)

Chase Southwest – Personal ($99 annual fee, 6,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Chase Southwest – Business ($99 annual fee, 6,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Alaska Airlines ($75 annual fee, $99 companion pass each anniversary)

US Airways Premier World Mastercard ($89 annual fee, - 10,000 miles anniversary bonus)

Bye Bye

Chase British Airways ($99 annual fee)

Chase United Airways ($95 annual fee)

Delta AMEX ($95 annual fee)

Citi American Airlines ($95 annual fee)

Last weekend, I wrote that one of the keys to a great credit card is a bonus on the anniversary especially if there is an annual fee. As reflected above, those credit cards with annual fees that I am keeping offer me that anniversary bonus. I have great credit, use my credit card frequently and always pay my bills on time, I should be reward for keeping their credit in my rotation. Yes, that sounds spoiled, but every time I swipe their card, they earn money. And I swipe alot!

As stated above, one of the main reasons I let cards go is the hit to my travel budget from the annual fees. If I kept all the cards above, the annual fees would be over $1,000 or 1/3 of my travel budget. Wasting a 1/3 of my travel budget on credit card annual fee is crazy.

The decision to keep or cancel a credit card is an important part of the game. Annual fees are not going away anytime soon. To succeed in this game, one must way the cost associated with having a credit card vs. the benefits that you receive from it.

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Follow us on Twitter @doit4thepoints! Have a question for us? E-mail us at chris@doitforthepoints.com or jd@doitforthepoints.com

Delta GrandSlam Update: Delta AMEX Gold

Important Note: We talk about credit card sign-up bonuses on our blog because they are an important part of the “game.” Any credit card links in this post will be public application links taken from the issuer's direct website. We do not earn income from you applying from the links. Similarly, please take an extra minute or two before applying for credit cards. If you do not pay your credit card balance off every month then you should stay away from this aspect of the game. Credit cards can lead to major long-term problems if not used correctly. I encourage you to read my post on Young People and the Chains of Credit Card Debt for more details.  

I have been pretty silent on my Delta Grandslam, as of late. I have completed 8 of the 10 partner offers, so there is at least 1,000 Skymiles on the table. You can read more about the Delta Grand Slam here, here, and here.

Moving to another section of the Delta GrandSlam: Getting the Delta Amex Gold

The official section reads:

           "Not already a SkyMiles Credit Cardmember? Get up to 30,000 bonus miles 
           with the Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card from American Express. That's 
           up to 25,000 miles for getting the Card, plus an additional 5,000 miles now 
           as a new SkyMiles member. On top of that, earn one mile for eligible everyday 
           purchases and double miles for Delta purchases. Plus, get a free checked bag on
           every Delta flight"

However, the terms and condition state:

             "Credit Card Partners: 5,000 bonus miles earned for signing up for the           
              Gold Delta SkyMiles® Credit Card. Only approved accounts are eligible                     
              for bonus miles."

I bring the terms and conditions up, because it only states that you have to be approved for Gold Delta Skymiles Credit Card. Therefore, one can earn points for any offer out there, not just the 25,000 mile offer.

With that said, a few days a go, I received an offer via email for a 40,000 Delta SkyMiles AMEXCard. The offer requires you to spend $1,000 miles in 3 months. A link to the direct site is here. The $95 annual fee is waived the first year. The offer is good until April 28, 2013.

If you get apply and get approved by this offer, you would have 45,000 SkyMiles (40,000 from card + 5,000 from the new member bonus). There is a risk that you might not get the 5,000 bonus. However, I feel like you would have a great argument to fight them not giving them to you.

On the other hand, I have read from bloggers about a 45,000 mile offer. It takes some time, but if you go to the Hustler Money Blog he will walk you through the steps. I just tried this steps and the offer is there, as of 11pm 3/27/13. The offer is slightly harder than the one above: 25,000 miles after the first purchase, 20,000 additional after spending $5,000 in 6 months. If you get this offer, you would then have 50,000 miles (45,000 from the credit card sign-up bonus + 5,000 new member bonus).

As a friendly reminder, take a screen shot of the landing page with the offer. This will be your proof, if you need to fight it later on.

Unfortunately, I am unable to apply for this card now, because I just got some new credit cards last month. It always seems the best offers come out in the middle of my wait periods. My Delta anniversary is coming up in July, so I better get with flying with Delta, earning my last two partner rewards, and getting the AMEX card...otherwise, I am leaving valuable miles on the table . . .


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AMEX Small Business Saturday (Limited Enrollment)

I know this has been blogged about to death. I told myself that I was not going to write about it. However, after the nth time talking to family and friends about Small Business Saturday and hearing the small question, "What is Small Business Saturday?" I decided it was time for a quick post.

A little back story:

In 2010, AMEX decided to it was time to support the Small Business that make up the fiber of the American economy. The idea was that typically the Friday after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday, is the start of the high shopping season and increased revenue for the big stores. AMEX declared that the Saturday after Thanksgiving, to be further known as Small Business Saturday. 2010 was the depth of our economic recession and small business's were failing at a rapid rate. AMEX decided to give a $25 statement credit for AMEX members who make a purchase on Small Business Saturday at a participating small business. The program was a HUGE success and gave a ton of great publicity to AMEX (Many small businesses dislike AMEX because of their high surcharges, so it was also a great way of getting some goodwill from small business owners).

Ok, back to the promotion.

If you have an AMEX credit card, not a prepaid card or corporate card, you can are eligible to participate.

Here are the simple steps to participate:

1)  Go to this website to register. You will have to enter your credit card number. Some people have 
      reported registering multiple cards. The program has a limit, but as of Thanksgiving evening at 9pm,
      my friend was able to register. You have to register by 11:59PM MST on November 24, 2012.

2)  After registering, you will receive an email confirming you are registered. If you don't get this email, go
     back to the website and retry to enter the card. If you are registered, the website will let you know that
     you are registered.

3)  Pick a small business to shop at. You can see a list here via zip-code.

4)  Shop! (My favorite part!!!) Use the enrolled AMEX card to spend $25 or more in a single, in store
      transaction at a small business on November 24th. You have to spend $25 or more to get the $25
      statement credit.

5)  Smile. When you get the email that says you have qualified for the $25 credit. I usually get the email
     within an hour of making a purchase.

This Saturday I will be out shopping at small businesses in Arlington. I will make one $25 purchase with my AMEX card and then I will make the rest of my purchases with VISA/Mastercard branded cards, the fees are cheaper on small business!!!