Cancelling Amex Plat

worc1146

I've had an Amex platinum for 18 months. I'm not spending on it at the moment because I'm abroad till October and we all know the Nationwide creditcard is better for spending abroad . Question is: is it better to cancel the card now and then try and reapply in a few months time for the card again or best cashback deal at the time than keep it on without introductory bonuses etc? Has anyone cancelled creditcards with good deals once the bonus period expired then successfully reapplied for the card later on? If so, how long did you leave it? In terms of credit history etc is it better to cancel creditcards you're not using?

My current creditcard list is:

Nationwide Gold for spending overseas
Amex platinum for cashback
Virgin for 0% deal
M&S for M&S spending
Lloyds TSB Mastercard and Amex duo for Airmiles intro bonus

Thanks moneysavers!

lisyloo

I haven't done it myself (yet) but cancelling should allow you to re-apply as a new customer after a certain time limit.
Some companies say 12 months, others allow you to re-apply once cancellation has gone through.

In terms of credit history I would say that yes you should cancel (and I believe that's the general consensus).

1) Open cards give you "available" credit even if unused. This can count against you when applying for new credit.
2) As already said, allows you to re-apply.
3) Every card you have open is a liability in term of id fraud.
4) Lots of cards are more difficult to manage if you move house or are a victim of id fraud.

Personally I keep mine to a minimum but generally have 2 or 3 on the go at one time as I like to take advantage of offers.
Having a couple is a good idea in case one is not accepted (like amex) or doesn't work.

mrmajika

I believe you need to leave it 12 months before you are classed as a new customer again.

I had an AMEX platinum which had an introductory 3% for the first 3 months (long before the 5% deal).

After having the card about 18months, I phone to cancel it and got put through to retentions. They offered me another 3% for 3 months to keep the card. They even post-dated the start of the 3% for me so that it coincided with the end of my Capital One introductory period.

Saucepot

As the cashback is applied yearly, and you've had the card 18 months and thus one cashback payment, you might be better off not canceling for 6 months until after the next cashback applies to the account.

If you log in on line you'll see how many points you have accrued and be able to work out what you'd get.