Amex cashback scam!!

billion25

td_007 wrote: »

This is what is mentioned about cashback (called rebate) in T&C:
17.1 An annual rebate on the aggregate amount of all Transactions (other than Cash Withdrawals) will be payable to you by us at the following tiers and rates:
17.1.1 0.5% for aggregate amounts up to £3,500 and
17.1.2 1.0% for aggregate amounts from £3,501 to £10,000 and
17.1.3 1.5% for aggregate amounts in excess of £10,001

My read of above is that "aggregate amount" is the same as "total amount" i.e. cashback is to be calculated on the total amount spent. Nothing in the T&C even faintly implies that cashback will be calculated on individual transactions.

This doesn't talk to how the cashback is calculated, only to what pctg. rate applies. I.e, when you have spent £3,500 (in total) you will move on to the next tier. This is true.

ILW

It cheeses me off when people insist on using terms like scam and rip off when it is nothing of the sort. It just devalues these terms in the cases of true wrong doing.

_Andy_

ILW wrote: »

It cheeses me off when people insist on using terms like scam and rip off when it is nothing of the sort. It just devalues these terms in the cases of true wrong doing.

Agreed. Increasingly on this forum people view any company making profit a 'rip off'.

Horace

I have had an Amex card for 6 years now and I am very happy with it - the cashback scheme works and I know that at the end of the year any cashback that has been built up reduces my card bill. So what if Amex take 1p off here and there - they are in business and have to make a profit too.

IWantToBeFree_2

td_007 wrote: »

A number of comments say that Amex are operating within their T&C and hence it makes it right for them to calculate the cashback the way they do.However, they do not call out that the cashback is calculated per transaction and in my experience with every other cashback credit card that I have had (the most recent is the Citi Shell CC which withnell has pointed) the cashback is calculated on the total amount. It is the same for other reward cards such as Tesco and Nectar. This is therefore very much underhanded sneaky way to skim money off the customers by Amex - what would one call this?

Skimming money off the customer? Its not like they are rounding up your transactions, they are simply rounding down the cash back, they are taking NOTHING at all from the customer, because it was never the customers in the first place.

td_007

billion25 wrote: »

Not sure what you mean. If you go to Tescos and spend 35.99, you get 35 points for that transaction -- end of story.

Indeed you get 35 points for a single transaction of £35.99. Suppose you make 5 transactions of say: £3.05, £10.54, £5.99,£8.99,£7.42 (total £35.99), individual rounding off (down) will give you 3+10+5+8+7=33 points. That is a 6% difference!

Increase the number of transactions and you will proportionally increase your loss - why would someone willingly want to do that?

td_007

billion25 wrote: »

Am I right in thinking that people here are describing as a 'scam' the fact that might get 1 p less per transaction than they thought? Well perhaps they should go get a card that pays a whopping 0.5% instead then.

As I have shown clearly in response to your previous post, it is simple mathematics at work - add it all up it becomes a big amount.

td_007

IWantToBeFree wrote: »

Skimming money off the customer? Its not like they are rounding up your transactions, they are simply rounding down the cash back, they are taking NOTHING at all from the customer, because it was never the customers in the first place.

It is the customer's money - the reason I use this particular card is because of the cashback and any manipulation that affects the cashback directly reduces the money I get. There has to be a mindset change where cashback is not considered as a goodwill payment but a part of binding contract with credit card where you spend, you get cashback. Same as you don't pay, you get hit with fees/interest etc.

Dave101t

why are you expecting cash back for buying anyway? surely anything in this regard is better than nothing. rounding down means your losing maybe 1% of 1%. not exactly enough to pay the mortgage. i have this card btw, quite like it

ILW

td_007 wrote: »

It is the customer's money - the reason I use this particular card is because of the cashback and any manipulation that affects the cashback directly reduces the money I get. There has to be a mindset change where cashback is not considered as a goodwill payment but a part of binding contract with credit card where you spend, you get cashback. Same as you don't pay, you get hit with fees/interest etc.

How much do you reckon you have "lost"?