amex reward cards

ashley5

just a word about amex platinum cashback card,i got one after capital one stopped thier cashback card due to eu rule change.how convenient.
amex was good intro offer and we made some large purchases with it initialy, but amex is HATED by LOADS of outlets so we struggled to use our 5% spend qualification due to the lack of run of the mill places acceptance of this card(apparently due to high transaction charge for retailer),we resorted to buying asda and sainsbury gift cards £500 pounds each wich we could use for shopping and fuel at our liesure now we satified our 5% intro rules.the card now gives 0.5% cashback IF you can find anywhere to take them. your better off with an asda card as mastercard are accepted pretty much everywhere.

lisyloo

but amex is HATED by LOADS of outlets

I really don't see why outlets would HATE it with a passion. They either choose to accept it or not, it's a business decision and most comapnies don't get emotional about business decisions.

We've been through this a lot and it depends on where you shop.
I've found about 50% acceptance - with insurers, dentists. hairdressers, garages, farm shops and market stalls not taking AMEX.
It really does depend on your circs, for example if you travel a lot on business and book airline tickets then you may well get into higher tiers of cashback.

You are still better off using AMEX where you can though.
They have good service, do good offers and I'm into 1% cashback now.

I use my AMEX where I can and have a mastercard for where I can't.
In general better for high spenders (I just spent £4K on Emirates flight tickets which helped get me into higher cashback).
If you're a low spender then maybe it's not worth it.

eagle

lisyloo wrote: »

It really does depend on your circs

You are still better off using AMEX where you can though.
They have good service, do good offers
I use my AMEX where I can and have a mastercard for where I can't.
In general better for high spenders (I just spent £4K on Emirates flight tickets which helped get me into higher cashback).
If you're a low spender then maybe it's not worth it.

Very sound advice lisyloo. Amex just might not be for everyone.

I tend to stick to places that accept it or just don't purchase anything. That said, I do have a (non-Amex) card for use abroad and for places that do not take Amex.

If you are 'struggling' to spend on any card, then maybe you shouldn't be spending in the first place. Remember never to use a rewards/cashback card unless you can pay it off in full at the end of the month or billing cycle and that you are making purchases that you would normally.

lisyloo

I tend to stick to places that accept it or just don't purchase anything.

My criteria for choosing a dentist who's going to be drilling into my bones is not whether they take AMEX !! :-)
Similarly I have much more important criteria around insurance, hairdressers, garages, food supplers than their method of payment.
Do you really choose your barber or insurer with method of payment as your main criteria??

If you are 'struggling' to spend on any card, then maybe you shouldn't be spending in the first place.

Amex cards frequently offer promotional periods - often you need to spend £2K in 3 months.
Many people try to time this around christmas or when they have a big spend.

I don't think this is referring to people buying things they wouldn't normally, but the difficulty in getting £2K of puchases on the card because of the number of places that don't take AMEX.
So for example in my experience of 50% acceptanace, I'd need to have £4K of spend to get £2K of it on the Amex card.

Personally I'd do some research up front but not everyone appreciates quite how difficult it will be upfront.

nidO

Per the advice above, whether an Amex card is something you end up using regularly or not really depends where you shop.

Looking at my spend over the past year, about 65% of what we've spent by amount has gone on our Amex, and the remaining 35% on an alternative used when Amex isn't available.

This tends to mean by number of transactions they're fairly even if not slightly more on the non-Amex card as the places that take Amex are places we tend to spend more money in one go (grocery shopping, fuel, airlines/holiday providers, most big chains, etc) whereas the places that don't are typically smaller retailers where we spend less at one time (independent restaurants/shops, etc).

Also a minor thing to bear in mind for online shopping that a lot of people miss - Many (again, smaller) online shops who accept card payments don't take Amex directly however often do take PayPal, and PayPal in turn do take Amex. Therefore if you do a lot of online shopping, link up your Amex card to your PayPal account, then pay via PayPal wherever it's available.

planteria

i find Amex Cashback to be brilliant, and now that i've let CapOne go, and use TSB Debit for some back-up cashback, it's the only credit card i'm using for spending. there is nothing comparable on the market now.

mrsammyp

I've learnt that sometimes it's best to just insert the Amex into the card reader without asking whether or not they take it. I've been to places that say they don't take it but when I have returned the card has been accepted.

SuperHan

I'd say at least 80% of my spend is on American Express, probably more depending on where I've shopped in the month.

I spend around £1,800 a month on my Amex Duo and very rarely have to use its Visa counterpart.
There's about 2 restaurants near me that I visit that don't take it, and my hairdresser (which is a Toni and Guy, so I find it particularly annoying that they don't take it given the size of the chain).