Amex avios & PayPal

Mbleasy

I I'm new to the forum so sorry if this has been covered before.

I am getting married soon and have got a BA Amex credit card to earn avios with all the money we are paying out.

So the question is for suppliers that have no means of accepting credit cards (photographer, band etc) can I pay them through PayPal with my Amex and still earn points?

If anyone has experienced of this advice would be much appreciated

Many Thanks

grumbler

Most likely "photographer, band etc" will ask you to send money by PP. I'd be surprised if Amex pay cashback on this. Common sense suggests that such transaction has to be classed as a cash advance with all the consequences (fee, no interest-free period), but, reportedly, people get away with this.

Not to mention the fee that PP charge for funding a transfer by a CC that outweighs any cashback because it is as "small" as 3.4%+20p.

[Deleted User]

It's not a cash advance, it's a regular transaction.

AMEX will pay cashback on it.

Mbleasy

Thanks Grumbler that is what I thought, didn't know if they could send me a PP invoice and it would be seen as a STF transaction

Just after ways of building up points rather than just handing cash over directly. Cheers

System

Just be aware you risk S75 protection.

You'd may only have Paypal's own (inferior) protection and any AMEX chargeback ability.

Mbleasy

Thanks Heng Leng

Is the S75 protection insurance?

If so not too worried as I have taken a wedding insurance policy and trust most of the suppliers from recommendation and feeback.

The main thing was people's experience of paying PayPal with Amex and if you got avios and/or any charges?

Many Thanks
Martin

grumbler

• Section 75 refunds
• Warning! Don't use paypal to pay on a credit card

reclusive46

Amex won't charge you anything. I've done this to pay people before.

System

S75 protection is valuable for high value items IMO

A sizable chunk of online Amex transactions require using PayPal as retailer only takes Visa / MasterCard directly.

AndyRoo312

I know this post is a few years old now but I'll add this comment for the benefit of others who may stumble upon it, looking for advice, like I did.

PayPal do not charge you for making online purchases using a credit card. The fees that Grumbler mentions only apply when transferring money to others from a credit card. When making an online purchase, PayPal will pay the retailer on your behalf and your credit card issuer will pay PayPal the same amount (no additional fee is applied). As far as your credit card issuer is concerned, you have made a purchase to PayPal which will be treated the same as any other online purchase, including earning Avios points or any other reward scheme that you may have. The interest rate charged to you credit card will also be the same as your purchase rate, including a 0% interest on purchases agreement if you have one.

The only downside to using PayPal for credit card payments is that you'll miss out on the Section 75 protection. This protection makes the card issuer liable if you suffer a breach of contract (faulty goods, cancelled flights etc.) on credit card purchases valued between £100 to £30,000. The card issuer is therefore obliged to provide you a refund if there is an issue with any purchase, it's then up to them to chase the retailer to gain the refund for themselves. Using PayPal removes this protection as the card issuer's contract is with PayPal rather than the retailer so they have no connection to the original purchase. PayPal do offer their own purchase protection but, whilst it is fairly good, it is inferior to Section 75.

It's therefore usually better to use a credit card directly but if the retailer doesn't accept your preferred card (Amex can be a pain at times) there's no real harm in going through PayPal. You shouldn't be charged any extra for this and you'll still recieve your Avios/Reward points, just be prepared for a little more hassle if you need a refund.