BA Amex or BA Amex Premium Plus Credit Card.

letiss7

Hi,
I currently have an Amex Gold Rewards Charge Card and want to switch to one of the 2 BA credit cards that Amex offer.
I have 2 questions.
Is it worth paying the £195 fee to get the Premium Plus card? We do tend to spend over £10k on the card but don't always reach 20k. We always pay off in full. I know this is open to opinions and spending habit so I am looking for arguments for and against paying for the Premium Plus card to see if there is anything I have not considered.
The 2nd question isn't related so much to the cards but more towards how the Avios points work.
For flights paid using money (be it credit card, cash, bank transfer etc) generally if the airline cancels the flight you are entitled to a full refund.
What happens if part of the payment for flights is made using Avios points? I would expect the points to be credited back to my account, is that the case? I can't really see what else would happen but asking in case anyone has experienced this before.

D3xt3r5L4b

Depends. Here’s some good articles to help:

https://www.headforpoints.com/2020/04/16/why-getting-the-free-british-airways-credit-card-is-a-mistake/

https://www.headforpoints.com/2020/03/10/top-10-reasons-get-british-airways-american-express-premium-plus-card/

https://frommilestosmiles.com/ba-amex-card/

letiss7

The links were really useful, for some reason I always forget about the headforpoints site. 
The frommilestomiles site is a new one to me.
Thank you for the reply and the links.

Malkytheheed

I think the question is.... How much do you fly? (I.e. will make use of the avoid / companion voucher?) I can't imagine you will be flying much right now. 

letiss7

we fly 2 or 3 times a year but in 2021/2022 we are planning a big trip to New Zealand or South America so this is in preparation for that trip.

Malkytheheed

If you can hit the spending limit and can make use of the companion voucher (easier if you are retired / don't have kids) then the premium card is a no brainer. 

letiss7

That's the plan. Hit the spending limit, get a companion voucher and book the tickets as soon as possible after that.

Malkytheheed

The premium BA Amex card was my "go to" card for 99% of transactions for the last 4 years. Alas since covid and lack of travel incentives i've been putting everything on my Platinum card. But even then, a lot of the perks are travel related so I might end up downgrading that to a gold CC. Depending on how long Covid hangs about. 

D3xt3r5L4b

Malkytheheed said:

The premium BA Amex card was my "go to" card for 99% of transactions for the last 4 years. Alas since covid and lack of travel incentives i've been putting everything on my Platinum card. But even then, a lot of the perks are travel related so I might end up downgrading that to a gold CC. Depending on how long Covid hangs about. 

Platinum cashback card or charge card?

jpsartre

You may be well aware of this but keep in mind that longhaul redemption seats can be quite limited on some routes.

letiss7

jpsartre said:

You may be well aware of this but keep in mind that longhaul redemption seats can be quite limited on some routes.

Thanks. Yes I am aware of that hence trying to plan as far ahead as possible.