American Express Platinum now offering Hertz Five Star status

Over the last couple of years, Avis and Hertz have opened up their loyalty schemes, removing joining fees and eliminating tiers.  This means that the main benefits offered by premium credit cards – free entry into a programme that would charge a fee, or putting you in at a higher tier – have been wiped away.

Hertz has now responded by improving the offering for Amex Platinum cardholders.  Instead of membership into Gold Plus Rewards (which is now free to all), you will receive Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Five Star status.

Five Star status usually requires 10 rentals over the previous 12 months.

Benefits include:

Free additional driver (this could be valuable, and matches the perk that Avis offers to British Airways Executive Club members)

10% bonus Gold Plus Rewards points

You also get the following benefits as an Amex Platinum member, assuming you use the Hertz Amex Plat CDP discount code (although this is not always the cheapest deal):

15% off standard rates

Four-hour grace period when returning the car

One-class upgrade subject to availability

The four-hour grace period is, for me, one of the best benefits of renting from Hertz.  You can get the cost of a 2-day rental down to the cost of a 1-day rental if your rental times are, for eg, 12pm Saturday to 4pm Sunday.

You can find full details of this offer here.  It appears that Amex Plat members can join from scratch via the link on that page.  What is not clear is how you get your existing Gold Plus Rewards membership upgraded – I imagine you would need to call Amex or Hertz.  The literature I saw said:

“If you are already enrolled in Hertz Gold Plus Rewards, you have automatically been upgraded to Five Star status”

but when I log in, I do not see that.   (That said, I have a Mastercard in my profile so that is not necessarily surprising!).  I will chase this up before my next rental.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – March 2025 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

Get 5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on the ‘free for a year’ American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 30,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (30,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 27th May 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to a huge 80,000 points. Points convert 1:1 into Avios (80,000 Avios!) and many other programmes. Some people may see even higher personalised offers. Click here to apply.

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 30,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

30,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

80,000 bonus points and great travel benefits – for a large fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Platinum is increased from 50,000 Membership Rewards points to 120,000 points. You receive 80,000 points when you spend £12,000 within three months and a further 40,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 8th April 2025, the sign-up bonus on American Express Business Gold is increased from 20,000 Membership Rewards points to 60,000 points. You receive 40,000 points when you spend £6,000 within three months and a further 20,000 points if you spend on the card between Month 14 and Month 17. Points convert 1:1 into Avios and many other programmes. Click here to apply.

American Express Business Platinum

Up to 120,000 points when you sign-up and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

Up to 60,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Capital on Tap Pro Visa

10,500 points (=10,500 Avios) plus good benefits Read our full review

Capital on Tap Visa

NO annual fee, NO FX fees and points worth 1 Avios per £1 Read our full review

British Airways American Express Accelerating Business

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review