Are you still having issues with your Lloyds Avios Rewards Amex after the November hack?

In November, Lloyds suffered a very serious fraud issue on the American Express cards issued as part of the Lloyds Avios Rewards MasterCard and Amex double pack.  We first highlighted it on HfP and it was picked up by a lot of the national press including the Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail.

A large number of fake cards – apparently with functioning signature strips – suddenly started being used across the US.  Someone had got hold of enough Amex card data to be able to physically create fake cards, presumably with some sort of fake card design in order to fool shop assistants.

The response from Lloyds was to block all of the affected American Express cards from working in the US and to re-issue them with new numbers.

A reader got in touch last week with an update on his situation.  Despite having got a new Amex card with a new number, Lloyds was still blocking it in the US.  This was a major problem for the reader who makes a lot of $ purchases for his small business using the card.

Before Lloyds actually admitted to this, in a later separate telephone call, he was fed a stack of nonsense from the Lloyds call centre:

• “I was told (repeatedly) that it was the fault of the retailer as they were blocking it and Lloyds couldn’t do anything because it wasn’t them blocking it
• I escalated to a manager but they just told me the same thing over and over and would not accept it was the fault of Lloyds and suggested I contact the websites about it.
• When I told them it is happening on multiple US websites (I buy a lot of service for my business), I was told I had to speak to each of them individually as they may be blocking all American Express cards
• I explained that my Amex-issued Amex cards worked fine, as did my Lloyds Mastercard and it was happening on ALL US websites so it must be related to my Lloyds Amex but they wouldn’t accept this at all
• I was told this wasn’t affecting any other Lloyds cardholders “or they would have known about it”
• I was told repeatedly and categorically that it wasn’t related to the recent “issue” in the US
• I asked to make a complaint but was told this wasn’t possible as it wasn’t the fault of Lloyds and therefore all I could was offer my feedback”

Getting Lloyds to finally admit in a follow-up call that they were still blocking his new card was not the end of the matter, unfortunately.

His new Amex card is not earning any Avios.

Now, a small but significant percentage of Lloyds Avios Rewards credit cards do not earn Avios points.  No-one seems to have got to the bottom of this.  We first wrote about it here.  Lloyds promises to fix it for you in six months but in reality even that is beyond them.  They are at least now paying cash compensation to people impacted.

What is odd here is that the reader was earning Avios, but it was only when his Amex was reissued that he dropped into the minority who do not receive points.  It is all very odd.

Do let me know if you are still having issues with your Lloyds Avios Rewards American Express card following the November hack.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2024 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:

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.

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 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.