Reply To: Amex card suspended and then cancelled

[wreckingcru]

Hello everyone, I found this thread after some googling, as I’m facing a similar problem.

– Amex member since 2001, and have owned multiple cards (with no defaults) in the US, and Switzerland
– moved to UK from CH in March 2023 for a new job (my US and CH Amex cards are still active and operational)
– Applied for BA Amex Premier (250gbp fee) for the points etc
– Amex calls to say “well, you’re new in the UK, but since you’ve been a loyal member for 20+ years, you’re fine”
– Get card, use card for normal purchases like Amazon, TFL, etc. Life is good, thanks Amex!
– 10 days in, wake up to “your card has been suspended, please contact Credit check department” email + Applepay block
– Upon request from Credit check team, send them payslips so far in the UK + prior 2 payslips from CH as proof of income etc

For the past 15+ days, I’ve been stuck in the Credit team loop where they keep saying that the check is ongoing, with no clarity on why/what/etc. They have nothing to say beyond its part of their fiduciary duty to check etc etc …..then why did you issue me a card and let me spend money??! I asked politely if I can escalate and speak to a manager, and they first sent me a paper letter saying “we tried to contact you…” (no you didn’t), and on the phone they won’t connect me to anyone other than “I’ve put a note in your file, and a supervisor will contact you in 24-48 hours”…which I doubt somehow.

Now I’ve got the first bill coming up, and I feel like I shouldn’t have to pay the yearly fee (which only just showed up, ie, AFTER the suspension of the card), and I’ve still not get a credit card to use here!

I’ve read through this thread, and doesn’t seem like anyone has a working solution at this point other than to wait, right? Has anyone found a higher-up to reach out to? I don’t mind if they say “sorry, we issued you the card in error, it’s cancelled now”, so I can move on and find a different card to apply to. But to pay them 250gbp to have used a card for <10 days?? That’s just robbery, is it not??