Amex card suspended and then cancelled

[sh-uk]

I’ve heard nothing either. My dashboard still says suspended. I’m totally baffled. The fact that I’d pretty much forgotten about the £250 annual fee I’ve paid underlines the ridiculousness of their “we have reason to believe you are unwilling or unable to pay” letter. Apologies for the bluntness, but I can afford their fees and do not need to ‘game’ any system to get by.

Very disappointing.

[BuildBackBetter]

JellyFan wrote:

status88 wrote:

Never had any issues with Amex and quite surprised by how off-ish they are being.

Very strange.

Almost sounds as though they’re going out of their way to alienate their service users?

More likely it’s something to do with self-employed (including limited companies). Maybe not declaring income accurately; using funds from personal bank account for corporate card or the other way round; using personal card for corporate expenses or other way round.

Most such complaints start with ‘never had any issues’ and then they reveal something later. It’s a bit of an oxymoron – if they had any issues earlier, why would Amex keep them?

[jeff228]

tbtb31 wrote:

jeff228 wrote:

@reximus I happened to go onto my Amex account last week, the suspended message was never there so I thought maybe it was back to normal now but they hadn’t notified me. I tried to use the card and to my surprise, it worked. I then called Amex the next day to ask to extend by bonus point collection period as the card had been suspended for 2 months for them to only re-suspend the card and them tell me that it wasn’t meant to be like that and that my card is still under review. I have given up hope and changed to the Barclays Avios card.

Did you make any paypal payments funded by your Amex card?

nope never

[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??

[baec_newbie]

wreckingcru wrote:

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??

At the very worst, you can get a pro-rata refund of the fee if you cancel. But yes, it’s a very poor customer experience.

[rum]

wreckingcru wrote:

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

I agree this is a very poor experience from Amex. They were never like this in the past. I would write a complaint to their executive office immediately. Keep it polite, factual, no emotional language as per usual and you should find they investigate things properly that way. You should also threaten them with card cancellation both in the UK and abroad. That should get them dancing on their toes.

[wreckingcru]

rum wrote:

wreckingcru wrote:

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

I agree this is a very poor experience from Amex. They were never like this in the past. I would write a complaint to their executive office immediately. Keep it polite, factual, no emotional language as per usual and you should find they investigate things properly that way. You should also threaten them with card cancellation both in the UK and abroad. That should get them dancing on their toes.

Good suggestion, would you have a contact email/address by chance?

[rum]

wreckingcru wrote:

Good suggestion, would you have a contact email/address by chance?

It’s either executive.office or exec.office AT aexp DOT com

Good luck! Do report back and let us know how it went.

[wreckingcru]

Hallelujah, I’m unblocked!

I requested a call from the supervisor, which took days to resolve. I explained everything, she put me on hold, and came back 5 mins later to say – yep, all clear!

Maybe try requesting the supervisor and explaining your situation?

Best of luck!

[Luca M]

status88 wrote:

I have just had the same issue. I have had a UK platinum business card (one for limited companies) for the last five years. Never missed a payment, not spent with erratic behaviours.

I have had a request for 2 months of personal bank statements which show payslips – I am the company director, so I take money as and when I need it, but of course always varies (the statement shows a good amount going into my personal account).

I am totally confused as to why they want my personal bank statements when its a company card paid for by my company that I own. They seem super sketchy on the phone when you ask any questions.

Never had any issues with Amex and quite surprised by how off-ish they are being.

You are aware that although it is called a Business Card and has the name of the company under your name and the T&C state that it must be used for business spend only, you are personally responsible for the balance? (With a Corporate card the business would be responsible unless is a one with shared responsibility where it is issues by the business but the employee is allowed to use it for personal spending which can be tagged as such and repaid by the employee.

[Guy Incognito]

Luca M wrote:

status88 wrote:

I have just had the same issue. I have had a UK platinum business card (one for limited companies) for the last five years. Never missed a payment, not spent with erratic behaviours.

I have had a request for 2 months of personal bank statements which show payslips – I am the company director, so I take money as and when I need it, but of course always varies (the statement shows a good amount going into my personal account).

I am totally confused as to why they want my personal bank statements when its a company card paid for by my company that I own. They seem super sketchy on the phone when you ask any questions.

Never had any issues with Amex and quite surprised by how off-ish they are being.

You are aware that although it is called a Business Card and has the name of the company under your name and the T&C state that it must be used for business spend only, you are personally responsible for the balance? (With a Corporate card the business would be responsible unless is a one with shared responsibility where it is issues by the business but the employee is allowed to use it for personal spending which can be tagged as such and repaid by the employee.

Not many people are, and the Ombudsman is currently looking to change the rules to stop them doing this (particularly as they will often specifically request management accounts, filed accounts etc from businesses when assessing credit limits. More to the point this “personal” credit doesn’t show on any credit report).

AmEx want to have their cake and eat it.

[Harrier25]

Guy Incognito wrote:

Not many people are, and the Ombudsman is currently looking to change the rules to stop them doing this

I think you mean that the FCA are looking to change the rules. The Ombudsman have no such powers.

[JDB]

Harrier25 wrote:

Guy Incognito wrote:

Not many people are, and the Ombudsman is currently looking to change the rules to stop them doing this

I think you mean that the FCA are looking to change the rules. The Ombudsman have no such powers.

There isn’t even any need to change the rules; it’s Amex’s loose interpretation of the rules that is at issue. It would appear that the aggressive push into this attractive market has upset other providers, so there may now be more scrutiny. Amex’s effective discounting of published personal card fees to certain cardholders via retention offers is another unorthodox interpretation of the rules that currently exists as the beneficiaries are delighted and the affected majority either don’t know or can’t be bothered to address the matter.

[Peter K]

JDB wrote:

Amex’s effective discounting of published personal card fees to certain cardholders via retention offers is another unorthodox interpretation of the rules that currently exists as the beneficiaries are delighted and the affected majority either don’t know or can’t be bothered to address the matter.

Offering retention sweeteners is hardly a new thing and certainly not Amex only. I remember many years ago Barclaycard gave me an impressive cashback offer on all spend for 3 months not to cancel my card. Sky offers discounts all the time of your ring to cancel. Avoiding churn is surely a legitimate way to run a business?

[JDB]

Peter K wrote:

JDB wrote:

Amex’s effective discounting of published personal card fees to certain cardholders via retention offers is another unorthodox interpretation of the rules that currently exists as the beneficiaries are delighted and the affected majority either don’t know or can’t be bothered to address the matter.

Offering retention sweeteners is hardly a new thing and certainly not Amex only. I remember many years ago Barclaycard gave me an impressive cashback offer on all spend for 3 months not to cancel my card. Sky offers discounts all the time of your ring to cancel. Avoiding churn is surely a legitimate way to run a business?

If Sky, your mobile provider or utilities give you a discount, they only do so in exchange for a contract lock-in, they also don’t have a single fixed price (like Amex) nor are they subject to FCA regulation. The lack of conditionality in Amex retention offers is a particularly problematic issue and while there would be issues about fixed contract terms, they could only pay the retention after x period of holding the card which would be more effective in controlling churn than handing out 50k MR only for the cardholder to cancel days later which happens but is patently absurd. You refer to Barclaycard offering such retentions years ago which is precisely the point – most card providers now think they are problematic as well ineffective. Retentions also raise the issue of conflicts of interest and fairness – why should one cardholder get a £350 ‘bung’ for both knowing about the option and being willing to call and pretend they want to cancel while another cardholder in the same street doesn’t. There is supposed to be one nationwide fixed price for each card, but in practice there isn’t.

[Peter K]

There is one price for the card. The yearly fee doesn’t change. Personally I agree that not stopping someone from cancelling a day or two later doesn’t make sense, but it’s not a change in the “cost” for the card. The APR is not changed.
According to your logic, the Amex offers should also be removed as those who forget to look or are too slow to save them before the limit is reached are also paying more for their card than the more savvy users.

[The Savage Squirrel]

Other than very basic shop purchases like tins of beans, I’m struggling to think of a single example anywhere where a savvy user and good negotiator can’t extract a better price and more value from a product. This certainly applies to every financial product of non-trivial cost. In many ways it’s just like emailing a hotel you’ve stayed at before directly and asking if they can beat public or 3rd party OTA prices; something JDB (and me!) both advocate.

I’m largely ignorant of FCA rules of course, but given that the lack of conditionality in Amex retention offers is to the advantage of the consumer, I’m struggling to see what the issue is with regards to conditionality and FCA regulation? Surely unreasonably onerous tie-in conditions would be their area of interest?

[JDB]

Peter K wrote:

There is one price for the card. The yearly fee doesn’t change. Personally I agree that not stopping someone from cancelling a day or two later doesn’t make sense, but it’s not a change in the “cost” for the card. The APR is not changed.
According to your logic, the Amex offers should also be removed as those who forget to look or are too slow to save them before the limit is reached are also paying more for their card than the more savvy users.

A retention offer is a straight, unconditional rebate of the the card fee which is part of a regulated contract under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (except for charge cards). Offers are not subject to anything other than general consumer protections. That there is a relationship between the fee and the retention offer is evident both from the quantum offered on different cards and the script from agents repeatedly reported here of them stating the £ or % discount on the annual fee.

[JDB]

The Savage Squirrel wrote:

Other than very basic shop purchases like tins of beans, I’m struggling to think of a single example anywhere where a savvy user and good negotiator can’t extract a better price and more value from a product. This certainly applies to every financial product of non-trivial cost. In many ways it’s just like emailing a hotel you’ve stayed at before directly and asking if they can beat public or 3rd party OTA prices; something JDB (and me!) both advocate.

I’m largely ignorant of FCA rules of course, but given that the lack of conditionality in Amex retention offers is to the advantage of the consumer, I’m struggling to see what the issue is with regards to conditionality and FCA regulation? Surely unreasonably onerous tie-in conditions would be their area of interest?

The issue re conditionality is that by imposing conditionality or better deferring payment of the retention is that those cardholders are then in a different position to other cardholders which changes the nature of the unfairness. There is nothing onerous about imposing a term on a 50% fee rebate. If you offer the retention without strings, you aren’t treating all cardholders equally/fairly. This is also different to a tin of beans or a hotel because credit cards are a regulated by legislation, plus FCA principles, rules and guidance. Amex has different ideas about this to other card providers but they may not be sustainable.

[JDB]

The Savage Squirrel wrote:

Other than very basic shop purchases like tins of beans, I’m struggling to think of a single example anywhere where a savvy user and good negotiator can’t extract a better price and more value from a product. This certainly applies to every financial product of non-trivial cost. In many ways it’s just like emailing a hotel you’ve stayed at before directly and asking if they can beat public or 3rd party OTA prices; something JDB (and me!) both advocate.

I’m largely ignorant of FCA rules of course, but given that the lack of conditionality in Amex retention offers is to the advantage of the consumer, I’m struggling to see what the issue is with regards to conditionality and FCA regulation? Surely unreasonably onerous tie-in conditions would be their area of interest?

@The Savage Squirrel yes, of course any retention offer is to the advantage of the recipient, but this is a regulated financial services product with one advertised price, not a hotel or tin of beans, so all customers are expected to be treated equally/fairly. Most cardholders clearly aren’t aware that you can effectively get a discount and also wouldn’t expect this is a product open to negotiation. Of course, if enough people realised this ‘discount’ was available, they wouldn’t be able to continue to offer it, which sort sums of the problem. Someone highlighted above the problem with business cards which is another area where Amex plays fast and loose.

[Peter K]

JDB wrote:

A retention offer is a which is part of a regulated contract under the Consumer Credit Act 1974 (except for charge cards). Offers are not subject to anything other than general consumer protections. That there is a relationship between the fee and the retention offer is evident both from the quantum offered on different cards and the script from agents repeatedly reported here of them stating the £ or % discount on the annual fee.

But even HMRC agrees that points do not count as income, so though you can put a nominal cash value on them, which let’s be honest varies wildly on how you use them, it is not a “straight, unconditional rebate of the the card fee”. The card fee is not rebated when the offer is made, rewards points are offered instead.

I understand your point, and that it frustrates you that others are benefiting from it while you don’t feel it’s ethical, but it seems you are trying to squeeze the legislation to fit your view on the matter. (Disclosure here, I did gain a points bonus for not cancelling, but I would have cancelled it without and did keep the card open because I received it).

[JDB]

@Peter K – I don’t think we are going to agree on this! I note your point re HMRC and the theoretical value of points but here, Amex puts a value on its own points, and in many reported cases agents give the money value of the retention offer or % fee saving. It strikes me as being incredibly stupid for people to post their offers because the dossier that has created will ensure these retentions will, at best, be curtailed. On the business cards there are complaints from competitors and merchants which are causing quite a lot of things to be examined by the FCA and CMA.

You say I’m trying to fit the legislation to my view but it’s the FCA Principles that are the issue here. There is another card provider that believes Amex is wrong about this and challenging the matter.

Many HfP posters are very quick to protest ‘unfairness’ when there is the tiniest slight but here where certain people are covertly getting handouts while the ordinary cardholder isn’t, that’s fine because you’re benefiting…

You mention that your retention seeking was genuine but of the c.200 advertised here, a great many – c.25% openly admit they were just after the retention bonus with no intention of cancelling and c.10% saying they were planning to cancel immediately after bagging the points.

[Lady London]

Where does it stop? I’ve felt independently that shelf prices in both Morrisons and Waitrose became too high for many items and guess what… coincidentally from about the same time I’m seeing a succession of Airtime and Amex £huge off £moderate spend offers. Not just these 2 companies and schemes, either.

What about the people who don’t have access to these schemes or cards? This include a large chunk of longstanding customers, especially old/low income or without much smartphone/computer/internet access. And yet the prices for them have gone up, say, 15%.

This is not fair and discriminates against people who are more likely to fall into categories it’s illegal to discriminate against or who are poorer. Where does it stop?

[BuildBackBetter]

Lady London wrote:

Where does it stop?

When Amex realised these retention bonuses are not resulting in profits.

[BuildBackBetter]

It’s also no different from savvy consumers switching broadband or mobile providers. Why refuse free money if Amex is stupid to give it away.