| Product: |
American Express Blue |
| Date: |
19/02/04 (498 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Free (no fee), Cashback, Free CD's
Disadvantages: Not accepted everywhere, Customer service
So there I am, just minding my own business when in comes an email from CD-wow. "Exclusive offer, just for you" it says. Yeah, me and the entire CD-Wow database of customers.
So, investigate the email and there is an offer from Amex for a Blue Card - fill in the card and get 2 free CD-Wow vouchers, or two free CD's put another way, plus 2% cashback for 3 months and 1% after that. Knowing that I had quite a bit of furniture, tools and hardware to buy over the next few months, and given that I regularly stay in hotels (plus I'm a cheapskate) I decide to give it a go.
Having filled in the forms on-line and then printed them off and sent them to Amex, I waited for the CD-Wow vouchers to come flying in. Got the new Blue, as did my wife and started spending - ouch!
I'm relatively patient. I have to be, I have two kids. So after a month and no Cd-Wow vouchers, I phone Amex. 01273 number, wherever that is. From the accents of the people I spoke to on different occasions, I would suspect somewhere just outside Bangalore or maybe Pune? Anyway, regardless, I explained the situation and why I was phoning. 28 days after you first use your card, you will get the vouchers, I am told. But, I explain, I've already been using it for over 28 days (I used it within 2 hours of receiving it) "Ahh" is the reply - you'll get them within 14 days.....
I already have a Corporate card, so I have set up internet access to the Green, I then add the Blue to the account. Wish they did yellow, I could go for the rainbow wallet effect. The website is a bit clunky compared to say Egg or Morgan Stanley (IMHO), but it is getting better
Two
and a half weeks later, I'm on the phone again. Definitely within the next 14 days I will receive the mythical vouchers...so three weeks later I'm a bit miffed. Phoning again, I get a distinct feeling of deja vue. I then write a complaint to the online note service within the Amex website, mentioning fraudulent claims, watchdog etc. If you're going to be a bear, be a grizzly....
Within 24 hours, an automated response is received telling me I will receive a response within 48 hours (like Catch 22 that, I thought) Sure enough, I got an email from Amex shortly after another 24 hours saying they were chasing up the deal - then I got a phone call from Cd-Wow, telling me they had sent the vouchers via email - sure enough they had.
Happy camper then. But wait, there's more. I came back from a trip to find the postie had been and dropped off a large padded envelope. I know I've upset some people, but a letter bomb? No, opening the envelope there is a Sony Walkman inside, with a packing list that references Amex - no letter though. I think that was Amex apologising.
So, in terms of service, shaky start but the follow-up was good. Would recommend the email system rather than the phone approach, it certainly gets results faster.
use of the card. As per the normal, Amex are not accepted in a lot of places - Woolies, John Lewis etc. However, all the major supermarkets, petrol stations, hotels and most online stores do. The beauty is the 2% - that mounted up very quickly.
Compared to some other credit cards, the conversion of currency is quite good as well. One of my other credit cards charges you a percentage fee of each transaction for daring to use Jonny Foreigners cash, and gives you a poor rate of exchange for the total as well (and now
only give 1/2% cashback!) Amex give you a reasonable rate of exchange, no separate feed and still give 2% (initially) cashback.
Overall, I'm a little Blue convert. Amex have given me a CD player, 2 Cd's and currently one hundred and something pounds for using their card to spend money I would have spent anyway (Sainsbury's, petrol etc) The customer service redeemed itself eventually, so 4/5 for the Amex Blue. Mr Amex - can I get a Gold now?
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