I love credit cards so much! v2.0 (see first page for add'l details)

[Killer Fish]

Well I could not handle the pending status anymore on the Barclays Biz app from May 7th so I called in.

They verified my income (from real job). How long I was employed and just stated what I put on the app for Business revenue (3k) and length in business (1 Year). She asked what the business was and I said reselling on ebay....Put me on hold for 3 minutes and came back APPROVED! I did not really want to call and talk to anyone but it was painless!

 

[elgerber]

I am in a similar position waiting for my Delta miles......did you figure out what they may have disallowed?

So far my interactions with Amex on this....

Online Chat #1 - Yes, I can see the welcome offer on your account - you have to allow 6-8 weeks for the miles to post.
Phone Call #1 - Yes, the offer is on the account but you haven't met the required spend yet. (30 secs later)...Oh it looks like you have met the spend. Hopefully the bonus miles will post with your May statement.
Chat #2 - I'm sorry sir, there is no welcome offer attached to your account.
Call #2 - Yes I see the welcome offer, and can see you have met the required spend. I don't know why the miles have not posted and unfortunately, we cannot create a case to look into this as we have until your June statement to award them to your account.

And so the wait goes on.........

I got a PM from another member, also having the same issue.
From what I can tell in looking at my account, there is nothing not allowed. There is zero reason for what they are saying. I have looked at the list of things that do not earn bonus miles, it's the same list that does not earn regular miles either.
April statement, spent $5845.39-$195 fee = 5650.39. Was credited 5649 miles for "eligible purchases" (this is the wording on my statement) and 150 extra miles for the Delta purchase.
May statement, spent 474.12 - 46.28 in returns = 427.84. Credited 432 miles for "eligible purchases". Those total 6081 miles in "eligible purchases, which matches myspend. I have since spent another $215. And yet last night he tells me that only $4671.17 in eligible charges have been made. This contradicts what my statements from them say.
I just don't even know what to do. I can add more spend, but for what, the same results?

 

[Judique]

Hunter boots still seem to be pretty popular here, especially with the ladies. We had a really wet winter, and I saw a lot of Hunter boots out.

@Lain - do you work in the fashion industry? I mean aside from your reselling? (Trying to update my spreadsheet.)

 

[Judique]

No reason our benevolent dictator should be kept in the dark on the subject!

Target does luxury designer/brand collaborations from time to time. Items can include apparel, accessories, pet items, home decor, etc. Sometimes the collaborations are extremely popular like Missoni (2011) or sometimes a bunch of the stuff gets returned or ends up clearance like the Neiman Marcus line (2012). The latest was Vineyard Vines which is a preppy style with a pink whale logo. If you've ever been at YC or GF you will 100% have seen people wearing it or buying it in the gift shops. Same with Lilly Pulitzer which has lots of colorful floral/nautical patterns (also a Target line from 2015)

The key here (I think) is that when Target does their collaborations, the prices are maybe 20-40 per cent lower than what you would pay usually. So, ebayers and others go nuts trying to grab the items.

 

[elgerber]

I got a PM from another member, also having the same issue.
From what I can tell in looking at my account, there is nothing not allowed. There is zero reason for what they are saying. I have looked at the list of things that do not earn bonus miles, it's the same list that does not earn regular miles either.
April statement, spent $5845.39-$195 fee = 5650.39. Was credited 5649 miles for "eligible purchases" (this is the wording on my statement) and 150 extra miles for the Delta purchase.
May statement, spent 474.12 - 46.28 in returns = 427.84. Credited 432 miles for "eligible purchases". Those total 6081 miles in "eligible purchases, which matches myspend. I have since spent another $215. And yet last night he tells me that only $4671.17 in eligible charges have been made. This contradicts what my statements from them say.
I just don't even know what to do. I can add more spend, but for what, the same results?

And I just called, and the man on the phone says my qualified spend is $6078 and it will take 6-8 weeks. Grrrrrr. So do I spend more, or not?

 

[Judique]

I had to google the other lines tonight. Had no idea what Hunter boots were lol. I’m clearly not a fashionista

aww @wendow - some people can be fashionistas while wearing a brown potato sack or a paper bag dress. Style is more than a brand name - it is carriage and a sense of presence that some people just have naturally. That big smile your pictures always have probably make people focus on it rather than what you are wearing.

 

[elgerber]

For the record, I am not a fashionista LOL, I don't know anything about any of these brands except what I read here and on Facebook.

 

[orangecuse]

We are in the land of LP and VV. Boat shoes and floral dresses, baby. If anyone likes that style but not that price Belk has a comparable line called Crown and Ivy at much more reasonable prices.

 

[Killer Fish]

Yep. They are insisting that they didn't do anything wrong. And hope I fly with them again. Um... I don't think so. I don't have followers on Twitter so I'm guessing they'll just ignore me since my tweets don't go far.

They will most likely never do anything and unfortunately the majority of the rest of the airlines are all just as awful. It is basically a commodity and they have no real reason to try and make things right due to limited options for air travel. American messed up my honeymoon flights but luckily I caught it ahead of time and was able to change things in the long run but they took no responsibility and actually insinuated that I was a liar. I still can't stand American however if I have miles for a flight or they are the cheapest/at the times I need I will continue to fly them.

 

[hulagirl]

And I just called, and the man on the phone says my qualified spend is $6078 and it will take 6-8 weeks. Grrrrrr. So do I spend more, or not?

I'm really surprised to read all the stories of folks having a hard time with Amex. For almost four years now, I have earned well over a million MR points and have had pretty terrific experiences with them, handling nearly everything via chat. Maybe it's because Amex was my only game for so long. I jumped in before I ever learned anything about Chase and the importance of starting there, I don't know. I did finally get another Chase card after many many years and one thing I LOVE is that they provide a progress bar so that it's very clear where you are on your MSR journey. As far as I know, Amex doesn't do that and could learn a thing or two.

I'm sorry you're feeling so stressed about it, Erika. It really shouldn't be that way. In my experience... Amex is as slow as molasses at times, but they usually end up doing the right thing. It just sometimes takes 2 statement cycles (and occasionally more). If you've kept careful records on your spend, I would rest in that. I think Amex has been vilified to the point that everyone is hyper afraid of them, and it's a shame. My family and I have had some of the best travel experiences of our lives because of them.

 

[MKTokyo]

Leaving for France/WDW tomorrow morning I wish we could use a portkey or just apparate there because I hate these 12-16 hour flights. But, it's worth it.

I don't know if this will help, but I do the gathering of the stuff on one day and then do the actual packing on another day. It feels less daunting if I break it up a bit.

I plan outfits one day, gather items another day, and pack the third day. I have to do it in stages or I get overwhelmed, don't know where to start, and don't do anything at all. I have to do that with everything in life, though. The Todoist app saves me all the time.

 

[WVMomof3]

Who was it that recently said Discover has no Foreign transaction fees? I can't find it anywhere in my DD's paperwork that even mentions it. I did see online it talking about it, but I couldn't tell if that was just for the Discover Miles card or any Discover card. She has the Discover It Student card. She has access to one of my Visas without fee, so she can use that if necessary. Any tips on spending money in Canada? DD is spending several days in Montreal with friends.

 

[amalone1013]

 

[PolyRob]

HAHA Its just so very common for me to see people wearing all of these brands in the Northeast. I also worked at Target during some of the earlier collaborations so its on my radar when new lines are released. I am probably one of the least fashionable people I know (I say this as I type from work wearing a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers while a coworker next to me has a VV shirt and vest on)

 

[elgerber]

I'm really surprised to read all the stories of folks having a hard time with Amex. For almost four years now, I have earned well over a million MR points and have had pretty terrific experiences with them, handling nearly everything via chat. Maybe it's because Amex was my only game for so long. I jumped in before I ever learned anything about Chase and the importance of starting there, I don't know. I did finally get another Chase card after many many years and one thing I LOVE is that they provide a progress bar so that it's very clear where you are on your MSR journey. As far as I know, Amex doesn't do that and could learn a thing or two.

I'm sorry you're feeling so stressed about it, Erika. It really shouldn't be that way. In my experience... Amex is as slow as molasses at times, but they usually end up doing the right thing. It just sometimes takes 2 statement cycles (and occasionally more). If you've kept careful records on your spend, I would rest in that. I think Amex has been vilified to the point that everyone is hyper afraid of them, and it's a shame. My family and I have had some of the best travel experiences of our lives because of them.

I have been with Amex for 13 years, and NEVER had an issue before. My bonuses have always credited, no questions needed, within a couple of days of meeting the spend. This is a first for me.

 

[elgerber]

View attachment 402037

ick ick ick!!!!!!

 

[MKTokyo]

I'm really surprised to read all the stories of folks having a hard time with Amex. For almost four years now, I have earned well over a million MR points and have had pretty terrific experiences with them, handling nearly everything via chat. Maybe it's because Amex was my only game for so long. I jumped in before I ever learned anything about Chase and the importance of starting there, I don't know. I did finally get another Chase card after many many years and one thing I LOVE is that they provide a progress bar so that it's very clear where you are on your MSR journey. As far as I know, Amex doesn't do that and could learn a thing or two.

I'm sorry you're feeling so stressed about it, Erika. It really shouldn't be that way. In my experience... Amex is as slow as molasses at times, but they usually end up doing the right thing. It just sometimes takes 2 statement cycles (and occasionally more). If you've kept careful records on your spend, I would rest in that. I think Amex has been vilified to the point that everyone is hyper afraid of them, and it's a shame. My family and I have had some of the best travel experiences of our lives because of them.

They have been good to me so far, too. I get my bonuses on time & the perks I get from the Plat make me feel like travel royalty. But they have absolutely screwed over many people & their RAT really, for lack of a better word, sucks.

(Borrowing my favorite image from Doc)

 

[MKTokyo]

View attachment 402037

 

[WVMomof3]

View attachment 402037

At the end of May? Yuck yuck yuck!

 

[hulagirl]

I have been with Amex for 13 years, and NEVER had an issue before. My bonuses have always credited, no questions needed, within a couple of days of meeting the spend. This is a first for me.

Maybe it's a co-brand thing? I've had good luck with the Hilton co-brand but have yet to pick up an airline card. I can feel your frustration and I really do hope it works out for you soon.

But they have absolutely screwed over many people & their RAT really, for lack of a better word, sucks.

I had a nightmare experience with the Marriott merger that left me without a 7 night certificate and no amount of escalating would rectify it. I was on the phone for hours tearing my hair out and felt a lot like Erika is feeling now. It seems to me like some of the consistency of years past has been lost. I really hope it is not a downward trend.