I love credit cards so much! v5.0 - 2022 (see first page for add'l details)

[platamama]

When do Cap1 bonus's hit? when you make min spend or when the next statement closes?

When you make min spend. YMMV, but it only took 1 business day for my redeemed points to show up on the account. Then I only paid the remaining balance due by the payment due date.

 

[platamama]

I am so sorry that happened to you and your family was so fortunate to all be home at the same time.

I hadn't felt ready to share this because it is still very traumatic for me, but I will now. A few months back I received a call from my young adult daughter, sobbing hysterically. Then a police officer gets on the phone and tells me she had been in an accident near Walmart, but that she was fine and could I come pick her up? I say of course and ask a few questions and then he asks me to speak with her again to just calm her down and let her know I'm on my way. She gets on the phone again crying and begging me to come get her. Then she whispers "They're not who they say they are, Mom. They're not police." The phone gets ripped away from her and then my nightmare starts. The guys says okay, we're not police, your daughter saw something she wasn't supposed to and now we have her. He's very anxious, saying he doesn't want to hurt her but he doesn't know what to do with her and can he trust that if I come get her I will make sure she doesn't turn them in? Anyway, I'm just not able to continue fully with the rest of the story, but know that for hours on end I was tortured like this.

Apparently this is known as a virtual kidnapping. It feels incredibly real in the moment. When someone sounds like your child, you will do anything, move any mountain, put yourself in any danger to make them safe. I am not an easily fooled person. I won't even let a salesperson sell me the thing I came to a store to buy. My guard is ALWAYS up. But I would swear it was my daughter on the phone. Anyways, the techniques they use are very sophisticated, whether it be IT techniques or psychological techniques. And the experience is very, very controlling. They don't allow you to put them on speaker and they constantly keep you busy, so that you don't have time to reach out for help or fact check etc. And you are so so fearful you'll do something wrong that will endanger your child. Anyways, it's really, really awful the ends people will go to for money.

I think I've heard a very simplified version of this, more like "your niece is calling from Europe and she lost her wallet" or whatever, and I always chalked it up to elderly people falling for these scams. I really had no idea how sophisticated they were. I have also heard a variation where when you post details about your upcoming vacations on social, they'll target your parents, etc that you've been kidnapped abroad.

Here's just one example https://www.washingtonpost.com/loca...082690-8963-11e6-875e-2c1bfe943b66_story.html

That's horrifying, and that mental and emotional stress is not something you can forget. I'm sorry you were subjected to that.

I didn't mention in the call that my mom got, she also got "my brother" in tears on the other end of the call, and she wasn't sure if that was really him or not because a person's voice is not the same if they've been crying. She immediately and adamantly told the "sheriff" on the other end that she needed ME (her daughter) to talk to him for her (she has a heavy accent so this is entirely believable) and I think that put a stumbling block in the scam. Makes me wonder if I should answer the phone in a foreign language when I don't recognize the number?? Hmm... Most of the time I let the answering machine pick up so I can screen the call, but not always, so maybe this would help with solicitation phone calls too.

 

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

Okay here's my next question. I was looking at my accounts on Credit Karma to see my longest account and make sure my kids are both AUs on it. It looks like it's my Freedom which my 17yo is an AU on. My 2nd oldest is a Macy's Citi card I didn't know I have w/ a $600 limit. I'm okay if they close it right? I had no idea I even have this account, LOL.

Also seems I'm still an AU on an account w/ my ex. He's too lazy to remove me from the accounts. W/ Amex I had to call and remove myself, but I had the card still. W/ this one (Wells Fargo) I have NO idea! I asked him to do it, but I know he won't. I mean he had to put a new engine into his jeep that was 2 years old because he NEVER got an oil change. (Can you tell who did everything in our marriage, LOL). I wouldn't care, but seems he still sucks at finances and is carrying a balance (and 60% of his limit on that card). So I'd like it pulled from "my" records. Can I call Wells Fargo and ask to be removed? Suggestions considering I don't know what card it is, or the acct number, etc. I just know asking him to do it will get me NO WHERE!

 

[chattadisser]

Okay here's my next question. I was looking at my accounts on Credit Karma to see my longest account and make sure my kids are both AUs on it. It looks like it's my Freedom which my 17yo is an AU on. My 2nd oldest is a Macy's Citi card I didn't know I have w/ a $600 limit. I'm okay if they close it right? I had no idea I even have this account, LOL.

Also seems I'm still an AU on an account w/ my ex. He's too lazy to remove me from the accounts. W/ Amex I had to call and remove myself, but I had the card still. W/ this one (Wells Fargo) I have NO idea! I asked him to do it, but I know he won't. I mean he had to put a new engine into his jeep that was 2 years old because he NEVER got an oil change. (Can you tell who did everything in our marriage, LOL). I wouldn't care, but seems he still sucks at finances and is carrying a balance (and 60% of his limit on that card). So I'd like it pulled from "my" records. Can I call Wells Fargo and ask to be removed? Suggestions considering I don't know what card it is, or the acct number, etc. I just know asking him to do it will get me NO WHERE!

Can you call them and explain that you are no longer married and want to remove yourself? They might ask you send in some paperwork but at least it might get you removed.

 

[Alexle2007]

For those booking Undercover Tourist cars, what a nightmare it is when you need to cancel the rental. Since you prepay for the car, they need to verify that you did not pick up the car before you can get your refund. It then takes time for that refund to process and post. I thought it had been canceled in advance but when I got to the counter in Ft. Myers to pick up, they tried to use that reservation and I had to give them the number for the right reservation.

What a mess!

We are at the Hilton Marco Island using FNC. It is nice having dining options across the street but the hotel and beach are just ok. The beach has too many shells for my liking but at least you can enjoy the ocean without a lot of seaweed and it is like bath water, it is so warm. I doubt we will return here. We head to Clearwater on Wed which is more my jam.

 

[DogCat]

NOTE: Off-topic but wanted to see if any of you have heard of this............................

So DW just had a new type of scam call which I haven't seen before, but it has me a little concerned. Basically, someone called her from what appeared to be my cellphone - came up with my name on her caller id in the format that she has it stored on her phone. They proceeded to tell her I had been in a bad accident and I was currently being airlifted to hospital. They claimed to be from a third party company that acts as liaison between the medical facility and the families. She did not get a name of the company - and is not sure they ever gave one. They were saying they needed to verify my my wife's details so that they could put her on an authorized list to receive updates and visitation details.

Unfortunately, at this point DW told them they must be mistaken as she knew I was in the house......and the scammer hung up. Personally, I would have toyed with them a bit to find out what details they were after.

However, it does concern me that they could spoof my cell number and know to call to my wife on her cell. That indicates that they have both of our details and/or one of our phones has been hacked. It also scares me that had I not have been in the house - who knows what my wife would have given them - she would have been panicked thinking I had been in a serious accident. I am pretty sure they would have been after Social Security# and/or Drivers Licence - who knows what reason they might have come up with to request credit card details.

Anyone ever heard of this scam before?

I had not heard of this scam but it reminds me of something very odd that happened to me about a month ago. I was at home when I got a call on my cell phone from my home phone. It confused me because I was looking at my home phone and nobody was using it but my caller ID was using the exact name I have in my contacts (which is not a standard name.) I thought it was some type of weird technical glitch and I did not answer it. Maybe I was about to be targeted by some type of scam. UGH now I am wondering if my phone's contacts have been hacked.

 

[afan]

I had not heard of this scam but it reminds me of something very odd that happened to me about a month ago. I was at home when I got a call on my cell phone from my home phone. It confused me because I was looking at my home phone and nobody was using it but my caller ID was using the exact name I have in my contacts (which is not a standard name.) I thought it was some type of weird technical glitch and I did not answer it. Maybe I was about to be targeted by some type of scam. UGH now I am wondering if my phone's contacts have been hacked.

Generally when you get a call from a number in your address book whatever you have it entered as is what shows up on your caller id.

Phone numbers are attached to public records. It's why you get calls/texts trying to buy your house. I get them for my mom's house and I'm not even on any of that, just live in it. She would occasionally get them for my house in NC which she was never associated with.

I wouldn't worry about your phone or contacta being hacked.

 

[Psychodisney]

For those booking Undercover Tourist cars, what a nightmare it is when you need to cancel the rental. Since you prepay for the car, they need to verify that you did not pick up the car before you can get your refund. It then takes time for that refund to process and post. I thought it had been canceled in advance but when I got to the counter in Ft. Myers to pick up, they tried to use that reservation and I had to give them the number for the right reservation.

What a mess!

We are at the Hilton Marco Island using FNC. It is nice having dining options across the street but the hotel and beach are just ok. The beach has too many shells for my liking but at least you can enjoy the ocean without a lot of seaweed and it is like bath water, it is so warm. I doubt we will return here. We head to Clearwater on Wed which is more my jam.

Come check out the Naples beaches before you head North! You won’t believe how different the beach is here vs. Marco Island. Good to know about the Hilton. Other people haven’t been impressed either.

 

[magickingdomprincess]

For those booking Undercover Tourist cars, what a nightmare it is when you need to cancel the rental. Since you prepay for the car, they need to verify that you did not pick up the car before you can get your refund. It then takes time for that refund to process and post. I thought it had been canceled in advance but when I got to the counter in Ft. Myers to pick up, they tried to use that reservation and I had to give them the number for the right reservation.

What a mess!

We are at the Hilton Marco Island using FNC. It is nice having dining options across the street but the hotel and beach are just ok. The beach has too many shells for my liking but at least you can enjoy the ocean without a lot of seaweed and it is like bath water, it is so warm. I doubt we will return here. We head to Clearwater on Wed which is more my jam.

How far in advance did you cancel? We had an Orlando UCT car rental that we cancelled in June and didn't have to wait too long for a refund. We ended up finding a slightly cheaper rate thru Costco/Alamo that included the free second driver.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Marco Island. I thought about using some Hilton FNC's there but we used them at the Hilton Clearwater instead. We only spent 2 nights there but we had fun. We rented jet skis and had a blast on them!

 

[AndreaDM]

Just a reminder, but I'm sure you all already know and do this, but make sure you travel with at least 2 CC! I had to go out of town for work last week (I turned down a corp card so I could accumulate my own points lol), and on the way down, pulled out my card to pay for a glass of wine. I think I tucked the card under my leg thinking I'd put it in my purse later since my purse was shoved under the seat in front of me. You see where this is going? I get off the plane and am waiting on the hotel shuttle and realize I don't have my card! I immediately got on my Chase app and reported it lost, and thankfully I had an Amex card with me as well. I usually have 5-6 cards on me, but was only taking a carry on and switched to a smaller purse (one night trip) so really pared down what I normally take. I always have a non-Amex card with me as there are some places that still don't take it (looking at you Wendy's!). I do have cards stored in my mobile wallet so there's always a way to pay, but that can be a hassle sometimes as well. I think of myself as a savvy traveler and couldn't believe I did that!

 

[georgina]

Just a reminder, but I'm sure you all already know and do this, but make sure you travel with at least 2 CC! I had to go out of town for work last week (I turned down a corp card so I could accumulate my own points lol), and on the way down, pulled out my card to pay for a glass of wine. I think I tucked the card under my leg thinking I'd put it in my purse later since my purse was shoved under the seat in front of me. You see where this is going? I get off the plane and am waiting on the hotel shuttle and realize I don't have my card! I immediately got on my Chase app and reported it lost, and thankfully I had an Amex card with me as well. I usually have 5-6 cards on me, but was only taking a carry on and switched to a smaller purse (one night trip) so really pared down what I normally take. I always have a non-Amex card with me as there are some places that still don't take it (looking at you Wendy's!). I do have cards stored in my mobile wallet so there's always a way to pay, but that can be a hassle sometimes as well. I think of myself as a savvy traveler and couldn't believe I did that!

Always a good reminder. We have a situation right now where DH is on an international trip and I will be traveling separately. Some of our cards have the same # so if something happens on his trip (lost, fraud causing cancellation & replacement) I can't use that card. So have to have a few extras with me.

 

[leeniewdw]

My worry is, day 1 we're going to be driving bout 3 hours to where we're going to tour/stay. So I have to get from DUB to there on no real sleep. If we were just walking around, etc....then I wouldn't be as worried.

The Destination Experts at Trip Advisor (locals) really hate when people land on overnight flights and then take off on long drives, on the opposite side of the car and roads.

I would tend to want to land in a hotel room if I was arriving at 5am. Our flight (next June) arrives at 8:45am and we're driving about an hour outside of Dublin for our first overnight. It's on a Motorway straight shot from Dublin, so we're hoping we can manage that and then have lunch and keep moving. I would be shocked if we didn't have some sort of nap once our room is ready (that's not unusual for us on any vacation, lol, and we keep pretty busy), but it'll depend how much sleep we can get in Aer Lingus Biz.

 

[afan]

Always a good reminder. We have a situation right now where DH is on an international trip and I will be traveling separately. Some of our cards have the same # so if something happens on his trip (lost, fraud causing cancellation & replacement) I can't use that card. So have to have a few extras with me.

If they are replacement cards and that's why they have the same number I still wouldn't use the one's he's using. The issuer could tag it as fraud if it's used in and out of the country.

 

[leeniewdw]

Speaking of fraud. This morning my son checked in to see if I'd purchased something from Amazon using his CC/Amex as the payment. I hadn't of course, but thought maybe it was my annual Prime Renewal (the amount was in the ballpark) that somehow ended up being billed to his. He had his Amex stored in my account as he sometimes uses it to get free shipping but it's not the default. When I checked, the amount wasn't the Prime charges (his charged amount was a little less) and my renewal date isn't until 8/11.

Then he said that Amex declined the charges and he sent me the screenshot of the email he got. It showed "Amazon Marketplace". I checked any orders in my account: none. I checked cancelled orders: none.

Does anyone know of a scam after a CC has been stolen where they try to sneak thru charges that "look" like Amazon? Amex must have known something was up because they declined the charges and he's definitely used that same cc with real amazon before.

I told him he should follow up with Amex, may be time to get a new acct #.

 

[Alexle2007]

How far in advance did you cancel? We had an Orlando UCT car rental that we cancelled in June and didn't have to wait too long for a refund. We ended up finding a slightly cheaper rate thru Costco/Alamo that included the free second driver.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy Marco Island. I thought about using some Hilton FNC's there but we used them at the Hilton Clearwater instead. We only spent 2 nights there but we had fun. We rented jet skis and had a blast on them!

The one positive is not having to fight for pool chairs. I guess most people are at the beach because there are plenty of lounge chairs available at 10:30 am and they don’t open the pool area until 8 am.

How was the Hilton in Clearwater? We have only stayed at the Sand Pearl (our 1st trip) and since then have stayed at Hyatt Regency?

 

[afan]

Speaking of fraud. This morning my son checked in to see if I'd purchased something from Amazon using his CC/Amex as the payment. I hadn't of course, but thought maybe it was my annual Prime Renewal (the amount was in the ballpark) that somehow ended up being billed to his. He had his Amex stored in my account as he sometimes uses it to get free shipping but it's not the default. When I checked, the amount wasn't the Prime charges (his charged amount was a little less) and my renewal date isn't until 8/11.

Then he said that Amex declined the charges and he sent me the screenshot of the email he got. It showed "Amazon Marketplace". I checked any orders in my account: none. I checked cancelled orders: none.

Does anyone know of a scam after a CC has been stolen where they try to sneak thru charges that "look" like Amazon? Amex must have known something was up because they declined the charges and he's definitely used that same cc with real amazon before.

I told him he should follow up with Amex, may be time to get a new acct #.

They probably were using it on their own amazon account. He should call and get a new card if they haven't already done that.

 

[afan]

Used a dl gc and my plat & aspire to buy my dlr flights last week. Both credited today so still working. Just make sure flight is under credit amount after gc. Made that mistake before and it didn't credit.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

The new Instacart + benefit with Chase: has anyone used it yet? We've got Freedom cards, so 3 months free plus a $10 quarterly statement credit.

From what I can tell, the membership gets you free delivery and reduced service fees (although I can't find examples of the reduced fee published). Given that Instacart jacks up their in cart prices and still charges a percentage service fee, I'm not sure if the $10 credit would make up for the cost compared to just doing a Walmart delivery. We're looking at breakfast foods and snacks for an 11 day trip, so not a crazy long list.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[CyndiLouWho]

The new Instacart + benefit with Chase: has anyone used it yet? We've got Freedom cards, so 3 months free plus a $10 quarterly statement credit.

From what I can tell, the membership gets you free delivery and reduced service fees (although I can't find examples of the reduced fee published). Given that Instacart jacks up their in cart prices and still charges a percentage service fee, I'm not sure if the $10 credit would make up for the cost compared to just doing a Walmart delivery. We're looking at breakfast foods and snacks for an 11 day trip, so not a crazy long list.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

I use Instacart all the time and have had the + when it had a different name. If you pickup they give you a credit back. I mostly do pickup at Aldi and the prices aren’t significantly more but I don’t do Walmart so no idea how it compares.

 

[magickingdomprincess]

The one positive is not having to fight for pool chairs. I guess most people are at the beach because there are plenty of lounge chairs available at 10:30 am and they don’t open the pool area until 8 am.

How was the Hilton in Clearwater? We have only stayed at the Sand Pearl (our 1st trip) and since then have stayed at Hyatt Regency?

We liked the Hilton Clearwater. It was very close to the Hyatt Clearwater that we had stayed at a few years ago and enjoyed. It had very easy access to the beach, and the beach itself was nice. Not too many rocks, and it had plenty of shallow water to wade in. It was right next to the pier and water sport rentals. There were several options to use our Diamond $30/day credit at (we ate at The Spotted Donkey Mexican restaurant and Starbucks), and there were lots of restaurants/shops within walking distance. A couple of negatives would be that our room was on the street side, and very close to a bar. On Friday night it was kind of loud, although it didn’t bother us too much. If you’re a light sleeper it would definitely not be good. Also, the room was had was only full-size beds, and the bathroom was on the small side. Oh, and the beach chair/cabana rental prices seemed pretty high. We don’t typically ever rent chairs or cabanas since we’re pretty much in the water with the kids the whole time, but I know that’s important to a lot of people. Overall, I would stay there again, but I think I’d prefer the Hyatt because it had a full kitchen. My DH said he preferred the Hilton because they had more hot water (I didn't remember that being an issue but apparently he did).

As a side note, if anyone has suggestions on nice hotels/areas to go to in Florida that aren’t too far from Orlando, we’re also up for suggestions! We’ve been to Clearwater twice and Disney Vero Beach twice, adding a few days on to our Orlando trips. I’m not sure our family would enjoy more than 2-3 nights just at the beach, but it’s so nice to relax for a few days before/after going to the parks!