Why Credit Card Travel Compensation May Disappear
Among the benefits of credit cards for travel rewards are rules offering loans that can void related expenses from your statement. It’s like getting things for free! But right now, some credit card holders are finding their American Express loans being taken.
Customer claims on sites such as Doctor of Credit and Reddit indicate that American Express is clearing its travel credit system for airline purchases offered on some of its cards. Refunds – the term used to refer to a refund of an already paid fee – appear to refer to refunds that were applied to inappropriate purchases, or to expenses that were also reimbursed by the seller.
For example, one Reddit user received an email from American Express stating that Delta gift cards they purchased with their credit card were not refundable travel credit; this user now has a card balance for the amount of gift cards. This despite the fact that they made these purchases before the beginning of 2020.
Credit cards offering travel loans will automatically detect eligible purchases and issue credit that virtually destroys them. Airline fees for checked baggage, upgrades and in-flight refreshments are generally refundable, but some cards offer credit for any travel-related purchase. Once you reach your credit limit of travel for a year, it will disappear as long as long as your card will not be extended (and you do not pay your annual fee).
Credits can be a big selling factor for cards with annual commissions in the $ 300 to $ 500 range, which makes you feel like the commission isn’t that high.
But when you don’t have to submit those eligible purchases for a refund by your card issuer, that means you trust the system to do it right every time.
Now that American Express appears to be closing loopholes in its system, affected customers are unable to recover their travel loans from previous years. And in many cases, this means that the old purchase could haunt you again in the form of a new or higher balance on your credit card.
We have contacted American Express for more information and will update this post when we receive a response. In the meantime, if you’re worried about your card issuer returning your travel points, here’s what to do.
Check your card limits
When you sign up, the card may advertise a certain amount of credits for “eligible travel purchases,” but that’s not enough for you to keep track of your account.
Please read the terms of use for your card for details on your card. This document will clarify what is included and what is not (for example, travelers checks and foreign currency are likely to be excluded). It will also explain how and when you will see that your loan has been applied. In most cases, the correct refund will be on your card that recognizes the category code of the merchant you purchased from.
While you’re looking at the fine print, save it as a PDF and place it in a searchable place on your computer, or print a copy if you’ve lost the one you got when you opened the map. You may be wondering how often you need to refer to it.
Check each statement
Once you know what is eligible and what is not, you can keep a close eye on each monthly statement. It may take a while for credits to show up in your tab, so you may have to play a match between eligible purchases and credits to make sure they are correct. You can’t choose – it’s really first-come-first-served as your card is calculated for that dollar amount – so don’t panic if you see purchases you didn’t expect to receive.
For example, one of my reward cards quickly recognized my downtown parking fees as a ride and started crediting my account for $ 4 to $ 10 at a time. But look, loans are loans. Everything was in line with my monthly report, so everything was in order.
If you spot a problem – say you purchased an airline gift card and you know it is not eligible – you should contact your card issuer to report the error as soon as possible. They can quickly set up your account so you don’t have to risk your balance being bumped up later.
Don’t worry about loans
If you are looking to buy a new card, do not overestimate the power of the vouchers. This action by American Express shows how volatile rewards can be: one rule change or accounting error could put you at risk of losing your account balance completely.
When evaluating cards, consider if you would be just as interested without this couple of hundred dollars in travel credit. Are you still thrilled with the prospect of signing up? Go ahead, continue. But if that travel loan was something that attracted you or helped justify the high annual fee, just remember that this “bonus” could be changed or canceled at any time.