Alternative to Amex Platinum?
Discussion
Hi all,
I use an American Express Platinum card for all my spending. It’s a charge card, and was pretty good from a points perspective, plus travel insurance for the family.
The main reason I got it though was for the airport lounge access (via priority pass). However I don’t travel as much anymore, and the charge has gone up from £450 to £575. For no discernible reason, the only new benefit is that you get a metal card.
Are there any alternatives that you can recommend?
Thanks
I use an American Express Platinum card for all my spending. It’s a charge card, and was pretty good from a points perspective, plus travel insurance for the family.
The main reason I got it though was for the airport lounge access (via priority pass). However I don’t travel as much anymore, and the charge has gone up from £450 to £575. For no discernible reason, the only new benefit is that you get a metal card.
Are there any alternatives that you can recommend?
Thanks
underwhelmist said:
Pretty much any other credit card in the known universe. £500 pa? FFS!
It’s a fair point. But it almost made sense when I was using the travel insurance, the lounge card twice a month and the points were adding up to a decent amount. I need a card to take over for my day to day spending. I could use my bank debit or credit card.
HSBC premier world elite mastercard is where I’m moving to, the HSBC premier current account already has the travel insurance included.
Otherwise the IHG creation credit card get you approx 0.8p cash back in hotel points and a free night (on a £10k annum spend) , if you opt for the premium card at £80 per annum
Otherwise the IHG creation credit card get you approx 0.8p cash back in hotel points and a free night (on a £10k annum spend) , if you opt for the premium card at £80 per annum
Yeah it’s a tough one, the benefits even as a frequent traveller now are marginal, if that.
Previously I would have valued the worldwide travel insurance at about 150, then the lounge access at around 200. The other benefits such a hotel status and fine hotels and resorts making up the difference or even allowing me with man maths and some great room upgrades to say it was value for money. It might not be the case any more.
Previously I would have valued the worldwide travel insurance at about 150, then the lounge access at around 200. The other benefits such a hotel status and fine hotels and resorts making up the difference or even allowing me with man maths and some great room upgrades to say it was value for money. It might not be the case any more.
Moominho said:
the charge has gone up from £450 to £575. For no discernible reason, the only new benefit is that you get a metal card.
I think I read on HfP that there is also going to be a £10/month credit with Addison Lee taxis. Obviously very niche but I can probably divert a trip a month away from Uber to offset the increase.I'm considering Revolut.
Provide LoungeKey access and travel insurance on the paid cards (either £6 or £12 per month). The £12 a month account comes with a metal card
https://www.revolut.com/legal/lounge-pass/
Provide LoungeKey access and travel insurance on the paid cards (either £6 or £12 per month). The £12 a month account comes with a metal card
https://www.revolut.com/legal/lounge-pass/
The benefits of having a Platinum or Centurion charge card aren’t really around lounge access and stuff like that.
So I’d suggest that if things like Priority Pass or Dragon Pass or whatever are more a priority then either get these services direct or get them from pretty much every other vendor out there supporting ‘lifestyle’ options.
The platinum and black charge cards, and options like Coutts Silk etc is mainly geared for a key audience: heavy, heavy travel, big spending and proper 24/7 concierge with no fooling around.
If you don’t need auto enrolment to the top tier hotel, car hire, airline programmes, are happy with a fixed $2,5k whatever monthly spend limit and don’t use a concierge regularly, then you can get the fringe benefits elsewhere.
So I’d suggest that if things like Priority Pass or Dragon Pass or whatever are more a priority then either get these services direct or get them from pretty much every other vendor out there supporting ‘lifestyle’ options.
The platinum and black charge cards, and options like Coutts Silk etc is mainly geared for a key audience: heavy, heavy travel, big spending and proper 24/7 concierge with no fooling around.
If you don’t need auto enrolment to the top tier hotel, car hire, airline programmes, are happy with a fixed $2,5k whatever monthly spend limit and don’t use a concierge regularly, then you can get the fringe benefits elsewhere.
nyt said:
I'm considering Revolut.
Provide LoungeKey access and travel insurance on the paid cards (either £6 or £12 per month). The £12 a month account comes with a metal card
https://www.revolut.com/legal/lounge-pass/
That reads to me as though you then purchase a pass for each visit? Or am i reading it wrong? Provide LoungeKey access and travel insurance on the paid cards (either £6 or £12 per month). The £12 a month account comes with a metal card
https://www.revolut.com/legal/lounge-pass/
I have the Santander world elite card and that includes lounge key membership for lounge entry. No travel insurance though.
tigerkoi said:
The platinum and black charge cards, and options like Coutts Silk etc is mainly geared for a key audience: heavy, heavy travel, big spending and proper 24/7 concierge with no fooling around.
Anyone who thinks the Amex Plat gets them a proper 24/7 concierge is going to be disappointed.QuartzDad said:
tigerkoi said:
The platinum and black charge cards, and options like Coutts Silk etc is mainly geared for a key audience: heavy, heavy travel, big spending and proper 24/7 concierge with no fooling around.
Anyone who thinks the Amex Plat gets them a proper 24/7 concierge is going to be disappointed.In some countries they’ve merged behind the scenes, the Plat & Cent teams. 90% of the i,e it’s no big deal and neither set of customers is much the worse/better off.
It’s all relative though. You can go beyond card services and sign up with some BS like Quintessentially or something. But in the world of cards I’ve seen someone with a snazzy Chase Palladium get extremely disappointed!
I dropped them when they wrote to me offering a Centurion card (the pack must of cost a couple of hundred) and when I accepted they wrote back saying I had been declined!!!
I called them and was told it was a mistake (all down to a payment I was a few day late on, a few months earlier, as I was on the other side of the world and needed to physically be in the UK to authorise a transfer - which I had informed them of in advance and they acknowledged) and they offered to send my the new card by return.
I got another rejection letter instead (for something I had never applied for)!!!
I called again and said this was ridiculous. I had never asked for one in the first place. I cancelled my platinum card over the phone and asked them to move my quarter of a million air miles. They told me (on the same phone call) that they couldn't do this as I had just cancelled the card and this included cancelling the air miles.
The story actually gets worse . Having being told the final settlement amount for the balance that month - and paying it there and then - they sent me a further demand for twenty something pounds in outstanding overnight interest, which I refused to pay.
This is in my credit score today as a default.
This was all 20 years ago, so I doubt under current rules this would apply today. Nevertheless, I would not touch them ever again and don't need the" powerfully built company director" status such cards thrive upon (and maybe I did need this validation in my younger years).
Edited for typo
I called them and was told it was a mistake (all down to a payment I was a few day late on, a few months earlier, as I was on the other side of the world and needed to physically be in the UK to authorise a transfer - which I had informed them of in advance and they acknowledged) and they offered to send my the new card by return.
I got another rejection letter instead (for something I had never applied for)!!!
I called again and said this was ridiculous. I had never asked for one in the first place. I cancelled my platinum card over the phone and asked them to move my quarter of a million air miles. They told me (on the same phone call) that they couldn't do this as I had just cancelled the card and this included cancelling the air miles.
The story actually gets worse . Having being told the final settlement amount for the balance that month - and paying it there and then - they sent me a further demand for twenty something pounds in outstanding overnight interest, which I refused to pay.
This is in my credit score today as a default.
This was all 20 years ago, so I doubt under current rules this would apply today. Nevertheless, I would not touch them ever again and don't need the" powerfully built company director" status such cards thrive upon (and maybe I did need this validation in my younger years).
Edited for typo
Edited by JulianPH on Monday 27th May 16:28
I wonder how many people take out genuinely premium cards or bank accounts just for the bragging rights. My wife’s colleague tried to persuade her to start banking with Coutts and freely admitted that he did so purely so that he could flash their card around, which was surprising as he doesn’t come across as being that type.
QuartzDad said:
tigerkoi said:
The platinum and black charge cards, and options like Coutts Silk etc is mainly geared for a key audience: heavy, heavy travel, big spending and proper 24/7 concierge with no fooling around.
Anyone who thinks the Amex Plat gets them a proper 24/7 concierge is going to be disappointed.To me, the only reason for the Platinum card are the bonus points you get in the first year. Not interested for Yr2 etc.
Many better cash back cards - I'm currently getting up to 5.25% cash back on my spending (admittedly US not UK).
bad company said:
I used to have Amex Platinum but found it poor value at £400 and the 3% FOREX fees.
I now use BA Amex Black in the UK, Halifax Clarity overseas and Revolut for small purchases. Works for me.
How do you get a BA Amex Black card, and how does this compare to the BA Amex Platinum in terms of costs, benefits etc?I now use BA Amex Black in the UK, Halifax Clarity overseas and Revolut for small purchases. Works for me.
Bob
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