[hl0m4n]

any of you guys with amex noticing more shops not accepting them?

in the past month, 5 of my favorite restaurants stopped accepting and today when my friend bought a bmw, not only the dealership but the whole group (about 13 dealerships) stopped accepting amex as well.

i understand amex charges more from merchants, but is it that much higher than visa/mastercard?

[m3ray]

Not to sound bigoted, but I have noticed many Asian businesses don't take them anymore in NY.

Yeah it's because AMEX has high transaction fees to the merchant. I forget how many percent per transaction but its higher than other CC companies.

[Kaedeh]

Processing fees are almost double iirc, so a lot of small businesses wont take them.

[finaloption]

it's not the processing fees so much how Amex sides with their customers over vendors when dealing with disputes

[kscarrol]

Originally Posted by finaloption

it's not the processing fees so much how Amex sides with their customers over vendors when dealing with disputes

This plus the fees. Amex charges upwards of 4% while Visa/MC is more like 2%...

[m3ray]

Originally Posted by finaloption

it's not the processing fees so much how Amex sides with their customers over vendors when dealing with disputes

This too. I have won out on every dispute, even a few I was supposed to lose..lol

[Mr Tonka]

Amex is closer to a membership card than a credit card. The fees i pay for Amex transactions are about 3% depending on which card. Big time Visa rewards cards can be nearly as expensive with regards to fees. Now a days, most Visa cards are some type of rewards card and can cost about 2.75% for the merchant. Amex makes up about 1/3rd of my CC transactions and we average just under 2.75% in total CC processing fees. Pretty much the only way you're paying under 1% CC fees is if 1) it's a debit card (no rewards) or 2) you're a huge merchant like Amazon and have HUGE negotiating power.

As someone who purchases upwards of $300k each year through Amex, i can tell you that their rewards are very good, easy to access and use. You can tie them to Amazon and other online outlets to use for purchases. But outside of rewards and the ease of using those rewards, they offer a lot of other benefits most card holders don't take advantage of. It's those benefits that cost the extra processing fees. But because most card members don't use them, they are also what keeps Amex so profitable.

Winning disputes has much more to do with the POS regulations that are different for Visa, MC, Discover, and Amex. So it's difficult to have point of sale, contract, fine print, terms of sale, conform to all of them. Plus it takes a team of attorneys to even interpret those regulations. So most of the time, you'll win a dispute because the merchant had the terms of sale below the signature line. Or the fine print was too small. Or terms of sale were too stringent for the card issuer's regulations. It's not so much just because they carry a big stick.

[954Stealth]

My AmEx always goes through. My only issue is that, at this point, I'm getting annoyed with the "is this titanium?" Questions or "this feels like metal". Yeah great I know that, tell me something I don't know

[TrevorM3]

who cares, their customer service is top notch. And that is a huge plus in my book

[ucmike]

I don't use my Amex at small, local shops. I just think that (most) of us have multiple cards, and if I have a chance to help out the little guy I will. No need to make them pay extra for you using a piece of plastic.

[yeung330xi]

Costco in Canada is ending their relationship with Amex....

[hl0m4n]

Originally Posted by TrevorM3

who cares, their customer service is top notch. And that is a huge plus in my book

yes their customer service is amazing but what is customer service if i can't use the card anywhere lol.

it seems a lot of big names are dropping them...

i just paid my annual fee last month, but if they keep losing merchants i might switch over to visa black.

[TXSTYLE]

Originally Posted by m3ray

Not to sound bigoted, but I have noticed many Asian businesses don't take them anymore in NY.

Yeah it's because AMEX has high transaction fees to the merchant. I forget how many percent per transaction but its higher than other CC companies.

Yes. That's how the cover those so called 'rewards'. You would think with ya'll having to pay off entire balances (what they are most known for) their merchant fees would be little to nothing. Never cared for their product. So I stick to one Visa and one Mastercard. Excepted everywhere!

[BMW F22]

Originally Posted by hl0m4n

yes their customer service is amazing but what is customer service if i can't use the card anywhere lol.

it seems a lot of big names are dropping them...

i just paid my annual fee last month, but if they keep losing merchants i might switch over to visa black.

According to time.com, the visa black is one of the worst cards to have. Perhaps you'll utilize some of its benefits more, but for the majority of consumers it is not worth it (especially with that annual fee of $495).

[finaloption]

there's a few places here that ONLY take cash or AmEx.. i wonder why that is..
do you think they get some fee reduction for only accepting AmEx?

[m3ray]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

Yes. That's how the cover those so called 'rewards'. You would think with ya'll having to pay off entire balances (what they are most known for) their merchant fees would be little to nothing. Never cared for their product. So I stick to one Visa and one Mastercard. Excepted everywhere!

Man I love my AMEX, superior customer service. I got the Hilton honors AMEX and every year I earn two free weeks at a Category 4 hotel.

[Taskmaster]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

My AmEx always goes through. My only issue is that, at this point, I'm getting annoyed with the "is this titanium?" Questions or "this feels like metal". Yeah great I know that, tell me something I don't know

Why be upset? That's like you being mad at your girl for saying "Wow, it's big!"

"YEAH BITCH, I KNOW ALREADY"

[zx10guy]

I have three AMEX cards. One is a cash rebate card I got back in 96 I think. The second one is a Costco AMEX card I got a couple of years ago. And the last is a corporate card through my employer. Only the corporate card requires the balance to be paid in full each month. The other two cards I have will allow me to rollover balances if I choose; just like a Visa or Mastercard. So the myth about AMEX cards requiring you to pay in full is just a myth as I can attest not all of their products require this. Of course, you'll have to pay interest on the balance.

Both of my cards have rewards attached to them. The cash rewards card accrues straight cash back. The Costco AMEX provides cash back in the form of a check which goes towards purchases at Costco.

Other than the customer service, the biggest reason why I use my AMEX cash rewards card is due to the additional purchase protections which no other credit card I have run across has. The cash rewards card will extend the warranty on many products up to an additional year. This card also has accidental damage, lost, or theft protection for 90 days after purchase. I have used both the extended warranty and the accidental damage protection. In the case of the extended warranty, I used it on a business class printer I purchased. AMEX paid out over $900 to fix it. All I had to do was provide a copy of the manufacturer's warranty, a copy of the billing statement showing I paid for the product in full with my card, and the repair estimate. With the accidental damage, AMEX also paid out for this to the tune of about $150.

Also both of these cards have NO ANNUAL FEES.

[Mr Tonka]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

Yes. That's how the cover those so called 'rewards'. You would think with ya'll having to pay off entire balances (what they are most known for) their merchant fees would be little to nothing. Never cared for their product. So I stick to one Visa and one Mastercard. Excepted everywhere!

Paying the balance every month means no interest paid by card holder. Where else are they going to get revenue?

The real rip off is from card issuers charging only 20% less cc processing fees than Amex when people are paying interest on their purchases. Seems that with ya'll having to pay anywhere from 6% to 24% interest, Visa & MC fees would be little to nothing. Never cared for paying interest so I'll stick with Amex. Accepted everywhere i need to use it.

Amex offers some of the most widely varied and comprehensive rewards programs of any card issuer. Not sure where you get "so called" rewards from. For me, it's primarily for business purchases. In this regard, it's pretty awesome to have and extra $3k or so a year to spend at Amazon or other merchants from rewards points.

See the post above this one for some of the benefits (on top of their rewards programs) they offer that go over and above most every other card out there.

But it's not for everyone and i get that. It's nice that different products exist since everyone has different needs and wants from their credit cards. For me, it's primarily for business purchases. In this regard, it's pretty awesome to have and extra $3k or so a year to spend at Amazon or other merchants from rewards points.