Hey everyone, I finally got my American Express Card, I went to the website and seen the "Will my card be approved" I clicked it and entered an amount, I got the message to call customer service, I guess my card is to new still LOL less than a week. Do they pull a HARD INQ, when I click on the "Will my card be approved" ???? I also did the Private Payment thing to buy online. Any advise? =)
Didn't you know what limit you were approved for beforehand? Or do you have to pay the total balance every month? No, they don't pull a inquiry if you click that link. That link is not a instant credit increase link. If you wanted a credit increase you can call CS and ask for one.
I believe that means since there is no preset spending limit that if you are going to charge a large amount you can get preapproval instead of worrying about a decline.
Correct that's for cards with no pre-set limit. Just for kicks I filled that form out for a 2k charge which I know will get through and got this result: This charge amount will be approved if the status of your account does not change. Please note - approval at this website does not indicate automatic acceptance of the actual charge, and you may be required to provide photo or other identification at the point of sale. I know for fact that a 2k charge would get approved because I just paid in full and have 27k limit. Thus, the whole thing is quite meaningless. It would be better to call for pre-approval because the CSR can make sure that the charge gets approved. Amex will not pull any inquiry when you use this feature. You can also find out what your limit is by giving them a call. It says "no pre-set limit" but Amex has set a limit up to which they'll approve charges.
It's all based on previous spending patterns. If you routinely charge 5-10k/month, and want to charge 15k the next month, you shouldnt have a problem. However, if you charge 500-1k/month and decide to charge 5k in one month, then you may get declined.
It does seem meaningless and stupid. I mean, if you are going to give consumer a no pre-set limit card then why decline a charge? Not only is that embarrasing but it's not good business. I would close my account if I showed proof of identification and a charge was still declined.
I think this feature is meant primarily for the amex charge cards (green, gold, plati) which have no-pres-et limits rather than for the credit cards e.g., Delta Skymiles. It is useful because at least it gives you an idea ahead of time if an exceptionally large charge will be approved. Lets say you want to take a trip around the world for a honeymoon ir buy a rolex presidential. Obviousaly these are out of pattern expenses but you want to know ahead of time if Amex will appporve them before you become embarassed at the travel agency or the jeweler.
Re: Re: AMEX Experts?? no such animal as no pre set spending limit on any card anywhere .......... they all have a top limit even the centurion card from what I understand is 50,000 a day unless pre approved.....
Re: Re: AMEX Experts?? I agree - bad for business. Nothing more publicly humiliating than getting declined (except perhaps that dream where you show up to school wearing no clothes). With a regular card, at least you know if you get declined, it's your own broke-a$$ fault. Frankly, the whole concept of a mysterious "unspoken" limit, yet no "official" pre-set limit, is more game playing than I could ever tolerate from a card issuer. Hence, the introduction of Blue I suppose.
Re: Re: Re: AMEX Experts?? If that's the case, AMEX should specify exactly what the spending limit is. Why should cardholders have to guess, or call or click a link to find out what they can spend? That's more than an inconvenience - it's ridiculous.
Re: Re: Re: AMEX Experts?? Wow, I didn't know that. I could not figure out how to spend $50K in one day. LOL! I guess so. I too am irritated by the sometimes arbitrary way AmEx declines transactions. And it's not only huge purchases. I know people who have been declined for $50 grocery transactions after making huge purchases on the Blue card. Luckily, it hasn't happened to me yet, but I'd have strong words for the executive office if it did.
Re: Re: Re: Re: AMEX Experts?? I think were all in agreement there , but its the same for all th=ose visa signature cards everyone has a top limit ......
I PREFER "STATED" LIMITS... I HAVE BLUE AND DELTA (although I still have NEVER had a limit increase in 4 years)
I can't quite decinde if I like stated or unstated limits better. I guess stated limits actually do make more sense, but in some ways it is more exciting wondering whether a large transaction will be approved. I haven't bouight anything extremely large on my amex plat yet, but I never worry that much because I can always use my quantum card with its stated limit if amex thinks I'm spending more than I think I should be able to spend. They've never said no yet, so I have had no problem with them at all.
