American Express Blue Card
www.americanexpress.com
Rates
*******
As Usual I was looking for a card which offers me the best in Cash Back since I pay off my full amount due within the due dates. So I was not much keen on the rates or transfer features this Card offered. Standard Interest ... Read review
Advantages: Excellent Cash Back Rate Disadvantages: Acceptability
American Express Blue Card
www.americanexpress.com
Rates
*******
As Usual I was looking for a card which offers me the best in Cash Back since I pay off my full amount due within the due dates. So I was not much keen on the rates or transfer features this Card offered. Standard Interest rate is typical 14.9%APR variable. 2.9% p.a. balance transfer rate for the first 6 months.
Application Process ...other card balances to your American Express Credit Card.
Direct Debit - Set up a monthly debit from your bank to pay some or all of your Card balance.
Change of Contact Details - if you have changed your billing address or your telephone number(s).
Change of E-mail Address - if you have changed your E-mail address.
Change Password
Add a Card Account - Add another Amex Card if you have multiple amex cards to your ... more
American Express Blue Card www.americanexpress.com
Rates ******* As Usual I was looking for a card which offers me the best in Cash Back since I pay off my full amount due within the due dates. So I was not much keen on the rates or transfer features this Card offered. Standard Interest rate is typical 14.9%APR variable. 2.9% p.a. balance transfer rate for the first 6 months.
Application Process *********************** The Application Process was simple and within 15 days I had my card and also had my online access. I did not face any problems with the application procedure.
Website ********* The website design is cool and the links are available in the right places and nothing to confuse or clutter your mind. There are definitely areas of improvement. One is the time required for loading the statement etc., Its slow, but maybe that is because of my network problem also. The website is again 128 bit SSL site.
The Manage your account section gives the following options Balance Transfer - for transferring other card balances to your American Express Credit Card. Direct Debit - Set up a monthly debit from your bank to pay some or all of your Card balance. Change of Contact Details - if you have changed your billing address or your telephone number(s). Change of E-mail Address - if you have changed your E-mail address. Change Password Add a Card Account - Add another Amex Card if you have multiple amex cards to your current log in details Remove a Card Account - if your card has been upgraded, then you can remove your old card account here. Cancel Online Registration - if you no longer want to access your card details online, you can cancel it here.
Transactions / Statement Download ***************************************** The best feature which I liked in American Express Blue Card is the download option. I can download the transactions into Microsoft Money 2004/2005. This facility is very useful, since I am managing all my bank and expenses on Microsoft Money 2005. It also gives the feature of downloading in other formats as well. You can Print out the statement as well. You can also check your old statements online. I can atleast see my last 3 months statements, since I have been using this card for the last 3 months.
Add on feature ***************** This card also has got the Add on feature so my wife is using the Add on card, so that she can use this for her shopping. In the statement it shows the shopping which the main card holder has made and also in a separate section, the purchases made by the add on card.
Cash Back ************ I make the full payments of my card outstandings within the due dates, so I often keep an eye on the Cash Back. The First three months the cash back is 2% !!! and after that its 1%. The Cash Back amount is paid after one year which is the same as other cards. This means that in a month if I make purchases of 500 GBP, I get 5 GBP cash credited to my account after 1 year.
Payment *********** I get a mail to my email id when the statement is generated. You can make the payment online with your debit card. I prefer to make the payment from my HSBC bank account. I setup the payment in advance ie., due date - 5days so that it automatically gets paid without any further intervention from me.
Acceptability *************** This is the only major drawback in this card. Its not as widely accepted as the Visa or the Master Cards. I have had occassions where the shopkeepers told us that they do not accept Amex Cards. But In the majority of the Superstores, Hotels, Airlines etc., Amex cards are accepted.
Membership Rewards ************************* The Enrolment for Membership Rewards is not available for the American Express Blue Card Members.
Foreign Charges ******************* In case you incurr any expenses other than GBP like all card companies, a 2.73% charge is included at the time of conversion into Pound Sterling. I still don't understand why this charge has to be collected from customers. We are giving them business and they are boasting of wide acceptability etc., so why are they still charging us this charge ???
I will keep this section updated for the benefit of others !!!
********Update on 13.08.2005****************
I just received a statement today and found that I was charged 27.03 as late payment fees and interest. I called up customer service on 01273 576576 and spoke to them, I had missed this payment by oversight and could they reverse the charges and interest.
They put me on hold for a few minutes and came back to me, to say yes, as a goodwill measure they would reverse these !!!!!!!!! I was very happy about it. I immediately set up a direct debit so that I dont miss the payments in future.
I though I should let you all know about this gesture of American Express..
Advantages: Permanent Low Blanance Transfer Rate, 1% Cashback, Cardmember Offers Disadvantages: £15 Charge If You Don't Spend £500 Per Annum, Limited Number Of Retailers Will Accept It
...to be accosted by an American Express sales person. At that particular time I would much rather have been abducted by aliens and I must have looked like a prime suspect. Dog tired, bedraggled, fed up and I wanted to get home as quickly as possible. This must be when they get most people to sign up, as they will either get the 2 fingers or someone like me who will do anything for a quiet life. All I remember hearing was that I would get a low balance ... ...difficulty with some stores accepting American Express. It is not as widely accepted as Visa or Mastercard both on and offline. You can inform them if you come across a retailer that doesn’t accept the card and they will try and get them to accept it for you, I wouldn’t hold my breath. Some countries will not accept payment from any American Express card whatsoever so check if you can use it before you travel abroad. I would always take a Visa and ...
criple 12.11.2002
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of American Express Blue
Advantages: Great long term balance transfer rate Disadvantages: Mix up purchases and transfers and you will pay through the nose
American Express Blue Card.
First of all, this is a credit card. Nothing more nothing less. The same concept as Visa or Mastercard under a different name. So, what does it do? Well, firstly, it has a snob value! The AMEX name is possibly up there with Harrods and Coutts & Co, but this is definitely a card for Mr Average to play with. There are in the region of 30 credit card providers in the UK offering somewhere in the region of 500 different cards! ... ...are the features: Cashback! I like cashback. Every time I spend money, they give me money. 2% of the transaction value in the first two months and 1% after that! In other words, if you have a big purchase coming up, apply for this card now and you effectively get a 2% discount! A word of caution, the cashback is paid 12 months after opening so keep the account running for at least a year! This is just about the best deal on the market from a cashback ...
daveops 22.03.2003 (14.04.2003)
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of American Express Blue
Advantages: High credit limit, helpful service advisers Disadvantages: High interest rates, low cash allowances
...for the spiel. At the American Express (Amex ) Silverstone International Raceday on 16th September 2000 I got so fed up with the Amex girls’ patter that to shut them up – I signed up - for an Amex Blue Credit Card. My previous links to Amex had been with a NatWest Amex Card, which has now been discontinued. I have no problems with having a credit card it’s just that I had not heard too many positive things about Amex and it had ... ...was accepted, and despite the long wait for the issue of the card (two months), which I put down to the fact so many BTCC fans must have been harassed, I have been happy enough - but not ecstatic.
Those that have read some of my other ops will know that I was previously into the pose appeal and there was nothing like handing over this white credit card with the blue hologram to be told ‘Oh I haven’t seen one like this before’.
...
whitbybunny 04.11.2001
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of American Express Blue
Advantages: 1% MoneyBack, Low balance transfer rate, Fee free (if total annual spend > £500) Disadvantages: Not accepted everywhere
...to apply for a Blue American Express card. You can usually find an application form for the card in popular magazines. Quite frequently, there are advertising stands at motorway services areas or airports. I applied for mine over the internet at www.americanexpress.co.uk Regardless of what method you use to apply for a Blue Amex, the process is fairly straightfoward and assuming you have all the necessary information available, it shouldn't take ... ...to other credit/charge card companies, American Express have a strict credit checking procedure and depending on the amount of time it takes for all the relevant parties to respond with the information requested by Amex, it can take a while to find whether you have been approved or not. My card was approved within a month but was told that, as I was an Amex card holder already, they didn't need to complete all their checks.
Benefits
--------
One ...
steveuk 17.12.2002 (19.01.2004)
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of American Express Blue
Advantages: Attractive balance transfer deal, 'cashback' option Disadvantages: Limited usefulness with retailers, realively high purchase APR
...months, so this deal from American Express is obviously only good if you are planning on spanning your card repayments over a longer term.
So off I went, my flashy new American Express 'Blue' card in hand, to do a little shopping, feeling rather flush now after cutting my existing credit card bill with the balance transfer deal.
Oh dear. What a disaster that turned out to be!
Many retailers will not accept the American Express (AMEX) cards; you ... ...for day-to-day shopping, it can be as much use as an inflatable dartboard. Joking aside, I have ended up in a couple of highly embarassing situations after pulling out my 'Blue' card, only to be told by the retailer that this is not accepted.
That said, I have been awarded a relatively high credit limit; useful for that long-term balance transfer. But not for much else, save perhaps some temporary relief from the big Christmas food shop around the ...
ndf9876 13.12.2002
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of American Express Blue
Competitiveness of APR
Product package
Quality of Customer Ser...
Reward Scheme
Additional Charges
Security and Privacy
Ease of Application
Similar reviews »
Reviews which might be of interest for "American Express Blue"
full, the interest added has seemed very low especially compared to the Barclaycard that my wife used until very recently.
I would recommend the LloydsTSB card if you really don't care about points schemes, because this one is pretty useless, but if the schemes on offer would be a deciding factor for you in choosing a card, I would suggest the AmericanExpressBlue card or the Alliance and Leicster visa, which both offer cashback. ...
Advantages: Accounts earn good interest rates Disadvantages: Long queues in branch
before I went cos the queues can be enormous.
Current interest rates are around 4.9%
HALIFAX GOLD CARD
Taken out when the cashback was around 2%> Since this rate has dropped considerably I now use AmericanExpressBlue Card with 1% cash back, but as this is not accepted everywhere I use my Halifax card occassionally.
REGULAR SAVER ACCOUNT
Opened at the same time as the Web Saver Account, currently paying 7% interest. You can pay in as little as £25 a month. At the end of a year the money is automatically transferred to my Web Saver account.
HOW TO MAKE MONEY
This takes no more than a few minutes of your time each week once everything is set up. You do need reliable internet access for this to be effective.
1. Have your salary paid into a Halifax Current account
2. Log on to Halifax internet ...
baeswoman 20.12.2004 (28.07.2005)
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Halifax Accounts
Advantages: cahsback, cheap APR Disadvantages: no extra benefits (travel insurance etc...)
The Egg card is, to me , a must in UK credit cards today. With a 1% cash back on the first 20 000 pounds spent, it's a potential £200 coming your way yearly. I f you have company expenses, it could be a real bargain. Their cover is good, although only including the basics visa benefits: cover against fraud both on line and offline.
its big advantage against its competitors (americanexpressblue card) is that it's 100% free and the cash back starts from the first pound spent.
For people using the credit facilities, the APR is competitive although not the best in the market. I have had mine for more than a year and I am still very satisfied with it. I was frauded for nearly £900 and they cleared the situation in less than 2 month with a minimum hassle involved. ...
jchantefort 29.03.2001
· Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Egg Card
