Lots of great responses to yesterday’s post. Here’s a super-quick summary for those who missed it:
- I applied for an American Express card expecting to get a bonus.
- No bonus showed up.
- Multiple customer service attempts didn’t help.
- A CFPB complaint went nowhere.
- Amex quoted once-in-a-lifetime bonus language.
- I have screenshots. None of that language existed.
Again, I’ve never gone past this point to collect a credit card bonus. Haven’t needed to. But reader Jason was VERY helpful and wanted others to benefit. His awesome email is below…
“Can’t take them to small claims. You have to take them to arbitration. You have a pretty open and shut case, but your first step is to fill out this form and mail it to them certified.
https://web.aexp-static.com/us/content/pdf/GCO/gco_claim.pdf
For your claim, include the miles and a dollar amount. Delta sells them for 3.5 cents per mile on the website, so technically that’s their value. Mention that if relief isn’t provided, you will file for arbitration. Then wait a couple weeks while they don’t do anything.
Then you can file for arbitration/mediation – you can pick which service to use. JAMS is reportedly more consumer friendly. Amex picks up the tab and they have the option of settling once the arbitration wheels get set in motion. If that does happen, they’ll make you sign an NDA.
https://www.jamsadr.com/about/submit-a-case
That’s where you can submit for mediation. Include a write-up of points requested and what happened. Also include screenshots of everything and PDFs of the Amex contract stating they have to pay for arbitration. Good luck, I’m happy to help you out any way I can as a thanks for al the great stuff you’ve given me!”
