The blogosphere lit up over the last couple of days due to the two Amex Platinum Card offers that are still currently running. Yesterday, in this post, I wrote about how you could apply for these offers and the eligibility criteria for each one of them. I wasn’t quite looking to apply for the offer since I thought that I’d not be eligible, but then a few things happened which led me in a different direction.
Applying for the 100k points Amex Platinum Offer
Firstly, I logged into my account and saw that Amex had targeted me for a Platinum Card offer. Wait, but it wasn’t the 100k or the 125k offer. It was a measly 25k offer to upgrade from my Gold card to the Platinum card. I last had the Platinum card back in 2014. I thought that I should give it a shot and try applying for the 100k offer instead.
Upgrade offer showed up under pre-qualified offers
Secondly, I came across this post yesterday from the Frequent Miler which made me think a little more in depth about going for the 100k offer. This part in Frequent Miler’s post led me to believe that it was worth trying.
It’s generally believed that Amex “forgets” that you’ve had a card about 7 years after you cancel it. My Platinum card was cancelled just over 5 years ago and my wife’s was cancelled just over 6 years ago. Since these cancellations were less than 7 years old, neither of us were necessarily qualified to get the new card and bonus. That said, I’ve heard reports in the past (including my own experience with a couple of other cards) where people have received welcome bonuses despite having had the same card more recently than 7 years ago.
Next, I decided to give it a shot. Yes, I’ve definitely had the card before, but it’s been a while. Maybe they would approve me? Yep!
I then found a link to the 100k + 10x offer and started entering all my details.
Offer showed up after a few attempts
Will I be approved?
Next I hit the submit button and then waited for the suspense to unfold.
I hit a brick wall, big time
Returned home empty handed 🙁
The Pundit’s Mantra
This whole saga only further emphasizes the YMMV nature of our hobby. While my application didn’t quite work out the way I intended, I hope it serves as a data point for those who are sitting on the fence and wondering about their eligibility. May be I’ll just have to settle for the measly 25k upgrade offer for now or just wait for the 7 year clock to tick. The moral of the story is that you won’t really know your eligibility unless you try applying and see for yourself.
Did you apply for the 100k or 125k Amex Platinum card offer? If yes, what was your application experience like? Tell us in the comments section.
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Disclosure: The Points Pundit receives NO compensation from credit card affiliate partnerships. Support the blog by applying for a card through my personal referral links. This article is meant for information purposes only and doesn’t constitute personal finance, health or investment advice. Please consult a licensed professional for advice pertaining to your situation.
We applied 40 years ago and got no deal or offer just the card and have kept it….. probably won’t get the deal if we ditch them even tho no deal before for any miles or points;;;
I got the same 25K upgrade offer when I logged in to my account. I’ve never had the platinum personal card. Using a different browser in privacy mode I got the 100K offer and was approved.
That’s great. Glad you were able to get it!
My wife just got approved with no pop up even though she got 100,000 Amex platinum offer in august 2015.
That’s fantastic. I’ll put that down to Amex’s secret sauce. 🙂
FM “signed up for the Platinum card on 4/14/2014 cancelled it on 5/14/2015”. He got instantly approved. In replying to user comments: “No guarantee but it has worked for me before”. So this is not the 1st time that he got around the lifetime rule, maybe he is on a different level at AMEX.
I cancelled Gold in 2013 AMEX still remembered it, stopped at the popup.
Yeah, it’s always a bit YMMV in the end. Some people get approved while others don’t, but we’d never know unless we apply and find out for ourselves.
I applied for the 125K offer and received an email saying they needed more information and to call xxxxx number. Turns out that was just to verify that it was a real application and not fraud. They verified that I was indeed a real person and had applied. I was approved, created my online amex acct, and am now waiting for my card to arrive.
Wow! That’s a home run. Enjoy the 125k points!