American Express supplementary card

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Forums › Finance and wealth management › American Express supplementary card

tardtasticx

3075 posts

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#127470 11-Aug-2013 19:55

Hi there, perhaps someone here would be able to let me know.

My partner wants to get me a supplementary card for his Amex account so that he can earn points faster with both of us spending on it, and I've got no problem with that. But I was wanting to know if they would run credit checks when I fill in the paper work? I'm not sure if I particularly want more credit checks against my name, especially from such a large company.

Thanks in advance.
Sam.

johnr

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#875466 11-Aug-2013 20:11

I don't think they will run credit checks as the account holder is responsible for what you spend on the card

tardtasticx

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#875474 11-Aug-2013 20:23

johnr: I don't think they will run credit checks as the account holder is responsible for what you spend on the card

Yeah thats what I was thinking, but wasn't so sure. Thanks John

johnr

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#875479 11-Aug-2013 20:49

You could always call them and ask I guess

tardtasticx

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#875480 11-Aug-2013 20:54

johnr: You could always call them and ask I guess

Yeah Ill get account holder to ring tomorrow because the voice prompts keeps requesting the card number which I don't have/own.

nate

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#875532 11-Aug-2013 22:58

I would double-check that the majority of places you want to use Amex, will actually accept it. If they add a surcharge, it may completely mitigate the whole reason for getting one.

As a merchant, we accept Amex. We don't advertise the fact, as we lose nearly 3% from their transactions, plus two days to settle. Someone has to pay for all the cardholder benefits I spose.

tardtasticx

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#875557 12-Aug-2013 00:36

nate: I would double-check that the majority of places you want to use Amex, will actually accept it. If they add a surcharge, it may completely mitigate the whole reason for getting one.

As a merchant, we accept Amex. We don't advertise the fact, as we lose nearly 3% from their transactions, plus two days to settle. Someone has to pay for all the cardholder benefits I spose.

Mostly it will be used for gas for the car and bills but thats about it. Everything else would probably go on the EFTPOS card.
Just out of curiosity, do all card companies charge that 3% or is amex just a bit pricier?

nakedmolerat

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#875563 12-Aug-2013 02:14

Amex surcharge is normally a lot higher than mastercard/visa (3% vs 1.5%). I also found it close to useless overseas.

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ajobbins

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#875599 12-Aug-2013 09:10

They generally wont as the primary cardholder/account holder is still fully liable for the card. Others points about AMEX acceptance are valid.

My credit card account has both a Mastercard and an AMEX linked to it (many banks do this now). I get 3x as many points if I use the AMEX, but a lot of places wither wont accept it, or have a surcharge which negates any points benefit.

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tardtasticx

3075 posts

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#876076 12-Aug-2013 20:02

I rang them 3 times today.
First call: Transferred me to Australian new cards department, call was disconnected during the transfer.

Second call: Agent told me "That information is available online", After telling her it wasn't specific enough she said that the information is available under the card holders account, which it isn't. She refused to ask anyone else for help clarifying so I hung up.

Third call: Agent told me they run a partial credit check on their internal records. But it won't appear on my credit report.

Thats the most specific answer so I'll be having them up about it if it does. But yeah like a lot of you have said, the responsibility is on the 'basic cardholder' (referred to on the forms, the main account holder) so I don't see the point in them checking supplementary card holders history. Not that I have bad history but previous posts will explain that having too much history isn't necessarily a good thing either.

But, hope this thread helps if someone tries to google for this info. If someone knows anything else feel free to post. :)

thanks for the replies

ajobbins

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#876117 12-Aug-2013 21:14

tardtasticx: ... But yeah like a lot of you have said, the responsibility is on the 'basic cardholder' (referred to on the forms, the main account holder) so I don't see the point in them checking supplementary card holders history.

You can even get supplementary cards for minors (like your kids), who can't enter a credit contact anyway. I think you have to consent to someone doing a credit check on your anyway, don't you? And I don't think they are allowed to do one if they are not offering you credit (which they aren't, as additional card holders aren't party to the agreement as such)

Twitter: ajobbins

porche20002

72 posts

Master Geek

#876160 12-Aug-2013 22:37

You can get a supplementary card for your children but it depends on their age limit. For Amex, I think it's 18 but Visa is 16 depending on which card and the bank. Also it pays to help them get a credit history based on you paying your bills on time. My sister was applying for a new Vodafone contract and being in her early 20s would normally need a credit limit on the account but she didn't.