It’s no secret that some of the best credit card perks are offered on cards with often high annual fees. And while something like an initial welcome bonus can offset the cost of an annual fee, it’s worth evaluating whether the benefits you receive are worth the price year after year.
Companies spend a lot of money on creating and marketing products to attract customers, but they also know that how you get them is not how you keep them. American Express is no different.
Enter retention offers.
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What Is a Retention Offer?
A retention offer is a one-time incentive provided by a credit card issuer to encourage you to keep (and keep spending on) a credit card for at least another year.
It’s invisible to you, but each time you use your credit card, the credit card company makes money from the transaction fee. Since it’s in the best interest of the credit card issuer to maintain an active customer versus the high cost of acquiring a new one, they’re inclined to exchange some additional perks for your continued loyalty.
Types of Retention Offers
There are several different types of retention offers that a credit card issuer may present to a cardholder upon request. They include:
- Annual fee waiver. Since the annual fee is an additional cost that a cardholder incurs and wants to justify, eliminating it with a one-time waiver is an easy way to quell the cost concern.
- Statement credit. A one-time statement credit can partially refund an annual fee and make the cost more palatable.
- Bonus rewards. Although not a direct cash incentive, bonus rewards in the form of points or miles add additional value and can offset the cost of an annual fee.
While an annual fee waiver is usually straightforward, an offer of a statement credit or bonus rewards may come with a minimum spend requirement in a given time period. Which is most desirable depends on the specific offer, but the “spend X amount of dollars to receive X amount of points” offer can result in substantial bonus rewards.
How To Get an Amex Retention Offer
Not all credit card issuers have retention offers, but with its customer-centric mindset and services, Amex has a dedicated retention department. That doesn’t mean Amex will automatically offer you an incentive to remain a customer though, so don’t expect a preemptive retention offer and be ready to be proactive.
When To Ask for a Retention Offer
There is no hard-and-fast rule on when you should ask for an American Express retention offer, but the general consensus is to do it right after your annual fee posts, within a month of it posting. This is due to the fact that should you decide to cancel your card after 30 days of the annual fee posting, most credit card issuers will not refund your annual fee, making your efforts futile.
How To Ask for an Amex Retention Offer
When it comes to retention offers, there’s no guarantee you’ll be offered one, but it doesn’t hurt to ask.
First, you’ll want to contact Amex customer service. For personal cards, you can use the online chat feature or give them a call. For business cards, you can try chat first, but may have to pick up the phone. You can call the number on the back of your card or reach the retention department directly at 1-800-452-3945.
Next, you’ll want to choose your words carefully. You want to tell the customer service representative that you noticed the annual fee posted on your Amex card and you’re thinking about canceling it for X reason, but want to see if there are any retention offers available first. The reason can be because you’re not traveling as much and aren’t using your benefits, you have a different card with a better earning rate or perks or anything else that shows why the card is no longer as desirable to you.
It’s important that you don’t outright say that you want to cancel your card because there have been cases of cards being canceled automatically.
If retention offers are available, the representative will lay out your options. If there are multiple options and you want time to weigh them, you can say you’ll think about the offer. Often you can call back, but sometimes the offer expires when the chat ends, so make sure to clarify so you don’t lose out. Otherwise, you can accept or decline the offer on the spot.
Bottom Line
Before canceling or downgrading an American Express credit card when hit with an annual fee, do a cost-benefit analysis of the card. Contact Amex, let them know you’re considering closing the card and ask if any retention offers are available.
The worst case scenario is there aren’t any offers, but if there are, you can be offered an annual fee waiver, statement credit or bonus rewards. A retention offer often includes stipulations like a minimum spend requirement and another year of card membership.
Retention offers are a valuable tool in your credit card strategy arsenal that can result in a win-win scenario for both you and Amex.
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