Back in August, I relayed my issues with my SPG Amex bonus. Even though I hit my minimum spend in May, my bonus still hadn’t posted. Well, the “quick fix” promised to me by Amex never came. Days went by, then weeks, and still nothing. Based on the comments on that article, many found themselves in the same boat. Several of you even reported multiple calls to Amex with no resolution.
Meanwhile, the blog TravelinPoints linked to the post, and suggested success by contacting Amex on Twitter. Some of you reported successful resolutions as well. Finally, I got around to trying it myself this weekend, and guess what? It works! I can now definitely recommend trying Twitter if you’re still having issues with your sign-up bonus.
How to Reach Amex on Twitter, And The Experience
Much like the airlines and hotels, Amex maintains a Twitter customer service portal, @AskAmex.
Note that even though advertised hours are Monday through Friday only, they do seem to have representatives available on weekends. I tweeted my request for help early Saturday afternoon. Within 10 minutes, a representative named Beth reached out to me and invited me to join a secure chat session.
That process took maybe 5 minutes while she researched my account. Interestingly, the one question she asked was whether I applied through a referral. She then said she’d need to escalate the issue and would reach back out on Twitter “next week”. Great…I figured that meant another multi-week black hole. I didn’t need the points back in August, but I kind of do now. I started thinking I might have to get mean and call the CFPB like some commenters. But much to my surprise…
My SPG Amex Bonus Is No Longer AWOL!
After returning to my desk from lunch, I noticed a follow-up tweet from Beth, indicating a resolution. Not quite ready to bite on the good news, I logged in to my Amex account to see for myself.
Woot! It took nearly 5 months, but my 35,000 bonus points really do exist! At least on the Amex side. Presumably, I’ll have to wait until my next statement close date for the Starpoints to hit my SPG account. But at least I know I can use them soon. A big shout out to my Amex representative Beth for coming through.
Final Thoughts
I do find the protracted wait disappointing, especially from a company like Amex which prides itself on customer service. It really shouldn’t have taken 5 months to have a bonus credited. That, and I still haven’t received the promised explanation of what went wrong. (Maybe it’s related to the referral, since the rep asked about it.) But at least my saga ended well. If you still need help retrieving your SPG Amex bonus, definitely try @AskAmex. It seems to work, and if nothing else, you at least have a written trail if you need to escalate further.
Thanks again to TravelinPoints for the suggestion.
