Amex Blue Cash Reverse My Credit Card Charges
One of the reasons why I love my American Express credit cards is the customer service that you get that nobody really tells you about. Here are 2 contrasting stories with 2 cards I have, the Blue Cash card and the Chase Flexible Rewards Card.
About a months and a half ago (as far as I can remember), I brought our family to the Ben Franklin Institute. There was a special display for Star Wars items. I am a huge Star Wars fan and my kids have also been introduced to Star Wars. So what a better way to start our weekend with a morning journey to the Museum.
I managed to find a parking space about a block away from the museum. There was no parking attendant. Rather, there was a credit card machine for us to pay. So out came my Blue Cash card and the parking amount turned out to be $15.00 (a fixed charge). However, when everything was processed, I pushed the “receipt button” but could not find the receipt. Hence, I inserted my credit card again and went through the whole process. Then I found the slot where the receipt was supposed to be and found 2 receipts. Oops! Looks like I may have paid twice.
While walking to the museum, I gave Amex a call. The customer service representative told me that the charges are not in the system yet and it will take 2 or 3 days before they could do anything. So I was asked to call back on Monday.
On Monday, I called Amex and they asked me to raise dispute over a charge (although this was more of an accident on my part than a dispute). Amex told me to chill out and that everything will be sorted out.
Statement on next bill
To my surprise, on my next statements, they had a section that said :
Pending Investigation – No payment on the disputed amount of $15.00 is required at this time
Letters from American Express
I also got a letter from Amex on 4th March 2008 which read :
Dear Mr Credit Card
Thank you for contacting us regarding the charges on your account.
We have referred your inquiry regarding CPS of PA #**** to one of our Customer Care Professionals for review.
In the meantime, we have suspended the amount of $15.00 on your account which can be seen on your upcoming statement.
In most cases, we may be able to provide you with a response to your inquiry within a month, however, more complex cases require additional time.
We appreciate your patience while we complete the research needed to resolve your claim. If we can be of further assistance, please call the toll-free number on your statement and speak with a Customer Service Representative.
Sincerely
Customer Service Supervisor
Dispute Reference Number : xxxxxxx
Matter Resolved
Then on 2nd April, we got another letter from American Express.
Dear Mr Credit Card
We are writing with regard to your inquiry about the charges from Cps of Pa #xxxx on the above referenced account.
OUTCOME
This dispute has been resolved in your favor – yes they even bold it!
STEPS TAKEN
While under investigation, the disputed amount of the charges in question was temporarily withheld from your bill. This was done so that using your Card and paying your bill would not be affected by this specific inquiry. We then contacted the merchant on your behalf and gave them the opportunity to present information from their point of view.
We have determined that the credit(s) you requested is/are appropriate. Therefore, we have issued credit(s) to your account for the disputed amount(s) and removed the amount(s) from suspense. The adjustment(s) will appear in the amount(s) shown below, which will reflect on an upcoming statement : $15.00
Applicable interest and fees have also been adjusted, if any.
We also make every effort to address your concerns. We did our best to represent your interests. If we can be of further service to you, please do not hesitate to call us.
Sincerely
Customer Service Supervisor
Dispute Reference Number : xxxxxx
What’s the big deal you might ask?
Well, we have another pending investigation : this time with Chase. Mrs Credit Card signed the kids up for spring baseball. But the kids did not want to play. But Mrs Credit Card had already paid online via our Chase credit card.
Mrs Credit Card called the “little league organizer” to get a refund. They agreed to our request but said they would charge us a $10.00 administration fee. This happened on 13th of March. Mrs Credit Card was expecting a credit on our next Chase statement. However, there was none.
So she called up Chase and raised a dispute (on 7th April). However, Chase told her that we have to give the vendors 30 days to act. Hence, they told us to call back on the 13th (exactly, one month from the call we made to the “little league organizer”. It turned out that the charges were not reversed.
So chase said that they will send us a form to fill and to send in all relevant supporting evidence. What a contrast this is to my Amex Experience! I shall stop now and reserve the outcome for another post.
But this is another episode that reinforces my positive feelings for American Express Credit Cards. I really think they have the best customer service compared to other credit card issuers.
great post and is also the reason I am with amex. I also like the way you blended the post.
Just curious, can a vendor come after you for the reversed charges and if so what canhappen?
This may be *your* experience, but mine was the COMPLETE opposite. I ordered an item from a merchant and when it fell far short of my expectations I contacted the merchant and asked to return the item. They agreed and provided me an RMA#. I sent the item back to them. After trying to up-sell me to a number of different items I insisted that they issue a refund (the cost was $160) and they agreed. A month later I *still* did not receive a refund. Obviously it was time to call AMEX. I was confident that AMEX would help me resolve the problem esp given that I had been a card holder for 8 years and used my card to the tune of roughly $15K! AMEX requested that I send them copies of any docs that indicate I returned the item. I did this… I sent them a copy of the UPS ticket w/ tracking#, and a copy of the RMA number issued by the merchant. After a month AMEX sent me a notice indicating my dispute would not be honored and they included a copy of the merchant’s UPS tracking information indicating that they sent me the item. Apparently, AMEX didn’t care that I sent them the UPS info proving that I returned the item! When I called customer service and eventually got transfered to a supervisor they said there was nothing they could do expect open another dispute… see a pattern here? Needless to say, I closed the account and will NEVER EVER use their services again.