Complain about a product or service

American Express

Gift Cards

Brandie of Vista, CA July 30, 2009

My mother purchased a 100 American Express gift card for me for my birthday. Went to go use it and it was rejected at the cash register. I called the # on the card, and customer service told me that the card wasn't funded and that I'd have to take the card back to Wal-Mart where it was purchased.

Even with the receipt, Walmart refused to do anything about it execpt supply a fax # where I'd have to send a copy of the front/back of gift card, receipt, address, Drivers license and then wait 10 business days for a letter regarding the situation. I've done that and now just have to wait and see if I'll be screwed over like the rest of the people on this forum.

Valentin of Roebling, NJ July 22, 2009

On 07/21/2009 I purchased an Amex Gift card with a face value of 100. Later that day I've tried to place an order with yourelectronicwarehouse.com The transaction was denied because the shipping address didn't match the information on the card (a gift card is not nominal and nowhere on the terms and conditions say that a name and adress can be assigned by calling Customer Service). The order was placed via Google checkout. Soon after the order was placed I received an e-mail from Google saying that the transaction was declined for the reason mentioned above.

It also says: “On Jul 21, an attempt to charge 89.98 for your order with Your Electronic Warehouse failed. AMEX xxx-xxxx has declined your card ending in xxxx.” I called AMEX and they told me that the transaction was approved and that I should check with Paypal. They also offered to update the account information. A further attempt to go ahead with the purchase was unsuccessful which prompted me to cancel the transaction, confirmed by this e-mail from Google: “At your request, your order from Your Electronic Warehouse has been cancelled. […] Order cancelled – Your card was not charged”.

A balance inquiry on aeprepaid.com revealed a charge from Paypal in the amount of 89.98 and another charge from Google for 1. Later, another charge of 1 from Paypal was shown. I called Amex Customer Service and they told me that it takes 7 to 10 days for these amount to be credited to my account, which I find illegal since no purchases were made and no charges were applied. CS representatives and supervisors were rude and unhelpful.

On the same date I used the remaining balance to purchase 4 worth of merchandise from a local ACME store. At the register I was prompted for the zip code. I entered the local zip code and the transaction was declined. I tried again, this time using my home zip code and the transaction went through. While checking the balance I was surprised to find out the card was charged twice. Called Amex again and they told me to go back to the store, which i did (today). They reversed the transaction. A new balance inquiry came up with no changes. I called Amex again and they told me it takes 7 to 10 days to process. The CSR also told me that I was informed about that the night before, he wished me a nice day and he hung up on me.

At this point, out of 100 i paid for the card, I was able to use only 4 and ended up with a 0.36 negative balance. The 96 i should technically have are not available and I'm not sure what's going to happen with it. I really doubt I'll ever see it. The sad thing is that since no purchases were made, the money should be left on the card as with any other store gift cards. Since no purchases were made, there is no reason Paypal should put a hold on the 89.98 and there is no reason I should be charged 1.00. Please contact AMEX and fix this problem.

Saundra of Upper Marlboro, MD July 20, 2009

"NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER" are the words I am using to describe the American Gift Cards to my friends,acquaintances and anyone standing in line within the sound of my voice. "Don't ever use these cards". I have been embarrassed numerous times trying to use these cards. Why do they bother to put an expiration date on the cards if they will not be adhered to? My experience has been similar to all those who have written before. The cards have been denied and even the cashier called and input the numbers and it was still denied (this after I had just spoken with the representative who told me the amount of money I had remaining on the card and that I could use it.) As long as I have a mouth to talk, I am telling everyone to leave the American Express Gift Cards alone - they are not worth the hassle and embarrasment. Even a cashier in one of the stores said they had problems when people tried to use them. What an ugly mark on a company which has enjoyed a stellar reputation for all these years. The sight of their logo or mention of their name sends me into orbit.

Trudy of Gainesville , FL July 18, 2009

On May 12, 2009, I ordered two American Express Gift cards, 100.00 each, online. These were for birthday presents for my niece and nephew. These cards were never received, so on May 22, I called America Express four times, waiting on hold for up to 30 minutes each time, and was unable to speak with anyone who could replace the cards in over 2 hours of frustrating phone time. On May 23, I spoke to someone who issued replacement cards.

My family reports that the replacement cards do not work. On Friday July 10, my nephew and I tried to get answers from American Express. There was a series of calls where we were put on hold and hung up upon.

Finally, we reached a representative in Salt Lake City who told us that American Express had sent out a small number of faulty cards and these had been inactivated. She mentioned a check for 100.00 had been sent to someone, but she did not know who. No check was received by me or my family. We were told no information would be available until Monday.

So over a period of several months, my family and I have experienced frustration with the call centers, rude behavior, hang ups and problems with gift cards. In prior years, when I ordered America Express gift cards, I did not experience these issues. My conclusions are that the gift card service must be outsourced to an incompetent service provider and American Express does not have access to the provider records to see the mistakes they are making. Further, even though I wrote American Express through the online system, many times about my frustrations, no appropriate solution was reached. For example, I received a letter last week, saying the gift card issue had been resolved, replacement cards sent, and my account charged 215.85. Instead, my account was credited with 215.85. I faxed the corporate office of American Express to make them aware of travesties and frustration associated with a simple transaction. I asked for a confirmation that my fax was received, but no confirmation was received.

Carole of Clermont, GA July 8, 2009

In May of 2009, I purchased two American Express gift cards from the website. I was notified by email on May 14, 2009 that the cards had been sent to the two recipients and should be received in 7 to 10 business days. These were graduation gifts, and after more than enough time had passed for them to be received, I found that one had definitely not been received. I called customer service, was put on hold for 20 minutes, and was finally connected with customer service in India. I asked that the card which had definitely not been received be replaced and was told it would be sent by UPS with signature required on delivery.

I contacted the recipient, gave them the window of time to expect it and asked to be notified of its receipt. The card was never delivered even though the family checked with the local UPS office. I also was able to confirm that the other recipient had never received the gift card either. Once again, I called customer service, spent an hour with someone from India who kept asking me exactly what I meant. I was told they would reissue the cards but would not give me a tracking number for "security purposes." I finally insisted on a cancellation and refund which I was told would take about 20 days. I used to use these gift cards often but I will NEVER purchase one again.

Alecia of Ashburn, VA June 28, 2009

My husband and I were given 2 American Express gift cards as a wedding gift, on June 24, 2006. In June of 2009, we discovered the unused cards, that had been misplaced. Upon trying to redeem them, I learned that the balance was reduced nearly 50% on the one with 100 original value, and nearly 100% on the other of 50 original value. Upon contacting American Express, I was told that a fee was being deducted, at a rate of 2 per month, for each of them - as a matter of policy - while the cards are inactive. I have been trying to get my cards restored to original value. But, each time I call, I am asked to call back at a later time when their new system is operational.

Dana of Raleigh, NC June 26, 2009

My company regularly rewards it's employees and business partners with American Express Gift Cards, however we have found that the last batch we ordered had never been activated in American Express's system prior to their being shipped to us. Thus, the cards I received are worthless for what may be a few days or may be a few weeks? I attempted to use one of the cards to buy fuel on 6/26/09 and the card was not found in the merchant system system, luckily I had cash to cover the purchase. I tried to check the status of each card online on the AMEX website that evening and the site directed me to call the customer service team because the cards could not be verified. I called the customer service team in India to find that this was a known issue!

I was advised by a supervisor, that I will have to wait 3 to 5 days for the cards to be loaded and activated into their system which is being "upgraded", before they will be usable. Upon pressing the supervisor for a reason or cause, I was told that they had old gift cards stored in warehouses which were never activated in the system before being shipped, but they were working on this software update now... he took my card numbers and will put me on some sort of list to the tech support team to have activation completed. All anyone could do was apologize to me and tell me that I have to wait for a few days for activation. I asked why can't they overnight working replacement cards and list these as deactivated? Nope... not an option.

I asked if there would be any compensation for my inconvenience of having to wait on something we paid for two to three weeks ago, and the answer was no.

So, the net of it is that we paid for these gift cards over two weeks ago and paid an additional fee to have them shipped to us, to find that they were never activated to begin with by American Express. After these calls, I phoned the customer service line.. spoke for 10-15 minutes, and then the rep told me that she couldn't assist with gift cards and needed to transfer me to--- you guessed... gift card support in India to have my name added to an expedite activation list! That was really helpful. Step 3... day 2... I phoned the office of the CEO at American Express and filed a formal complaint. I have an agent basically calling India to ... check status and expedite my requests and call me back in... you guessed it 3 days. Wow. How insulting this horrible service is... and no he has no plan to compensate for my time or my company's purchase that has been delayed.

Everyone tells me the cards are good when in fact they are totally useless until their activated. I feel that they sold my company garbage and yet now I have to wait to use my reward... and apparently work 2x as hard for it. My company now plans to move their business elsewhere for gifting employees and partners.

Lynn of Panama City Beach, FL June 9, 2009

I've purchases Amex Gift Cards for a long time with no problems....until recently. I purchased two cards, one for myself and one for my son. Neither card works. Over two days, I called the 877 number, held for 30+ minutes and was disconnected several times around the 30 minute mark. When I finally did get through, I was told that Amex was having problems with it's security code system and to try the card after 5 business days.

We waited a week and a half and the security codes still did not work. After several hours of holds and disconnects (again) we were told the SAME THING and to try again in 3-5 business days. The people answering the phones are obviously not-native english speakers and are quite unhelpful. Suggestions to others with the same problem.... Write your congressperson and inform them of this problem with a link to this website. American Express has been approved to repay the 3.39 billion they received in TARP funds. the question is, is stealing from US one of the ways they've used to raise those funds they're using to repay TARP? Also, go to the store (if purchased from a store) and ask to speak with the manager and inform them of the problem with the card you purchased at their store and of the explanation you were given by American Express. I'm in the process of working with management at the store I purchased mine from to get these cards removed for sale. Most store's really don't want to put themselves in the position to create unhappy customers. 50.00, which may not seem like alot (it is to ME). I might as well have flushed down the toilet.

david of houston, TX June 4, 2009

i bought a 200.00 gift card from american express, on their web site. I never received the card, they do not answer my emails and i've spent hours on hold, without speaking to anyone at American Express.

Robert of Spokane, WA May 27, 2009

I received a giftcard for 50.00 on May 14, 2009 for my birthday that was sent by my employer. The card is invalid and several calls to Amex, I am told they are updating their system and it will be fixed in 24 to 48 hours. I call 3 days later and I get told they pulled the records on the card and it shows 50.00, but can not explain why it isn't working and it is reported so it will be fixed and it could take 3 to 5 days. I called today and was told they have no record of this card, and I should give it 3 to 5 days and it should work.

I was at the store and had attempted to make a purchase using this card. It was quite embarrassing having the clerk tell me the card is no good with a long line behind me. I happened to have my bank card and used that instead to make my purchase. So basically, thanks to American Express, I paid for my own birthday gift from my employ

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