...
I simply am left feeling like American Express does not trust me after all of the years we have built up a long standing business relationship.
So with this in mind I think we will have to disagree on this one. ...
Not sure why; I actually agree with you.
I have simply stated facts, without comment.
If this happened to me, I would be miffed as well.
I'll reiterate:
The amount listed as being payable on your statement is due at the time the you are deemed to have received the statment, not on ANY date that may be listed on the statement or indicated online.
Amex can withdraw use of the card at any time.
It's up to you if you wish to use the card and abide by Amex rules.
For reference:
9 Liability For Charges – Immediate Payment
Payment of all Charges is due and payable to us by you and the Business
immediately upon receipt of our monthly statement by you or the Business.
Each monthly statement of Charges shall be deemed to have been received
by you or the Business upon the date of the actual receipt or the seventh day
following its despatch by us. You and the Business must pay the full amount
shown in the monthly statement immediately on receipt of the statement.
Now, I had a situation last year where I need to make a purchase that was about three times my normal monthly spend.
I contacted Amex beforehand and advised them of this purchase a few days beforehand. I was thanked and the purchase went through with no issues - I paid the amount after receiving the next statement.
The reason I made this call was advice and information given on this web site. One particularly pertinent piece of information was the existence of a "non pre-set, non published" spending limit on the charge card.
Two more comments/opinions from me:
- As far as "Rule 6" goes, if Amex applied this haphazardly without seeming cause, they would very soon go out of business. It is commercial sense to only use it when deemed necessary. In your case, it is apparent they deemed it necessary (whether [morally or otherwise] right or wrong).
- In relation to "Rule 9", which specifies 1 week from statement date, Amex never use to publish a pay by date on the statement at all for charge cards. I believe this has been introduced over the last one or two years to give account holders something concrete to use. "Liquidated Damages" will not be applied unless payment in full is not received before the generation of the next statement.