How to Turn Your AMEX Platinum $200 Voucher Into Cash
How to turn your AMEX Platinum $200 Voucher into Cash
Every calendar year, your Canadian AMEX Platinum card [this is a referral] is issued with a $200 travel voucher. To use this voucher, you must book travel with AMEX Travel Services. Personally, I find AMEX Travel Services to be way overpriced, especially for hotels. With this trick, you can convert your $200 travel voucher into a straight-up statement credit, without the need to use it for AMEX’s overpriced travel services.
When using your travel voucher, the system will charge your account the full price of the reservation, and then apply a $200 credit. Essentially what we’re doing is forcing the $200 credit, while being refunded/not charged for travel expenses.
First, login to your AMEX account online. After logging in, click on “Travel”. In the right-hand corner of the page, you should see a notation for a $200 travel credit. If so, you can use the voucher online. Sometimes the voucher doesn’t appear online, and you’ll have to call AMEX travel to use the voucher.
Search for a hotel somewhere at a date late in the future. Ensure the room you’re booking is refundable. Book it, making sure you apply the $200 voucher. The pre-tax total has to be above $200 to use the voucher. If you’re booking over the phone, research the refundable hotels first and direct the agent accordingly.
When booking online, make sure the “Membership Points Used” section is set to zero – the system tries to automatically apply your points as payments, which is not a good idea.
Once booked, wait a couple days. On your online account, you should see the $200 travel voucher applied. The travel charges may or may not apply, depending on the vendor used.
Once you see the $200 travel voucher applied, call AMEX travel on the phone number indicated in the confirmation email. Refund your booking. They will refund the travel charges/make sure you’re not charged by the vendor, but the $200 travel credit will remain on the account. Now you’ve converted the $200 travel credit into cash!
This is a relatively well known trick, and has even been promoted by AMEX representatives before. Whether or not AMEX frowns upon it, I don’t know, but this trick has been used for years without problems.
does this work for US Amex Platinum cards?
No.
I’ve used a similar trick with Shoppers Optimum points. I bought a smart watch and a few other things with points then a week later returned the watch. They applied the refund to my Amex card, turning points into cash.
Does the Shoppers trick still work?
Thanks for the reminder! For hotels on the AMEX Travel site, where can I find whether the hotel is refundable or not? I’m probably missing something obvious but I haven’t come across it yet. Thanks
Once you get to the payment page, there will be a link to hotel policies in the upper left
Great, thanks.
Would be be able to use this method with AMEX Gold Reward Card? Thanks.
Great article! How do I verify a hotel booking is fully refundable?
In http://www.americanexpress.ca/travel I clicked on the hotel I was interested in but do not see even the ones with Terms and Conditions link where “cancel” or “fully refundable” explicitly stated.
https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Hotel_Review-g60878-d1174533-Reviews-Homewood_Suites_Seattle_Convention_Center_Pike_Street-Seattle_Washington.html
I’m a rookie and a recent fan of your article, thanks in advance!
FYI when you find the hotel on Amex Travel site , when your choose the Room there will be a Link under it called Policies e.g. below to see the Cancellation Policies , FYI Fairmont usually have free Cancellation a day before your reservation and will be over 200$ to make the most of the coupon!
Policies –
Cancellation Policies
Does the hotel charge you once you book the room or once you stay?
Also, Fairmont Toronto has this cancelation policy “Hotel cancellations or changes made 72 hour/s prior to check-in (noon local hotel time) will be subject to a fee of 1 night/s
No-shows will be subject to a fee of 100.0% of the total room amount”
Does this mean if I cancel with more than 72 hours to check-in I get a full Refund?
Thanks
When the policies like the one below, does it mean Free cancellation before 7 days?
Policies –
Cancellation Policies
Hotel cancellations or changes made 168 hour/s prior to check-in (noon local hotel time) will be subject to a fee of 100.0% of the total room amount
No-shows will be subject to a fee of 100.0% of the total room amount
Just tried this on Australian Amex and they have not closed this loop hole , the Amex Credit is non refundable 🙁
Thanks for the tips. I just booked my refundable stay for one of the hotels. Had a hard time finding one to book. Finally realized that the booking information is just confusing. It makes it sound like if you cancel prior to 24 hours you’ll get charged for one night. Turns out this is just worded poorly and you really only get charged that if you cancel within 24 hours of the stay.