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Cell Hell: AMEX Can Text Spam U Now :(

In MrConsumer’s American Express Optima bill for February, buried on page seven of a 10 page statement, was a “Notice of Changes to Your Account“. The changes were precipitated by “the challenging environment and the increasing costs of doing business”, the company said. Whenever a credit card company uses the word “changes”, it is a not good thing for customers. It usually means higher prices or lowered benefits.

Typical of most credit card issuers, they give you the new language, but generally don’t explain how the terms are different from before. So, unless you have the cardholder agreement that you received when your card was first issued, you may have no idea how exactly you are being screwed affected.

Besides presumably cutting back on their luggage and travel insurance benefits and raising finance charges for some cardholders, the notice contained an interesting section about telephone communications which is replacing the old one. To see just how it changed, I tried to find my original cardmember agreement, but was unable to. I checked AMEX’s website, and it was not there either. I called an AMEX representative and asked for a copy to be emailed, but alas, they can only do snail mail which will take seven to 10 business days. I also asked him to read a certain portion of it to me. He could not. They don’t even give their own representatives access to the contract that governs the card.

The change I was trying to find out about concerned a deletion of the old “Telephone Communications” section of the agreement, which presumably only said that you agree that they can record telephone conversations you have with them. Here is the substitute language:

*MOUSE PRINT:

“You agree that from time to time we may monitor and/or record telephone calls between you (or Additional Cardmembers on your Account) and us to assure the quality of our customer service or as required by applicable law. You authorize us to call or send a text message to you at any number you give us or from which you call us, including mobile phones. You authorize us to make such calls using automatic telephone dialing systems for any lawful purpose, including but not limited to: suspected fraud or identity theft; account transactions or servicing; offers of American Express products and services; and collecting on your account. You authorize us to place prerecorded calls in connection with the status of your account, or security and identity theft matters. You agree to pay any fees or charges you incur for incoming calls or text messages from us without reimbursement.”

Translation: If you ever gave AMEX your cellphone number or called them from it, you are permitting them to call you or text you on your cellphone, with among other things, advertising messages.  And you have to pay the cellphone charges that those calls and texts may incur.

By notifying you of the changed language and coupling that with your pre-agreement to allow AMEX to change their contract with you at anytime, AMEX could easily assert that any laws that may require you to give permission (“express consent”) to receive unsolicited promotional calls on your cellphone have been complied with. One would hope that a court would never let your silence constitute consent in the situation described. [ See basic rules about calling and texting to cellphones. ]

Now back to that conversation with AMEX’s customer service representative.  At the end of the call (in which I had never mentioned the specific subject matter in the agreement that I was interested in), he asked if he could update my account with … my cell number!  “Like hell,” I said.  “I just read the new rules that by giving you that number you can spam me and run up my cell bill.”

Update: American Express has responded to this issue:

We want to point out that Cardmembers do have some choices about receiving communication from American Express:

If a Cardmember doesn’t want to receive marketing offers, including offers via land or cell phones, they can select not to receive them by logging onto americanexpress.com/communications and we won’t contact them with any offers. Of course, we will contact Cardmembers for service related issues, for example if we detect fraud.

We don’t send marketing or promotional offers via text message unless a Cardmember enrolls to receive offers. While we may text a Cardmember for servicing related issues, within the text message Cardmembers are given the option to unsubscribe. — Vice President, Public Affairs

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uTango: Earn $1,000,000 for Shopping Online?

utangoMany sites offer reward programs for clicking on links to retailers from their site (eBates, for example). Typically, you are offered a reward or rebate equal to 1%, 2%, 5% or more of the purchase price of items you buy through those links.

Now comes uTango which promises (with their fingers crossed) to pay you up to $1,000,000 for shopping on their site. A million dollars!?

million $

What’s the catch? (As if there was only one.)

*MOUSE PRINT:

Members can earn … extraordinary LifeStage Cash Rewards up to … $1 Million at 30 years [emphasis added] in return for your long-term loyalty.

That’s right, if you want to earn the million dollars, you have to sign up for a 30-year plan. After 30 years of faithful compliance, your money will be paid out as an annuity over 10 more years. So, how much do you have to buy per year to qualify for the million buck rebate?

*MOUSE PRINT:

chart

They say you have to spend roughly $20,000 a year through their site in order to collect the required 120,000 points annually. Given that 40% of consumers can’t even follow through to mail in a simple rebate form for items they buy now, what are the odds that shoppers can follow through on this scheme for 30 years?

Just to make sure the company doesn’t have to pay out a lot of money 10, 20, or 30 years from now, they have a few other strings in their program rules and member agreement that could trip you up.

*MOUSE PRINT: (paraphrasing)

To qualify for the 10, 20, and 30 year bonuses, members must be married, and they have to sign up for the program when they have been married for less than three years.

To remain eligible for the big payouts, married members must “Stay Married for the duration of the LifeStage Rewards Plan. ”

If the couple fails to earn the required number of points for two consecutive years, they can be deactivated from the program.

And just in case the 50% divorce rate, and the expensive task of always earning 120,000 points a year (which can be adjusted upward for inflation, believe it or not) isn’t enough to disqualify you, they have two final tricks up their sleeve.

*MOUSE PRINT:

The program is subject to “change at anytime” and

“REWARDS UNDER THE PROGRAM ARE NOT GUARANTEED”

With so much at stake, and so many potential pitfalls, not the least of which is whether this company will be around 30 years from now, you might better utilize the cash back provisions of other reward programs that pay you back shortly after you make a purchase.

Update: The above story was written in September 2008. As of January 31, 2009, the announcement below is posted on the uTango website:

utangolet

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Hyundai Assurance: Lose Your Income, Return the Car

Hyundai AssuranceIn early January, in order to stimulate car sales in a weak economy, Hyundai announced a novel program called Hyundai Assurance.  According to the TV commercial :

“Right now, buy any new Hyundai. And if, in the next year, you lose your income, we’ll let you return it.” (There is unreadable mouse print in the ad when those words are spoken.)

While this may sound like a refund program to some, it is not.

*MOUSE PRINT:

This is actually a lease cancellation or loan cancellation program, and does not apply to customers who buy their cars outright.  In essence, they will let you return the car, under six specific circumstances, and will cancel your continued indebtedness.  There is no refund of any money.

In particular, they look at what your car is worth when you turn it in, and compare it to what you owe.  Hyundai will waive up to a $7500 difference, and you have to pay the rest.

Under what circumstances can you return the car?  These are the six reasons:

Involuntary unemployment, physical disability, loss of driver’s license, international employment transfer, self-employment personal bankruptcy, and accident death.

Written like an insurance policy, each of these reasons has a list of limiting qualifications. For example, to qualify for the unemployment benefit, you have to be employed full time for at least three months before and after the policy begins; you have to be approved for state unemployment insurance (or an alternative option); you can’t be self-employed, have retired or resigned, or have gotten a new job; etc.

How does Mouse Print* know all these deep details?  Certainly not from watching Hyundai’s television commercial or reading their website set up specifically for this program.  When Mouse Print* asked the plan administrator for all the terms and conditions and legalese, we were directed to go to any Hyundai dealer.  Calling a nearby dealer, the sales manager acknowledged he did not yet have the terms and conditions to give to customers and only had a flowery brochure.  Even initial contact with Hyundai’s press relations folks turned into a dead end.  Finally, a copy of the terms and conditions  [pdf] was provided by the plan administrator’s PR person.

No potential customer who is going to spend $15,000, $20,000, $30,000 or more should have to beg and grovel with company officials to learn the details of a program being promoted via a multi-million dollar ad campaign.  In the end, if you meet the nitpicky qualifications, this is a good bit of free (non) insurance to have when buying a new car given our uncertain times.

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