Consumer complaint received 2021-02-09
Product: Credit card or prepaid card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Fees or interest — Problem with fees
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY (NJ)

After moving to assignment that requires a lot of travel, I decided to bite the bullet and get the American Express ( AMEX ) XXXX ( XXXX ) card. Multiple website stated that the AMEX XXXX  card was the best for the military and their spouses as AMEX will waive their annual fees if the card borrower is a service member. I applied back in late XX/XX/XXXX and got approved immediately. 

When I called AMEX customer service about the annual fee waiver back in XX/XX/XXXX, they stated that I just need to put in a waiver request and they will forward to their SCRA department for review and determination. About three weeks later, I was told that I was ineligible under SCRA. That is when I learned that because I was already XXXX XXXX ( XXXX to be exact ), I need to apply for a fee waiver under MLA not SCRA. 

On XXXX XXXX, I called customer service again and this time I requested the annual fee waiver under MLA. On XXXX XXXX, I called AMEX customer service rep ( XXXX ) around XXXX XXXX  CST and confirmed that MLA benefit can be extended even if they are not put on the account at the time of account creation ( this will be important later ). 

On XXXX XXXX, I called AMEX customer service again for an update and I spoke to XXXX ( around XXXX XXXX  CST ). After discussion on the phone for approximately 45 mins, he stated that he would call me back about the result. At approximately XXXX XXXX  CST, I was able to talk to XXXX again and he stated that my issue has been pushed directly to the SCRA department in AMEX and I would hear back a response on Monday ( XXXX XXXX ). To note, he seemed to think it would end in a favorable response on my end. 

Today, XXXX XXXX, I called ( approximately XXXX XXXX  CST ) AMEX customer service, as I did not receive a response from AMEX SCRA on XXXX XXXX. When I called, I talked to a supervisor, she basically told me that I was ineligible for the SCRA ( which I knew ) and MLA. I was ineligible for the MLA because of a DOD website that they run acct information through and the website stated I was NOT on XXXX XXXX at the time of account creation. However, I provided AMEX ALL of my military XXXX, showing that I have been on XXXX XXXX ( as an XXXX  XXXX ) since XXXX. However, the supervisor kept stating that because I was not in the system at the time of acct creation, I would not be eligible for MLA. Additionally, even if I were to get on the system now, they do NOT extend MLA benefits past initial account creation, which is contradictory to what I was told on XXXX XXXX. 

I feel that it is unfair to not provide annual fee waivers on my account ( w/ my wife ) just because I am not in a DOD system. The MLA website I had access to ( XXXX ) also states that I am not on XXXX XXXX but also states in the bottom that " some covered borrowers in this category might not be included in this database ''. I don't think it is justified that just because I'm not in a DOD database, I don't get extended the benefits, even though I have XXXX military XXXX  that state I'm on XXXX XXXX, have been since XXXX, and thus covered by MLA protections. I want AMEX to waiver my and my wife 's annual fees and change their policy to allow exceptions for service members that may not be in the MLA database but can prove military XXXX XXXX status using orders.