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Crunch time folks. Well, past crunch time (almost) if you are talking about things like an Elite Mileage Run to top off your elite points before year end. Oh, sure, you can still get on a flight tonight and as long as it is scheduled to take off before midnight tomorrow you will get credit for 2015 but that could cost you a ton at this late date. But I digress. Back on topic.
Notice the photo above. If you log in to your “MY DELTA” I sure would think about printing a PDF of your 2015 points. Delta has, in the past, had issues where points “come and go” and you just never know what could go wrong. Many of us will be checking each day for our rollover MQMs to hit and knowing what your exact total was to confirm you got what you should is smart. Also notice the box in yellow, change that to the full year to get what you need!
What else should you consider doing today? I looked over my AMEX “Offers For You” and found a few I had not yet fully utilized that were going to expire after tomorrow and the one above gave me some free points and I even made some free money on the transaction buying gift cards. Not bad and hate to see anything go to waste.
If you happen to have either a non-Delta AMEX Platinum personal or AMEX Platinum business card as well as the non-Delta AMEX Gold card you still have time to FIRST register for whatever airline you want and then, in the case of Delta, buy $50 e-Gift cards and get your reimbursement for the year for your travel “incidentals” refund. Also keep in mind that after the 1st of the year you can change what airline you want to use or, if you don’t want to change, leave it and use it again for whatever airline you have selected this year.
Lastly start thinking about 2016. Are you going to stick with Delta? If you are after the 1st of January would be a great time to pick up a Delta Platinum or Reserve card for the bonus MQMs. Don’t upgrade, cuz as you can see from the above, VERY bad things can and do happen. Phone reps can promise anything. However, if you start from my links, and do screen shots, you are all but guaranteed to get the points once you have met the minimum spend. The only warning there is making sure you are qualified to get the bonus i.e. you have NEVER EVER had the personal card before or in the case of the business cards, that it has been over 365+ days since you canceled last time. – René
Editorial Note: This content is not provided by American Express. Any opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by American Express.
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
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René, great job in posting 2015 last minute Elite Mileage runs for those Medallions who desperately need them.
@Wayne – Always happy to help!
Rene, question for you. Currently GM but only qualified for FO 2016. I have a trip Asia outbound January return February. I have little concern of status because I will be traveling with my PM wife. But my one question is how many miles will I earn as Gold on the outbound but Silver on the return.. Have of it 8x and the other 7x?( I know the fare is $613 and carrier imposed fees are $320 [taxes $115]
@Adam – You should get the points per the status when you fly. Hope you get the higher but I doubt it. They are very good about giving us as little as possible.
Thanks for all of your posts this year Rene. Quick question, for Amex Corporate Platinum, you think I can get the $100 fee credit to work with 2 $50 Delta gift cards, even though the T&C say it’s an “incidental fee” and not covered? Thx.
@Joe – I have not test Corp cards but the biz cards work fine for that.
Joe, I can’t speak for the Am Ex Corporate Platinum but my Am Ex Personal Platinum $200 fee credit worked when purchasing four $50 Delta Gift cards. And of course I have René to thank for it because he did it himself and posted it on Eye of the Flyer.
Thanks @Rene for everything this year. You have been a great help!
For those flying today and tomorrow don’t forget your two free premium luxury bar drinks with your Delta AMEX! I’m headed of this evening to CDG on my 87,500 mile FC award tonight! Au Revoir and Happy New Year everyone!
Hi Rene,
Thx for the reminder re: Delta $50 gift certificates using non-Delta AMEX card (e.g., AMEX Platinum Personal, AMEX Platinum Business & AMEX Gold). Quick question: I hold an AMEX Business and my employee has a second card tied to my account – which cost $195 per year, if I remember correctly. Can both card holders receive the $200 credit or just the main card holder (me) ?
@Janey – Only primary.
Great tips for Delta flyers! I have Delta Gold card now and see Delta Reserve best for companion ticket. Is it easy to book this companion ticket along with my own or do restrictions make it a hassle? Thanks!
@Mike – The companion ticket takes some flexibility.
I’m $1,000 short of the $30,000 spending requirement on the American Express/Delta Reserve card to receive the 15,000 MQMs. Does buying a couple of credit card-branded gift cards still work?
@Nick – AMEX GCs do work but the issue is getting it to post tomorrow. Not likely. I am afraid you are stuck.
For whatever reason, I couldn’t buy AmEx gift cards at Walmart, as I’ve done in past years, with my Reserve card to meet the year-end spending requirement. I tried three times with both types of AmEx gift cards. I could, however, buy Visa gift cards. Let’s hope it works.
AmEx fraud shut it down after the second $1,000 transaction. I called them up and they reactivated my card. My third transaction went through. I did $1500 via three $500 Visa gift cards.