This new welcome offer for Amex card made me scratch my head. This is the reason

Welcome offers are often one of the main reasons people apply for new credit cards. But what if the issuer doesn’t disclose the offer until after applying?

American Express recently changed the language of the terms on American Express’s PlatinumCard® without specifying the exact number of points you are eligible for with its welcome offer.

Welcome bonuses for credit cards – a one-time reward you can earn, usually reaching a certain spending threshold within a specified number of months – is one of the biggest draws of luxury travel cards.

Annual fees for expensive credit cards can usually be offset by the welcome offers you can earn. So with a $600 annual fee and a welcome bonus of 100,000 points (depending on the value of these points), you know the fee is paid for at least one year.

American Express did not respond to a request for comment.

So what has happened to the Platinum Card? I will explain.

What has changed in the welcome quote for Platinum Card?

Here is how AMEX changes its language:

• Old quote: Spend 80,000 points of $8,000 in the first six months.
• New offer: After spending $8,000 in eligible purchases in the first six months of your card membership, you may be eligible for up to 175,000 member Rewards® points. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Find out the exact welcome offer when applying.

I know this is one breath. As someone who covers credit cards for nearly a decade, this is a great reminder to read all the terms carefully. This is what you should pay attention to.

Why You Should Read Quotes

There are a few things to call in this new language.

1. As high as possible. Yes, 175,000 is a big number. However, they did not disclose the scope. This makes me wonder what the minimum amount you might earn on a $695-year card. (See rates and fees; terms and conditions apply.)
2. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for this offer. This may mean you may not qualify for the highest spending, or in the worst case you may not qualify at all. Either way, the wording is ambiguous.
3. Find out the exact welcome offer when applying. You no longer tell you how much you are eligible to earn before applying. Suppose you are approved and expect a bonus of 175,000, and only 60,000 qualifying. At that time, you have to decide whether the card is valuable enough to make you accept it. On the plus side, Amex says your credit score will only be affected when you accept a card — not when applying.

Should you apply for Amex Platinum?

If you have plans to apply for the card, it may be worth the delay until the company clarifies the bonus – maybe this will come with a plan update for the card later this year. Otherwise, the welcome quotes you receive may not match your expectations.

Prior to the update of the plan, the credit card issuer is now bringing it up in preparation for the remodeling reward. Amex may offer tiers of platinum cards, each with different welcomes and rewards, but that’s just a guess.

Either way, the language changes and the lack of disclosure about welcome quotes will stop me.

Similar to the new Coinbase card, which doesn’t reveal how many assets you need to get the highest reward rate, the new language makes me intentionally ambiguously apply for an application, just finding that these benefits are much lower than they expected.