American Express Platinum Card Hikes Fees for Authorized Users
Several weeks ago, I wrote about how American Airlines increased annual membership fees and one day pass costs for their Admirals Club lounges. Additionally, the annual fee for the Citibank Aadvantage credit card that includes Admirals Club lounge access has also increased.
Now, American Express has changed the pricing for adding authorized users (AUs) to its Platinum card. Previously, a key benefit of the authorized user option was that a cardholder could give up to three other people access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection which includes Centurion Lounges and Delta SkyClubs (when flying on Delta). The Amex Platinum Card comes with a hefty annual fee of $695 and, until recently, the three authorized users could be added for $175 (just under $60 each).
To reduce crowding in lounges, Amex has increased the AU fee to $195
for each authorized user. With this increase, a cardholder who lists a spouse and two children as authorized users will now pay $585 for adding them for, with the $595 annual fee, a total annual fee of $1280. For that family of four, this is a price hike of
more than $400.
This increase will affect different households in different ways. Ms. Optimizer and I travel together and use lounges frequently, so it makes sense for me to remain an AU on her platinum card. Our two children are also authorized users, but they rarely fly anywhere so they can easily be dropped as AUs going forward. The net change for us will be a $20 increase in cost for about the same level of lounge usage. But, of course, many cardholders from households who have been able to take advantage of adding three authorized users for $175 are going to be very unhappy. They will have to choose between dropping some AUs, paying $195 for each AU, or perhaps having AUs get their own Amex Platinum card.
The post-COVID rebound of air travel has led to a lot of crowding in lounges and airlines and credit card issuers have responded by raising costs, enacting new policies to restrict access, or both. It will be interesting to see how this increase in fees for authorized users of the Platinum card will unfold over the coming months. It is likely that there will be more changes to come but we will be keeping an eye on them for you.
Lounge access remains an attractive benefit for many travelers but changes in fees and rules for access are altering the value proposition for some while leaving others unaffected. As we create Travel Rewards Optimizer plans for our clients, we will keep these changes in mind for clients who are interested in lounge access to ensure they get the greatest value.
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