Sidharth B

Connoisseur of delicacies | 30 years of expertise
Tasty food matters! ✊

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

What's with the new crazy high packing charges on zomato and swiggy? 35 or more rs packing charge per dish across all resturants and keeps increasing as you add more items and audacity to send in regular paper and plastic after the charges! Crazy!

[Vineet Kaul Watt 🏕🏔⛷ @vineetkaul]

I think I am the first AmEx customer, going back to 2008.

(Okay, I am sure there are more, I am just bragging). But 2008 is quite some time now.

I have been a very early adopter / user of digital money, much much before Paytm happened. When Paytm happened (I was there, three times), I stopped carrying my Wallet/cash. It was futile . . .

In all these decades of AmEx usage, I have primarily oscillated between a Platinum Reserve and a Platinum Charge card. I always wanted the Black card, which did not happen, at least till now. Sigh!

There is literally no event in my memory where I would have paid more to use an AmEx card or where a card would have been declined. Needless to say I always had a Visa or a MC and I would be mindful enough to use an appropriate network at appropriate places.

I have never ever gamed the card and or any programmes that AmEx ran, never referred anyone either. I think the only things that I would have used is the 10X or 5X programmes which were quite straight forward.

In all these years, decades, I have had different relationship managers assigned but I have always preferred to go to the chat option within the app and get an answer to my query. The chat option, at least for me has been very robust till date.

I don't recollect having taken and screen recording and or screen shot of my conversations with AmEx because the level of trust was, to my mind, unbreachable.

I have had replacement cards delivered to me in 24 hours, within/outside India, unauthorised charges worth hundreds of pounds reversed, no questions asked etc etc.

There was this relationship where, I would care less about points redemptions, their value etc because the sheer peace of mind that this relationship brought to the table was priceless. So much so, I had not received (probably missed by me), annual renewal benefits for my Platinum Charge Card for last cycle . . . it is not that I did not want them, it's just that, I was perhaps so sure that I can have them whenever I want . . .

With the current fiasco, when a million of my points were arbitrarily taken away, I was confused in my mind - AmEx has one of the best technology stacks out there in the industry, perhaps the best and I had this relationship that was flawless. I could not put a finger on this decision - was it a tech issue or was it a deliberate policy decision.

Given the emails and replies that I see on X (I had not reached out to AmEx on chat and neither did I receive any comms till date from them. I did email them after they asked me to based on my earlier post on X), I see this was a deliberate action, a policy decision they have now reversed. I reached out to AmEx today on chat and they confirmed it as well. Needless to say they are sorry and are reversing the arbitrary takedown of points. (see chat attached)

Even when I get back my million points, I don't think this trust deficit can be rebuild very easily. Or maybe they don't want it to be rebuilt either, which is possible.

And honestly, I am not trying to be mean here, who ever decided this move, should literally be hauled up for such a brazen decision. Not only that it is a very classic case for the regulator to actually come in a read the riot act - both for card companies and for consumers who misuse.

There should be clear do's and don's. India is a large enough market for the regulator to give directions. Devaluing points, arbitrarily or sneakily taking away points, consumers getting away by gaming the system el at should all be put to rest.

I feel sad for the break of trust in this relationship with @AmexIndia @AmericanExpress

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

In fact I would say it's the opposite. CCGeeks unity forced AmEx to reconsider and restore the points. The community came together when majority was affected.

[Siddharth Bhimani. @wittysiddharth]

The recent Amex fiasco has made me realise something about the credit card community, and honestly, it hurts.

When Axis changed its terms overnight, many of the big CCGeek accounts remained silent , that is still fine but there were plenty brats who mocked and made fun of the ones who were standing up.
Its because they had apparently received information earlier and had already moved their points to Accor.

At that time, there was a need for the entire community to come together and mass-email the bank. But hardly anyone bothered. Perhaps because they weren’t directly affected.

Fast forward to today.

The Amex points have been clawed back unannounced , and we’re talking about millions of points being wiped out from accounts. Suddenly, the same people who were silent are shocked, upset and circulating draft emails, requesting everyone to send them to the bank.

And I completely understand their frustration. Losing millions of points is painful.

But it also makes me wonder…

Why do we come together only when the problem reaches our doorstep?

When someone else is affected, why do we remain silent? Why can’t we support fellow community members even when we personally have nothing to lose?

A community should be about standing together, sharing information, raising concerns and supporting each other.

It shouldn’t be about protecting our own interests and waking up only when our own rewards are at stake.

I’ve always believed that the CCGeek community could be much stronger if we stood united.

Today, I’m genuinely disappointed.

Because a community that stands together only when it is personally affected isn’t really a community.

I hope we learn something from this episode.

#ccgeek #ccgeeks

[Aditya Jakki @adityajakki]

MAGA is dumb

They kept on focusing on Indian hate

Meanwhile, Chinese chicks are honey trapping their billionaires

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@ameya4mPune Deep assets don't help openly or get caught easily.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@CardMavenIn Agreed. In fact, this forfeiture makes no sense at all. Amex has blindly deducted maximum possible points that can be earned on a specific card for a lot of users. Axis and HDFC cc PMs must be smiling and having a field day. For once they are not at crosshair. 😆

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@ankitsolomon1 @Rohilla_Gaurav_ @ccg33k @AmericanExpress @AmexIndia Collateral damage.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@MilesMogul I expected a deduction in crores just like your points. 😂

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@VoyageBliss I am not sure RBI will intervene in this matter at all.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

I would love to see how the finfluencers calling AmEx names start praising ScamEx when cc applications and referrals open up.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@gurumilespoints @SwingTradem99z Big blunder by ScamEx.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@Pranshu0403 Interest on credit card points maybe 🤔 /s

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@nikravel 😂 Axis cc PM team must be smiling. Even they have never done it at this scale.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@Vibhor1911 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@vadakkus @AmexIndia AmEx to ScamEx. What a downfall. 😂

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@dhimantn @greatindianmile When customers had no way to separate the points and redeem those specifically, @AmexIndia doing this years later breaks customer trust completely. Although I have no amex card, I am with you guys.
#AmexIndiaHayeHaye

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@Rohilla_Gaurav_ @ccg33k @AmericanExpress @AmexIndia The management probably knows Indian customers have scammed amex the most and therefore chose to give the same treatment.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@bhardwajshash @DealsDhamaka They might assign 60p value to their points and ask you to pay the amount if you wish to close.

[Sidharth B @Sid_b23692]

@jassneetsingha What a shitty move. It's obvious Amex doesn't care about its Indian customers anymore.

[Tehseen Poonawalla Official 🇮🇳 @tehseenp]

𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗢𝗶𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗽𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 has officially admitted that the ethanol blended into our petrol is 𝟮𝟭%.

Let that sink in.

About eighty to ninety percent of vehicles on our roads are only E10 compliant, yet the Petroleum Ministry is forcefully pumping toxic chemicals like Ethanol down your fuel tank to rescue distilleries owned by politicians and their nepo children drowning in PSU bank debt.

Your vehicles engines are having issues, your mileage is dropping, and your hard earned money is being looted to line elite pockets while food inflation crushes families during the festive season.

Shri Nitin Gadkari ji and Shri Hardeep Puri ji are destroying the common INDIAN.

Team Bharat demands their immediate resignations before 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟯𝟭, or millions of vehicle owners sugarcane farmers & women will march to Delhi for an unprecedented peaceful showdown & protest.

Raise your voice before your vehicle becomes complete scrap.

#EthanolScam BETA BADHAO YOJNA SUGAR DADDY @OGTeamBharat @FactswithDinesh @Nidhzee @theracemonkey @nachiket1982 @Shankyram2 @VishhalSJain @ShivrattanDhil1 @theracemonkey