Amex restores deducted reward points after customer backlash
What's the story
American Express (Amex) has reversed its decision to deduct reward points from cardholders' accounts. The move comes after a wave of complaints from customers who were unhappy with the sudden disappearance of their points. Some even found their rewards balances in the negative. The company had made the deductions on November 9, but by November 10, it decided to reverse these adjustments following a spate of complaints from cardholders.
Assurance
Deducted points to be restored: Amex
In response to the complaints, Sanjay Khanna, CEO of American Express Banking Corp. India, assured cardholders that their deducted points would be restored.
The points will be credited to one of their active Amex card accounts within 48-72 hours.
This promise came after many customers threatened to escalate the matter with the Reserve Bank of India Ombudsman if no satisfactory explanation or resolution was provided by Amex.
Justification
Amex defends actions, cites terms and conditions
Amex defended its actions by saying the adjustments to membership rewards points balances on November 9 were in line with its terms and conditions.
The company said unredeemed points associated with canceled cards are forfeited 30 days after cancellation.
However, after considering the concerns raised by card members, Amex has decided to reverse these adjustments and restore affected members' Membership Rewards(r) points balances to their levels as of November 8, 2026.
Portal transition
Transition to new online portal
The deductions came just before Amex's transition to a new online portal on November 15.
Under this system, membership rewards points earned across multiple cards will be displayed separately for each card.
However, existing terms and conditions will continue to apply to cards canceled on or after November 15.
This has raised concerns among customers about the impact of this change on their ability to redeem points across multiple cards.
Grievances
Customer complaints highlight issues with policy changes
The main complaint from customers was the retrospective application of a 30-day redemption rule.
Many cardholders were under the impression that their accumulated rewards would remain available as long as they held at least one active card.
This was based on Amex's long-standing policy that membership rewards points do not expire as long as the card account remains active.