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$50 Delta.com Gift card credit seems really DEAD now sad to say!
Well, this stinks. At the first of the year (as I have year, after year, after year – after year) I tested buying with a computer Delta e-gift cards for my Amex Platinum Cards (learn more here) travel credit rebate. I did this for a number of reasons. First, I tend to fly Delta a lot and it is nice to lock in the credits because Delta gift cards never expire (you just have to track them yourself – no way to save them on Delta.com). I could choose another airline for credit (that still works with gift cards) but why when this works.
I started getting reader reports that at some point during 2019 this long, long, long term way of locking in value died. So I tested early in June with a new Amex Platinum card (learn more here) and… Yep… It worked just fine. This is in spite of the T&C from Amex about what qualifies:
“Statement Credits: Incidental air travel fees must be charged to the Card Member on the eligible Card Account for the benefit to apply. Incidental air travel fees charged by both the Basic and Additional Card Members on the eligible Card Account are eligible for statement credits. However, each Card Account is eligible for up to a total of $200 per calendar year in statement credits across all Cards on the Account. Incidental air travel fees must be separate charges from airline ticket charges. Fees not charged by the Card Member’s airline of choice (e.g. wireless internet and fees incurred with airline alliance partners) do not qualify for statement credits. Incidental air travel fees charged prior to selection of a qualifying airline are not eligible for statement credits. Airline tickets, upgrades, mileage points purchases, mileage points transfer fees, gift cards, duty free purchases, and award tickets are not deemed to be incidental fees. The airline must submit the charge under the appropriate merchant code, industry code, or required service or product identifier for the charge to be recognized as an incidental air travel fee. Please allow 2-4 weeks after the qualifying incidental air travel fee is charged to your Card Account for statement credit(s) to be posted to the Account. We rely on airlines to submit the correct information on airline transactions, so please call the number on the back of the Card if statement credits have not posted after 4 weeks from the date of purchase. Card Members remain responsible for timely payment of all charges. To be eligible for this benefit, Card Account(s) must be not canceled and not past due at the time of statement credit fulfillment.” – From Amex (bold mine)
And when I posted my reconfirmed post a number of readers reported in the comments section of the post they also had success with getting the credit just as I have. But reports, over the past month, have kept coming in that it is now REALLY dead for good. So I re-re-tested.
If you take a look at the screenshot above you will see that my $50 charge from this month, July, has yet to credit (normally it only takes a few days). Grrr…. That stinks!
What I take from this is this: Buying Delta gift cards for the yearly credit may be really dead now — or it may just be a tech hiccup that goes away. Either way, it is no longer a confirmed and a reliable option year after year as it has been for the better part of a decade. So what now.
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If you again look at my statement screenshot above you will notice a few credits. These are from the fees from booking an award ticket. That, also as it has for many, many years, is working. Will it keep working? Who knows – but it should. That is how I will now use my credits. But what else should work with Delta?
These should still work in Sky Clubs!
- Paying for gift cards inside the Delta Sky Clubs should still work. Normally I would never ever recommend this as you can buy Delta gift cards at greatly discounted prices at retail stores when there are sales or Amex Offers for You that you can stack (as well as paying with the right card for max points). But after this latest change this could be a workaround and the $100 cards should be fine.
- Paying for guest to enter the Sky Club with you should still trigger the credits. Some really like this way of getting credit each year (I am not a fan but to each his / her own).
- Paying for bag fees. I really dislike this one as well because if you are any kind of even semi- regular Delta flyer you should at least hold the Delta Amex Gold card (learn more here) to get free bags for you and those who fly with you on the same reservation. But, for this post, it should work for the credit.
- Paying for things onboard Delta jets should still also get you full credit like food and drinks. Just keep in mind that the one thing onboard that does NOT — and has never — worked is buying Gogo as that is not billed by Delta (as of this post anyway).
- If you have fees to change a ticket that should also work but I have had reports that if you go over $200 that the trigger does not work. Just know small amounts should be fine.
- Paying for a seat fee. This one can be tricky because if Delta codes this as an “upgrade” it may be rejected. Call this one a YMMV choice.
Do note I did not call Amex to see about manually having the credit issued now that it no longer posts. It could work but I really don’t want to go that route (bad things can happen when you call). So, have I missed anything? Are there other Delta related charges you have received credit for that I have missed in my list above? Let us know in the comments below! – René
