Credit Card fees and charges explained

Types of Credit Card fees

• Cash advance fee – payable if you withdraw cash from your Credit Card Account using an ATM.
• Non-Sterling transaction fee – covering the amount of converted Pounds Sterling that’s payable.
• Returned payment fee - any payment to your Account that is not honoured by your financial institution when first presented.
• Additional statement fee - valid if you or a Supplementary Cardmember requests an additional posted monthly paper statement. Note: you can access statements free of charge through your Online Account.
• Late payment fee - payable if you don’t settle the minimum payment required by the due date on your statement.

What Credit Card charges do I need to pay?

The charges you pay partly depend on the type of Card you have and how you use it. Read your Card's terms and conditions to see the interest rates and fees associated with it. 

How to avoid Credit Card fees

Try these tips to help you avoid additional Card fees:

• Pay your balance on time - If possible, set up a monthly Direct Debit to repay your balance regularly. You can also set up payment due date
  reminders on the Amex App.
• Pay off as much of the balance as possible - Paying the full amount owed each month means you won’t need to pay interest on the money you’ve borrowed. If you can’t pay the full balance, just pay as much as you can. All Credit Cards come with minimum monthly repayment amounts, and by making these payments on time, you won’t incur any late fees. But paying this way does mean you’ll accrue interest on the remaining balance the following month.
• Stay within your credit limit - Your credit limit is your contractually agreed spending limit per month. If you exceed this, your transactions may be declined, or you may have to pay an over-limit fee. This can affect your credit rating.
• View statements online rather than requesting an additional copy by post.
• Remember the cash advance fee – payable when withdrawing money from an ATM with your Card.
• Be mindful of currency conversion - American Express charges a currency conversion fee of 2.99% for every purchase you make in a foreign currency. And if you withdraw cash abroad, you’ll be charged a cash fee of 3% of the withdrawal amount, or £3 (whichever is greater).

Not paying your Credit Card fees could affect your financial future

Using your Credit Card effectively can make payments more manageable, but it’s important to be aware of the Card’s terms to avoid additional charges and negative financial impact.

If you do incur additional fees, try to settle them as soon as possible to avoid any further damage to your credit score, or bigger charges.

What are Credit Card Surcharges?

A Card surcharge is a fee that a business adds to the amount of a purchase when a customer uses a Credit or Charge Card.

As of 13 January 2018, the government banned surcharging of consumer payment products in the UK, meaning that businesses can no longer add a fee to the purchase amount when consumers use a Credit or Charge Card.

American Express welcomes the ban and believes this decision will create a level playing field for consumers and will give them the confidence to use the payment method of their choice.