I am a little embarrassed, but decided to share my experience so perhaps others can avoid making the same mistake I did.
Four of my credit card accounts have Priority Pass lounge access as a benefit. Each one has different terms, and most notably, different numbers of guests allowed entry on a complimentary basis.
The Priority Pass received in conjunction with my American Express Platinum personal account (as well as the one annexed to my American Express Platinum business account) admits one person to a Priority Pass lounge for free. Additional guests are $27 per person.
The Priority Pass received in conjunction with my Citibank Prestige Card allows complimentary access to the cardholder and two guests. Any additional guests are $27 per guest, per visit.
The Priority Pass I received with my Chase Sapphire Reserve Card, allows complimentary access to the cardholder and members of the travel party. I’m not sure if the questions of what is a travel party and how many persons may be in it, have been answered, but theoretically, this covers more guests than any of the cards mentioned above.
The scenario discussed below occurred before I even had the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card, so it is not pertinent to the snafu I found myself in.
The problem is – all of the Priority Pass cards look the same!
Once, In Abu Dhabi, I went to a Priority Pass lounge on a layover between Dubai and New York. There was a young Australian couple next to me who were prepared to pay approximately $50 each for access to the lounge. I was using the Priority Pass Select card I received from my Prestige Card, so I comped their entry. They were so thankful and I felt good. I love to pay it forward in ways like that.
Fast forward, I was at a Priority Pass lounge at Newark Airport. It was actually a pretty awful lounge. Anyway, I had two Priority Pass cards with me, one that went with my American Express Platinum card and the other that went with my Citibank Prestige card. There were two people on line behind me – they were having difficulty locating their Priority Pass card. I said to the clerk at the desk – one of these cards only admits me, whereas the other admits 2 guests and me for free. If you can tell which is which, I am happy to bring these two persons in as my guests. The clerk looked at the cards and said this is the card. So, I comped these two persons in as my guests (note, they barely said thank you to me).
Lo and behold, the clerk didn’t know what he was talking about and I received a $54 bill from American Express for these two guests.
I fought the charges. I contacted American Express, Priority Pass and Citibank. Surely, if I’d used the Priority Pass card issued per the Prestige card, I would have had no charge. Why couldn’t Citibank or Priority Pass just assume the charges? It was just a silly mistake of using the wrong card, but it all involved Priority Pass, so why shouldn’t they just adjust the charge and allocate it to the right account? Priority Pass is one company, so what was the big deal?
No Go.
So, I was the dumb sucker who got stuck paying $54 for two ingrates to go into a lousy club.
The question is how others can avoid this in the future?
Two suggestions (short of never being nice again) come to mind, but you are welcome to chime in.
First, using a sticker or a sharpie, clearly mark which card is which.
Second, keep a note on your smart phone or elsewhere of your Priority Pass account numbers and which credit card account they go with.
What do you do to keep your Priority Pass cards – which look very similar – separate and identifiable?
A New York frequent flyer who elegantly combines her passions for worldwide travel, running a gazillion marathons all over the globe and staying fit ... without sacrificing her fancy for good wine and food.
Kathy – I made the same mistake in the summer. I had my young daughter with me on the way back from Australia. In LAX we went into the PP lounge to wait for our connecting flight. I used my Amex Plat PP card… and ended up having to pay $27 for my daughter, forgetting that it only entitled me to free entry. UGH! $27 for a pancake and a cup of sprite …. and an hour on the wifi! I have now taken my Amex PP card out of my wallet, and only keep the CSR PP card in there. That way I know I can admit as many as are in my travel party!
On another note, I have a ‘travel bank account’ where I deposit monies that I can withdraw via ATM in foreign countries. I keep that account completely separate from my main banking account so that if the ATM card is skimmed at a foreign ATM or establishment, they don’t have access to anything other than the dollars in the travel account. The debit card, however, is identical to my main checking account debit card. I took a sharpie and drew a huge asterisk on the back of the travel bank card so I know which one to use!
Don’t pay it forward from now on. No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.
Indeed it can get very difficult to keep the cards straight! I also have one issued via my Citi Prestige card and one via my Amex Plat and I just put the Amex Priority Pass card in the envelope it came in and sockdrawered it so I won’t ever accidentally take it.
I also downloaded the Priority Pass app and logged in (again using the PP credentials tied to my Citi account) and added the digital card to my smartphone’s digital wallet. The majority of lounges now take the digital card.
Suggested Solutions: Digital Card – but use a different app (like Cardstar) that allows you to label the card. It’s basically just a barcode keepe.
Brother P-Touch label for your cards. Desk reps are knowledgeable but still can’t be expected to know the fine details of EACH card that allows access (i.e. which one is an Amex vs. Citi, vs. Chase, etc.) given that they deal with travelers from around the world.
I carry my CSR PP Card in my wallet and download the Digital PP Card from CITI in my phone. I do not event think carrying my AMEX PP Card with me.
I just write the issuing bank in the signature line on the back with a sharpie.
Frankly the priority pass front desk clerks are clueless – unhelpful, apparently untrained, unconcerned.
Was blown away to find that the telephone “service” was just a bad.
And pancakes and sprite is about par for the course at most priority pass lounges.
Centurion lounges, when available, are far superior; your AMEX allowing in guests with you.
I agree that the front desk clerks are clueless. As for Priority Pass Lounges – I’ve been to some marginal ones and some very good ones. I also like Centurion Lounges as well as Business Lounges – but topic here was Priority Pass lounges.
Happened to me once too. SO and I had all the right cards with us but he was standing apart, with our luggage. I figured it was easier to just let him be my guest than have him come join me at the desk to use his own card – if he could find it!.
One kind of mitigating circumstance – elevator to get up to the club was very slow and a bunch of us waited to get in. Club had been refusing Pass folks entry for a while and now that they’d allowed us in, the area by the desk was very crowded. I realized I’d used the wrong card and when the clerk said he’d redo it but it wasn’t necessary, I looked at the line behind me and said, OK, don’t bother. $54 later, I felt pretty foolish too!
From now on I plan to only carry the Priority Pass cards that allow me guests and to make my SO do his own transactions just to be sure!
I’m sure most of us have also forgotten to use the “right” card when making a purchase in a hurry, or not gone through a portal to increase cash back, and other such mistakes. I figure that when we play this travel hacking game, where we need to keep lots and lots of constantly changing details in our heads, we win most of the time but occasionally blow it. Still, don’t you agree we tend to come out ahead?