Its unlimited credit with limits. If you make large and unusual charges they often will want to speak directly with the customer.
Amex also charges a higher merchant discount rate than Visa or MC, subsequently many retailers won't accept it these days.

If it's an independent retailer you can negotiate, give them the option of Amex or less in cash.

Brilliant thread Ann!!!

Ok where do I begin!............

Customer Service has to be first on the list, or lack of it!
Fashion here is horrendous, basically there isn't any!
Sense of humour, again not much of that either!
Availability of day to day things like co-ordinating bedding and curtains
Culture, heritage, and history I miss big time......there's nothing nice to look at apart from mountains and lakes!
And the cost here, my god it's crazy.......$5 for a jar of curry sauce for example! The cost of everything from a tin of beans to getting your legs waxed to internal flights is just ludicrous???

I feel like I have gone back in time at least 20 years, anyone else out there feel the same??

Apologies if I offend anyone, sorry but I speak as I find!!! Still saying all that above I would never go back to the UK, never in a million years so I guess I'll look on things positively and find maybe a business opportunity that's simply waiting to happen here!

I think they are still higher but try and bully the retailer by suggesting they'll lose their more affluent clients if they don't accept Amex.

This is an odd one. Technically, yes it is true. However they do block you spending an amount that is at odds with your previous monthly spending. To all intents and purposes there is a limit, though they won't tell you what it is. When I first got my UK Platinum card I hit it and they wouldn't let me spend any more until I paid some off. (This is the true AMEX card, not the credit card).

There is an interesting little footnote in the T&C:

No pre-set spending limit**

** Your purchases are approved based on your account experience and personal resources. Proof of resources and security may be required.

I'm not offended so please dont be my my reply. Your experience is different to mine which shows how much this country varies. I've found great variation within a few miles.

One of my major woes when I was living in Peterborough was that there hair dressers were crap. Campbellford, which is 60km east of Pbro is a tiny town but it has some very good hairdressers. er stylists.

Customer service is weird, very polite and helpful until you need to return something and then you are met with very polite nothing. Unless it's Costco.

Fashion, I think the girls dress well though the office wear seems very old- age innappropriate. Maybe I have been here long enough not to know what the current fashions are!

IMO there's far too much co-ordination in curtains etc. Too bland and samey and what's with those daft kitchen curtains, the silly pelmets?

We have culture and heritage and history around here, not recent but still interesting.

ohh the price of beans. I go to Giant Tiger. See how I have become acclimatised?

Yup See, Ive never once in 12 years been given a hard time returning anything. Even stuff they probably should have refused! I gave up on fashion years ago (yes really!) The fact that no one gives a shit is a major plus for canada IMO! Fashion has always been regional anyway, so its not there is no fashion, its just this isnt London. Yup..apathy is why we still have ours

Most people under 50 seem to try and be fashionable in Vancouver, they just miss badly.

I would never haver guessed some of those things!

I think there's a sense of liberation in not having to worry about the decor, matching this and that, needing new furniture every few years. It's all very middle class you know, not buying new as what you have is perfectly good. That's why we shipped out stuff over.

BTW, people at work keep coming in saying that they bought good things in Sterling. Is this true? It's always been closed when I have visited

I got told to get lost when trying to spend 15 quid in Morrisons once. Serves me right for being a twat and using American Express Platinum in Morrisons. Looked really cool when it was declined....

The UK card does have the most amazing travel insurance benefits, and they apply from country of residence, so still good when living in Canada. My Mum is nearly 80 and goes on a load of cruises. She was getting screwed on travel insurance for each trip. I got her a free additional gold card on my account and she has had free insurance for the last few years (been hoping she would chip in for the annual fee....). You can have some crazy number of additional gold card holders all of whom get the same travel insurance benefits.
The Canada based card is nowhere near as good although the fee is about the same.

Then visit when it open

Depends what they mean by good things I suppose. I dont know the people at your work so I cant vouch for their honesty

I have to confess Im not much of a shopper...

When is it open? Warkworth is always closed on Tuesdays and I always forget. Even the UK Warkworth is closed on Tuesdays

I had never connected the two place names!

Stirling is open till 6ish most days, and in the lead up to Xmas many stores are open late in the evening too.

The village chocolatier I can recommend
http://www.ruralroutes.com/orr_city_...?city=Stirling

You have connections with northumberland UK too?

If you look at the place names in Northumberland many are in Nland back home, or have connections Wooler, Alnwick, Warkworth, Percy, Seymour,

Travel insurance is a very good reason to have one, even if you never use the card for much.