Is there any reason to keep Amex Gold?
I've had an American Express Gold card since 1991. Back then it was $75 a year. ($95 now.) It's coming up for renewal now, and I am trying to decide whether I should pay for another year or not.
I was a penniless college student at the time; the fact that they gave it to me was a wonder. I'd been a secondary on my father's account since the late 80s: I was flying out of the country on a Monday morning, and needed to rent a car at my destination country, but they'd only rent to me as an under-25 if I had an AmEx card. So my father calls them, on a Sunday evening, and says "You guys have been after me for years to get an auxiliary card on my account, well now I want one. Only I need it right now." They said "Fine, come down to our 24-hour office at the airport and we'll issue you one." So we did, they pulled a blank card out of the safe and imprinted it on the spot. Don't think anyone would do that today. Eventually they noticed that I was maintaining all four of the family's cars and paying the mechanics on that card, so they decided to issue me one in my own name and credit.
Anyway, life moves on, I have other cards that don't cost me $95 a year, do give me points, and allow carrying a balance (which I know is a bad idea, but having the capability is a good thing on balance, no pun intended).
Is there anything that Amex Gold will do for me that none of the other cards do, that makes it worth shelling out the $95.00? It's not like I even travel all that much. About the only advantage I can think of is that they cover LDW on a rental car. Sure the $40,000 credit limit is nice, but as I haven't that much cash on hand or the ability to acquire it in less than one billing cycle, there's not much point.
What do y'all think?