So you ask, what does this have to do with hunting? A whole lot!

If you aren't familiar with a post I made sometime back in October 2005, it concerned a bear I left with a taxidermist. Do a search on my name and you'll find it.

I shot a bear, a nice black bear boar with a big white patch on it's chest in June of '04 in Idaho. It was a very cool bear, trust me. Due to hot weather I left him with the outfitter recommended taxidermist.

This taxidermist FINALLY contacted me in March of 2005 for a deposit and discussion on a mount. I paid the deposit with my Amex, $450 for a 3/4 mount.

In October I got a crappy notice from some local court that this taxidermist filed bankruptcy.

I called Amex.

They investigated.

No response from the taxidermist (no surprise).

Amex ATE the $450, they credited my account for the full amount. What an awesome company!

Lesson: USE YOUR AMEX

So, don't go hunting with out your American Express card!

I don't know if any other CC comapnies are this good but, I am very happy with the outcome.

My bear skin and skull was also recovered, it's now being handled by a professional who's bent over backwards helping me with this situation and that is our own Widowmaker 416, Ron Newman.

I'm glad to hear your taxidermist dillemma worked out! Be sure to show pics when you get your bear back!

MG

great post...thanks Ann. Sorry about the problem but you're coming out fine it seems.

By all means...post a pic.....

That is good advertising! My American Express card earned enough FF miles that my wife and I are flying RT to Zambia this year, plus they bought us a free campanion ticket to go to the Dallas Safari Club. Gotta love American Express!

ann - are you getting you bear yet or did it somehow disappear?

Hey Ms. Ann, Congratulations on getting to the point where you are right now. Stuff like this can add Gray Hairs (if you have room for any more).

Look forward to seeing the final mount too.

I use my amex for on line purchases for the same reason. If you are defrauded or you have an ID theft, amex covers you.

Here's another one for AMEX. Some friends and I were going duck hunting in Arkansas. The airline lost my friends gun case and he had bought his ticket with AMEX. AMEX said they would replace whatever was in the lost bag to make his vacation enjoyable, even if he got his gun back. The botton line was, my buddy got a new gun to use for one day, then got his gun back from the airline. Thanks AMEX.

I also use AMEX as much as possible for both the protection and the FF miles. Three Busines Clas tickets to S. Africa, twice my card number has been stolen and it never cost me a penny, they even sent me Fed Ex a new card. And once a rental car was damaged in a parking lot and they covered what my Insurance company would not pay. I have ther baggage Insurance and they padi off ona camera. Finally I was in Winnepeg, Manitoba and needed cash, the Hotel would give me up to $500 on Amex $0 on Visa.

Ann, this is a good thread. Most any cc company will do this, so long as it is a major cc, ie., visa, mastercard, amex. There are federal guidelines, and international guidelines used for merchants regarding the use of visa mastercard and amex. There are disputes you can pursue in events such as yours and typically your cc company will issue a pending refund immediately and post it to your account while the investigation is underway. The number 1 way to dispute charges is "merchandise or service was undelivered or not received."

The merchant has 45 days from the date of the dispute letter, fom your bank ,to respond. If there is no reponse, your bank takes the charge from the deposit bank of that merchant.

Then you have to deal with what is called "good faith." That is, even though you think the dispute is over, merchants and visa mastercard, amex, have an agreement to give additional time for the merchant to respond to the dispute...a second chance if you will. The key here is this, and make sure you never forget this: GET A NEW CC NUMBER FOR YOUR ACCOUNT! Call your bank immediately in cases like this and get a new card with a new number asap.

The reason for this is because even if the merchant still has your old cc paperwork where they ran it through to their account, they can do it again, and you have to start the dispute all over again. This time it will go to the fraud department though. And that can take longer.

In fact, it is wise to call any and all of your cc companies you use and ask them for a copy of the regulations regarding dispute resolutions and fraud, and how these situations are handled.

Great addition to the thread, Doc.

I always phone my card companies before I leave town to go on a trip. Even if it is just to drive to Wyoming or some other state. I give them the dates I will be gone and they keep an eye on things. I always advise my clients to do the same thing when they book a hunt.

It really protects you!

Even overseas in third world countries like Africa. I've never had trouble using my cards and then, when this incident happened I couldn't have been more pleased with the outcome and thanked them to no end.

Since I charge EVERYTHING (for the miles) this is a benefit. Plus, really, they don't have to be so nice to me since I pay my balance off every month, they never really make any money off of me, just the merchant. I also like the year end report they make up for you as well as the air miles!!!!!

Anybody else ever had trouble using the AMex in Foreign countries?

Many countries with a high inflation rate will not accept it as they take a very long time to pay the merchant. In Zim and in Angola by the time the money arrived inflation would eat up all the profit.

I even had trouble in Australia a few years ago when the Aussie Dollar was dropping like a rock.

I paid for a custom rifle with my Capitol One Visa card. The rifle looked like it was an apprentices project. Long story short, after several months and letters, Cap One credited back my account. I was really glad I had used a CC to pay for that rifle.

Mickey,

Then use a VISA card. Just make sure you phone your CC company ahead of time and tell them your travel plans and what their policies are.

I have a Cap 1 and a VISA from MBNA. MBNA does not charge for currency conversions.

I had a friend that always carried his home made machette when ever we went to the canadian wilderness fishing. He called it his Mexican express card.....said he never left home without it.

He was from ElPaso Texas.

I remember reading that post. Glad you were able to get everything sorted out.

Ann, Thanks for the tip on MBNA not charging for currency conversions. I just got charged $20 for this when I charged for the dip, pack and shipping of my trophies from RSA last month on my visa (not MBNA) card.

Glad you got your hide and skull back.

Ann,

I always call all the CC companies I plan to use on a given trip after I have had several experiences where they actually SHUT DOWN the use until I called in to verify my ID.

It happened once when driving from AZ to Prince George, BC for a bear hunt and another time when I was at a lodge outside Kruger NP doing some wildlife photography. In both cases, I had used the same card repeatedly prior to getting it shut off.

The amusing part is that they call my home phone to check, so if I'm traveling with my wife, no one would be able to let me know about it. On the trip to Canada, I just used another one, but in Africa, my wife sent me an email with the international 800# to call.

So now a simple phone call results in a notation on my account that I'll be traveling in such & such place on such & such dates. I just did it for my bass fishing trip to Mexico last week. -TONY

Tony, I just had that happen to me on a Bank of America account. Even though I had put a note on the account that I would use it on foreign travel, they shut the card off on my last trip (plus padded the one cash withdrawal with a bunch of fees). They never left a message, never called my local branch manager, nothing.

Needless to say, I'll be changing a good number of accounts away from that outfit. JMO, Dutch.

Dutch,

That's goofy. In the couple times it's happened to me, the CC company always called my home # to check on the uses.

As for the fees, most companies charge a fee if you do not use one of its own ATMs, and in the case of foreign money, they usually tack on an exchange fee. The amount for the exchange fee varies between CC companies, however. Visa & MC add a percentage and then the card issuing bank/company also adds one. It's the latter that varies and can be as high as 3%. So it's a good idea to call any CC company you use to see which one has the lowest exchange rates.

We own two time shares in Mazatlan, Mex., so the routine is an annual one with me every fall when we head down there for two weeks. I also just did the same last week when a buddy and I went to Lake El Salto on a bass fishing trip. -TONY