Amtrak Shoppin

[abcnews]

OK - Just went through Amtrak Guest Rewards to buy some shoes. Ended up at Macy's to get a nice pair of Sperry shoes at an amazing price. Now I am in checkout.... There is no mention at all about Earning points for Amtrak. Yet it says on the AGR "Points for shopping" tab, that you can earn 4 points for every dollar spent at Macy's (online). Plus there is a 200 point bonus offer right now from AGR regarding your first purchase over $50 (AGR bonus) at "Points for Shopping".

I need the shoes - so I will get them now, but is there a way to confirm the points - with the online checkout?

I am also using our Chase Amtrak Master card - so no special bonus for that - other than earning 1 point for each dollar charged on our Chase Amtrak credit card. Just wondering if there was a Chase AGR small bonus for using "Points for shopping"?

Thanks,

Mike'

 

[Mike S.]

When you go to a merchant, you must first start at the AGR page/shopping mall, then click the link to the merchant. So essentially, you're brought to the Macy's webpage FROM AGR which probably embeds a cookie/etc. to let that website know who you are.

Mike

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I need the shoes - so I will get them now, but is there a way to confirm the points - with the online checkout?

So far as I'm aware there is no way to know if you will ever get the points. You can print out the confirmation page after your purchase and argue with everyone if you don't get the points, but it's probably more hassle than it's worth for most transactions.

So, basically, don't buy anything through the online mall that you wouldn't buy normally for that price.

 

[the_traveler]

As Mike S. said, a cookie is placed on the order saying you entered the Macy's site (or whatever) from the AGR portal (or some other portal), and that you will earn the extra points or miles. If you enter Macy's or Best Buy or Petco, etc... directly thru their website, you will not earn AGR points.

That is why before I checkout, I ALWAYS re-enter the site thru the portal. When you hit "back" or check something else, it may think that you ended your shopping. But when you re-enter thru the AGR portal, your items are (or should be) in your cart already!

Thus, you will earn points!

 

[Devil's Advocate]

That is why before I checkout, I ALWAYS re-enter the site thru the portal. When you hit "back" or check something else, it may think that you ended your shopping. But when you re-enter thru the AGR portal, your items are (or should be) in your cart already!

Thus, you will earn points!

Those are all great tips, but which specific cookie are we supposed to look for? What about URL variables that get overridden or truncated? Which specific browsers and versions are supported? How long do I have to wait before I can expect the points to post and who do I call when they don't show up? What if Amtrak and the vendor decide to take the easy way out and simply blame each other? I've struck out more often than I've scored any points through these gimmicks, and it can take a lot of time and patience to get it resolved when the cookie system doesn't work as advertised. In the end it boils down to how much our time is worth to us and how much we enjoy being on hold or faxing print-outs to people who make no promises that anything will ever post.