The Benefits
So you would think with such a drastic fee increase, that the benefits must have improved, right? Well, think again. Many feel the concierge has greatly deteriorated the past few years. In fact, I have read a number of forum posts by cardmembers who have canceled or downgraded to platinum because they said it simply was no longer worth anywhere close to the annual fee.
Personally, I feel there was only one benefit which really made it worth the price; they used to offer free first class upgrades on domestic flights. So you could buy a coach ticket and automatically get bumped to first class for free if there was availability. However they got rid of that benefit way back, sometime around 9/11 when air travel changed for the worse.
With the reported dwindling benefits, it makes one wonder why people bother with the black card at all. Other than the prestige and status that comes with it, there’s no point in paying more for less benefits.