Free Giveaway Friday, Delta Surcharge Relief, & Platinum Card non-News

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1. Your Platinum Card’s Membership Rewards will drop in value for Pay With Points redemptions on February 15, 2013 from 1.25 cents to 1 cent. This is pretty close to not being newsworthy, since Pay With Points is a bad deal at 1.25 cents. I’d rather transfer to Avios, Hawaiian Airlines, or even top off a Delta account before buying a cash ticket with Membership Rewards.

The Points Guy reports that you can call AMEX to cancel your Platinum card until December 30 at 800-525-3355 and receive a prorated refund of the $450 annual fee. My understanding of AMEX annual fees is that you can always call to cancel them and get a prorated credit for the “unused portion” of the annual fee.

2. Lucky reports Delta will no longer charge the approximately $300 surcharge for award tickets originating in Europe. There was never a good reason why New York to Paris roundtrip was $100 in taxes, and Paris to New York roundtrip was $400 in taxes.

Last week I reported that Delta is no longer collecting fuel surcharges on Virgin Australia awards, so Delta’s miles are inching up in value (from a low base.)

3. Last Friday’s winner of the gogo pass was Joanna. Lucky her: she can read MileValue for free from 35k feet. Last Friday, there were only 15 commentors, so the chances of winning are pretty good.