Travellers discover many benefits using the new American Express® Phone Card

The recently introduced American Express Prepaid Phone Card is proving to be a welcome travel accessory. It’s an effective, economical way of communicating while away from home. Although designed primarily for use by travellers, this new prepaid phone card offers a variety of benefits that will appeal to people in virtually all walks of life. Employing advanced telecommunications technology coupled with 24-hour international customer service, the American Express Prepaid Phone Card can be a preferred alternative to both direct dialing and operator-assisted dialing, whether calling from a hotel room or public telephone.

The cards are available in three affordable denominations $10, $25, and $50. The competitive rates often prove to be much less expensive than using pay phones, calling collect or with telephone company cards. Domestic calls within the U.S. and Canada are made at a fixed rate. As charges for international calls vary according to the countries connected, specific country-to-country rate information can be obtained in advance by contacting SmarTalkÔ Customer Service at a toll-free number shown on each card.

User-friendly operation

The American Express Prepaid Phone Cards are particularly easy to use at Canadian pay telephones equipped with magnetic stripe card-reader slots. After inserting the card and dialing the desired number, the card does the rest... including providing the PIN security confirmation code. When using telephones without automatic card-readers, you simply dial the toll-free access number; enter the card’s PIN code; select language preference for voice prompting and enter the desired phone number, just as you would from home or office. It’s a snap.

The American Express Prepaid Phone Card offers calling from Canada, the U.S., and more than 20 other countries to over 200 countries around the world. To enjoy the convenience of using your card while travelling abroad, before you leave be sure to call SmarTalkÔ Customer Service to get the latest toll-free access numbers and dialing procedures for the countries you will be visiting.

Unique to American Express

Protection against loss is a unique feature that will appeal to everyone, especially to those who have experienced the inconvenience of losing their credit cards while far from home. Unlike any other phone card currently available, should it become lost or stolen, the American Express Prepaid Phone Card can be replaced at no additional cost by calling SmarTalkÔ and providing the PIN number of the missing card. A new PIN number will be issued immediately and any unused balance will be credited. Calls can then be made by entering the new PIN number on a telephone keypad, with voice-prompted assistance available at each step along the way.

The American Express Prepaid Phone Card is also re-usable. If a card’s prepaid limit is getting low, it can be ‘recharged’... its value replenished remotely via a toll-free call to SmarTalkÔ. Additional minutes can be added using an American Express® Card or other major credit card.

Convenience and reassurance

Backed by American Express with service provided by SmarTalkÔ, this new phone card provides an extra measure of reassurance and protection, combining value with peace of mind. For business or vacation, American Express Prepaid Phone Cards are a convenient and often more economical way for people to keep in touch without the need for local currency or credit confirmation. They also make great gifts for friends or family members planning a trip abroad and can be an ideal way to budget long-distance phone allowances for students living away from home.

The American Express Prepaid Phone Card is another example of the full range of travel-related products and services offered at your local American Express Travel Agency.

Peter Drutz is Vice President and General Manager of the Consumer Travel Group, Amex Canada Inc.

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