Why do so few vendors accept AMEX? And do all other CC companies charge an interest fee?

1. Why do so few vendors accept AMEX? Seriously, in the past 15 years of owning credit cards, I've noticed that fewer and fewer businesses, particularly online businesses are taking AMEX. One of my first college jobs did not do so, because the owner had a spending problem, and happened to sell people large items (up to $40k), then go spend the money as he pleased, only deciding to deliver a product several months down the line once he had the money from other "future sales". In California, adding the phrase "ALL SALES ARE FINAL", generally protects an owner from being sued over this, but AMEX did not agree, and was pretty proactive about suing over non delivered goods.

I have filed at least 1 dispute per month with AMEX, and with the exception of one lengthy drawn out issue, they have always returned my money, which would have otherwise been as good as stolen. I learned early on, that even PayPal, does not often guarantee or protect that the consumer get what they pay for.

So my perspective has been that companies that do not take AMEX, are doing so, because they have lost the privilege of doing so, or plan on operating like this.


2. Now, ever since the Consumer Protection Agency has formed, it seems that ALL CC companies, except for AMEX charge an interest fee. That being said, I have now dumped all of my non AMEX CC cards, even though I always pay my bills, and have very good credit that reflects this.

Are there any other CCs that do not charge an interest fee when, after their "promotional period" has ended?

3. What's with the reemergence of the Discover card? I always thought they were the worst at protecting the consumer.