Dr. Credit Card - All about Credit Card Travel and Consumer Protection (Old Review NOT Updated)
Updated November 15, 2019. Please see our updated review here.
Top Credit Cards for Protection
1. Chase Sapphire Reserve Visa Infinite
2. Chase United Club Visa Signature
3. HSBC Premier World Elite MasterCard
4. City National Bank Crystal Visa Infinite
5. Chase IHG Rewards Club Premier World Elite MasterCard
6. Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa Signature
Chase United Explorer Visa Signature
Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa Signature
Chase World of Hyatt Visa Signature
10. Mastercard Black Card (World Elite MasterCard)
Nowadays, most credit cards provide some sort of travel and consumer protection. However, benefits provided by different issuers or even different products by the same issuer can be very different, and here we will try to provide a summary and help you get a basic idea. Please do refer to the benefit guide that comes with your credit card for details.
Primary Rental Car Collision Coverage
Most credit cards' rental car collision coverage is secondary, meaning that your personal collision damage insurance kicks in first. However, there are a few credit cards that offer primary rental car collision coverage. Chase Sapphire Preferred's auto rental collision insurance is primary, covers a rental up to 31 consecutive days, but excludes expensive or exotic vehicles. Vehicles such as Aston Martin, Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Maserati, Porsche, and Rolls Royce are excluded, while select models of BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, and Lincoln are covered. Chase United Club, United Explorer, and Chase Sapphire Reserve all offer the same primary coverage. Please visit our featured review "Credit Cards with Primary Rental Car Insurance" for details.
Roadside Assistance
Most credit cards' roadside assistance coverage is for dispatch only - they will find a provider for you and send them to your location, but you have to pay out of your pocket for the actual towing charges (most of them charge $59.95 for 5-mile towing), etc. However, a few cards provide certain coverage for free. Chase Sapphire Reserve covers you up to $50 per service event, up to 4 events per year. Amex Platinum Card, Amex Gold, Delta Reserve, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, and Hilton Aspire allow your to use their roadside service regardless of distance from home, and the first 10 miles of towing is free, up to 4 events per year.
Travel Accident Insurance
Most Visa Signature and Amex cards and certain MasterCards provide this insurance to a covered person in the event of accidental death, dismemberment, and loss of speech, sight, and hearing, when traveling. Most cards offer Common Carrier coverage which only applies when you are aboard a common carrier (airplane, ship, train, shuttle, bus, etc.) or at airport, terminal or station, while Chase cards offer an additional option called 24 Hour coverage which applies to the entire trip on a 24 hour basis, starting on the departure date printed on the airline ticket and ending on the return date printed on the airline ticket, up to 30 days in length. A covered person defined by most cards is the cardholder or his/her spouse or underaged children (sometimes defined as family members); however, a Chase card has a wider coverage as it defines a covered person as the cardholder or his/her extended family members: spouse, children, siblings or siblings-in-law, parents or parents-in-law, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts or uncles, nieces or nephews, and even better, a covered person doesn't need to travel with the cardholder. Another important fact is that while most other card issuers require you to use the credit card to pay in full or use rewards points associated with that particular card, thus limiting the benefit to revenue tickets, Chase cards again stand out as they allow you pay a portion of the fare with the card to receive this benefit, so that you are covered on an awards ticket (using frequent flyer miles) as long as you pay taxes and fees with your Chase card.
As for the insurance amount, most cards provide up to $100,000 to $500,000 per covered person for Common Carrier coverage. The highest amount we have seen is on Chase Sapphire Reserve ($1,000,000 per person for Common Carrier coverage, and $100,000 per person for the more extensive 24 Hour converge), or BofA Premium Rewards ($1,000,000 per person, up to two persons per accident).
Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance
Not many cards offer this benefit - when your trip is canceled or interrupted due to a covered reason such as death, injury, sickness, severe weather, jury duty, etc., you will be reimbursed up to the insurance amount, normally $1,500 to $5,000 per person per trip. The best coverage we have seen is $10,000 per person per trip, up to $20,000 per trip, and up to $40,000 per year, as provided by Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, United Explorer, or United Club Card. Just as detailed in the "Travel Accident Insurance" section, a Chase card with this benefit covers the cardholder and extended family members, as well as awards tickets. BofA Premium Rewards covers up to $5,000 per person per trip, up to $10,000 per trip, and up to $20,000 per year, and it also covers the cardholder and extended family members. Barclays cards covers up to $5,000 per person per trip, up to $10,000 per year.
Trip Delay Reimbursement
This benefit is even rarer among credit cards - when your trip is delayed more than a certain number of hours due to a covered reason such as equipment failure, inclement weather, labor strikes, etc., you will be reimbursed for reasonable expense up to the insurance amount. Unlike other travel protection benefits offered by Chase, a Chase card with this benefit (such as Chase Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, United Explorer, or United Club) only covers you and your spouse or underaged children; however, award tickets are still covered. Chase covers you up to $500 per ticket when the delay is more than 12 hours or when an overnight stay is needed, while Chase Sapphire Reserve reduces the eligible delay to more than 6 hours. BofA Premium Rewards's coverage is up to $500 per ticket when the delay is more than 12 hours; however, extended family members and awards tickets are not covered.
Lost Baggage Reimbursement
Many credit cards provide this benefit - when your checked or carry-on baggage is lost or damage in a common carrier covered trip, you will be reimbursed for the cost of repairing or replacing the baggage and personal properties contained within, up to the maximum insurance amount. A Chase card covers the cardholder and family members, and an awards ticket is eligible to receive this benefit. Many Chase Visa Signature cards cover you up to $3,000 per person per trip, and up to $500 per person per trip for high-risk items such as jewelry, watches, cameras, video recorders, and other electronic equipment. Coverage by Amex cards differs from card to card, and the best is Amex Platinum which covers up to $3,000 for carry-on, $2,000 for checked baggage, and $250 for high-risk items. Several Bank of America Cards, including BofA Premium Rewards, cover up to $3,000 per trip.
Baggage Delay Reimbursement
Not many cards provide this benefit - when your baggage is delayed for a certain number of hours, you will be reimbursed for purchase of essential items, up to the maximum insurance amount. A Chase card covers the cardholder and family members, and an awards ticket is eligible to receive this benefit. Several Chase Visa Signature cards cover up to $300 per person per trip ($100 per day, for up to 3 days) when a delay is more than 6 hours, while Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve raise the limit to $500 per person per trip ($100 per day, for up to 5 days). BofA Premium Rewards covers up to $500 per trip ($100 per day, up to 5 days) when a delay is more than 6 hours. Several Barclays cards cover up to $300 per trip ($100 per day, up to 3 days), and up to $300 maximum per year, when a delay is more than 12 hours.
Price Protection
With Price Protection, when the price of a purchased product drops within a certain period from the purchase date, you will be reimbursed for the price difference, up to the insurance amount. Amex was the first to offer this valuable benefit, but discontinued it due to fraud and abuse; Chase followed to offer this benefit for years but also discontinued it in August 2018 due to similar reasons; for years Citi offered Price Rewind that allowed automatic tracking of price but discontinued the benefit in September 2019; Barclays has also this benefit for years but discontinued it in November 2019. Currently there are only a few cards that still offer this benefit, such as Chase United Club Visa, CNB Crystal Visa Infinite, HSBC Premier WEMC, MasterCard Black Card, and Wells Fargo Visa Signature.
Extended Warranty
Many credit cards offer this benefit - they automatically extend the warranty on a purchased product for one additional year after the original manufacturer warranty expires, when the original manufacturer warranty is three years or less, and they will reimburse you up to the insurance amount, normally up to $10,000 per item and up to $50,000 per account. Currently, Cit and Amex are the only issuers that offer two years of extended warranty instead of one, when the original manufacturer warranty is five years or less. Amex has the $50,000 maximum per year instead of lifetime per account. Citi doesn't specify a per year or per account maximum.
Purchase Protection
Many credit cards offer this benefit covering your purchased product in the event of damage, theft, or accidental loss, up to the insurance amount, for a certain period after purchase. Most cards covers up to $500 or $1,000 per item, and up to $50,000 per account, for the first 90 days of purchase. Chase and Amex cards extend this benefit to the first 120 days, and some of them (such as Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase United Explorer, Chase United Club, Amex Platinum, Amex Gold) cover up to $10,000 per item and the $50,000 maximum is for per year. Certain Citi cards also have $10,000 per item and $50,000 per year limit, but only for the first 90 days, and lost items are not covered.
Return Protection
Several Amex cards offer this benefit covering your purchased product when the retailer refuses to take it back, up to the insurance amount (normally $250-$500 per item, and $1,000 per year), for the first 90 days.
Cell Phone Protection
This coverage used to be provided by only a few cards; however, as of July 2019, all World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards offer this benefit - you get reimbursed up to $600 per claim ($800 for World Elite MasterCard) for a stolen or damaged cell phone or cosmetic screen scratches when you pay your monthly cell phone bills with the card. Note that this protection usually doesn't cover loss of your cell phone ("disappear without explanation"). In addition to all the World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards, there are a few other products that provide this benefit and here are some examples. Citi Prestige WEMC has a $50 deductible, a $1,000 cap per claim, and an annual reimbursement cap of $1,500. Wells Fargo Propel Amex has a $25 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,200. Barclays Uber Visa covers loss of your phone and has a $25 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,200. Chase Ink Business Preferred has a $100 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,800.
Other Coverages
Chase Sapphire Reserve, US Bank Altitude Reserve, and BofA Premium Rewards all offer Emergency Evacuation and Transportation coverage, up to $100,000 per person, for the cardholder and spouse/children. Chase Sapphire Reserve is the only card currently available to new applications we know that offer Emergency Medical and Dental coverage, secondary to your existing medical coverage, up to $2,500 per person with a $50 deductible, for the cardholder and spouse/children. Event Ticket Protection is offered by Chase Sapphire Reserve (up to $500 per ticket, $2,000 per event, and $4,000 per year). Personal Identity Theft Protection offered by CNB Crystal Visa and US Bank Altitude Reserve covers your expense up to $15,000 for restoring your identity; this coverage is also provided by all World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards starting July 2019. Hotel Theft Protection covers your loss due to hotel theft up to $1,500 per claim for HSBC Premier WEMC and $1,000 per claim for CNB Crystal Visa.
© 2011-2020 DrCreditCard.net All rights reserved.
Top Credit Cards for Protection
1. Chase Sapphire Reserve Visa Infinite
2. Chase United Club Visa Signature
3. HSBC Premier World Elite MasterCard
4. City National Bank Crystal Visa Infinite
5. Chase IHG Rewards Club Premier World Elite MasterCard
6. Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa Signature
Chase United Explorer Visa Signature
Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa Signature
Chase World of Hyatt Visa Signature
10. Mastercard Black Card (World Elite MasterCard)
Nowadays, most credit cards provide some sort of travel and consumer protection. However, benefits provided by different issuers or even different products by the same issuer can be very different, and here we will try to provide a summary and help you get a basic idea. Please do refer to the benefit guide that comes with your credit card for details.
Primary Rental Car Collision Coverage
Most credit cards' rental car collision coverage is secondary, meaning that your personal collision damage insurance kicks in first. However, there are a few credit cards that offer primary rental car collision coverage. Chase Sapphire Preferred's auto rental collision insurance is primary, covers a rental up to 31 consecutive days, but excludes expensive or exotic vehicles. Vehicles such as Aston Martin, Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Lotus, Maserati, Porsche, and Rolls Royce are excluded, while select models of BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, and Lincoln are covered. Chase United Club, United Explorer, and Chase Sapphire Reserve all offer the same primary coverage. Please visit our featured review "Credit Cards with Primary Rental Car Insurance" for details.
Roadside Assistance
Most credit cards' roadside assistance coverage is for dispatch only - they will find a provider for you and send them to your location, but you have to pay out of your pocket for the actual towing charges (most of them charge $59.95 for 5-mile towing), etc. However, a few cards provide certain coverage for free. Chase Sapphire Reserve covers you up to $50 per service event, up to 4 events per year. Amex Platinum Card, Amex Gold, Delta Reserve, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, and Hilton Aspire allow your to use their roadside service regardless of distance from home, and the first 10 miles of towing is free, up to 4 events per year.
Travel Accident Insurance
Most Visa Signature and Amex cards and certain MasterCards provide this insurance to a covered person in the event of accidental death, dismemberment, and loss of speech, sight, and hearing, when traveling. Most cards offer Common Carrier coverage which only applies when you are aboard a common carrier (airplane, ship, train, shuttle, bus, etc.) or at airport, terminal or station, while Chase cards offer an additional option called 24 Hour coverage which applies to the entire trip on a 24 hour basis, starting on the departure date printed on the airline ticket and ending on the return date printed on the airline ticket, up to 30 days in length. A covered person defined by most cards is the cardholder or his/her spouse or underaged children (sometimes defined as family members); however, a Chase card has a wider coverage as it defines a covered person as the cardholder or his/her extended family members: spouse, children, siblings or siblings-in-law, parents or parents-in-law, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts or uncles, nieces or nephews, and even better, a covered person doesn't need to travel with the cardholder. Another important fact is that while most other card issuers require you to use the credit card to pay in full or use rewards points associated with that particular card, thus limiting the benefit to revenue tickets, Chase cards again stand out as they allow you pay a portion of the fare with the card to receive this benefit, so that you are covered on an awards ticket (using frequent flyer miles) as long as you pay taxes and fees with your Chase card.
As for the insurance amount, most cards provide up to $100,000 to $500,000 per covered person for Common Carrier coverage. The highest amount we have seen is on Chase Sapphire Reserve ($1,000,000 per person for Common Carrier coverage, and $100,000 per person for the more extensive 24 Hour converge), or BofA Premium Rewards ($1,000,000 per person, up to two persons per accident).
Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance
Not many cards offer this benefit - when your trip is canceled or interrupted due to a covered reason such as death, injury, sickness, severe weather, jury duty, etc., you will be reimbursed up to the insurance amount, normally $1,500 to $5,000 per person per trip. The best coverage we have seen is $10,000 per person per trip, up to $20,000 per trip, and up to $40,000 per year, as provided by Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase Sapphire Preferred, United Explorer, or United Club Card. Just as detailed in the "Travel Accident Insurance" section, a Chase card with this benefit covers the cardholder and extended family members, as well as awards tickets. BofA Premium Rewards covers up to $5,000 per person per trip, up to $10,000 per trip, and up to $20,000 per year, and it also covers the cardholder and extended family members. Barclays cards covers up to $5,000 per person per trip, up to $10,000 per year.
Trip Delay Reimbursement
This benefit is even rarer among credit cards - when your trip is delayed more than a certain number of hours due to a covered reason such as equipment failure, inclement weather, labor strikes, etc., you will be reimbursed for reasonable expense up to the insurance amount. Unlike other travel protection benefits offered by Chase, a Chase card with this benefit (such as Chase Sapphire Reserve, Sapphire Preferred, United Explorer, or United Club) only covers you and your spouse or underaged children; however, award tickets are still covered. Chase covers you up to $500 per ticket when the delay is more than 12 hours or when an overnight stay is needed, while Chase Sapphire Reserve reduces the eligible delay to more than 6 hours. BofA Premium Rewards's coverage is up to $500 per ticket when the delay is more than 12 hours; however, extended family members and awards tickets are not covered.
Lost Baggage Reimbursement
Many credit cards provide this benefit - when your checked or carry-on baggage is lost or damage in a common carrier covered trip, you will be reimbursed for the cost of repairing or replacing the baggage and personal properties contained within, up to the maximum insurance amount. A Chase card covers the cardholder and family members, and an awards ticket is eligible to receive this benefit. Many Chase Visa Signature cards cover you up to $3,000 per person per trip, and up to $500 per person per trip for high-risk items such as jewelry, watches, cameras, video recorders, and other electronic equipment. Coverage by Amex cards differs from card to card, and the best is Amex Platinum which covers up to $3,000 for carry-on, $2,000 for checked baggage, and $250 for high-risk items. Several Bank of America Cards, including BofA Premium Rewards, cover up to $3,000 per trip.
Baggage Delay Reimbursement
Not many cards provide this benefit - when your baggage is delayed for a certain number of hours, you will be reimbursed for purchase of essential items, up to the maximum insurance amount. A Chase card covers the cardholder and family members, and an awards ticket is eligible to receive this benefit. Several Chase Visa Signature cards cover up to $300 per person per trip ($100 per day, for up to 3 days) when a delay is more than 6 hours, while Sapphire Preferred and Sapphire Reserve raise the limit to $500 per person per trip ($100 per day, for up to 5 days). BofA Premium Rewards covers up to $500 per trip ($100 per day, up to 5 days) when a delay is more than 6 hours. Several Barclays cards cover up to $300 per trip ($100 per day, up to 3 days), and up to $300 maximum per year, when a delay is more than 12 hours.
Price Protection
With Price Protection, when the price of a purchased product drops within a certain period from the purchase date, you will be reimbursed for the price difference, up to the insurance amount. Amex was the first to offer this valuable benefit, but discontinued it due to fraud and abuse; Chase followed to offer this benefit for years but also discontinued it in August 2018 due to similar reasons; for years Citi offered Price Rewind that allowed automatic tracking of price but discontinued the benefit in September 2019; Barclays has also this benefit for years but discontinued it in November 2019. Currently there are only a few cards that still offer this benefit, such as Chase United Club Visa, CNB Crystal Visa Infinite, HSBC Premier WEMC, MasterCard Black Card, and Wells Fargo Visa Signature.
Extended Warranty
Many credit cards offer this benefit - they automatically extend the warranty on a purchased product for one additional year after the original manufacturer warranty expires, when the original manufacturer warranty is three years or less, and they will reimburse you up to the insurance amount, normally up to $10,000 per item and up to $50,000 per account. Currently, Cit and Amex are the only issuers that offer two years of extended warranty instead of one, when the original manufacturer warranty is five years or less. Amex has the $50,000 maximum per year instead of lifetime per account. Citi doesn't specify a per year or per account maximum.
Purchase Protection
Many credit cards offer this benefit covering your purchased product in the event of damage, theft, or accidental loss, up to the insurance amount, for a certain period after purchase. Most cards covers up to $500 or $1,000 per item, and up to $50,000 per account, for the first 90 days of purchase. Chase and Amex cards extend this benefit to the first 120 days, and some of them (such as Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase United Explorer, Chase United Club, Amex Platinum, Amex Gold) cover up to $10,000 per item and the $50,000 maximum is for per year. Certain Citi cards also have $10,000 per item and $50,000 per year limit, but only for the first 90 days, and lost items are not covered.
Return Protection
Several Amex cards offer this benefit covering your purchased product when the retailer refuses to take it back, up to the insurance amount (normally $250-$500 per item, and $1,000 per year), for the first 90 days.
Cell Phone Protection
This coverage used to be provided by only a few cards; however, as of July 2019, all World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards offer this benefit - you get reimbursed up to $600 per claim ($800 for World Elite MasterCard) for a stolen or damaged cell phone or cosmetic screen scratches when you pay your monthly cell phone bills with the card. Note that this protection usually doesn't cover loss of your cell phone ("disappear without explanation"). In addition to all the World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards, there are a few other products that provide this benefit and here are some examples. Citi Prestige WEMC has a $50 deductible, a $1,000 cap per claim, and an annual reimbursement cap of $1,500. Wells Fargo Propel Amex has a $25 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,200. Barclays Uber Visa covers loss of your phone and has a $25 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,200. Chase Ink Business Preferred has a $100 deductible, a $600 cap per claim, and an annual cap of $1,800.
Other Coverages
Chase Sapphire Reserve, US Bank Altitude Reserve, and BofA Premium Rewards all offer Emergency Evacuation and Transportation coverage, up to $100,000 per person, for the cardholder and spouse/children. Chase Sapphire Reserve is the only card currently available to new applications we know that offer Emergency Medical and Dental coverage, secondary to your existing medical coverage, up to $2,500 per person with a $50 deductible, for the cardholder and spouse/children. Event Ticket Protection is offered by Chase Sapphire Reserve (up to $500 per ticket, $2,000 per event, and $4,000 per year). Personal Identity Theft Protection offered by CNB Crystal Visa and US Bank Altitude Reserve covers your expense up to $15,000 for restoring your identity; this coverage is also provided by all World MasterCards and World Elite MasterCards starting July 2019. Hotel Theft Protection covers your loss due to hotel theft up to $1,500 per claim for HSBC Premier WEMC and $1,000 per claim for CNB Crystal Visa.
© 2011-2020 DrCreditCard.net All rights reserved.