If your flight is delayed, credit cards with trip delay insurance could provide compensation to cover certain expenses such as hotel stays or extra meals. This benefit, known as trip interruption coverage, may help cover additional costs like hotel accommodations and extra meals.
Policies may stipulate a threshold delay requirement before reimbursement can occur, with some cards providing coverage even after just six hours have passed.
Chase Sapphire Preferred
The Chase Sapphire Preferred card provides numerous travel and purchase benefits. These include trip delay reimbursement and primary rental car collision coverage as well as purchase protection and extended warranty coverage.
This card allows you to maximize the value of your points with its many airline and hotel loyalty program transfer partners, giving you access to business-class award flights and luxury hotel stays that would normally cost thousands.
Travel-delay insurance offered through your card reimburses you for clothing, toiletries and other essentials if your flight on a common carrier experiences a delay of more than six hours. In order to qualify, tickets purchased with your card must also have been used as payment; travel to countries subject to U.S. Treasury Department monetary embargoes is excluded from eligibility.
American Express Platinum
The American Express Platinum card offers travelers premium travel benefits at an annual fee of $695, making it a worthwhile option for anyone who seeks maximum Membership Rewards points value.
Trip Delay Coverage comes standard with this card, offering up to $500 per covered trip if your flight is delayed six hours or more due to qualifying reasons and you purchase the ticket with cash or eligible points as full payment. Two claims per calendar year can be filed.
AmEx recently expanded this benefit across their cards, even ones not previously recognized for offering it. Terms and conditions differ between cards – some require you to pay the entire fare with your card for eligibility while others provide coverage for purchases made using both cash and points.
American Express Business Platinum
American Express Business Platinum is a premium travel card with a high annual fee, but offers many attractive benefits to make up for its higher cost. These include $200 in airline incidental credits each year as well as complimentary access to Delta Sky Club and Centurion Lounges.
Trip Delay Insurance, recently available through American Express cards, reimburses cardmembers for non-refundable travel expenses if their journeys are interrupted due to inclement weather, terrorist action or jury duty obligations.
However, in order to receive this benefit you must book and pay for travel using an eligible American Express card and use that full fare as payment. Furthermore, coverage is only extended for delays lasting 12 hours or more in any 12-month period.
Capital One Venture X
Capital One Venture X marks Capital One Bank’s inaugural entry into premium travel card territory and features several unique amenities that set it apart. Most notably are its easy redemption rewards and annual travel credits that make this card especially useful.
Venture X cardholders can redeem miles for any travel purchase at a fixed value of 1 cent per mile, such as airfare, hotels, car rentals, cruises or trains. In addition, miles may also be transferred between airline partners or hotel partners.
This card comes equipped with many valuable protections, such as return protection and trip cancellation/interruption insurance, making it an attractive option if you prefer an easier approach when it comes to travel credit cards than American Express’ Platinum Card with its intricate benefits list and lengthy application process.
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Chase Sapphire Reserve is one of the best travel credit cards, boasting a high rewards rate, airport lounge access, and peace-of-mind protections. However, its $550 annual fee may not make financial sense for cardholders who do not intend on using the $300 travel credit or earning as many Chase Ultimate Rewards points as possible.
Chase Sapphire Preferred card provides many of the same benefits without the premium annual fee, such as trip delay reimbursement and various travel purchase protections such as trip delay coverage if a flight is delayed for 12 hours or requires overnight stay, and baggage delay coverage, too. Both Chase Sapphire cards also include baggage delay coverage.
