Credit cards often provide travelers with various travel protections and benefits, including coverage for flight delays, cancelled or interrupted trips and medical emergencies.
The Chase Sapphire Reserve card provides some of the finest travel insurance benefits available, including primary rental car damage coverage (which requires your auto insurer to cover any claim first before tapping into this coverage), high payout maximums for trip cancellation/interruption coverage as well as emergency evacuation and transportation coverage.
Trip Cancellation
Many premium travel cards now include trip cancellation coverage as a benefit. This reimburses nonrefundable expenses prepaid when your trip is canceled or cut short due to illness, severe weather or jury duty and reimburses prepaid expenses already made in case something unexpected comes up and requires cancellation or curtailment of travel plans.
This type of protection differs from standalone travel insurance policies in that it typically has specific guidelines regarding when you can cancel and the maximum refund you can claim; furthermore, it doesn’t cover rebooked flights at higher fare levels.
Search for travel cards with generous reimbursement limits and consider pairing them with additional forms of coverage to maximize benefits. For instance, combine comprehensive insurance with car rental coverage and lost luggage reimbursement to create the ideal travel companion. Likewise, ensure the coverage fits with both your travel needs and budget; for instance, frequent international travelers might prioritize trip cancellation coverage when selecting their card.
Trip Interruption
Travel interruption coverage provides reimbursement of expenses should you need to cancel or shorten a trip for covered reasons, including pre-booked hotel rooms, tours or event tickets as well as any unused airfare or cruise line fare that was pre-purchased – depending on the policy purchased.
Premium travel credit cards like Chase Sapphire Reserve and American Express Business Platinum Card usually provide this form of coverage; it provides additional protections such as primary rental car coverage and roadside assistance.
As it can be easy to overlook travel insurance when planning a vacation, but its value could become apparent if anything unexpected comes up during your journey. Before booking your next vacation consider reviewing these best credit card travel insurance offers before booking anything – these could potentially save thousands if unexpected events disrupt it! Additionally, read carefully through the terms and conditions to make sure you get adequate protection tailored specifically to your needs.
Emergency Medical
GeoBlue may offer credit cards that only cover emergency medical coverage without cancellation, interruption, or secondary car rental damage coverage – making their policies considerably cheaper than their counterparts on most cards that provide all these features at once.
Credit cards also offer other travel protections, such as rental car damage waiver, which covers any deductible costs if an accident occurs while renting a car, as well as travel accident coverage to protect both yourself and immediate family members in case of accidental death or dismemberment overseas – this protection can often be found included with premium travel rewards credit cards.
Trip Delay
Flight delays can cost both time and money. Luckily, certain credit cards can help cover these unexpected costs: many travel rewards cards offer trip delay coverage that reimburses expenses like meals, transportation and hotel stays if an unforeseen circumstance causes your travel to be delayed.
Credit card trip delay insurance usually provides additional protection beyond any existing coverage provided through the carrier on which your travel is booked, with coverage limited to a certain dollar amount per day or trip.
Some travel credit cards provide extra coverage against unexpected events like severe weather or terrorist attacks, though it’s wise to read up on your card’s terms and conditions carefully before counting on this as a source of reimbursement – some policies require your delay be 12 hours or longer before qualifying for reimbursement.