Travel plans can always change. Whether it is due to weather, family illness, or anything else that could come up, it is always best to know that you are covered. Although you can buy travel insurance from Allianz or a similar company, your best bet might be to leave the money that’s in your wallet and take out your card. If you do not understand what I’m referring to, I am talking about a credit card that comes with free travel insurance.
While the Citi Premier has undergone devaluations including parts of its insurance, the American Express Platinum Card will be gaining a number of new benefits beginning January 1st. The current king of travel insurance today could be none other than the Chase Sapphire Reserve. The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers a number of different travel benefits that range from baggage loss to emergency evacuation. Just remember that in order to be eligible for the insurance from the credit card, you must charge the trip to that card.
First and foremost, The Chase Sapphire Reserve offers trip cancellation insurance and trip interruption insurance for you, your travel companion and your immediate family members. Many travel plans are either prepaid or have hefty cancelation charges if you can cancel. The reimbursement is for up to $10,000 per person or a total of $20,000 per trip if bodily injury, death or sickness happens to you, your traveling companion or an immediate family, severe weather, terrorist actions, a call to jury duty which cannot be postponed or a change in military orders. The funds are for anything that you charged to the card that was prepaid and/or non refundable. Note that there are a number of reasons why you may not be eligible for this part of the insurance including traveling with a pre-existing condition, the trip lasting over 60 days or for a sporting event, as well as some other possibilities. Make sure to read Chase’s terms and conditions.
Another insurance included with the Chase Sapphire Reserve is emergency medical/dental insurance. As long as you purchased some of the cost of the trip with the card, you and immediate family can use up to $2,500 for medical/dental expenses that are not paid by your insurance already. Also note that the trip must be longer than 6 days and no longer than 59 days. There may be a $50 deductible.
On top of that, if you or your immediate family members have to be evacuated for emergency medical reasons, the card offers up to $100,000 in emergency evacuation insurance. The trip has to be between 5 and 60 days and you must be more than 100 miles away from your primary residence.
If you pay for your flights, or at least the taxes and fees on an award ticket with the Sapphire Reserve, you will be eligible for trip delay insurance. If your flight is delayed overnight or for more than 6 hours, you will get $600 to spend on any reasonable charges. Reasonable charges could include anything from food and medicine to clothing.
If your bag is missing upon arrival, the card has a baggage delay benefit. After 6 hours of being missing, you will be reimbursed up to $100 per day, up to 5 days, to purchase items such as clothing or toiletries. If your suitcase is missing or damaged upon arrival, then you can use the lost luggage benefit, which allows you to repair or replace your bag and its contents. This benefit is up to $3,000 per person, which includes the card holder and immediate family.
In addition, when renting a car, the card comes with up to $75,000 in damage and theft coverage. Please note that rentals for over 31 days are not included and that not all vehicle types are included.
Finally, I hope and pray that no one ever has to use this benefit, but the card has travel accident insurance that covers you for accidental death, dismemberment, and loss of speech, sight or hearing. The coverage includes 24-hour loss of life of $100,000 and a common carrier loss of life of up to $1,000,000 if you are traveling on any motorized water, land or air transport that is a licensed organization.
The benefits of having the Chase Sapphire Reserve include a lot more than insurance, but it is definitely good to know that if anything happens while you travel, you are covered. Hopefully, no one reading this will ever have to encounter an experience where these benefits would be helpful, but it is better to be safe than sorry. If you want insurance, then you are better off holding the card and charging any travel related expense to the card for its insurance that is included with its annual fee. I rarely ever purchase any other type of insurance, but people’s needs may differ from mine, so make sure to read the terms and conditions of these benefits before making any decisions. Happy travels.
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