When people think of credit card benefits, they usually think about things like cash back, travel rewards, or airline miles. However, most credit cards also offer travel insurance as a standard feature. A Complete Guide to Credit Card Travel Insurance (2023)
Travel insurance provides you with financial protection if an accident or emergency causes you to cancel your trip or cut it short.
In some cases, travel insurance can also help reimburse you for expenses related to your trip if something unexpected happens.
There are many different types of travel insurance available and not all of them are created equal. Depending on your needs and what coverage is available from your credit card issuer, you might want to compare different plans before making a final decision.
Here’s everything you need to know about credit card travel insurance as well as some helpful advice before purchasing a plan. A Complete Guide to Credit Card Travel Insurance (2023)
What we’ll cover in this post:
- 1. What is Credit Card Travel Insurance?
- 2. How Does Credit Card Travel Insurance Work?
- 3. Top Credit Cards with Travel Insurance
- 4. Earning Travel Rewards Or Miles While Enrolling In Travel Insurance
- 5.Covers and Disclaimer
- 6. Visa Signature Travel Protection Program
- 7.Mastercard Travel Protection Program
- 8. Discover Travel Insurance Program
- 9.Bottom line
What is Credit Card Travel Insurance?
Credit card travel insurance is a product offered by some credit card companies that protect you against certain types of risk associated with travel. There are a variety of different travel insurance plans available, and the coverage offered by one credit card company may vary significantly from another.
💡 Compare travel insurance plans here.
When purchasing travel insurance, you’ll need to decide on the level of credit card coverage you want, which could include coverage for cancellation or trip interruption, emergency medical expenses, lost or stolen luggage, or trip delay.
As long as you pay your travel expenses using your credit card, you should be able to add travel insurance coverage to protect against the things that might go wrong on your next trip.
How Does Credit Card Travel Insurance Work?
Credit card travel insurance is quite simple – you just have to enroll in the travel insurance plan that is included with your credit card. Depending on the card you have selected, you may have to click a few times to select your type of coverage.
Once you are all set, you should receive a confirmation email stating that you are now covered against common travel mishaps like lost luggage, medical emergencies or trip cancellation.
Most travel insurance policies will only kick in if you cancel or interrupt your trip or if you suffer an injury that prevents you from being able to travel as planned.
You will have to prove that you have been affected by one of these events in order to be reimbursed by your credit card company.
Here are some of the best credit cards with travel insurance:
Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® card is a premium travel card that offers many benefits to frequent travelers. This card offers up to $1 million in travel accident insurance. It also boasts plenty of travel rewards, including:
- 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards® immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually
- 5x total points on air travel
- 3x points on other travel and dining
- 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases
PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card
The PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® offers comprehensive accident insurance that covers dismemberment or death while traveling and also includes car rental insurance against collisions or theft.
When it comes to travel rewards, this PenFed rewards card doesn’t disappoint. You can earn three points for every dollar spent at supermarkets, five points for every dollar spent on gas, as well as a point per dollar for all other purchases.
A great benefit is that there is no limit to the number of points you can earn.
You can redeem points for merchandise, gift cards, and travel – including car rental, hotel, airline tickets, and vacation deals.A Complete Guide to Credit Card Travel Insurance (2023)
Note: You must have a balance of at least 1,000 points to redeem rewards.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
With the Chase Sapphire Preferred® card, you’ll get trip cancellation or interruption insurance up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip.
This means if your trip is canceled or shortened due to severe weather or sickness, you will be reimbursed for your non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger tours, fares, and hotels.
You can earn some of the best travel rewards on the market. To start, there is an annual $50 credit against hotel purchases made through Chase Travel and this can offset more than half of your $95 annual card fee.
You also get 5x points on Chase Travel purchases and 3x points on eligible online grocery purchases, restaurant dining purchases, and select streaming service purchases. You will get 2x points on all other eligible travel purchases and there is no limit to the number of rewards.A Complete Guide to Credit Card Travel Insurance (2023)
Other credit cards that also offer travel insurance include:
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card
- Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit Card
- United Explorer Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
- The Platinum Card® from American Express Card
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
Visa Signature Travel Protection Program
The Visa Signature travel protection program is included with Visa Signature and Business cards. This travel insurance policy is provided by AIG Travel Guard and has two levels of coverage: Standard and Enhanced.
The Standard level of coverage is included free of charge and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $75,000 and the trip cancellation coverage of up to $10,000.
The Enhanced level of coverage can be purchased for an extra fee and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $150,000, trip cancellation coverage of up to $25,000, and offers 24/7 travel assistance services.
The coverage provided by the Visa Signature travel protection program is comparable to the coverage offered by most other credit card travel insurance plans.
Mastercard Travel Protection Program
The Mastercard travel protection program is provided by Assurant. This travel insurance policy has two levels of coverage: Standard and Exceptional.
The Standard level of coverage is included free of charge and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $75,000, trip cancellation coverage of up to $5,000, and trip interruption coverage of up to $5,000.
The Exceptional level of coverage can be purchased for an extra fee and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $150,000, trip cancellation coverage of up to $25,000, and trip interruption coverage of up to $25,000.
The coverage provided by the Mastercard travel protection program is comparable to the coverage offered by most other credit card travel insurance plans.
Discover Travel Insurance Program
The Discover travel insurance program is provided by AIG Travel Guard and has two levels of coverage: Standard and Enhanced.
The Standard level of coverage is included free of charge and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $75,000 and trip cancellation coverage of up to $10,000.
The Enhanced level of coverage can be purchased for an extra fee and provides medical expense reimbursement of up to $150,000, trip cancellation coverage of up to $25,000, and offers 24/7 travel assistance services.
The coverage provided by the Discover travel insurance program is comparable to the coverage offered by most other credit card travel insurance plans.
