PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

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k3vb0t
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PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by k3vb0t »

I did a search and didn't see this being discussed, so thought I'd share.

It looks like the credit card companies are doing widespread changes to card benefits. Cards that have long had warranty extension, trip insurance/cancellation, and rental car insurance are either having those benefits reduced or eliminated.

I haven't read anything about why these changes are happening all at once -- did one company make the change and all of the others just followed suit?

Also haven't seen anything about Chase yet; only AMEX, Citi, and Barclays. Unfortunately for me, all of my "go-to" cards like an AMEX Blue Cash I've had grandfathered into the old rewards program since 2006 is losing warranty extension, and my Citi Double Cash feels pretty useless at this point.

For those that rely on some of those benefits -- especially the rental car insurance if you are traveling soon and don't want to use your own primary coverage -- these are big changes. For some cards with big annual fees you get to keep the benefit or a reduced version of it, which of course just means you're partly paying for it anyways.

Here's what I've been able to find thus far:
(Doctor of Credit): AMEX Major Overall on Card Benefits, Good & Bad, Begins January 2020

(Doctor of Credit): Barclaycard Removes Extended Warranty & Price Protection Benefits (Effective Nov 1, 2019)

(Doctor of Credit): Citi Removing MOST Benefits From All Cards On September 22 [Trip Cancellation & Delay, Ticket & Return Protection, Car, Etc.]

(DansDeals): [Updated With More Changes] Major Changes Are Coming For American Express Benefits! Master Chart Of What’s Being Added And Removed - includes a very useful chart of all consumer/business cards and what is changing

Edit: I guess to make this actionable, if you're in a similar boat as me (AMEX Blue Cash, Citi Doublecash) as main cards, what would you switch to in order to retain benefits?

My most important benefit is warranty extension for big purchases.
Shallowpockets
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by Shallowpockets »

Yes. And with this I will drop my AA citi visa. It costs $100 year anyway. So what am I now getting for that card? Seems like once they take away those perks that there is no reason to even have the card. I had only gotten it for the 50,000 miles bonus.
I still have United Chase card and have not heard of that dropping coverage.
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jeffyscott
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by jeffyscott »

k3vb0t wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 7:24 amEdit: I guess to make this actionable, if you're in a similar boat as me (AMEX Blue Cash, Citi Doublecash) as main cards, what would you switch to in order to retain benefits?

My most important benefit is warranty extension for big purchases.
I think the best warranty extension is the Costco Visa, which extends by 2 years but that only works if you want to be a member. The Costco card, unlike other Citi cards is keeping the car rental coverage, plus it's got a 3% rebate on rental cars and so is the one I would use, anyway.

Warranty extension is not something I have ever valued much or used, so don't know what other cards are keeping it. Fidelity Visa has it and also 2% rebates and rental car coverage, so if it is keeping those it would seem to make a good substitute for the Double Cash card, you do need a fidelity account to get 2%.

Amex blue, I use only for groceries as it gives a 3% rebate. So any warranty extension would be pretty worthless for that.
squirm
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by squirm »

I got an email from Barclays, it was pretty humorous and read it to my wife They said they were doing changes to their card. The email starts out how their adding perks such as cell phone protection and a few other worthless things than at the end they basically said, oh by the way we're taking away all other perks to the card,but enjoy the great new benefits to your card.
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k3vb0t
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by k3vb0t »

jeffyscott wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 9:04 am I think the best warranty extension is the Costco Visa, which extends by 2 years but that only works if you want to be a member. The Costco card, unlike other Citi cards is keeping the car rental coverage, plus it's got a 3% rebate on rental cars and so is the one I would use, anyway.

Warranty extension is not something I have ever valued much or used, so don't know what other cards are keeping it. Fidelity Visa has it and also 2% rebates and rental car coverage, so if it is keeping those it would seem to make a good substitute for the Double Cash card, you do need a fidelity account to get 2%.

Amex blue, I use only for groceries as it gives a 3% rebate. So any warranty extension would be pretty worthless for that.
Hmmm, yea Costco doesn't work for us as it's really inconvenient (on other side of town, driving negates savings, etc.) + paying the Costco membership fee.

Warranty extension isn't something we've had to use often, but it has come in handy on a cell phone a few years ago, we don't have short-term plans to get appliances but always nice to have. I am planning on getting a new phone before Jan 1, so my understanding is I can buy the phone that way and still have existing coverage.

Fidelity -- are they the ones underwriting it (or whatever you would call it, the people who decide what benefits to add/drop, etc.)? Would be curious to see if they and Chase follow suit. Would hate to go after a new card and then 2 months later the benefits completely change on it.

Our AMEX Blue is grandfathered into the 1% gas/groceries up to $5k then 5% afterwards. We spend more than that per year and the math works out in our favor, but it is pretty close (compared to a flat 2% card elsewhere). The added perks/coverages made it worth it to keep. Will have to reassess everything now.
miamivice
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by miamivice »

Citi Price Rewind was my favorite benefit. Got a lot of discounts on products. According to their website, they issued $1140 in refunds to my account in the 2 years that I used the program.
Whakamole
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by Whakamole »

I used price rewind and the extended warranty, both saved me money. And of course rental car coverage for those occasions.

I may just cancel the Citi double cash back card since there is no point in having it now, you can get 2% with the Fidelity card (though you have to wait until you have $50 cash back in order to cash out.)
grok87
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by grok87 »

Is penfed affected?
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jeffyscott
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by jeffyscott »

Whakamole wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 12:37 pmI may just cancel the Citi double cash back card since there is no point in having it now, you can get 2% with the Fidelity card (though you have to wait until you have $50 cash back in order to cash out.)
OTOH, the rebates are automatic with Fidelity. Since there is no annual fee, I will definitely keep both. Fidelity could make changes at some point, too...such as dropping to 1.5%. Schwab did away with their 2% card some time ago and now offers one with 1.5%.

Fidelity card is issued by Elan, in response to OP's question about that.
Whakamole
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by Whakamole »

jeffyscott wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 1:56 pm
Whakamole wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 12:37 pmI may just cancel the Citi double cash back card since there is no point in having it now, you can get 2% with the Fidelity card (though you have to wait until you have $50 cash back in order to cash out.)
OTOH, the rebates are automatic with Fidelity. Since there is no annual fee, I will definitely keep both. Fidelity could make changes at some point, too...such as dropping to 1.5%. Schwab did away with their 2% card some time ago and now offers one with 1.5%.

Fidelity card is issued by Elan, in response to OP's question about that.
I don't know if there's a benefit to keeping a card you don't use.

When I cancelled a Chase card recently, they offered to move the credit limit to another card. So if you own a Citi Costco card, it might be worth asking if they will do that.
SpaethCo
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by SpaethCo »

Losing Citi trip interruption coverage is really unfortunate, because they actually had useful coverage for that. If you were going on a cruise and had a flight delay that caused you to miss the ship, you could be covered for travel expenses to meet the ship at the next port.

This site has a really good overview of trip insurance gaps: https://4wornpassports.com/beware-chase ... insurance/

My read of this: the “free lunch” is over, if you want travel insurance you have to pay for it. Even looking at what Amex is adding, it’s only going to be marginally useful.
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ResearchMed
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by ResearchMed »

A good place to browse about general travel insurance issues and choices is:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/4 ... insurance/

Most travel insurance "issues" are not restricted to cruising, so it's quite general.

We also recommend speaking to

www.TripInsuranceStore.com
(We learned about them on CruiseCritic.)

They are a broker, working with a variety of policies/coverages from a vetted selection of insurers, and there is no additional charge to the traveler.
But CALL them, don't just read the online summaries, as the "fine print" can really matter.

We found them to be incredibly patient when we were basically clueless about travel insurance.

RM
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denovo
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by denovo »

Which credit cards (without annual fees) still have good extended warranty, trip insurance, and rental car coverage?
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carolinaman
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by carolinaman »

I submitted a claim last week to Citi Visa Costco to replace my 16 month old Sony TV that cost $2k. Geek squad said it was not repairable so keeping my fingers crossed that Citi will pay. The extended warranty for that card has been its most important benefit to me. I always use that card when purchasing big ticket items. Also, I did get $200 back from Citi on their price guarantee for the TV, so that was nice.

I asked several TV repair people how common it was to have TVs fail so early in their life cycle. They said it happens more than you might think. In this era of planned obsolescence extended warranties might be too costly for the CC companies.
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by Helo80 »

carolinaman wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 6:49 am I submitted a claim last week to Citi Visa Costco to replace my 16 month old Sony TV that cost $2k. Geek squad said it was not repairable so keeping my fingers crossed that Citi will pay. The extended warranty for that card has been its most important benefit to me. I always use that card when purchasing big ticket items. Also, I did get $200 back from Citi on their price guarantee for the TV, so that was nice.

I asked several TV repair people how common it was to have TVs fail so early in their life cycle. They said it happens more than you might think. In this era of planned obsolescence extended warranties might be too costly for the CC companies.
FWIW --- I have had one claim with Visa (not Citi and not Costco; thru Chase) for a TV that was priced at $150 and the screen went out after about 18 months. The process was relatively simple....

1. Filed claim over phone
2. Took it to TV repair shop
3. Had to pay $80 or so OOP for a written quote for repair
4. Determined that the panel was shot and would cost like $190 to replace said panel
5. Returned paperwork and quote to Visa
6. Received check for $150 + tax + $80 quote.

Actually worked out, and I was shocked.

So, just keep your receipts and quotes from GeekSquad that it's FUBAR and hopefully everything works out.
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Helo80
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by Helo80 »

denovo wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 12:57 am Which credit cards (without annual fees) still have good extended warranty, trip insurance, and rental car coverage?

I feel like there are sites that track this sort of stuff, but I second the request for this information on BHs.
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brcarls
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by brcarls »

k3vb0t wrote: Fri Sep 27, 2019 10:05 am Warranty extension isn't something we've had to use often, but it has come in handy on a cell phone a few years ago, we don't have short-term plans to get appliances but always nice to have.
Check the fine print.
I have never found a warranty extension benefit that actually covered the products I would like an extended warranty to cover... For example, I upgraded the sonar/GPS in my boat a couple of years ago. These electronics cost thousands of dollars and the manufacturers often will not repair them if they fail outside of warranty. Every card I have excludes anything installed in a boat.

I am in the middle of a kitchen remodel. All of my cards (including Fidelity) exclude anything installed in real estate which is "hard wired or hard plumbed", so basically no coverage on appliances.
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jeffyscott
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by jeffyscott »

brcarls wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 9:49 amI am in the middle of a kitchen remodel. All of my cards (including Fidelity) exclude anything installed in real estate which is "hard wired or hard plumbed", so basically no coverage on appliances.
I guess that depends on your choices, for us that would exclude only the dishwasher. Covering the refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer, but not dishwasher is pretty far from "basically no coverage".

The Costco card, which also extends by 2 years instead of the typical 1, doesn't appear to have that exclusion, btw.
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by brcarls »

jeffyscott wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 2:20 pm
brcarls wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 9:49 amI am in the middle of a kitchen remodel. All of my cards (including Fidelity) exclude anything installed in real estate which is "hard wired or hard plumbed", so basically no coverage on appliances.
I guess that depends on your choices, for us that would exclude only the dishwasher. Covering the refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer, but not dishwasher is pretty far from "basically no coverage".

The Costco card, which also extends by 2 years instead of the typical 1, doesn't appear to have that exclusion, btw.
I guess it depends on your understanding of the rules vs the CC company's position. I called and spoke to customer service reps at 2 of my cards (including fidelity) to make sure I understood their interpretation of the fine print before making a decision on how to pay for appliances.

Both said that a refrigerator with ice maker is considered "hard plumbed" as is a dishwasher. Induction stovetop and wall oven are considered hard-wired even if they have a plug.... So not sure what that leaves... counter top microwave I guess, coffee maker, etc. So, for me, that means that none of my major kitchen appliances would be covered.

Anyway, read the fine print and don't count on your interpretation being the same as theirs.
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jeffyscott
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by jeffyscott »

Yeah, I would have assumed that would be their interpretation. I just meant that some of us don't want ice makers and buy freestanding ranges.
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by a_movable_life »

What I received via email:

We’re making changes to the benefits you receive with your Choice Privileges® Visa® Card effective November 1, 2019.

Roadside Dispatch will be added to your account. This benefit is a pay-per-use roadside assistance program that provides you with security and convenience wherever your travels take you.

Your Extended Warranty, Satisfaction Guarantee and Price Protection benefits will be removed; however, claims can be submitted for eligible purchases made through October 31, 2019.
graeme
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by graeme »

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. It's looking like the cash back options are about all that remain for most cards.
a_movable_life
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by a_movable_life »

I need to to see what BOA and FIDO change their's to. The fact that everyone moved lockstep makes me think that it was a "Gentleman's agreement."
nalor511
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by nalor511 »

a_movable_life wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 6:23 pm I need to to see what BOA and FIDO change their's to. The fact that everyone moved lockstep makes me think that it was a "Gentleman's agreement."
So Fidelity lasted a year and a half extra, but I wanted to give folks a heads-up that the Fido CC will be ending some of their benefits on Mar 31, 2021. Extended warranty is going away, purchase must be made before 3/31/2021 if you want an extra year of warranty.

https://www.myvisacardportal.com/fideli ... ns/A230839
SpaethCo
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by SpaethCo »

Rental car coverage is going away on the Fidelity card as well. I live in one of the states where it doesn’t matter though. In Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and Texas state law dictates that personal auto policies must include coverage for rental cars as part of liability coverage (as a claim against property damage liability, instead of comp/collision coverage). In Minnesota, this coverage must be provided with $0 deductible, so I would never have anything that would fall to secondary coverage.
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msi
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Re: PSA: Credit Card Companies Are Changing Benefits (Extended Warranty, Trip Insurance, Rental Car Coverage, Etc.)

Post by msi »

nalor511 wrote: Thu Feb 11, 2021 1:59 pm
a_movable_life wrote: Sun Sep 29, 2019 6:23 pm I need to to see what BOA and FIDO change their's to. The fact that everyone moved lockstep makes me think that it was a "Gentleman's agreement."
So Fidelity lasted a year and a half extra, but I wanted to give folks a heads-up that the Fido CC will be ending some of their benefits on Mar 31, 2021. Extended warranty is going away, purchase must be made before 3/31/2021 if you want an extra year of warranty.

https://www.myvisacardportal.com/fideli ... ns/A230839
A bunch of other Visa cards were affected too https://www.doctorofcredit.com/many-vis ... rotection/
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