Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

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am
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Joined: Sun Sep 30, 2007 9:55 am

Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by am »

I currently have the chase sapphire reserve mainly for the travel insurance benefits (20k/yr trip cancellation most valuable for us). As the renewal period nears, I was wondering if any one knows of a travel card that offers good insurance without the high fees?
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ResearchMed
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Re: Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by ResearchMed »

am wrote:I currently have the chase sapphire reserve mainly for the travel insurance benefits (20k/yr trip cancellation most valuable for us). As the renewal period nears, I was wondering if any one knows of a travel card that offers good insurance without the high fees?
Whatever you consider, make sure that it would include the types of coverage that YOU need.
For example, would it cover pre-existing conditions? (These can be defined quite differently from insurer to insurer.)
Might you need to cancel or interrupt a trip due to a family member's health?
Would you want to be able to "Cancel For Any Reason" (CFAR) and get most of your money back?
Might there be a work-related requirement to cancel your trip?

And... does your regular health insurance cover you where you are going, such as overseas?

We purchase 3rd party travel insurance, in part due to the pre-existing condition coverage, which is essential for us.

RM
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brajalle
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Re: Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by brajalle »

am wrote:I currently have the chase sapphire reserve mainly for the travel insurance benefits (20k/yr trip cancellation most valuable for us). As the renewal period nears, I was wondering if any one knows of a travel card that offers good insurance without the high fees?
I'm not aware of a card with "good" travel insurance benefits that doesn't have an annual fee. The best $0 annual fee card benefits I'm aware of (there may be others) are the Citi cards. This is the typical no-fee card benefits for example - http://i.info4.citi.com/wpm/100164/PDF/Guide1.pdf - starting on pg. 13 for travel (note that Citi's purchase protections & insurance extensions are amazing also).

Citi in general has some great insurance benefits to their cards (they typically don't earn nearly as much as Chase or the others though, which is why you read about them a ton less online in forums & blogs), including -
the $100AF Premier - http://i.info4.citi.com/wpm/100164/PDF/Guide7.pdf
the $350-450AF Prestige - http://i.info4.citi.com/wpm/100164/PDF/Guide11.pdf

In fact, the Prestige has, IMO, the best travel insurance & other protection benefits of any card out there if that's really important to you. If you can make a case for getting the AF back (and if you're traveling enough to place that high of a value on the travel insurance benefits - I'm guessing you can), it seems like a good option to take a peak at. Note - trip cancellation is $5k/person/trip, with no apparent annual limit - be sure to read the fine print of course. You might especially like the trip delay benefit & entertainment/ticket benefit also. If you typically charge a few 4night+ hotel stays during the year, that alone may pay for the AF.
student
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Re: Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by student »

I have a no-fee version of Chase Sapphire that has a $5,000 limit on such insurance. (If your trip is cancelled or cut short by sickness, severe weather and other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $5,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours, and hotels.)

However, it may no longer be available. At least, I do not see this advertised on its website.
MikeG62
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Re: Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by MikeG62 »

OP, if you are traveling then the Chase Sapphire Reserve annual cost drops to $150 per year. I would not consider that a high annual fee given the benefits of the card.
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onourway
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Re: Any credit cards with good travel insurance and low to no annual fees?

Post by onourway »

Came to post the same thing as MikeG62. If you are already traveling, the real cost of the Sapphire Reserve is already only $150 - before you calculate any of the additional rewards it brings. With the higher point value of 1.5c/point vs. 1.25 on their cheaper cards it may well pay for itself.
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