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Ever purchased an item only to find it doesn’t fit correctly or work as expected? Returning purchased or gifted items back to the retailer can be a pain, often made harder by inflexible store return policies, and there’s a good chance you’ll wind up stranded with unwanted items. So what avenues are open to you if you don’t meet the retailer's strict return policy?
One solution is to ensure you purchase items using the right credit card. A number of credit card issuers offer ‘return protection’ policies which enable cardmembers to return purchases retailers won’t accept. Return policy details differ widely between providers, and even on different cards offered by the same card issuer. It’s essential you check the guide to benefits provided with your credit card to determine the level of coverage offered, which items qualify for return protection, and the steps required to make a claim.
What is Return Protection and How Does it Work?
Return protection is one of the purchase protection benefits offered by credit card processors and providers, extending the return policy provided by the retailer when you make a purchase. Return policies offered on credit cards allow you to return an item purchased in full with your eligible card when the retailer refuses to accept the item under its return policy. There are plenty of caveats and excluded items from credit card return policies, so it’s best to familiarise yourself with your card’s policy before you need to make a purchase.
If you find yourself in a position where a retailer won’t accept a returned item, you’ll need to contact the Benefits Administrator for your credit card to make a claim.
Claims typically require you to submit:
- Receipts for the item you are returning
- Credit card statement displaying the purchase
- A copy of the retailer’s return policy, and potentially, a letter from the store confirming the refusal to accept a returned item
Typical exclusions from credit card return protection policies include:
- Jewelry, art, antiques, coin, and collectibles
- Items purchased for resale, professional, or commercial use
- Plants, shrubs, animals, pets, consumables, and perishables
- Cars, boats, aircraft, and motorcycles
- Traveler’s checks, tickets, or currency
- Shipping charges, taxes, postage, and delivery charges
- Items purchased at auction
- Items purchased outside of the U.S.
- Medical equipment
- Christmas/Easter (seasonal) decorations
- And many more, see your guide to benefits for a detailed list
Return Protection by Credit Card Network
With Discover ditching its return protection policy at the start of 2018, it joins Visa on the sidelines without a blanket return protection policy. The exception in Visa’s case is Visa Infinite cards, which began offering return protection in 2014, including popular rewards cards like The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, and U.S. Bank Altitude™ Reserve Visa Infinite® Card.
Both Mastercard and Amex offer blanket policies covering all the cards issued on their network, including debit cards in Mastercard’s case, although the coverage on Mastercard-issued products varies across by card and issuer. Some of the Mastercard’s reviewed in the section below provide up to $500 per item, although the annual cover remains the same.
| American Express | Mastercard | Visa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cards Covered | All credit and charge cards - See full list of cards and benefits | All credit and debit cards (Benefits vary by card type and card issuer) | Only covers Visa Infinite cards |
| Return Window | 90 days | 60 days | 90 days |
| Per Item Coverage | $300 | $250 | $300 |
| Maximum Annual Coverage | $1,000 | 4x claims per year | $1,000 |
| Link to Policy Details | Amex Return Protection FAQs | Mastercard Satisfaction Guarantee Policy or Detailed PDF Download | Visa Infinite Return Protection Policy |
Return Protection by Credit Card Issuer
Amex and Citi are the only credit card providers to offer a blanket return protection policy, with the benefit featuring on every Amex card including those issued by other providers such as U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo. The majority of Citi cards provide up to $2,500 per year in return protection coverage, however, lower-tier rewards cards like the Citi ThankYou® Preferred Card are restricted to $300 per item, and a maximum of $1,000 annually.
Despite the news to the contrary, not all Chase rewards cards lost return protection in August 2018, with both the Ritz-Carlton Card and Sapphire Reserve continuing to offer return protection as Visa Infinite cards. If you take a look at the latest guide to benefits' issued by Chase, most cards mention:
“Effective 08/26/18, Price Protection and Return Protection will be discontinued.”
Whereas the guide to benefits for the Sapphire Reserve states only that price protection will be removed.
“Effective 08/26/18, the Price Protection benefit will be discontinued.”
| Cards Covered | Return Window | Per Item Coverage | Max Annual Coverage | Limitations | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express | All Amex cards | 90 days | $300 | $1,000 per calendar year | Shipping and handling costs for the purchase will not be refunded. See full limitations here |
| Barclays | Select cards including the Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® and AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® | 90 days | $500 | Max 2x claims per 12 month period | Must be purchased from a store that provides a return policy of at least 10 days. See Benefits Guide for Arrival Plus |
| Chase | As of 08/26/18 Return Protection will only be provided on the Sapphire Reserve and Ritz-Carlton Card | 90 days | $500 | $1,000 annual maximum | Sapphire Reserve Guide to Benefits |
| Citi | Included on all Citi rewards cards, but benefit varies depending on the card you hold. | 90 days | $500 | $2,500 per calendar year | See policy for Citi Prestige® Card |
| U.S. Bank | Only features on U.S. Bank Altitude™ Reserve Visa Infinite® Card and U.S. Bank Cash 365™ American Express® Card | 90 days | $300 | $1,000 annual maximum | See policy for Altitude Reserve |
| Wells Fargo | Wells Fargo Propel American Express® Card and legacy Wells Fargo Amex cards. | 90 days | $300 | $1,000 annual maximum | See Wells Fargo Propel Amex Guide to Benefits for details |
Note: Bank of America, Capital One, and Discover do not offer return protection on credit cards.
The Best Rewards Credit Card for Return Protection
If you’re purchasing an item and there’s the potential you may need to return it, Citi’s return protection policy provides a good incentive to swipe your Citi Prestige® Card or Citi Premier℠ Card, which, alongside other premium Citi cards, provide the best return protection policy across all providers. While the return window matches up with the majority of other cards at 90 days, the $500 per item maximum sits at the higher end of the range, and the annual maximum of $2,500 is more than double the limit you’ll receive on any other card.
The return protection offered on the Sapphire Reserve also warrants a mention, offering up to $500 per item with few limitations outside of excluded items, and although the Barclays policy requires the retailer to provide a return policy of at least 10 days, it also covers items purchased using the rewards earned on the card.
Final Thoughts
Outside of the rewards earned with each purchase, familiarizing yourself with the purchase protections offered on each of your cards is an excellent way of ensuring you’re covered for every purchase. Swiping a card like the Citi Premier at checkout provides you with a considerable range of purchase protection benefits which you may not receive if you were to use a similar card from Discover or Capital One.
An important point to keep in mind is that if you have multiple credit cards that offer return protection and you've maxed out the benefit on one card, merely pull a different card out of your wallet for that next purchase. Negating some points or miles to potentially save cash, could be well worth it.
Return protection is a valuable benefit when you need to return an item to a retailer, be sure to read the fine print on your policy before purchasing to ensure the item is covered.
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This is really good for me I do a lot of online shopping and sometimes when I bring things back to stores they don’t let return it. I’m also in need of a new credit card. Therefore I think when applying for one I’ll make sure it has this return policy perk!
Thank you so much!
I frequently forget this benefit. Thanks for the reminder!
Was more interested in price protection, which is also getting scaled back more and more.
We’ve put together a list of the best cards for price protection here – https://awardwallet.com/blog/best-credit-credit-cards-price-protection/
Citi cards remain on the top for me for price protection for the easy to use price rewind tool.
This is very useful, thank you!
This is a great benefit, especially with return windows at retailers getting shorter.
I typically dont use these benefits. I only occasionally use the price protection aspect.
The whole payment protection thing gets overlooked regularly, good to be reminded of this feature.
I almost forgot about this additional perk of using a CC, thanks.
Thanks for all this information. Great guide.
Great list. thanks
Whew! Luckily for me, I have the Sapphire Reserve. Nice and comprehensive write up on this issue. Thanks.
Thank you for the analysis.
Thank you for the analysis. Thank you again.
especially good for stuff from the Apple Store.
So often I see people purchasing items using cash and I cannot help but ponder for a moment how my husband and I participate so differently from them when it comes to wanting our purchasing power to be as optimized as it can be. We use every purchasing protection available to us.
I just want to grab the cash off them and pay on my card for them haha!
Nice reference post. It’s good to review these benefits every now and then.
Thanks for the info!
Awesome list, very helpful!
I like this feature. It makes me feel safer and more inclined to make purchases with this type of protection on credit cards.
Thank you. I never took advantage of this, but your guide will help me decide which card provides protection whiel providing the best cash back/points/miles.
Great list – especially appreciate you highlighting upcoming changes. Will help me decide on a new card since Discover quit providing an extended warranty earlier this year.
One more reason, if anyone actually needed one, to love the Sapphire Reserve!
good stuff. I wish citi double cash had good return protection as It can be used for general puchases. I usually don’t use the citi premier or prestige cards for general shopping
This is a great benefit of the Chase Sapphire card that I’ve used. It’s easy to submit the materials online.
Interesting read. Thank you. Here in Finland return protection is guaranteed widely by law (for consumers) and credit cards mostly offer price guarantee.
We have used this benefit with our Citibank Master Card. I was surprised and delighted with how well it worked. Citibank customer service was very helpful in the process.
are these 12 months limited by per card or per person?
let’s say I have 2 different master cards. or 2 different american express cards
Per card account.