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Trip planning comes with plenty of excitement, but also plenty of risk. Flights get canceled, plans change, and emergencies happen. That’s where trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance can step in to help. If you have the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Sapphire Reserve for Business℠, you may already be covered for thousands of dollars in unexpected travel costs — automatically, with no activation or extra purchase required.
Here's exactly what’s covered, who qualifies, how the benefit works, and how to file a claim. For small business owners, we'll also compare Chase Sapphire coverage with coverage from the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card. Let's dive in.
What Is Chase Sapphire Trip Cancellation Insurance?
Chase Sapphire trip cancellation insurance covers you and your immediate family members if a covered loss prevents you from traveling and causes you to cancel your travel plans. It provides reimbursement up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per covered trip, with a maximum limit of $40,000 per 12-month period.
Take a look at this example: A family of four uses their card to pay for a trip that's canceled due to sickness, severe weather, or another covered situation. The trip cost $6,000 per person, for a total of $24,000. In this case, they would be reimbursed $20,000, the maximum amount per trip.
Sapphire family cards' trip cancellation
There are three Chase Sapphire cards: the Sapphire Preferred (Rates & Fees), the Sapphire Reserve (Rates & Fees), and the Sapphire Reserve Business (Rates & Fees). Each offers Chase trip cancellation insurance, and the three cards have the same coverage limits.
$95Rates & Fees
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on gas and EV charging
- 3X points on vacation homes at top brands like Airbnb, Vrbo and more
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
$795Rates & Fees
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
$795Rates & Fees
- 8X points on all Chase Travel℠ purchases
- 5X total points on eligible Lyft rides through 9/30/2027
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on advertising purchases made with social media platforms and search engines*
- 1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases
What Is Chase Sapphire Trip Interruption Insurance?
Chase Sapphire trip interruption insurance includes the same coverage amounts as the trip cancellation insurance but covers you during your trip instead of before it.
Simply put, Chase trip cancellation insurance covers you from when you book your trip until your departure time and location. Chase trip interruption insurance, on the other hand, covers you from the moment you depart until you return home.
Who Does the Chase Sapphire Trip Cancellation Cover?
This insurance covers the primary cardholder and their immediate family. Chase has a fairly broad definition of immediate family, which includes:
- Spouse or domestic partner and their parents
- Children (including stepchildren)
- Legal guardians and wards
- Parents (including stepparents)
- Brothers and sisters
- Grandparents and grandchildren
- Aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews
- Spouses and domestic partners of any of the people listed
What Counts as a Covered Trip?
Chase defines a covered trip as a travel booking where any portion of the cost has been charged to the cardholder's account or where
Chase trip cancellation insurance covers you even if you only paid a small portion of the expense with your card. For example, if you use your Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, or Sapphire Reserve Business to pay for the taxes and fees on your award booking, even through a different program, that is enough to provide coverage.
What Counts as a Covered Loss?
Chase defines a covered loss as any of the following:
- Accidental bodily injury, loss of life, or sickness experienced by you, a traveling companion, or an immediate family member of you or a traveling companion.
- Change in military orders for you, your spouse, or your domestic partner.
- A call to jury duty or receiving a subpoena from the courts, neither of which can be postponed or waived.
- Finding you or your traveling companion’s place of permanent residence to be uninhabitable due to being burglarized, or damaged from fire or flood.
- You or your traveling companion’s lodging accommodations become uninhabitable.
- Death or hospitalization of you or your travel companion's host at your destination.
- An organized strike affecting public transportation that causes you to miss 20% of the trip's duration or the departure of a prepaid cruise or tour.
- Quarantine imposed by a physician for health reasons.
Weather often affects flights, and Chase lists specific covered weather events. It must check at least one box in each of these lists.
Where it happens:
- At your home, your trip's starting point, or along the route between them.
- Within 50 miles of your departure airport/station.
- Within 50 miles of your hotel or host at your destination.
What it does to your trip:
- Makes it unsafe to travel to your flight, train, or bus.
- Forces you to stay put at your hotel for safety.
- Shuts down your airline/transportation entirely, and you miss at least 20% of your trip.
- Shuts down your transportation and you miss the start of a prepaid cruise or tour.
- Forces your hotel to close down.
Furthermore, Chase includes the following information related to insurance coverage of named storm warnings:
- It comes from an actual meteorological authority, not a government emergency declaration.
- It covers a named storm (hurricane, tropical storm, etc.).
- The storm must be happening or imminent within 50 miles of your departure point, arrival point, or lodging.
- It must occur during your scheduled travel dates.
Specific to each type of insurance
Additionally, these are specific to Chase trip cancellation insurance coverage only:
- A terrorist incident within 25 miles of your home, an airport, confirmed lodging, or host at your destination, and within 30 days of departure.
- A travel warning due to terrorism issued by a U.S. government agency for terrorism near your home within 10 days of departure.
- A travel warning due to terrorism issued by a U.S. government agency within 25 miles of an airport, confirmed lodging, or host at your destination that's issued within 30 days of your trip.
These items are specific to Chase trip interruption insurance coverage only:
- A terrorist incident within 25 miles of your home, or an airport, confirmed lodging, or host at your destination during your or your traveling companion's trip.
- A travel warning due to terrorism issued by a U.S. government agency within 25 miles of an airport, confirmed lodging, or host at your destination that's issued during your or your traveling companion's trip.
Trip Cancellation and Interruption Limitations
These coverages include several exclusions. While we can't list every single one here, you can find the full list in your benefits guide. Here are some notable exclusions:
- Pre-Existing Medical Conditions. Coverage does not extend to conditions for which you received medical advice, diagnosis, care, or treatment in the 60 days immediately preceding the initial trip deposit or booking date.
- Standalone events. Certain events and tickets, such as museums, theme parks, and golf courses, are excluded unless they were included in a travel package.
- 60-Day Trip Length Limit. Trips lasting longer than 60 days are not eligible for coverage under this policy.
- Third trimester of pregnancy. Travel scheduled after 26 weeks of pregnancy will not be covered.
- Trips for medical treatment. Trips booked specifically to obtain medical treatment are not covered.
- Change of Circumstances. A change in plans, financial situation, or personal or business obligations does not constitute a covered reason for cancellation or interruption.
- Required Travel Documentation. Failure to have necessary documents, including a valid passport,
visa - Epidemic or Pandemic-Related Disruptions. Border closures, supplier-initiated changes, or a traveler's reluctance to travel because of an epidemic or pandemic are excluded from coverage.
- Travel Supplier Default or Insolvency. This policy does not cover losses resulting from a travel supplier's financial default or insolvency. If you're affected by these circumstances, you should contact Chase Disputes instead.
- Travel to areas with known terrorist activity.
Chase Sapphire Trip Delay Insurance
You'll notice these policies do not cover delays or cancellations by the carrier, travel agency, or tour operator (unless the cancellation is caused by severe weather or organized strikes). This means that missed connections and overnight stays due to airline delays aren't covered. However, under certain circumstances, another benefit called trip delay reimbursement may cover some delay-related costs.
Trip delay kicks in after a delay of six hours for the Sapphire Reserve and Sapphire Reserve Business, and 12 hours or a forced overnight stay for the Sapphire Preferred.
These delays would likely apply to a canceled flight. You can claim up to $500 of “reasonable expenses” for each ticket purchased with your Sapphire card. Chase defines reasonable expenses as “meals, lodging, toiletries, and medication.”
Chase also notes that coverage is secondary, and that the delay must occur due to equipment failure, inclement weather, strike, or hijacking/skyjacking.
You'll find more details in our post about Chase Sapphire Reserve travel and purchase insurance benefits. We also have an article covering how to file a flight delay claim with Chase.
How To File a Claim
You can file a claim in two ways, and you must do so within 20 days of the incident. Your first option is to visit chasecardbenefits.com. The second is to call the Benefit Administrator at 1-800-350-1362 for Sapphire Preferred cardholders, 1-800-350-1697 for Sapphire Reserve, or 1-800-352-2173 for Sapphire Reserve Business cardholders.
You will be asked a handful of questions so the administrator can send you the correct forms. After that, you'll need to gather the required documents to submit. Some documents that may be required are:
- Completed claim form.
- Copy of the travel itinerary.
- Documentation of the reason for the trip cancellation or trip interruption — for example, medical documents, death certificate, or other documentation supporting a covered loss.
- A copy of the credit card statement showing the charge for prepaid travel arrangements for the trip cancellation.
- Proof of expenses incurred due to a trip interruption.
- Any unused vouchers, tickets, or coupons.
- Copy of the cancellation or refund policies of the common carrier, tour operator, or travel supplier.
You have 90 days (or as soon as reasonably possible) to submit your supporting documents. Details are in the claim information section of your benefits guide.
Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption
The Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, and Sapphire Reserve Business are not the only Chase cards with trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance.
The trip interruption and cancellation insurance offered by the Ink Preferred (Rates & Fees) will cover up to $5,000 per person and $10,000 per trip in prepaid or non-refundable travel expenses if a trip is canceled or cut short by a covered situation as per the Ink Preferred Benefits Guide (warning: PDF). Note: There is a $20,000 maximum per 12-month period.
The policy covers the cardholder, immediate family members, and employees of the company for which the Ink Preferred account is issued. It also covers trips purchased using Ultimate
Related: Best
Final Thoughts
We know it feels like a lot to take in, but understanding how the benefits work, what’s covered, and the claims process can save you thousands of dollars and a major headache down the road.
By understanding the trip cancellation and trip interruption insurance on your Sapphire Preferred, Sapphire Reserve, and Sapphire Reserve Business, you may find you're already covered without spending extra on third-party insurance.
To learn more about everything else these cards offer, check out our full Chase Sapphire Reserve review, Chase Sapphire Preferred review, and Sapphire Reserve review.
$95Rates & Fees
- 5X points on Lyft rides through September 2027
- 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3X points on dining at restaurants worldwide
- 3X points on gas and EV charging
- 3X points on vacation homes at top brands like Airbnb, Vrbo and more
- 3X points on eligible streaming services
- 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs)
- 2X points on all other travel
- 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases
$795Rates & Fees
- 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel℠
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on dining worldwide
- 1x points on all other purchases
$795Rates & Fees
- 8X points on all Chase Travel℠ purchases
- 5X total points on eligible Lyft rides through 9/30/2027
- 4x points on flights and hotels booked directly
- 3x points on advertising purchases made with social media platforms and search engines*
- 1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases
Page Contents
- What Is Chase Sapphire Trip Cancellation Insurance?
- What Is Chase Sapphire Trip Interruption Insurance?
- Who Does the Chase Sapphire Trip Cancellation Cover?
- What Counts as a Covered Trip?
- What Counts as a Covered Loss?
- Chase Sapphire Trip Delay Insurance
- How To File a Claim
- Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption
- Final Thoughts
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (Rates & Fees), and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
