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The U.S. Department of Transportation says just 1.2% of flights were canceled last year. That sounds pretty small, but with 16.3 million flights in the U.S. last year, that's still over 195,000 flights. That's a big number. And the relatively small percentage provides little consolation when it's your flight that was affected.
You can purchase travel insurance to avoid the headaches and extra costs associated with last-minute plan changes. However, one issue with travel insurance is that it can be prohibitively expensive, with third-party insurance plans increasing the cost of travel by as much as 10%.
If you carry a rewards credit card in your wallet, chances are you already have access to some form of travel insurance through your credit card, with many cards featuring a variety of travel protection policies that have your back when something goes wrong. And the cost of this coverage? For the majority of providers, the policy is free of charge — so long as you use that card to pay for your trip and keep the account in good standing.
Enter trip interruption and cancellation insurance, which can cover you for extra expenses when you must end a trip early (interruption insurance) or cancel it (cancellation insurance) for covered reasons. Which cards provide the best policies? Here's a closer look.
Page Contents
What Is Trip Interruption and Cancellation Insurance?
Trip interruption and cancellation insurance covers you if your travel plans are interrupted during a trip or you have to cancel before your travel begins for any of the reasons covered under your card’s policy. The difference between the two policies is simple:
- Trip cancellation covers you up until the day of departure. If your plans are canceled due to bad weather, illness, or another covered reason before you depart, trip cancellation insurance can help you recover the out-of-pocket, prepaid expenses you can’t recoup from the travel provider. Think of non-refundable activity deposits, for example.
- Trip interruption covers you during your travels. If your trip is interrupted for a covered event and you have to cut your travels short, trip interruption insurance can reimburse you for the portion of the journey you are unable to complete. An example here would be leaving a hotel early and the hotel still charging you for the full stay.
The Best Rewards Credit Cards for Trip Interruption and Cancellation Insurance
Similar to the results in our post covering the best cards for trip delay reimbursement, most of the cards listed below are from Chase or American Express. This follows Citi removing almost all travel and purchase protection coverage from its entire range of rewards cards in September 2019.
At the beginning of 2020, Amex added trip interruption & cancellation insurance to some of its premium travel cards, including The Platinum Card® from American Express. Amex will reimburse non-refundable travel expenses up to the value of $10,000 per trip (max $20K per 12 months) if your trip is canceled or interrupted for a covered reason.
Chase covers trips paid for with points or your qualifying card, so the cards listed in the table below include award travel paid for directly with points.
| Credit Card | Maximum Coverage | Who is Covered | Annual Fee | Guide to Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | Up to $10,000 per person for each covered trip ($20K per trip and $40K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $95 (Rates & Fees) | Sapphire Preferred Guide to Benefits |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Up to $10,000 per person for each covered trip ($20K per trip and $40K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $795 (Rates & Fees) | Sapphire Reserve Guide to Benefits |
| The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card | Up to $10,000 per person for each covered trip ($20K per trip and $40K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $450 | Ritz-Carlton Card Guide to Benefits |
| The New United Club℠ Card | Up to $10,000 per person for each covered trip ($20K per trip and $40K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $695 (Rates & Fees) | United Infinite Guide to Benefits |
| United MileagePlus® Club Card | Up to $10,000 per person for each covered trip ($20K per trip and $40K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $450 | MileagePlus Club Card Guide to Benefits |
| The Platinum Card® from American Express | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $695 (Rates & Fees) | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| The Business Platinum Card® from American Express | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $695 (Rates & Fees) | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $650 (Rates & Fees) | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $650 (Rates & Fees) | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $550 | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card | Up to $10,000 per covered trip ($20K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder, immediate family, and eligible travel companions | $650 (Rates & Fees) | American Express Trip Cancellation & Interruption Insurance Policies |
| IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card | Up to $5,000 per person for each covered trip ($10K per trip and $20K per year max) | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $99 (Rates & Fees) | Chase IHG Premier Benefits Guide |
| The World of Hyatt Credit Card | Up to $5,000 per covered trip for pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses. | Primary cardholder and immediate family | $95 (Rates & Fees) | Chase World of Hyatt Card Benefits Guide |
| Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® | Up to $5,000 per covered trip. | Primary cardholder and immediate family members traveling on the same trip. | $595 | Guide to Benefits |
| Citi Strata Premier℠ Card | Up to $5,000 per covered trip ($10K per card per 12 consecutive month period) | Primary cardholder and family members | $95 | Guide to Benefits |
Providers that don’t make the cut include:
- U.S. Bank: Provides $2,000 coverage on its flagship U.S. Bank Altitude™ Reserve Visa Infinite® Card.
- Capital One: Only covers up to $2,000 on its flagship Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.
- Discover: Doesn’t offer trip interruption and cancellation insurance.
- Citi: Only two cards still offer this benefit, and they're in the chart, but other cards have better protection.
Not sure if your credit card offers any kind of trip interruption and cancellation coverage? Check out our master list of credit card Guides to Benefits.
What Does Trip Interruption and Cancellation Insurance Cover?
Coverage differs between providers, but the most common covered events include:
- Accidental injury, death, or illness experienced by you or a family member.
- Severe weather which prevents you from beginning or continuing a trip.
- Change in military orders for you, your spouse, or your partner.
- A terrorist action or hijacking.
- Jury duty or receiving a subpoena from the courts which can't be postponed or waived.
- Finding your hotel/accommodation to be uninhabitable.
- Quarantine imposed by a physician for health reasons.
- Financial insolvency of your travel agency, tour operator, or travel supplier whose services you booked.
The expenses covered by your policy are typically limited to non-refundable prepaid air, land, or sea transportation, change fees if you need to change travel arrangements to a later date, and any prepaid tour or accommodation costs that cannot be refunded. Unlike the Trip Delay coverage provided on many of the same cards, to receive a full refund of your travel expenses, the entire trip must be paid for on the card or with points earned within that provider's rewards programs.
How To File a Trip Interruption or Cancellation Claim
To file a claim, you’ll need to supply the following documentation:
- Completed claim form.
- Copy of your itinerary and tickets.
- Confirmation of the reason for the trip interruption/cancellation — e.g., medical documents, death certificate, or other documentation supporting your claim.
- A copy of the credit card statement shows the charge for prepaid travel arrangements.
- Proof of expenses incurred due to a trip interruption.
- A copy of the cancellation or refund policies of the Common Carrier, Tour Operator, or Travel Supplier.
- Any other documentation required by your card provider.
The claim window with Chase doesn't provide much time for submitting your case. Timelines from Citi and American Express are much better:
- American Express: You must file a claim within 60 days of the interruption/cancellation and all supporting documents supplied within 180 days.
- Chase: You need to file a claim within 20 days of the interruption/cancellation and all supporting documents supplied within 90 days.
- Citi: File a claim within the 60-day cutoff for trip interruption or cancellation benefits; submit all supporting documentation within 180 days.
To file a claim, either call your Benefits Administrator or visit the claims website:
- American Express: Call the Benefits Administrator at 844-933-0648 to start a claim.
- Chase: Head to eclaimsline.com or call the Benefit Administrator at 804-281-5772 to file a claim.
- Citi: Visit mycardbenefits.com or call 833-251-6404 to file a claim.
Final Thoughts
If you don’t want to pay top dollar for third-party travel insurance, using the trip interruption and cancellation insurance from your credit card can save you plenty of cash. Using a built-in perk avoids paying for something you already have that's waiting in your wallet.
While the top Chase cards all feature the same coverage, the winner of the “best overall card” goes to the Sapphire Preferred (Rates & Fees). Compared to the premium cards surrounding it at the top of the table, the Sapphire Preferred only charges an annual fee of $95 while providing the same or better coverage than every other card on the list.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: The World of Hyatt Credit Card (Rates & Fees), IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card (Rates & Fees), Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (Rates & Fees), The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees), The Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees), The New United Club℠ Card (Rates & Fees), Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees), and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees)
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