It is important to use the correct credit card when purchasing any valuable item with a manufacturer warranty for either personal or household use (e.g., cell phone, computer, kitchen appliances, home electronics, massage chair, sauna). While several transferable-point-earning credit cards (e.g., Chase, Amex & Citi) offer extended warranty, only Citi credit cards continue to offer for 24-months.
Citi Credit Card Extended Warranty Protection
- Citi Bank limits the total warranty coverage to a maximum of 7 years from the purchase date.
- Several TY points earning Citi credit cards (e.g., Citi Premier, Rewards+ cards) offer 24 months of extended warranty (including purchased warranties).
- Citi Double Cash (earns points/cashback) is an important exception to this rule since it discontinued this benefit on Sept. 22, 2019.
- Costco Citi credit cards (earns cashback only) no longer offer extended warranty protection as of January 2023.
Filing a Claim with Citi Bank
To file a claim, you can either call 1-866-918-4670 (Monday – Sunday, 8 a.m. – 12 a.m. ET) or visit mybenefits.cardbenefitclaims.com and upload all the required documents within 180 days of the date of the incident.
Citi Credit Card Extended Warranty Exclusions
Coverage does not apply to the following items:
■ Boats, cars, aircraft or any other motorized land, air or water
vehicles and their original equipment. Tires are not covered.
■ Services (such as product installation, repairs, maintenance or
diagnostics) unless covered under the manufacturer’s warranty.
■ Used, antique or pre-owned items.
■ Items purchased for resale, professional or commercial use.
■ Land or buildings; housing properties.
■ Plants and live animals.
■ Items that do not come with a manufacturer’s warranty.
■ You fail to care for or service the item appropriately as required
by the manufacturer.
■ The item has a product defect, recall or experiences normal
wear and tear where no failure has occurred.
■ The item is damaged because of an act of God, such as a
flood, hurricane, lightning, wind or earthquakes.
Citi Damage & Theft Purchase Protection
In addition to the extended warranty, Citi also provides decent damage & theft protection for 90 days (Chase offers 120 days of protection).
Damage & Theft Purchase Protection Exclusions
Coverage does not apply to the following items:
■ Boats, cars, aircraft, or any other motorized land, air or water
vehicles and their original equipment. Tires are not covered.
■ Items that can spoil or are consumable and need to be
replaced after they have been used for a period of time such
as food, fuel, batteries, medications, beauty products or
personal care products.
■ Currency, cash (including rare or precious coins), gift cards or
Traveler’s checks.
■ Tickets of any kind (e.g., for airlines, sporting events, concerts or
lottery).
■ Items purchased for resale, professional or commercial use.
■ Advice or services for a purchased item, such as product
installation, labor, maintenance or repair.
■ Watches or jewelry including loose gems, precious stones,
metals and pearls.
■ Firearms or ammunition.
Conclusion
Citi credit card extended warranty protection is the most generous in the industry compared to offerings from all other competitors (e.g., Chase, Amex, Capital One offer only 12-months extended warranty). One must remember NOT to use Citi Double Cash, which is tempting due to generous earnings of two Thank You points for every dollar.