There are several premium travel credit cards available like Amex Platinum, Chase Sapphire Reserve and Capital One Venture X. Most seasoned travelers hold more than one of these premium credit cards, and in I wanted to compare all the important travel benefits in a single table. Chase Sapphire Preferred card has similar trip cancelation & interruption benefits as Sapphire Reserve, and it is the best card to use if you have none of the premium cards mentioned in this article.
Several small details about credit card travel coverage inclusions and exclusions are highlighted in the table below:
| Benefit Category | Amex Platinum Card | Chase Sapphire Reserve | Capital One Venture X |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights purchased directly with the airlines | 5 points per $1 | 3 points per $1 | 2 points per $1 |
| Flights purchased via portal | 5 points per $1 | 5 points per $1 | 5x points per $1 |
| Hotels booked via portal | 5 points per $1. | 10 points per $1 | 10 points per $1 |
| Flights & Hotels via 3rd party providers | 1 point per $1 | 3 points per $1 | 2 points per $1 |
| Rental cars via portal | 1 point per $1 | 10 points per $1 | 10 points per $1 |
| All other travel expenses | 1 point per $1 | 3 points per $1. Lyft purchases earn 10 points per $1 (through March 2025). | 2 points per $1 |
| All other purchases | 1 point per $1 | 1 point per $1 | 2 points per $1 |
| Dining and Restaurants | 1 point per $1 | 3 points per $1. Chase dining booked through the Chase travel portal earns 10 points per $1. | 2 points per $1 |
| Car Rental Coverage | Secondary; works as primary overseas when you have no other insurance | Primary in both US and overseas. | Primary in both US and overseas. |
| Rental Car Coverage Duration | 31 days | 30 days | 15 days within US. 31 days Overseas. |
| Tire damage (flats or blowout) | Not covered unless part of an accident. | Not covered unless part of an accident. | N/A |
| Coverage for loss-of-use charges incurred by the rental car agency | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Rental car accident related death or dismemberment. | $300,000 | N/A | N/A |
| Rental Car Accident Injury Coverage | $5000 towards the cost of medical treatment | N/A | N/A |
| Rental Car Accident Personal Property Coverage | $1000 | N/A | N/A |
| Car Rental Coverage Country Exceptions | Australia, Italy, and New Zealand | None | Israel, Ireland, Northern Ireland, and Jamaica. |
| Car Rental Elite Status | Avis Preferred, Hertz President's Circle, National Car/Emerald Club Executive. | None | None |
| Premium Roadside Assistance | None | 4 service calls per year, maximum benefit $50 for each call (extra amount will be charged to the card). | None |
| Emergency Medical and Dental | None | $2,500 emergency medical/dental coverage ($50 deductible per day), $75 per day for prescribed hotels needed due to covered loss for up to 5 days. | None |
| Trip Cancellation/ Interruption | Up to $10,000 per trip, and a maximum limit of $20,000 per card per 12-month period. | Up to $10,000 per trip per person, $20,000 per incident. Maximum benefit amount per 12-month period of $40,000. | Up to $2,000 per person for non-refundable common carrier tickets purchased with your card. |
| Roundtrip vs. One-way travel coverage | Roundtrip economy flights only. Two one-way bookings are covered as long as you return to the city of departure. | Both roundtrip and one-way travel are covered. | Both roundtrip and one-way travel are covered. |
| Covered Trip Definition | The period of round-trip travel may consist of roundtrip, one-way, or combinations of roundtrip and one-way tickets. | No restrictions. | No restrictions. |
| Award flight bookings + taxes charged on the credit card. | Covers the award booking taxes/fees. | Covers the award booking taxes/fees. | Covers the award booking taxes/fees. |
| Airline Miles Redeposit Fee Refunds | No. | Redeposit fees imposed by a rewards program are eligible for refund. | No. |
| Total Trip Length Restrictions | 365 days | 60 days | 365 days |
| Trip Delay (>6 hours) Reimbursement | $500 per trip (Maximum 2 claims in 12 months) | $500 for each purchased ticket | $500 for each purchased ticket |
| Trip Delay Coverage Eligibility | Equipment failure, inclement weather, hijacking and lost/stolen passports. | Any delay due to a Covered Hazard which was made public or made known to you prior to your departure. | Equipment failure, inclement weather, strikes and hijacking. |
| Prepaid Tours/Activities Coverage | None | Any pre–paid expenses related to your Covered Trip, such as tour or activity fees associated with your Covered Trip. | None |
| Baggage Delay (>6 hours) | None | Up to $100/day for up to 5 days for delays more than 6 hours | None |
| Lost, Stolen, or Damaged Luggage | Up to $3,000 for carry-on, $2,000 for checked luggage. | Up to $3,000 per person per trip checked or carry-on. | $3000 ($2,000 for New York residents). |
| Coverage for delays due to lost or stolen passports or travel documents | Yes | No | No |
| Common Carrier accidental death and dismemberment reimbursement | None. Amex removed common carrier insurance in 2020 | Common carrier insurance: Up to $1,000,000 per person. Use Chase card or Chase UR points to pay for the trip. | Common carrier insurance: $1,000,000 per person |
| Emergency Transportation/ Evacuation | Included without a stated limit and ticket purchase with the card is NOT necessary. | $100,000 | None |
| Repatriation of Remains Insurance | Yes (without a stated limit). A Premium Global Assist Hotline benefit. | $1,000 for a coffin and to return your body to your home country if you die on a vacation | None |
| Cell phone protection | $800 per claim, up to 2 claims in a 12-month period. | None | $800 per claim, up to 2 claims in a 12-month period. |
| Annual Fee | $695 | $550 | $395 |
| Authorized User fee | $175 for each user. No annual fee Gold cards can be added. | $75 for each | Free for four users. |
| Statement Credits per year | $200 airline incidentals $200 prepaid luxury hotels $200 Uber $100 Saks ($50 x 2 every 6 months) $240 digital subscription $179 Clear program $155 Walmart+ membership | $300 for “any travel” related expenses | $300 for Capital One portal purchases only. |
| Global Entry for main card holder | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Global entry for authorized card holders | Yes. The benefit is free with no annual fee Gold cards. | Yes | No |
| Anniversary Bonus | None | None | 10,000 miles |
| Priority Pass lounge access for authorized users | Included (2 additional guests) | Included (2 additional guests) | Included (unlimited guests) |
| Priority Pass non-lounge airport experiences (e.g., dining, spa) | Not included | Included | Not included |
| Non-Priority Pass Lounge access | American Express Centurion, Delta Sky Clubs, Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic, Plaza Premium, Airspace and Escape lounges. | Unlimited access to Chase lounges. Chase lounges are accessible via Priority Pass once a calendar year. | Capital One & Plaza Premium lounges (2 guest limit) |
| Hotel elite status | Gold status with Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors. | None | None |
Guest restrictions for Amex Platinum Non-Priority Pass Lounge Access
Centurion Lounges – 2 guests allowed until February 1st, 2023 (after that limited to one guest per card).
Delta Sky Club – Must fly Delta on the same day to access the lounge. No guests are allowed (Access can be purchased for up to 2 guests -$29 each).
Lufthansa – Must have a Lufthansa boarding pass for the same day. Guest access needs to be purchased.
Virgin Atlantic (JNB, SFO, JFK, IAD, BOS, EWR) – No need to be flying Virgin Atlantic to access this lounge (a same-day boarding pass from any flight is enough). One guest, plus children under 2 can enter free of charge.
Plaza Premium, Airspace (San Diego), and Escape lounges – 2 guests allowed for free.
Chase Travel Related Claims Procedure
You are required to submit your travel claim on a 3rd party website (https://www.eclaimsline.com).
My Recent Experience with Chase Trip Cancellation Claim
I canceled a regional flight (Aerolineas Argentinas) in Argentina due to COVID-19 in February 2022 and filed a claim with Chase claim services. I uploaded all the required documents (Doctor’s letter, Chase statement showing the purchase, the date I informed the airline about my decision to cancel the flight, and any refunds or vouchers provided by the airline, etc.,). Since my trip cancellation was due to medical reasons, I had to ask my doctor to complete a form (via Allianz from the Chase portal). My claim process took over 8 months due to a generally slow process Chase is known for and the Spanish communication email I received from the airline. I usually use Amex Platinum for all my direct flight purchases and the Aerolineas Argentinas webpage was not accepting AMEX as a method of payment. Overall, I am happy to get the refund from Chase and I was pleasantly surprised to get the email from Chase today after I gave up on the claim.
Summary of Chase Sapphire Travel Benefits
- Overall, the Chase Sapphire Preferred & Reserve cards have the best trip cancelation/delay protections since they cover both one-way & return tickets.
- Chase Sapphire trip cancellation/delay insurance requires only a portion of the purchase to be paid with a credit card.
- Chase Sapphire trip cancellation/delay insurance also reimburses redeposit fees imposed by a rewards program (the best card to charge your award booking taxes).
- The annual trip cancellation/delay coverage cap on Chase Sapphire cards is S40,000, which is very useful for purchasing expensive cruise tickets.
- Only Chase Sapphire Reserve offers Baggage Delay benefits.
- Chase Reserve is the only premium card that offers Priority Pass non-lounge airport experiences like dining, retail shopping and spa discounts.
- Chase has primary car rental coverage and can be used anywhere in the world without any country exclusions.
- Chase Reserve is the only premium card that provides premium roadside assistance, emergency medical/dental coverage, and repatriation of remains after an accidental death while traveling.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve trip delay coverage has no stated rules (covers any delays made known to you prior to your departure). For example, if your flight is delayed due to issues with staffing (not from equipment failure), other premium cards (Amex and Venture X) will not cover the trip delay expenses. You can simply upload a screenshot of the flight delay email or text on the eclaims.com website along with your other receipts for expenses.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve also covers any prepaid tours/activities you are not able to attend because of the trip delay (as long as the total amount is <$500 per ticket).
- Chase Sapphire Reserve provides up to 1 million (500K for Sapphire Preferred) for Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance (e.g., airline, bus, train, or cruise ship). This insurance provides coverage for accidental death, dismemberment, or a combined loss of speech, sight, or hearing experienced on a covered trip. This benefit does NOT include rental car driving accident injuries or death (they pay for rental car damage only).
Summary of Amex Platinum Travel Benefits
- Amex Platinum coverage is restricted to round-trip economy flight purchases only, but paying the award ticket taxes qualifies for travel protections. Amex has a lower annual Trip Cancelation & Interruption coverage cap of $20,000 compared to the Chase cards.
- Amex Platinum limits the trip delay payments to a maximum of $500 per trip, compared to Chase Sapphire Reserve and Capital One Venture X ($500 per ticket).
- Amex only provides secondary car rental coverage, but if you are overseas without any other auto insurance, it defaults to primary insurance and covers the entire claim. I used the Platinum card for overseas rentals, but never personally had a claim with them. I called Amex to verify that it is true and also heard success claim stories from friends.
- Only Amex Platinum provides up to 300K for rental car accident-related deaths or dismemberment.
- Only Amex Platinum covers trip delays due to lost or stolen passports.
- Only Amex Platinum offers Rental Car Accident Injury Coverage (up to 5K for medical bills) and personal property coverage (up to 1K).
- Strangely, Amex Platinum provides no common carrier (e.g., airline, bus, train, or cruise ship) travel accidental death coverage. The only travel-related accident coverage you get with a Platinum card is if you rented a car (with a Platinum card) and had an accidental death or dismemberment while driving.
- Amex Platinum has the best emergency transportation/evacuation coverage without the need to charge any trip expenses on the card (the best card to keep in your wallet during overseas trips).
- https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/features-benefits/policies/car-rental-loss-and-damage-insurance-terms.html
Summary of Capital One Travel Benefits
Capital One Venture X is very generous in providing free Priority Pass access to 4 authorized user cards and offers primary auto insurance worldwide (covers only 15 days for US car rentals). It has the lowest dollar amount cap ($2000 per person) for trip cancelation and interruption compared to other premium cards.
I read through the post with great interest since I have all the 3 cards. I liked the in-depth table comparing several unique details between the 3 major premium travel credit cards.
I never knew that Amex Platinum travel insurance covers only roundtrip purchases and I also learned that Capital One Venture X travel coverage amount is dismal compared to the other cards. I refreshed my memory about the Chase emergency dental/medical coverage.
Keep up the good work.
Ron
Thank you for reading the post and your positive comments.
I never read before about the Amex Platinum providing 300K for the rental car accident related death or dismemberment along with rental car accident injury coverage (up to 5K for medical bills) and personal property coverage (up to 1K).
I am glad to see that Amex Secondary car rental benefit acts as Primary overseas if you have no other auto insurance (I verified it in several flyer talk threads).
Are there any downsides if I use Amex Platinum for all my overseas car rentals? I like the extra coverage it provides in case there is an accident related injury.
Cameron
I use Amex Platinum for all my overseas car rentals but never had an accident so far and no claim experience with Amex. I don’t see any downside except for some country exclusions (Australia, Italy, and New Zealand) where you are better off using Chase cards.