Heading out on a well-earned vacation is one of life’s great joys. Unfortunately, sometimes things go wrong, and you’re left scrambling to see what travel insurance you have. If you’ve got a Chase Sapphire Preferred card, you’re probably in good shape. Let’s zoom in to see exactly what they cover.

Credit card lovers the world over sing the praises of the award-winning Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Some cardholders are discouraged by the $95 annual fee, but it’s currently one of the best credit cards out there.

For starters, it carries a host of travel rewards.

Most people know there are a ton of travel benefits to any Chase credit card, but not a lot of people know about the travel insurance and emergency assistance they provide.

Needing to use travel insurance on any trip means something went wrong. Luckily, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card covers a variety of less than ideal situations, from trip cancellation to baggage delay.

They even offer protection for your rental car. The list of benefits is impressive enough that the Chase Sapphire Preferred card topped the Forbes 2020 list for the best overall travel rewards credit card.

How Does Chase Sapphire Preferred Travel Insurance Work?

Most situations are covered for the cardholder and immediate family members, regardless of whether or not the cardholder is traveling with them.

Another stipulation is that all or part of the trip has to be charged to an eligible Chase credit card or purchased with Chase ultimate rewards points earned on an eligible Chase credit card.

So, you can’t book a trip on your American Express then return to Chase when things go south.

You can get a more in-depth breakdown of the travel insurance policy and travel protections by going to the Chase website, but this breakdown will be a lot more fun. For complete details, please see your Guide to Benefits.

What Does Chase Sapphire Preferred Travel Insurance Cover?

Trip Cancellation Insurance and Trip Interruption Insurance

Not every credit card covers both trip cancellation AND trip interruptions. Many don’t offer coverage for either one, but the Chase Sapphire Preferred card includes both.

Experiencing a trip cancellation or trip interruption is a colossal bummer no matter how you look at it. The Chase Sapphire Preferred card eases the blow by covering your trip up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses.

That includes airfare, hotels, and even tours.

It’s the case whether the cancellation was due to severe weather, a trip delay, military orders, emergency evacuation, or a host of other reasons.

As always, there’s some wiggle room. It may not cover you if you decide to change your plans to avoid a particular area (such as avoiding New York due to COVID-19, aka Coronavirus). Still, they will cover you if you or your traveling companion get quarantined.

Coverage includes the cardholder, immediate family, and spouse, or domestic partner. Immediate family includes children, adopted or step-children, legal guardians, siblings, parents or parents-in-law, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, and nephews.

The trip destination has to be more than one mile from your home and cannot exceed 60 days in duration for coverage to be valid.

Trip cancellation covers you before you leave, trip interruption covers you once you’re on the trip.

Covered Events Include:

Severe weather

Jury duty or subpoena that cannot be postponed

Change of military orders

Hijacking or terrorist event

Inhabitable residence

You get yourself quarantined

Chase Sapphire Credit Card Series Comparison

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Travel Rewards Sign-Up Bonus

60,000 points

spend $4k in 3 months Annual Fee

$95 Bonus Point Rate

2x points on travel and dining

1x points on everything else Point Redemption

$0.0125 single point value per dollar spent when redeemed through Chase APR

Variable 17.49%-24.49% Extra Features

N/A Chase Sapphire Reserve

Travel Rewards Sign-Up Bonus

50,000 points

spend $4k in 3 months Annual Fee

$550 Bonus Point Rate

3x points on travel after earning the travel credit and dining

1x points on all other purchases Point Redemption

$0.015 single point value per dollar spent when redeemed through Chase APR

Variable APR 18.49%-25.49% Extra Features

$300 annual travel credit, up to $100 Global Entry/TSA Precheck credit with Sapphire Reserve

Priority Pass Select Membership to over 1,300 lounges worldwide

Trip Delay Insurance

If your trip is delayed by more than 12 hours or requires a hotel stay, they’ve got you, your domestic partner, and any children under the age of 22, covered up to $500 for each purchased ticket.

That can be used to reimburse you for lodging, food, medications, and any personal items needed due to the delay.

The delay has to be away from the cardholder’s home city. So, unfortunately, you don’t get to cash in while sitting on your couch just because your flight was delayed.

Also, it has to occur during a trip that’s shorter than 365 days. I know a lot of you are making multi-year trips; know the rules.

Prepaid expenses are not covered, and neither are delays due to things you knew about beforehand.

So, if you fly into Florida right before everyone knows a hurricane is about to land, they’re probably not going to be happy with your ability to plan a successful trip and may reject your claim.

A maximum allowable delay per trip is one. If you have terrible luck, Chase isn’t giving you a trip delay reimbursement multiple times.

Baggage Coverage

Lost Luggage

If you or a family member’s luggage is lost, stolen, or damaged, Chase will cover you for the costs you incur to repair or replace it up to $3,000.

There are a few stipulations. The loss has to occur on a common carrier like an airline, cruise ship, train, or bus. The fair for the transportation must be charged to an eligible Chase card or purchased with rewards earned on an eligible Chase card.

The coverage includes up to $500 per insured person for jewelry, electronics, and watches. That consists of any luggage that is either checked or carry-on, and the property inside the baggage.

They don’t cover the loss of money, tickets, traveler’s checks, securities, valuable documents or papers, and furs. They also won’t cover you if the loss is from a declared or undeclared war.

Try not to lose your luggage if you think war might be declared.

You must report lost luggage to the common carrier first in order to make your claim valid.

Baggage Delay Insurance

Sometimes luggage isn’t necessarily lost or damaged, it’s just a little behind. In that case, Chase covers up to $100 per day for necessary items for a maximum of five days.

This can include essential generic toiletries, clothes, and even a cell phone charger cable. It doesn’t include person-specific things like contact lenses or glasses.

Editor's Note Editorial Note: You get ONE cell phone charging cable. Don’t try to get rich loading up on cell phone charging cables. This is a real rule.

Automotive Coverage

Rental Car Damage

Chase Sapphire Preferred really shines with its primary car insurance coverage. Primary, as opposed to secondary, means they take charge if there’s an accident.

You don’t have to first file a claim with your own car insurance company before Chase steps in.

With Chase Sapphire Preferred, you can decline the rental company’s collision insurance and charge the cost of the car rental to your card. Why?

Because Chase provides reimbursement up to the actual cash value of the vehicle for theft and collision damage.

This is good for most rental cars, not only in the U.S. but abroad as well, and covers you and anyone you put on the rental agreement for up to 31 days.

A heads up, exotic automobiles aren’t covered. You can’t rent a $3 million dollar custom car and total it without them asking questions.

There are a few other types of vehicles not covered as well such as:

Antique automobiles

Vans that carry more than 9 people

Motorbikes, mopeds, and motorcycles

Open cargo bed vehicles, trucks, and RVs

Limousines

Losses due to off-road use

Any violation of the auto rental agreement

Loss or theft of personal belongings

Editor's Note Note: Liability insurance coverage is not included.

Roadside Dispatch

For a pre-determined flat-fee, Chase will help get you out of a number of precarious situations.

They’ll contact someone to change your tire (provided you have an inflated spare),

Jumpstart your battery

Fill up your gas tank up to five gallons (cost of fuel not included)

Unlock your door if you lock yourself out

Winch you up to 100 feet if you get stuck

Tow you up to five miles.

Chase uses third party independent contractors to do the above-mentioned work. That insurance doesn’t cover any damages you incur from the roadside assistance professionals.

If by changing your tire, the contractor damages your car, you’ll have to go through his insurance.

Travel Accident Insurance

There are two types of travel accident insurance: Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance and 24 Hour Travel Accident Insurance.

Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance

This benefit protects you if something horrific happens while you’re entering, exiting, or riding on a common carrier such as a bus, airline, or train.

The benefit for loss of life is $500,000. Even dismemberment or combined loss of sight, hearing, and speech are covered up to a maximum of $500,000.

24-Hour Travel Accident Insurance

This covers you from the date of your departure until the end of your trip, not just while you’re on a common carrier. The loss of life benefit is $100,000, as is the maximum dismemberment payout.

Common Carrier Travel Accident Insurance pays off up to $500,000 if you die entering, exiting, or riding on a common carrier. Tweet This

Coverage includes you and your immediate family members, even if you aren’t with them. If more than two people are injured the benefit won’t exceed 2x the applicable benefit amount.

There are also several stipulations for things you can’t be doing on the trip. No parachuting, vehicle racing, or doing a sport where you get paid.

You also can’t get a benefit if you got injured because you were committing a felony. Think twice.

Conclusion

Whether you have the Chase Ink Business Preferred, the Chase Sapphire Reserve or any number of other Chase travel credit cards, you’re going to get some great travel insurance benefits.

This article was focused on the Chase Sapphire Preferred and it’s important to realize each credit card offers different benefits. While many of the same benefits apply, check with Chase to see what situations your card covers.

As with any insurance, being technically covered and actually getting your benefit accepted are two different things. The world is full of gray and it’s up to the credit card issuer to determine if your situation applies.

Each situation is different, but to have the best chance for Chase to cover your losses, the cardholder will need to file a written report as soon as reasonably possible.

Once this happens, the Benefit Administrator will send you a claim form. You need to submit the claim form and other documentation typically within 90 days.

If you have questions about your specific situation use the number on the back of your card to call the Benefit Administrator. They can help you with the details of your claim.

No one ever wants to use their travel insurance, but it’s nice to know Chase has you covered from a number of angles.