Your bags are packed, and you're ready to go, but then the unexpected happens. There’s a hurricane, your flight gets canceled, or you get ill while relaxing on a beach in Mexico.
With the average cost of a 7-day trip topping $2,000 for just one person, even a minor interruption in your travel plans can easily set you back some serious cash. But there’s good news: if you booked your travel with a credit card, you may be protected.
Many travel rewards credit cards now offer versatile and comprehensive travel insurance. From paying for lost bags or crashed car rentals to covering the cost of emergency medical transportation, the free travel insurance coverage offered by the credit cards on this list can save you a bundle when you need it most.
What is Trip Insurance?
Travel doesn’t always go as planned. When circumstances out of your control affect your perfectly planned vacation, trip insurance can help cover the costs while providing you access to the services you need.
Below are some of the most common types of free travel insurance offered through credit cards.
- Trip Delay – limited coverage when your flight is delayed, for inclement weather, or for mechanical breakdowns. Coverage often requires a delay of 4+ hours before it kicks in.
- Trip Interruption & Cancellation – The first covers you when your trip is cut short, and the second covers trips canceled because of medical issues, natural disasters, worker strikes, acts of terrorism, etc.
- Baggage Delay – When your bags fail to arrive on time, baggage delay insurance covers the cost of the toiletries, clothes, etc., you purchase while waiting for your missing bags.
- Lost Luggage – When your bags go missing, they don’t always reappear. When this happens, lost luggage insurance will pay to replace your lost items.
- Travel Accident – Travel accident insurance is designed to cover you when you suffer a permanent loss such as lost vision, hearing, limbs, and even loss of life.
- Auto Rental – This insurance protects you when you get into an accident in a rental car. Primary insurance covers all costs, while secondary insurance only kicks in after your personal insurance has paid.
- Emergency Medical/Dental – This insurance will cover the costs when you get ill and seek medical or dental care.
- Emergency Evacuation – This insurance covers the costly expenses associated with emergency medical transportation.
Many of these insurance policies are offered free of charge through travel credit cards. Coverage amounts and terms vary, so you’ll want to read your card benefits carefully before relying on them to protect you.
The 6 Best Travel Cards with Trip Insurance
Here are our top 6 picks for credit cards with free trip insurance.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve – best overall trip insurance protection
- Amex Platinum – best pick for premium perks
- Capital One Venture One – best pick for a $0 annual fee
- Marriott Bonvoy Bold – best hotel card pick
- United Club Infinite – best airline card pick
- Chase Ink Preferred – best business card pick
Many credit cards offer some kind of travel protection. When choosing our picks, we focused on travel cards that have good travel benefits/perks, decent trip insurance policies, and are standouts in their category.
Trip Insurance Protection Comparison
Not all of our top picks offer the same trip insurance options. Below is a quick overview of each credit card's travel insurance policies.
| Insurance Type | Chase Sapphire Reserve | Amex Platinum | Capital One VentureOne | Marriott Bonvoy Bold | United Club Infinite | Chase Ink Business Preferred |
| Travel Delay | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Travel Interruption & Cancellation | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Baggage Delay | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Lost Luggage | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Travel Accident | ✔ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Auto Rental | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Roadside Assistance | ✔ | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ | ✔ |
| Emergency Medical & Dental | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✖ |
| Emergency Evacuation | ✔ | ✔ | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ | ✖ |
In addition to covering different travel issues, each credit card has different terms and coverage amounts for their trip insurance. Next, we’ll explore these credit cards and their trip insurance coverages in detail.
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Well-known for being one of the best travel rewards credit cards out there, the Chase Sapphire Reserve card earned our top pick for trip insurance as it was the only card that offered coverage for all eight types of travel insurance. The card even offers limited roadside assistance.
Here’s a breakdown of the Reserve card’s notable features and benefits.
Annual fee: $550
Authorized user: $75
APR: 22.49%–29.49%
Point earning rate: 1x – 10x
Anniversary gift: $300 travel credit
Notable perks: lounge access, Global Entry credit, TSA PreCheck credit, and Nexus fee credit
What Does Sapphire Reserve Trip Insurance Cover?
The Chase Sapphire Reserve card offers trip protection for nearly everything. From flight delays to doctor’s visits abroad, the Sapphire Reserve card covers it.
| Insurance Type | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/cancellation | $10,000/trip, up to $20,000/year |
| Trip delay | $500/ticket |
| Lost luggage | $3,000/passenger |
| Baggage delay | $100 a day for up to 5 days |
| Travel accident | $1,000,000 |
| Auto rental | Up to $75,000, coverage is primary |
| Emergency evacuation | Up to $100,000 |
| Emergency medical/dental | Reimbursement up to $2,500 |
| Roadside assistance | Up to $50 & 4/year |
In addition to the above coverage, the Sapphire Reserve card also comes with a roadside service program that covers costs up to $50 for each incident with a maximum number of 4 claims a year.
It's also worth noting that the auto rental coverage offered is primary insurance. This means you won’t take the hit to your personal insurance when getting into an accident in a rental car.
Chase Sapphire Reserve Alternatives
If you’re looking for similar travel and insurance benefits with a smaller annual fee, the Sapphire Preferred card might be a good alternative. The Preferred card is missing the emergency medical and evacuation coverage of the Reserve card, and the maximum travel accident insurance is halved. Otherwise, all trip insurance coverages are the same.
Amex Platinum
The Amex Platinum card is a great choice if you’re looking for a travel rewards credit card with more benefits and perks than you can count. Their numerous credits, anniversary gifts, and other travel perks earned them our best trip insurance pick for a premium rewards card.
The downside to the premium perks of the Platinum Card is the hefty annual fee. Here is a quick review of the terms and benefits of this card.
Annual fee: $695
Authorized user: $195
APR: 21.24% to 29.24%
Point earning rate: 1x – 5x
Anniversary gift: $200 hotel credit and $200 airline credit
Notable perks: lounge access, Clear Plus credit, $200 UberEats credit, $240 entertainment credit, and upgraded hotel loyalty program status
What Does Amex Platinum Trip Insurance Cover?
The Amex Platinum card offers decent trip insurance coverage, but there are a few significant gaps, like the lack of baggage delay insurance. Below is a breakdown of insurance types and coverages the Platinum card offers.
| Insurance Type | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/cancellation | $10,000/trip, up to $20,000/year |
| Trip delay | $500/trip, and up 2 claims a year |
| Lost luggage | $3000/person |
| Baggage delay | None |
| Travel accident | None |
| Auto rental | Up to $75,000 (secondary) |
| Emergency evacuation | Only through Global Assist |
| Emergency medical/dental | None |
While no listed limits exist for medical evacuations, coverage is only offered through the Amex Global Assist helpline. Global Assist can also help with other services like lawyer referrals, prescription replacement, customs info, etc.
It’s worth noting that Amex’s auto rental insurance is secondary. This means you’ll need to file a claim on your personal insurance first before Amex’s insurance goes into effect.
Amex Platinum Alternatives
Although the Platinum Card has excellent travel perks, the annual fee is costly. Amex also offers the the Gold Card with a $250 annual fee and the Green Card $150 annual fee. Both cards have the same trip insurance coverage as the Platinum Card minus trip interruption & cancellation insurance.
Capital One VentureOne
The Venture Cards are Capital One’s travel rewards products, with the Venture X being the premium tier and the VentureOne being the base tier. While the rewards earning rates are a bit low and the insurance coverages are minimal, the card is easier to qualify for and comes free of an annual fee. This is why VentureOne was our pick for best trip insurance coverage on a $0 annual fee card.
Annual fee: $0
Authorized user: $0
APR: 19.99% – 29.99%
Point earning rate: 1.25x with 5x on travel booked through Capital One
Anniversary gift: none
Notable perks: 20,000 mile signup bonus, 0% APR offer
What Does VentureOne Trip Insurance Cover?
As a base card with no annual fee, the VentureOne card lacks some of the premium perks and trip insurance coverage that other cards offer. Still, you’ll get some coverage for baggage, accidents, and rental cars.
| Insurance Types | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/cancellation | None |
| Trip delay | None |
| Lost luggage | $3,000/passenger |
| Baggage delay | None |
| Travel accident | $250,000 |
| Auto Rental | Cash value (secondary) |
| Emergency evacuation | None |
| Emergency medical/dental | None |
Capital One also offers a limited roadside assistance program, but you’ll need to pay for the services you use; there are no freebies.
It’s also worth noting that insurance coverages relate to which card you qualify for, a Visa Signature or Mastercard World Elite. The above insurance coverages are for Visa Signature products; if you qualify for the Mastercard, your trip insurance coverage will be slightly more expansive.
VentureOne Alternatives
Capital One has three Venture cards, each with a different reward rate and annual fee. The next tier up is the Venture Rewards, with a $95 fee, upgraded perks, and a better signup offer.
The top tier is the Venture X, with an annual fee of $395 with perks comparable to premium travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve. The Venture X is also a Visa Infinite card, so it comes with elevated trip insurance coverage.
Marriott Bonvoy Bold
With nearly 9000 locations worldwide, Marriott can be a good choice for building brand loyalty for frequent world travelers. The Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bold card, with its $0 annual fee and rewards rate of up to 14x, is our top pick for the best hotel rewards card with trip insurance.
Annual fee: $0
Authorized user: $0
APR: 21.49% – 28.49%
Point earning rate: 1x up to 14x
Anniversary gift: 5 elite night credits
Notable perks: Silver elite status, 60,000 points, and 1 free night signup bonus
What Does Marriott Bonvoy Bold Trip Insurance Cover?
Considering the Bonvoy Bold card has no annual fee, this credit card has some pretty decent perks, including good trip insurance coverage. Below is a breakdown of the Bonvoy Bold’s insurance policies.
| Insurance Types | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/Cancellation | No |
| Trip delay | $500/person |
| Lost luggage | $3,000/person |
| Baggage delay | $100 a day for up to 5 days |
| Travel Accident | $500,000 |
| Auto Rental | Cash value (secondary) |
| Emergency evacuation | No |
| Emergency medical/dental | No |
In addition to the above policies, the Bonvoy Bold offers a paid roadside assistance program. Calling is free, but any roadside services you need will incur charges.
Marriott Bonvoy Bold Alternatives
The Marriott hotel brand offers four co-branded cards, two from Chase and two from Amex. The next tier up is Chase’s Bonvoy Boundless, with a $95 annual fee, upgraded perks, and the same trip insurance coverage.
The first of the Amex cards, the Bonvoy Bevy, comes with a $250 annual fee, slightly upgraded perks, and access to Amex’s Global Assist hotline. The top tier, the Bonvoy Brillant, has a $650 annual fee, comes with Platinum Elite status, and offers trip interruption/cancellation insurance.
United Club Infinite
According to United, their airline operates more than 4,500 flights a day across more than 300 destinations worldwide. The fact that they serve such a wide market, plus the Star Alliance program, which lets you transfer points to one of United’s 25 partners, makes the United Club Infinite card a good travel rewards card for building airline loyalty.
This great rewards program and excellent travel insurance coverage options earned this card our pick for the best airline credit card with trip insurance. Here are some of the highlights of the United Club Infinite card.
Annual fee: $525
Authorized user: $0
APR: 21.99% – 28.99%
Point earning rate: 1x – 9x
Anniversary gift: United Club membership
Notable perks: $100 credit for trusted traveler programs, free checked bags
What Does United Club Infinite Trip Insurance Cover?
Regarding travel insurance, the United Club Infinite card is one of the best options on our list, second only to the Sapphire Reserve card in terms of what is covered. Below is an overview of trip insurance policies the United Club Infinite card provides.
| Insurance Types | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/cancellation | $10,000/person, up to $20,000/trip |
| Trip delay | $500/ticket |
| Lost luggage | $3,000/person |
| Baggage delay | $100/day for up to 3 days |
| Travel accident | $500,000 |
| Auto rental | Cash value (primary) |
| Emergency evacuation | Yes |
| Emergency medical/dental | Yes, limited |
These insurance coverages are in addition to United’s decent refund policies for delayed and canceled flights and their existing program for lost luggage reimbursement.
The information available on United Club Infitite’s evacuation and medical coverage is limited, with the website only stating, “You can be covered for medical services and transportation.” Considering this card is a Visa Infinite, the coverage terms are likely similar to those offered by the Sapphire Reserve.
United Club Infinite Alternatives
The United Club Infinite card is the MileagePlus program’s highest-tier card. They also offer the United Quest, United Explorer, and United Gateway cards through Chase. These cards all have different annual fees and perks but the same trip insurance coverages, which is less than what is offered on the United Club Infinite card.
Chase Ink Business Preferred
When it comes to business cards, there are numerous options, but not all of them are a good fit for travel. The Chase Ink Business Preferred card rewards your business for travel purchases and gives you access to Chase’s high-value Ultimate Rewards program.
The excellent travel benefits plus the card’s decent travel insurance coverages won the Ink Business Preferred card our top pick for the best business card with trip insurance. Here are some quick facts about the card.
Annual fee: $95
Authorized user: $0
APR: 21.24% – 26.24%
Point earning rate: 1x – 5x
Anniversary gift: None
Notable perks: 90,000 point signup bonus, free employee cards, and 3x points on $150,000 spend
What Does Ink Business Preferred Trip Insurance Cover?
Travel issues can be costly for businesses. When a flight is canceled or delayed, you are not just losing out on travel funds; you could also be losing out on business. This is why trip insurance protection is even more important for companies than individuals. Below is a review of the trip insurance policies for the Ink Business Preferred card.
| Insurance Types | Coverage Amounts |
| Trip interruption/cancellation | $5,000/person, up to $10,000/trip, and $20,000 in claims a year |
| Trip delay | $500/person |
| Lost luggage | $3,000/person |
| Baggage delay | $100 a day for up to 5 days |
| Travel accident | $500,000 |
| Auto rental | Cash value (primary) |
| Emergency evacuation | No |
| Emergency medical/dental | No |
In addition to the above coverages, the Ink Business Preferred card offers a paid roadside dispatch program. Calling is free, but services will be charged to your card.
Chase Ink Business Preferred Alternatives
Chase offers four Ink business cards, each with different earning categories tied to different business types. The Unlimited earns a flat 1.5x on everything, while the Cash earns 5x on office supplies and internet/cable/phone services. The top-tier card, the Premier, has a flat 2.5x rate on all high-dollar purchases and 2x on everything else.
Even though the earning categories are different for all of the Ink cards, the trip insurance coverages are similar.
How to File a Trip Insurance Claim
When you find yourself out of pocket for travel issues, it’s time to file a claim, but where do you start? Reviewing your credit card’s benefit terms can help you understand what is covered, when it is covered, and how much you can claim.
Another great resource is your credit card provider’s helpline, such as Amex’s Global Assist hotline. These helplines can answer your insurance questions and help you get started on the claims process.
The procedure for filing a claim will differ based on the insurance provider and type. Here are some general guidelines.
- Use your card – Insurance policies only kick in when you use your credit card to make travel purchases.
- Car rental claims – You must waive the car rental agency’s insurance.
- Trip delay – The delay has to hit a certain threshold. For instance, Amex requires a 6-hour delay before coverage goes into effect.
- Trip cancellation – This insurance only covers certain situations and often omits reasons such as pre-existing health conditions, financial troubles, ongoing war, etc.
- Secondary insurance – Most trip insurance types are considered secondary. If you have any other insurance, i.e., travel insurance through an airline, you will need to file a claim with them first.
- Notification period – Many insurance policies require you to contact the provider and/or initiate a claim immediately. In some cases, like evacuation insurance, you need to get pre-approval for services.
- Save your receipts – Once you get further into the claims process, you’ll need to be able to prove the value of your claim, so hold onto any receipts you have.
Is Credit Card Trip Insurance Enough?
The goal is never to need trip insurance, but sometimes life has other plans. When the worst happens, it's nice to know you are protected. All of the credit cards on our list offer decent insurance protection, with a few covering just about every travel issue that exists.
But is insurance through your credit card really enough? For most travelers, the likely answer is yes. However, if your trip is particularly expensive, you are traveling with a large family/group, or you cannot put all travel purchases on a single credit card, getting supplemental travel insurance might be worth it.
Amanda Kay, an Employment Specialist and founder of My Life, I Guess, strives to keep the “person” in personal finance by writing about money, mistakes, and more. She focuses on what it’s like being in debt, living paycheck to paycheck, and surviving unemployment while also offering advice and support for others in similar situations – including a free library of career & job search resources.