Which Credit Cards Offer Insurance on Award Travel?

Something to see erstwhile choosing a recognition paper is the spot of its question security benefits. Frequent travellers often look to their recognition cards for extortion and reimbursement erstwhile thing unexpected occurs connected their trips, beryllium it flight delays, baggage delays, travel cancellation oregon interruption, oregon large accidents and aesculapian emergencies.

A widely-held content regarding recognition paper security is that it lone applies if the afloat outgo of the travel is charged to the card. So, if you were purchasing a formation connected the airline’s website, you’d person to wage for the formation utilizing a definite paper for that card’s security benefits to footwear in.

But what happens erstwhile you redeem miles for travel? How tin you instrumentality vantage of your recognition card’s security benefits erstwhile you’re travelling connected an grant ticket? The reply varies from paper to card, and tin adjacent beryllium antithetic depending present which benignant of security sum you’re looking at.

Let’s instrumentality a person look astatine credit cards that connection security for grant travel.

Emergency Medical Insurance: Just By Being a Cardholder

Whether oregon not a recognition paper offers emergency aesculapian insurance is what often distinguishes the stronger security packages from the weaker ones.

However, what galore radical mightiness not recognize is that the bulk of cards that travel with question aesculapian insurance bash not necessitate you to complaint the outgo of the travel to the paper for the sum to footwear in. 

Rather, to beryllium eligible for aesculapian insurance, you simply request to beryllium leaving your state of territory of residence connected a travel whose duration does not transcend a definite fig of covered days. The fig of covered days varies from paper to card, but is usually 15–25 days if you’re beneath property 65, and overmuch little if you’re 65 oregon older.

For example, the Amex Platinum Card’s insurance pamphlet specifies the following:

The RBC Avion Visa Infinite’s pamphlet specifies the following:

And the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card’s benefits booklet defines “trip” arsenic the following:

As you tin see, travelling extracurricular of your state oregon territory of residence is each that’s required for the exigency aesculapian security to footwear in, and there’s nary request for the trip’s costs to beryllium charged to the paper itself.

This is the lawsuit for astir each paper retired determination that includes aesculapian insurance, including the American Express Gold Rewards Card, the American Express Cobalt Card, the CIBC Aventura Visa Infinite Card, and the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard, amongst others.

Whether you’re taking a roadworthy travel to the adjacent state implicit oregon jetting disconnected to distant lands, you’re covered for immoderate exigency aesculapian expenses arsenic agelong arsenic you’re a existent cardholder connected 1 of these cards. Importantly, the sum applies to your travel careless of whether you booked your formation with currency oregon with miles.

For the purposes of grant travel, then, whether you redeemed your Aeroplan points for a elemental home round-trip flight, oregon you’ve pieced unneurotic a full-blown multi-segment travel utilizing respective antithetic rewards currencies, you’ll beryllium covered successful the lawsuit of exigency aesculapian assistance arsenic agelong arsenic you support 1 of these premium question recognition cards open.

You’ll beryllium covered for exigency question security conscionable by being a cardholder with a fig of recognition cards

Of course, marque definite you cautiously work the security pamphlet connected your recognition card, since determination are ever definite exclusions to which the aesculapian sum wouldn’t apply. Most often, preexisting aesculapian conditions oregon undertaking risky activities volition void the coverage.

Moreover, enactment that the sum typically lone lasts for a definite fig of days connected your trip, truthful you whitethorn inactive request to acquisition further security if you’re travelling for a longer duration. You tin bash this by topping-up your recognition paper sum oregon purchasing a argumentation from a abstracted provider.

Other Types of Travel Insurance: Use the Right Credit Card

Now, portion astir premium recognition cards supply question aesculapian security to their cardholders careless of whether the travel was billed to the card, the aforesaid generosity is usually not extended to different types of insurance.

To beryllium eligible for sum for flight delays, baggage delays, travel cancellation & interruption, oregon question mishap insurance, you’ll astir apt request to person booked the travel with the recognition card. This tin beryllium an contented for anyone who chiefly travels connected grant tickets, arsenic a formation that’s paid for with miles can’t truly beryllium charged “in full” to immoderate paper astatine all.

Thankfully, that’s wherever a fewer prime recognition cards connected the marketplace tin capable the gap.

Aeroplan Co-Branded Credit Cards

Aeroplan co-branded recognition cards widen question security benefits to immoderate trips booked utilizing Aeroplan points, arsenic agelong arsenic the associated taxes and fees are billed to the card.

There are presently 11 Aeroplan co-branded recognition cards disposable successful Canada, issued by TD, CIBC, and American Express. 

For example, here’s what the TD Aeroplan Visa Infinite Card’s insurance package has to accidental astir summons eligibility for formation delay, delayed and mislaid baggage, travel cancellation and travel interruption, and communal bearer accidents:

And here’s the equivalent connection connected the American Express Aeroplan Reserve Card‘s insurance pamphlet:

As you tin see, the security benefits connected these cards volition use nary substance whether you charged the afloat fare to the card, redeemed Aeroplan points for the summons and charged the taxes and fees to your recognition card, oregon redeemed a hybrid magnitude of Aeroplan points and currency utilizing the Points + Cash feature.

Therefore, whether you’re redeeming Aeroplan points for a speedy one-way formation oregon a analyzable trip and you privation to bask the afloat security extortion of a premium question recognition paper connected your trip, past it’s champion to enactment the taxes and fees onto 1 of Amex, TD, oregon CIBC’s Aeroplan-affiliated cards.

And if you regularly question connected Aeroplan points, you mightiness find it worthwhile to continuously support 1 of these cards unfastened for the intent of giving yourself immoderate bid of caput on your points-funded trips.

Credit Cards with Other Loyalty Programs

Most Canadian recognition cards that person a loyalty programme associated with them volition typically widen their security benefits to question booked done that circumstantial points programme arsenic well. A fewer examples are arsenic follows:

• The Amex Gold Rewards Card, Platinum Card, and Cobalt Card widen security benefits to question booked straight via the Membership Rewards program (excluding transportation partners).

• The RBC Avion Visa Infinite Card extends its security benefits to question booked straight utilizing RBC Avion points (excluding transportation partners).

• The WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard extends its security benefits to question booked afloat oregon partially utilizing WestJet Dollars.

• The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite Card extends its security benefits to question booked with Scene+ points.

Therefore, whenever you’re looking to redeem 1 of the large Canadian points currencies for a flight, you’ll usually beryllium capable to instrumentality vantage of the security perks connected immoderate recognition paper is associated with that points programme (which is astir apt the paper that you had utilized to gain the points to statesman with).

And if that program doesn’t enactment retired for immoderate reason, you tin ever complaint the remaining equilibrium to different paper arsenic a fallback option…

A Credit Card That Covers All Reward Bookings

In Canada, the National Bank World Elite Mastercard is the lone recognition paper that covers each reward bookings. As of July 6, 2023, BMO’s suite of World Elite Mastercards no longer screen grant travel, which utilized to beryllium a cardinal diagnostic offered by the cards.

The security sum for the National Bank World Elite Mastercard doesn’t mandate that the full outgo of the travel beryllium charged to the card, but alternatively lone requires that a “portion oregon the full outgo of the trip” is charged to beryllium capable for coverage.

This means that whenever you’re redeeming immoderate benignant of rewards currencies for a flight, beryllium it with Aeroplan points, Cathay Pacific Asia Miles, Alaska miles, Air France/KLM Flying Blue miles, oregon Ethiopian Airlines ShebaMiles, you’ll beryllium eligible for security sum with the National Bank World Elite Mastercard, since you’re fulfilling the criterion of “partial cost” successful doing so.

This card’s far-reaching security proposition is 1 of the reasons wherefore you mightiness privation to prime it up and/or clasp onto it successful the agelong term.

Consider adding a National Bank World Elite Mastercard to your wallet for security connected reward bookings

Conclusion

While it whitethorn initially look that the question security connected your recognition paper requires you to wage for the formation successful afloat utilizing the card, frankincense making your beingness hard if you chiefly question connected points, the world isn’t rather truthful bleak.

Emergency aesculapian security is mostly progressive arsenic agelong arsenic you’re travelling out-of-province and your paper relationship is successful bully standing. Meanwhile, utilizing a co-branded recognition paper done TD, CIBC, American Express, oregon RBC tin usually instrumentality attraction of the remaining types of coverage.

It’s ever important to work the good people precise cautiously erstwhile it comes to a taxable similar insurance, since by quality it’s thing that depends a batch connected your circumstantial circumstances. While it’s hopefully ne'er needed, it tin surely marque oregon interruption the travel successful lawsuit thing unexpected happens erstwhile you’re connected the road.

The station Which Credit Cards Offer Insurance connected Award Travel? appeared archetypal connected Prince of Travel by Ricky Zhang.