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Credit cards with travel insurance are a major advantage. If the coverage fits the traveller’s needs, it can even save you from buying separate insurance. On top of the rewards or points they earn, these cards offer complete protection: travel insurance, trip cancellation insurance, purchase protection, car rental coverage, and more.
When you received your credit card, you probably also got your insurance coverage booklet. If not, it’s easy to find on your financial institution’s website.
Ideally, you should refer to your insurance booklet before deciding to use this card to book your trip. Every credit card has different coverage tied to:
One of the most important sections covers the eligibility of the trip, if you decide to pay for your trip with points.
That’s where you’ll find the conditions that apply to most of your card’s insurance coverages.
Some cards will require that:
If the entire trip must be charged to the credit card, you won’t be able to use reward points to be covered.
The minimum amount required can also be 75%, as with the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite +* Card. To be covered by its public transportation accident insurance, you must have paid at least 75% of your ticket price with:
So if your ticket costs $100, you must have paid at least $75 with your card or your points for the insurance to apply.
A credit card’s travel insurance may allow points from the card’s linked rewards program to be used to pay for the trip. That’s the case, for example, with the American Express Gold Rewards Card: the insurance is valid if:
But you won’t have insurance if you used a program other than Membership Rewards, such as Aeroplan, Scene+ or AIR MILES. American Express clearly encourages cardholders to use its own program.
Other cards will only require that part of the trip be paid with the credit card. The “partial” cost of a ticket can be paid with another type of points or miles.
For example, here is the insurance certificate for the National Bank World Elite Mastercard, for trip cancellation and interruption insurance:
It is very important to read and understand your credit card’s insurance certificate. If you’re unsure, contact your card’s customer service.
A single card can have different eligibility criteria for different coverages. These are nuances that can have major consequences if something goes wrong.
As a general rule, we recommend paying for your trip with:
So if you use the BMO AIR MILES World Elite Mastercard, you’ll be covered if a problem arises on a trip paid for with AIR MILES miles. Here is this card’s insurance certificate for buying plane tickets with points from the linked program (here, AIR MILES):
Only two credit cards let you be covered even when you pay only part of the trip with them!
That means you can use Aeroplan miles, pay the taxes and surcharges with this type of credit card, and still be covered by your credit card’s insurance!
Two credit cards stand out in Canada:
Both credit cards provide coverage in most circumstances, whether you paid part or all of your trip cost with the card. However, baggage delay insurance requires that the full cost of the plane ticket was purchased with the card. The same applies to car rental insurance.
One major advantage for people aged 65 to 75: emergency medical care insurance outside your province of residence is included, for up to 15 days.
Note that the credit card whose insurance most closely matches the National Bank World Elite Mastercard is the Desjardins Odyssey® World Elite Mastercard. The difference, though, is that the Desjardins card requires the full payment to be charged to the card.
For most included coverages, the National Bank World Elite Mastercard and the National Bank World Mastercard are among the few credit cards in Canada that cover you even if you charge only part of the trip cost to them.
For travel, only baggage delay and car rental insurance require the full cost to have been charged to the card.
National Bank World Elite Mastercard
National Bank World Mastercard
The National Bank World Elite Mastercard and the National Bank World Mastercard offer emergency medical travel coverage that varies based on:
As always, we recommend carefully reading each credit card insurance booklet before making a decision. It is your responsibility to contact your credit card issuer for clarification if you have any doubts.
To go further, check out our guide on what your credit card’s travel insurance really covers. You can also compare all the options in our ranking of the best credit cards and in our selection of the best credit cards for insurance.
Here are the various articles you can read about credit card travel insurance:
To maximize your Membership Rewards balance, check out our complete guide to the American Express Membership Rewards program and our ranking of the best American Express Membership Rewards credit cards, updated every month by the Milesopedia team.
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