Which Credit Cards to Use for Complimentary Travel Insurance

If you have ever faced (or know someone who has faced) a travel mishap while holidaying abroad, you would understand the pain of little things such as a delayed flight blemishing your holiday. And God forbid you end up meeting with an accident. Not only does your vacation come to an end but the amount of money you end up spending adds to the damper.

Which is why it is advised to purchase a travel insurance policy before going on a holiday. This, we know, is easier said than done since most of us tend to purchase travel insurance at the last possible minute (i.e. if we end up purchasing one at all!).

On the other hand, what if we tell you not to worry about purchasing insurance? Yes, if you have a credit card that offers complimentary travel insurance, the fuss of buying insurance could be eliminated!

Substantially, almost every travel credit card in Singapore provides travel insurance coverage up to S$1 million! So, here’s the rundown of which credit cards to use for complimentary travel insurance.

Related: 5 Reasons Why Not Getting Travel Insurance Could Really Ruin Your Vacation

For starters, here’s a list of credit cards that offer travel insurance in Singapore (from highest to least)

So, all you need to do to enjoy this coverage is to charge your trip to your card? If only that were the case! Let’s get the cat out of the bag and list the conditions that come into play.

Check out: Our Credit Card Reviews

Here is a list of important terms and conditions you may end up overlooking

Apparently, just charging your air tickets to your card won’t make you eligible for the complimentary travel insurance. There are other conditions that you must know, which include:

Read: How to Choose the Right Travel Insurance for You and Your Family

1. Round trip vs single trip cover

Most policies are willing to provide travel insurance cover only when you charge your card for a round trip, yet there are others willing to provide coverage even if a single trip is charged to your card. So, we have poured through the terms and conditions of most of the complimentary travel insurance policies and have come to the conclusion that quite a few of the policies are quite unclear on whether or not you need to book a round trip for the travel insurance to kick in.

Credit cards which require you to charge a round-trip:

• American Express Platinum Credit Card
• American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
• American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card
• Citi Cash Back Card
• Citi PremierMiles Visa Card
• Citi Prestige Card
• OCBC 365 Credit Card
• OCBC VOYAGE Card

You may like: OCBC VOYAGE Card Review: A Miles Card in Its Own League

Credit cards which require only a single-trip to be charged

• American Express True Cashback Card
• HSBC Visa Infinite Card
• Maybank Catholic High Alumni Platinum Visa Card
• Maybank DUO Platinum Mastercard
• Maybank Family & Friends Card
• Maybank FC Barcelona Visa Signature Card
• Maybank Horizon Visa Signature Card
• Maybank Manchester United Platinum Visa Card
• Maybank Platinum Visa Card
• Maybank Visa Infinite Card
• Maybank World Mastercard

Since most of the other credit cards don’t really specify if you need to charge a round trip or not, a good rule of thumb is to contact the insurance agency. This way you will be able to clear all doubts regarding the insurance policy with them.

Read also: The Complete Guide to the AirAsia ASEAN Pass

2. Caps on age and the length of your trip

Just because you or your spouse is the principal cardholder, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you are eligible for the complimentary travel insurance coverage that comes with your card. Most policies place caps on both age and the length of your trip.

So, if you are 65 years and above, even if you pay for your round trip with your OCBC VOYAGE Card, you will not be eligible for travel insurance protection.

Likewise, there is a cap on the number of days of your trip.

If you thought that you could travel for months and have your policy cover you, then you are in for a bit of a surprise. Travel insurance on cards such as the DBS Altitude Card cover trips only up to a maximum of 30 days. If your journey continues past this trip cap, your insurance provider is not liable to compensate you if anything were to go wrong on your journey.

Related: Citi PremierMiles Visa Card Review: A Must-Have Card to Fuel Your Wanderlust

At present, the American Express Platinum Credit Card offers the longest trip cap with 180 consecutive days or 240 cumulative days in a particular period; closely followed by the Citi PremierMiles Visa Card that covers a trip of 93 days.

OCBC VOYAGE, like the DBS Altitude Card, offers a 30-day trip coverage.

So, make sure you know the duration of your travels. You don’t want to be in a situation wherein you exceed the trip length by a day or two only to have something unforeseen happen and not be protected by your travel insurance policy.

Read also: The Top VIP Airport Lounges in the World and How You Can Get Access

Credit cards to use for trips that are 50 days or longer:

• American Express Platinum Credit Card
• American Express Platinum Reserve Credit Card
• American Express Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer Ascend Credit Card
• CIMB Visa Infinite Credit Card
• CIMB Visa Signature Card
• Citi PremierMiles Visa Card
• Citi Prestige Card
• HSBC Visa Infinite Card (for round-trips)
• Maybank Catholic High Platinum Associates Card
• Maybank DUO Platinum Mastercard
• Maybank Family & Friends Card
• Maybank FC Barcelona Card
• Maybank Manchester United Platinum Visa Card
• Maybank Platinum Visa Card
• Maybank Visa Infinite Card
• Maybank World Mastercard
• Standard Chartered Rewards+ Credit Card
• Standard Chartered Visa Infinite Credit Card

Credit cards to use for trips up to 49 days

• DBS Altitude Card
• HSBC Visa Infinite Card (for one-way trips)
• OCBC 365 Credit Card
• OCBC VOYAGE Card

3. Are journeys purchased with air miles covered by the travel insurance policy?

This is something you probably never even thought of, but a lot of credit card travel insurance policies out there become void if you use air miles earned by using your credit card to purchase your tickets! You could argue that by charging taxes and any additional fees to your card you are still charging your travels to your card, but it doesn’t count as the full fare – an amount that card companies stipulate as necessary for insurance coverage to kick in.

Here’s a screenshot from the Standard Chartered Rewards+ Credit Card travel insurance policy’s terms and conditions page which demonstrates this fact:

Source: Standard Chartered Rewards+ Credit Card’s travel insurance policy wording

Read also: Is Buying Travel Insurance From Your Airlines a Good Idea or Not?

So, if the base fare was paid for with the miles you earned, you would be better off getting a stand-alone insurance policy since your complimentary travel insurance policy wouldn’t cover your trip.

An exception to this condition, however, is HSBC Visa Infinite’s travel insurance policy which also covers trips that are purchased via a combination of earned miles and your HSBC Visa Infinite Credit Card.

Source: HSBC Visa Infinite Credit Card’s travel insurance policy wording

Alternatively, you could also consider getting My VoyageGuard Travel Insurance at a discounted rate with your American Express credit card since this policy also covers trips purchased with miles. This offer is valid until 31 January 2019, so get yours today!

Check out: 5 Often Overlooked Ways to be Smart about Money While Travelling Abroad

In general, your credit card travel insurance should cover:

• Death and/or disablement
• Repatriation of mortal remains
• Overseas medical expenses
• Emergency medical evacuation
• Baggage loss
• Baggage delay
• Flight delay
• Missed connection
• Trip cancellation

Note: While accident cover and medical cover may sound similar, it’s important to understand that a card may offer accident cover but it may not necessarily provide medical cover. So, while you will be compensated in case of injuries that have occurred in an accident, your medical bills may not be covered unless the insurance policy has a medical cover component.

Check out: Best Credit Cards for Travel Benefits

And there you have it! The next time you’re planning a holiday and don’t have time to look for a standalone insurance policy, check out the policy that comes with your credit card instead! But also make sure that you go through this post and the terms and conditions of the policy so that you know the extent to which you are protected.

Until then, Bon Voyage!

You may also like:

• 8 Handy Travel Apps for the Financially Savvy Traveller
• Does Your Insurance Policy Cover Your Active Lifestyle?
• 4 Ways to Get More Authentic Travel Experiences