- The Platinum Card® from American Express is one of the best credit cards for earning points on airfare. If you book a flight directly with the airline, you'll earn 5 points per dollar.
- However, it hasn't been the best option in terms of protecting yourself in the event that your trip is delayed or canceled and you want to be reimbursed for non-refundable expenses.
- Starting in 2020, Amex is adding trip cancellation and interruption insurance and trip delay insurance to the Amex Platinum and a handful of other premium Amex cards, including the Business Platinum® Card from American Express, the Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express, and the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card.
- If you book a round-trip flight entirely with an eligible Amex card and your flight is canceled for a covered reason, you'll be eligible for up to $10,000 in reimbursement for non-refundable travel expenses. And if your flight is delayed by more than six hours for a covered reason, you'll be eligible for up to $500 in reimbursement for unexpected expenses like meals and a hotel room.
We're used to seeing credit cards add benefits like new bonus categories and statement credits in an attempt to keep up with the competition, but we're also no stranger to issuers chipping away at other perks, especially some of the less eye-catching ones like travel insurance and purchase protection.
That's why this news is especially welcome. As The Points Guy reports, starting in January 2020, if you have a premium Amex card like the Amex Platinum, you'll be eligible for coverage that can reimburse you in the event that your trip is delayed or canceled.
Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which can far outweigh the value of any rewards.
When you're working to earn credit card rewards, it's important to practice financial discipline, like paying your balances off in full each month, making payments on time, and not spending more than you can afford to pay back. Basically, treat your credit card like a debit card.
Trip cancellation and interruption insurance coming to premium Amex cards
Starting in 2020, when you book a round-trip flight with an eligible Amex card, you'll be eligible for coverage if your flight is canceled for a covered reason. Covered reasons include weather, sudden illness, a call to jury, and terrorist action.
In the event that your flight is canceled for a covered reason, you'd be eligible for up to $10,000 per trip to reimburse nonrefundable travel expenses (like a prepaid hotel), up to $20,000 per account for each 12-month period.
This new benefit will be available on the following cards:
You'll also be eligible for reimbursement if you book a flight with miles but pay the taxes and fees with one of these eligible Amex cards, or if you use Amex Pay With Points to book a flight.
Read more: The best Amex credit cards
Trip delay insurance
Amex is adding another great benefit to these premium credit cards in 2020. When you purchase a round-trip flight with an eligible card and your flight is delayed by more than six hours due to a covered reason, you can be reimbursed for unexpected expenses like a hotel room and meals, up to $500 per trip.
This can save you from the dreaded experience of having to spend the night in an airport if your flight is delayed overnight.
Read more: Passengers slept on the floor of JFK when the airline didn't put them up during an 18-hour delay - but your credit card can keep that from happening to you
Amex is also adding trip delay insurance to cover up to $300 for unexpected expenses when your covered flight is delayed by more than 12 hours with the following credit cards, which have lower annual fees than the premium options above:
Other changes to Amex card benefits
The addition of trip cancellation and interruption insurance and trip delay insurance is great news for Amex cardholders - especially those with the Amex Platinum.
The Platinum card is my go-to for booking flights, since it earns 5x points when you book directly with the airline. Starting in 2020 cardholders can earn those bonus points and enjoy some extra peace of mind. These updates bring Amex in line with the protections offered on other credit cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and the Citi Prestige® Card.
Read more: Amex Platinum card review
There are a few deductions to Amex card benefits in store, too, but luckily none of these should make too big of a difference for most cardholders.
First, starting in 2020 the extended warranty benefit on most Amex cards will be reduced from two additional years to one additional year of protection. Second, all Amex cards that offer purchase protection will offer this for up to 90 days from the item purchase date, down from 120 days.
Finally, Amex will be eliminating travel accident insurance, which covered expenses related to death or dismemberment during a covered trip, and its Roadside Assistance Hotline. Reportedly fewer than 1% of Amex cardholders used these two benefits, so this shouldn't move the needle for most cardmembers.
Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Personal Finance Insider team. We occasionally highlight financial products and services that can help you make smarter decisions with your money. We do not give investment advice or encourage you to adopt a certain investment strategy. If you take action based on one of our recommendations, we get a small share of the revenue from our commerce partners. This does not influence whether we feature a financial product or service. We operate independently from our advertising sales team.
Business Insider may receive a commission from The Points Guy Affiliate Network, but our reporting and recommendations are always independent and objective.
Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.
Next Story
2 states where home prices are falling because there are too many houses and not enough buyers
US buys 81 Soviet-era combat aircraft from Russia's ally costing on average less than $20,000 each, report says
A couple accidentally shipped their cat in an Amazon return package. It arrived safely 6 days later, hundreds of miles away.
9 health benefits of drinking sugarcane juice in summer
10 benefits of incorporating almond oil into your daily diet
From heart health to detoxification: 10 reasons to eat beetroot
Why did a NASA spacecraft suddenly start talking gibberish after more than 45 years of operation? What fixed it?
ICICI Bank shares climb nearly 5% after Q4 earnings; mcap soars by ₹36,555.4 crore
