Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.
Chase trip delay insurance, which it brands as Trip Delay Reimbursement, can cover the cost of a hotel room and other reasonable expenses if your travel is delayed. You must book your travel with your eligible card, but trip delay insurance can cover your expenses in some cases when an airline typically won’t cover an overnight hotel or meals, such as delays for weather.
Here’s what you need to know about Chase Trip Delay Reimbursement coverage.
In this article…
Cards that offer Chase trip delay reimbursement
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® offers the most robust version of Chase trip delay insurance available. If you have the Sapphire Reserve, you’ll get coverage for delays 6 hours or more or that require an overnight stay.
The other cards offering Chase Trip Delay Reimbursement cover delays of 12 hours or overnight:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- Aeroplan® Credit Card
- Marriott Bonvoy Bold® credit card. This is the only card with no annual fee that offers Chase trip delay insurance coverage.
- Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® credit card
- Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ credit card
- United℠ Explorer Card
- United Quest℠ Card
- United Club℠ Infinite Card
- United℠ Business Card
- United Club℠ Business Card
What is trip delay reimbursement?
Trip delay reimbursement is meant to reimburse you for additional expenses you incur when your travel is delayed by factors outside of your control. If an airline delay causes you to stay in another city overnight, trip delay reimbursement can pay for your hotel room, meals, toiletries, and other necessary expenses.
You must charge your airfare (or other common carrier fare) to your eligible card to be covered. Trip delay reimbursement won’t cover things like prepaid hotel bookings, cruise bookings, or tour bookings that you miss out on because of your travel delay.
Chase trip delay reimbursement at a glance
Here’s an overview of the terms offered by Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage
| What it covers | Reasonable expenses incurred during a trip delay, like meals, lodging, toiletries, and medication. | |
| Maximum total coverage | $500 per ticket purchased. Coverage is per ticket purchased. | |
| When it kicks in | Varies by card Most cards: 12 hours or an overnight stay Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 6 hours or an overnight stay. | |
| Who is covered | Cardholder and family members. Cardholder and family members do not need to be traveling with you. |
Difference between Trip Delay Reimbursement and Trip Cancellation/Interruption insurance
Trip Delay Reimbursement and Trip Cancellation/Interruption insurance are two very similar-sounding benefits. And each is an important part of your credit card’s travel insurance benefits, but these two benefits protect your trip in different ways:
- Trip Delay Reimbursement covers you when you are traveling and your trip is delayed, resulting in you incurring expenses for meals, lodging, toiletries, and medication. Trip delay protection typically protects you against additional expense you may incur because of a delay.
- Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance typically covers non-refundable prepaid travel expenses if your trip is canceled or interrupted because of injury, death, major weather events, strikes, military orders and other events. Trip cancellation/interruption insurance generally allows you to get a refund for unused, pre-paid travel expenses due to a trip cancellation or interruption.
In most cases, booking travel with a credit card that offers both trip delay reimbursement and trip cancellation/interruption insurance is a smart move.
How to get trip delay reimbursement coverage with Chase
To get Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage, you must charge all or a portion of your common carrier fare, such as airfare or train tickets, to your eligible Chase credit card account. You are also covered when using the rewards associated with your account.
Since you can charge a portion of your fare, you can use airline frequent flyer programs, vouchers, gift cards, and other payment methods. As long as a portion of the fare is charged to your eligible Chase card, you should be covered.
What expenses Chase trip delay reimbursement protection covers
The trip delay reimbursement protection provided with certain Chase cards covers reasonable expenses incurred during a travel delay. These are the expenses that you would have if you were unexpectedly stranded in a city overnight. Here are some examples:
- Meals
- Lodging
- Toiletries
- Transportation
- Medication
This list includes only examples and is not exhaustive. Reasonable expenses other than those above should be covered with Chase trip delay protection. Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage is limited to a dollar amount per eligible traveler for tickets purchased using an eligible card. See your card’s guide to benefits for more details on what is covered and coverage limits
More about Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage
Trip delay reimbursement policy terms differ by credit card. That means it’s important to understand the basics of your coverage when you are shopping for a credit card and before you book your trip. For full details, you should read your guide to benefits, but here are the essential terms to compare when shopping for trip delay protection.
Which trip delays qualify
Trip delay protection protects you against delays caused by several reasons. And you can get coverage even in situations where an airline would normally refuse to provide you with a hotel room. Here are the situations covered by Chase trip delay protection:
- Equipment failure
- Inclement weather
- Strike
- Hijacking/skyjacking
Who Chase trip delay reimbursement protection covers
Chase offers coverage to you and your family members when you book your travel with an eligible card.
Family members include your spouse or domestic partner and legally dependent children under the age of 26. Family members do not need to be traveling with you to be protected by trip delay reimbursement.
Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage limitations
Unlike other issuers Chase trip delay reimbursement coverage does not have a limit on the number of claims or the total amount you can claim during the year. Chase trip delay reimbursement will reimburse up to the limits in your card’s guide to benefits for each ticket that is affected by a covered hazard.
How does Chase trip delay insurance protection compare?
Here’s how Chase trip delay insurance protection compares to the trip delay insurance protections offered by several other popular card issuers:
| Coverage Amount | Delay Required | Covered Travelers | Important limitations | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express | $300-$500 | 6-12 hours or Overnight | Cardmember. Family members. Traveling companions. | 2 claims per card per 12 months. Round-trip travel required. |
| Capital One | $500 | 6 hours or Overnight | Cardmember. Family members. | |
| Chase | $500 | 6-12 hours or Overnight | Cardmember. Family members. | |
| U.S. Bank | $500 | 6 hours or Overnight | Cardmember. Family members. |
How to file a Chase trip delay insurance claim
You can file your Chase trip delay protection claim online. The website to file a claim is https://www.eclaimsline.com/. You can also file a claim by calling 1-800-348-8472.
The website will ask for your card number and will lead you through the process of submitting your claim online. You’ll be required to provide details about your claim during the process. You may also be asked to upload receipts.
Once your claim is submitted, the benefit administrator will review your claim. You may be asked to provide additional information, so be sure to save all receipts and documentation until your claim is finalized. If the benefit administrator decides you have a valid claim, you will receive payment to reimburse your expenses.
Documents you’ll need for your claim
During your claim submission, you’ll need to provide the benefit administrator with evidence to substantiate your claim. Here are the documents you should expect to provide.
- A copy of your monthly billing statement showing the travel charge. You can download this from the Chase.com portal.
- A statement from the common carrier to verifying the reason for your flight delay.
- Itemized receipts for claimed expenses. If the cost of any meal exceeds $50.00 per covered traveler, an itemized receipt is required.
- Original travel itineraries and/or common carrier tickets showing the date and time of the original flights, as well as the total amount charged for the covered trip.
- Updated travel itineraries and/or common carrier tickets showing the date and time of the rescheduled flights.
Bottom line on Chase trip delay insurance
Booking your travel with a card offering Chase trip delay insurance can protect you if your flight or other travel is delayed for certain reasons, including inclement weather. Even when an airline won’t provide meals or hotel accommodation, booking your trip with a Chase card offering Trip Delay Protection can mean you’ll sleep in a nearby hotel rather than on the floor of an airport.
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of things are not covered under trip delay protection?
If you know about the reason for the delay prior to the start of your trip, it may not be covered. Reimbursement for prepaid expenses that you forfeit because of your trip delay are not covered.
Do I have to book a ticket with my eligible credit card to get coverage?
Yes. Trip delay reimbursement insurance applies only when you book your ticket with your eligible credit card and, in many cases, the points you have accumulated with that card.
Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.
