Credit Card Purchase Protection Study: 2018’s Best Cards
12:22 AMPosted by: Alina Comoreanu
Credit card purchase protection covers eligible items against damage and theft in the months after you buy them. So if you have the right card and follow the proper protocol, your misfortune could be reversed with a full refund or a repaired/replaced item.
When might credit card purchase protection come in handy? Well, there were 14.6 million cases of property crime in 2015, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. And roughly 1.3 million fires resulted in an estimated $14.3 billion in direct property loss, according to National Fire Protection Association. So it’s worth having an extra layer of protection.
But not all credit cards offer purchase protection. And policies vary widely among those that do. So to help you understand what coverage you may already have and whether you need an upgrade, WalletHub compared the 10 largest credit card companies’ purchase protection policies. You can check out our findings below.
Some of the cards listed on this page originate from our partners, but that did not impact our conclusions. Offers are accurate as of Nov 8, 2017, and many are likely to have changed since.
Note: Discover will no longer offer this benefit starting with March 1st, 2018.
Key FindingsThe best credit cards for purchase-protection benefits are:
| Rank | Cards | WalletHub Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | All Citi Cards | 100% |
| 2 | Chase Sapphire Reserve & J.P. Morgan Reserve | 98.5% |
| 3 | Platinum from American Express & Premier Rewards Gold Card From American Express | 96% |
Citi cards provide the best purchase protection coverage.
Capital One is the only major issuer whose purchase protection policy worsened in 2017.
Only 25% of cards provide purchase protection for up to 120 days.
Items stolen from personal vehicles are the most common type of exclusion from credit card purchase protection (44%).
55% of cards have fully transparent purchase protection policies, while most others lose points for not disclosing complete benefit terms.
The Coverage You Can Expect
| Example of a Standard Policy | Best Policy | |
|---|---|---|
| Sign Up | Not required | Not required |
| Coverage | Items stolen or accidentally damaged by: FireSmokeVandalismAccidental discharge of water or steam | Items stolen or accidentally damaged by: FireSmokeVandalismAccidental discharge of water or steam |
| Exclusions | Perishables Consumables Collectibles Certain other purchases (e.g. computer software) | Perishables Consumables Collectibles Certain other purchases (e.g. computer software) |
| Maximum Coverage per Item | $500 per eligible item | $10,000 per eligible item |
| Maximum Coverage per Year | Up to $50,000 per card | Up to $50,000 annually |
| Price Protection Period | 120 days from the date of purchase | 120 days from the date of purchase |
| Cards Offering this Type of Policy | Chase Sapphire Preferred | Citi ThankYou Premier |
| Overall Rank | Card Name | Sign Up | Coverage | Purchase Protection Period | Claims | Transparency | Total Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maximum Points | 10% | 50% | 20% | 10% | 10% | 100% | |
| T - 1 | Citi ThankYou Premier Card | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 98.50% |
| T - 1 | Citi Prestige Card | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 1 | Citi ThankYou Preferred Card | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 1 | Citi Double Cash | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 1 | Citi Simplicity | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 1 | Citi Diamond Preferred Card | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 7 | Chase Sapphire Reserve | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 7 | J.P. Morgan Reserve | 10.00% | 50.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 98.50% |
| T - 9 | Platinum From American Express | 10.00% | 50.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 96.00% |
| T - 9 | Premier Rewards Gold Card From American Express | 10.00% | 50.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 96.00% |
| T - 11 | Blue Sky From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Blue Cash Everyday From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Blue Cash Preferred From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Green Card From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | EveryDay From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | EveryDay Preferred From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Blue From American Express | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Wells Fargo Propel | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 11 | Wells Fargo Propel 365 | 10.00% | 47.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 93.00% |
| T - 20 | Chase Sapphire Preferred | 10.00% | 44.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 92.50% |
| T - 20 | Chase Freedom | 10.00% | 44.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 92.50% |
| T - 20 | Chase Slate | 10.00% | 44.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 92.50% |
| T - 20 | Chase Freedom Unlimited | 10.00% | 44.00% | 20.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 92.50% |
| 24 | U.S. Bank FlexPerks Gold American Express | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 87.00% |
| T - 25 | Barclaycard Arrival Plus World Elite MasterCard | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 85.50% |
| T - 25 | Barclaycard CashForward | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.50% | 85.50% |
| T - 27 | U.S. Bank Cash 365 | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 85.00% |
| T - 27 | Bank of America Premium Rewards | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 85.00% |
| T - 29 | Capital One Venture | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 84.00% |
| T - 29 | Capital One VentureOne | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 84.00% |
| T - 29 | Capital One Quicksilver | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 84.00% |
| T - 29 | Wells Fargo Visa Signature | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 84.00% |
| T - 29 | Wells Fargo Platinum Visa Card | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 84.00% |
| T - 34 | U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve Visa Infinite® Card | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 82.00% |
| T - 34 | U.S. Bank Cash+ | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 82.00% |
| T - 34 | U.S. Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa Signature | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 82.00% |
| T - 34 | U.S. Bank Platinum | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 8.00% | 82.00% |
| T - 38 | U.S. Bank FlexPerks Select+ American Express | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 3.50% | 80.50% |
| T - 38 | U.S. Bank FlexPerks Travel Rewards American Express | 10.00% | 41.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 3.50% | 80.50% |
| T - 40 | Bank of America Travel Rewards | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 5.00% | 79.00% |
| T - 40 | Bank of America Cash Rewards | 10.00% | 38.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 5.00% | 79.00% |
| T - 42 | Discover it Cashback Match | 10.00% | 32.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 78.00% |
| T - 42 | Discover it Miles | 10.00% | 32.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 78.00% |
| T - 42 | Discover it Chrome | 10.00% | 32.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 78.00% |
| T - 42 | Discover it - 18 Month Balance Transfer Offer | 10.00% | 32.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 10.00% | 78.00% |
| T - 46 | Mastercard® Black Card | 10.00% | 23.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 9.00% | 68.00% |
| T - 46 | Mastercard® Gold Card | 10.00% | 23.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 9.00% | 68.00% |
| T - 46 | Mastercard® Titanium Card | 10.00% | 23.00% | 16.00% | 10.00% | 9.00% | 68.00% |
The following cards do not feature the purchase protection benefit:
| BankAmericard | Capital One PlatinumCapital One QuicksilverOne | All USAA Cards |
| Well Fargo Rewards Card | Wells Fargo Cash Wise Visa Card | Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards |
For more insight into what retailers get from offering purchase protection and how the availability of such coverage affects consumer spending habits, we turned to a panel of leading experts in the fields of consumer psychology and retail studies. You can check out their bios and responses to the following questions below.
- To what extent are purchase protection plans, which act as insurance against theft or accidental damage, an effective strategy for a retailer?
- How does a purchase protection plan impact consumer habits?
Ravi Dhar George Rogers Clark Professor of Management and Marketing & Director of the Center for Customer Insights at Yale School of Management
Wilfred Amaldoss Thomas A. Finch Jr. Professor in the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University
Roger Beahm Full Professor of Practice in Marketing at the Wake Forest University School of Business
Ravi Dhar George Rogers Clark Professor of Management and Marketing & Director of the Center for Customer Insights at Yale School of Management
Wilfred Amaldoss Thomas A. Finch Jr. Professor in the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University
Roger Beahm Full Professor of Practice in Marketing at the Wake Forest University School of BusinessThe data used in this report is based on public disclosures regarding the price protection policies of the 10 largest issuers of consumer credit cards in the United States. Co-branded, student and business credit cards were not evaluated, nor were cards that cannot be applied for online. In situations where policies were incomplete or unclear, we requested verification, and proceeded to update the report as needed. Information is accurate as of Nov 8, 2017.
Each individual card was scored according to the following criteria:
1. Sign Up – Worth 10% Total
- If there is no sign-up or product registration = 10%
- If there is a one-time sign up requirement = 5%
- If there is an annual sign up requirement = 2%
- If product registration is required for all purchased items = 0%
2. Coverage – Worth 50% TotalA. Coverage & Exclusions – Worth 20%
- For each major category of items excluded from coverage (e.g. jewelry or electronics), we subtracted 6%
- For each minor category of items excluded from coverage, we subtracted 2%
- Issuers are deducted a maximum of 20% points, even if their exclusions add up to more issuers only lose 20% points
B. Maximum Coverage per Item – Worth 15%
- $2,000+ = 15%
- $1,000 to $1,999 = 12%
- $500 to $999 = 9%
- $250 to $499 = 6%
- $100 to $249 = 3%
- Less than $100 = 0%
C. Maximum Coverage per Year – Worth 15%
- $25,000+ = 15%
- $20,000 to $24,999 = 12%
- $15,000 to $19,999 = 9%
- $10,000 to $14,999 = 6%
- $5,000 to $9,999 = 3%
- Less than $5,000 = 0%
3. Purchase Protection Period – Worth 20% Total
- 120+ days = 20%
- 90 days to 119 days = 16%
- 60 days to 89 days = 12%
- 30 days to 59 days = 8%
- Less than 30 days = 0%
4. Claims – Worth 10% Total
- If filing a claim requires only a product receipt, copies of relevant insurance forms and a filed report for the vandalized / stolen item (if applicable) = 10%
- If filing a claim requires a credit card receipt, a product receipt, copies of relevant insurance forms and a filed report for the vandalized / stolen item (if applicable) = 5%
- If filing a claim requires more than a credit card receipt, a product receipt, copies of relevant insurance forms and a filed report for the vandalized / stolen item (if applicable) = 0%
5. Transparency Score – Worth 10%A. How easily can one find the info? – Worth 3%
- Information is prominent on issuer website = 3%
- Information is not prominent on issuer website; or it is prominent, but users need to log in to see the full disclosure = 1.5%
- Information cannot be easily found on website = 0%
B. How easy it is to read the info? – Worth 1%
- Information is presented in normal-size font = 1%
- Information is in small-size font = 0%
C. How complete are the policies provided? – Worth 4%
- Full policy provided = 4%
- A couple of key points missing from policy = 3%
- Part of policy provided = 2%
- Benefits briefly described = 0.5%
- No key details provided = 0%
D. How open and transparent are card issuers about the policies? – Worth 2%
- Transparent about policies = 2%
- Not transparent about policies = 0%
Scores are determined based on our opinion of how each purchase protection policy compares to a theoretical ideal policy. An ideal policy is one based on common sense for which a consumer knows all of the most important information without having to delve into the fine print.
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