The Chase Freedom® family of cards come with several attractive features, such as 1.5% cash back on purchases. But did you know that Freedom cards also come with travel insurance benefits that can help you book a vacation with greater peace of mind?
It's true, common carrier expenses such as a plane ticket or cruise line booking can be reimbursed — if certain covered situations arise that interrupt your vacation or force the cancellation of your reservation. Read on to learn more about these benefits, as well as some important facts to know before you purchase your next vacation using your Freedom card.
Do Chase Freedom credit cards come with travel insurance?
All three currently issued Freedom cards: Chase Freedom Unlimited®, Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Rise® offer their cardmembers basic travel insurance covering trip interruption or cancellation. This covers certain ‘‘what if’’ situations that may impact your travel plans, providing reimbursem*nt after a claim is filed and processed.
For the Freedom family of cardmembers, the maximum amount of this reimbursem*nt benefit is up to $1,500 per cardmember, their immediate relative or domestic partner. The maximum reimbursem*nt benefit per trip is $6,000.
In order to be covered, the flight or cruise trip must be paid in full or partially using your Chase Freedom card or accumulated Ultimate Rewards®. Immediate family members do not necessarily need to be traveling with the Freedom cardmember who booked the trip for the trip interruption or cancellation benefit to apply.
What’s the difference between trip interruption and trip cancellation?
Trip interruption insurance is a form of reimbursem*nt for unused, prepaid and non-refundable travel expenses if a trip needs to be cut short by covered situations that come up during or after departure.
Trip cancellation insurance is a pre-departure benefit that can reimburse trip costs if a traveler needs to cancel their trip altogether due to unforeseeable and non-refundable circ*mstances.
There can be some subtle differences between the coverage provided in trip interruption versus cancellation insurance-covered situations. For more information, consult your Chase Freedom Guide to Benefits. The following is a summary of some applicable trip interruption or cancellation situations:
What is covered by Chase Freedom’s travel insurance?
The Chase Freedom card may cover trip interruption or cancellation from:
- Hurricanes, tornadoes, or other severe weather either impacting the point of origin or destination of your trip, as well as the airspace or route between the two points, that causes the cessation or cancellation of service by the airline or another type of common carrier, such as a cruise line. This also applies to hotels and resort destinations you may have booked when they are impacted by severe storms.
- Accidental bodily injury, or a severe illness prior to or during a trip that impacts the cardmember traveler, their traveling spouse or domestic partner, or their immediate relative—see cardmember Benefits Guide for details
- An organized strike impacting the common carrier (airline) or public transportation that causes you or your spouse or domestic partner to miss at least 20% of your booked itinerary
- A change in military orders for you, your spouse or domestic partner that requires you to cut short or cancel your trip
What’s not covered by Chase Freedom travel insurance
The following is a short list of common exclusions from Chase Freedom travel insurance:
- Trip interruption and cancellation insurance does not apply to trips lasting more than 60 days
- Trip interruptions or cancellations caused by the financial insolvency of a booked airline, tour operator or travel agency
- Any pre-existing medical conditions are not covered
Please note that these benefits are payable over and above any amount due from valid or collectible insurance, such as a travel insurance policy you may have taken out from an insurance company to insure you trip. Please also be aware that these benefits will not apply if you fail to contact the common carrier such as an airline and address any compensation you may be owed from the airline. Nor do these benefits apply to a voluntary situation when a cardmember accepts compensation in miles from an overbooking airline to take a later flight.
What Travel and Emergency Assistance Services are available to Chase Freedom cardmembers?
Chase through its Benefits Administrator offers a Travel and Emergency Assistance line that can be reached 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. This helpline can assist you with pre-trip information about your destination, such as currency exchange rates and the required visas and immunizations to visit a country. The Travel and Emergency Assistance help line can also assist with certain stressful situations that can arise while traveling in a foreign country, such as:
- Medical referral assistance to hospitals, doctors and dentists
- Legal referral assistance
- Arranging for emergency ground transportation to leave the country
Although the Travel and Emergency Assistance helpline can direct you to legal, medical, dental and transportation providers in the foreign country you are visiting, all costs associated with these services will be your responsibility.
Chase Freedom card coverage benefits for rental cars
The Chase Freedom Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver (ARCDW) that comes with your Chase Freedom card can reduce some of the stress involved in renting a car, by offering some protection against damage or theft to domestic rental cars. Your cardmember benefit also can provide primary coverage for damage or theft to international car rentals. Note that in order for this coverage to apply, you must waive the rental car company’s own collision damage waiver coverage when reserving your vehicle and picking it up at the rental car counter.
Car rentals that last more than 31 days, as well as high-performance or luxury cars and boat rentals are not covered. Rental car provider, country and vehicle type restrictions apply—see your Guide to Benefits terms and conditions for details.
If there’s been a collision damaging your rental car, please report the damage to the rental car company before contacting the Benefits Administrator.
How to file a Chase Freedom travel insurance claim
If your flight or cruise line trip is interrupted or cancelled, contact the common carrier first to see if they can address the situation first, before contacting the Benefits Administrator.
In order to qualify for these benefits and file a claim for an interrupted or cancelled trip with the Benefits Administrator, you must:
- Take action within 20 days of your trip being cancelled or interrupted, by calling the Benefit Administrator using the number on the back of your card, or logging on to eclaimsline.com
- Provide the Freedom card statement for the travel expenses charged and any necessary documentation from your trip, such as your travel itinerary, unused or cancelled flight plane tickets or medical treatment records
- Submit all documentation requested by the Benefits Administrator within 90 days of your interrupted or cancelled trip
Final thoughts: What to know before you go
The trip interruption and cancellation insurance coverage that comes with booking holiday travel or vacations using your Chase Freedom card shouldn’t be viewed as a replacement, but as a supplement to any travel insurance policies you may purchase through an insurance company. Researching and purchasing a travel insurance policy is highly recommended if you plan to travel internationally for more than several weeks. Exclusions apply for trips that exceed 60 days duration — see your cardmember Benefits Guide for details.
Knowing that help is just a phone call away can be a relief when you are traveling to an unfamiliar destination or a foreign country. So too can be knowing you have collision damage coverage when renting a car in the U.S. or abroad using your Chase Freedom credit card.
