29-04-2025
I have one of the best travel credit cards, but I still buy travel insurance for international trips
As a travel rewards and credit card junkie who has used points and miles to travel to more than 50 countries around the world, many people ask me what I do when it comes to protecting myself from all the "what ifs" travel can bring. The answer to that question may be more complex than you think.
It's true that I like having credit card travel insurance in a wide variety of circumstances, especially when I'm traveling domestically or renting a car in a new place. However, my family also has an annual travel insurance policy through Allianz Travel Insurance, which covers us for every trip we take each year, no matter what.
Why do I have travel insurance when credit cards offer perks like trip cancellation and interruption coverage, travel delay insurance, and primary auto rental coverage? There are several important reasons I opt for an annual travel insurance plan for extra protection.
Credit cards offer insufficient (or zero) coverage for emergency medical expenses
While my own health insurance plan (from Anthem) should theoretically cover any emergency medical expenses I incur while traveling in the United States, the vast majority of trips I take are overseas. Unfortunately, my Anthem plan doesn't work overseas, and emergency medical coverage is one area where travel credit cards come up dramatically short.
The only major travel credit card that offers coverage for medical expenses is the Chase Sapphire Reserve®. It's one of the best travel credit cards you can get, but this card offers just $2,500 in coverage for emergency medical and dental bills incurred on a covered trip, subject to a $50 deductible. Another $75 per day is available for up to five days of hotel stays due to a covered injury as well, but these coverage amounts aren't even close to what someone might need if they find themselves seriously sick or injured on vacation.
This is ultimately why I have an annual travel insurance plan for my family. Our plan from Allianz comes with up to $50,000 in medical expense coverage per traveler and per trip, so I never have to worry about going without.
Coverage from credit cards rarely covers emergency medical evacuation
On top of emergency medical expense coverage, I also want to make sure I have emergency medical evacuation coverage for international trips. This kind of insurance can be essential if you need to pay for long-distance ambulance transfers to another hospital in a new country for medical care or if you need medical evacuation by helicopter. This coverage can even pay for international transportation to your home country if your medical condition warrants it.
This is another area where credit card coverage comes up short. Again the Chase Sapphire Reserve® is one of the only major travel credit cards that offers this coverage, and its benefit is limited to $100,000 per traveler. That's better coverage than the medical expense protection that comes with this card. However, my annual travel insurance plan comes with $500,000 in emergency medical transportation coverage per traveler and per trip.
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You have to pay for your trip with a credit card for coverage to work
Finally, a lot of people don't realize that you often have to pay for the main components of a trip with your credit card for travel insurance benefits to apply. In other words, just having a credit card with travel insurance isn't enough.
Note: Some credit cards, including Chase credit cards that offer travel insurance, let you pay for your trip with your rewards points or a combination of credit card charges and rewards for coverage to kick in.
Regardless, I sometimes use different rewards or credit cards to pay for different trips, thus my credit card travel insurance may not always apply. For example, I recently used a stash of Delta SkyMiles to pay for an international flight to Mexico for a vacation with my husband. This helped me score almost-free flights that would otherwise cost over $500 each, and all I had to pay was airline taxes and fees.
If I had to use a credit card to make sure I had travel insurance, I would have probably paid for the trip with my Chase Sapphire Reserve® instead.
I also occasionally travel for work, in which case another company often pays for my flight and hotel stays. This is another scenario where I wouldn't have international coverage for medical expenses or emergency medical evacuation if I didn't pay for it myself.
Since my family's annual travel insurance plan costs less than $500 per year, having this additional coverage is an absolute no-brainer. I sleep great at night knowing I am covered if I, my husband, or one of our kids becomes seriously injured or ill while we're traveling in another country. Credit card travel insurance is a nice perk, too, but there are areas where it's just not enough.
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