15/09/2017
***Chase Sapphire Reserve: A Year in Review***
Well, folks - It’s been a bit less than a year since I signed up for my Chase Sapphire Reserve card, and I thought I’d take a minute to share a few of my experiences with the card. I’ve had plenty of time to test some of the lesser-known perks, and to see how it works with other Chase cards, and overall I’m very satisfied with the benefits. (Head down to the end of the post for a link to apply for the card yourself!)
Since I’ve had the card, I’ve spent my fair share of hard-earned cash on travel and dining — which is where the Reserve shines. Because of the 3x bonus of Ultimate Rewards points (UR) for each dollar I spend, I’ve earned quiittteeeee a few extra points!
The feature that may take your breath away (and not in a good way) however, is the annual fee of $450. The good news here is that a $300 travel credit is built into that fee, making the effective rate only $150 – not a bad cost for a card that gives so much! The only thing better than the credit is the fact that it’s so, so, so, so easy to use! The additional perks of the card drive that effective rate down even lower, too. Just consider the value of the Priority Pass lounge membership, Global Entry credit, Trip Delay and Cancellation Insurance, Emergency Medical Insurance, Primary Rental Car Insurance, and much more.
Below, I’ve broken down some of the benefits and value I’ve received so you can have a better idea of just how valuable this card can be…
Travel Credits
The most straightforward perk you’ll see on this card is the $300 travel credit. Without requesting reimbursement or battling a bank customer service rep over the phone, you’ll receive up to $300 in statement credit automatically when you use your card for travel-related purchases. That’s it! Easy as that!
Travel related purchases can be described as (but not limited to): airfare, cabs, car rentals, hotels, Uber/Lyft, subway, train tickets, tolls, parking fees, travel agency fees, and more. Compared to the Amex Platinum, this is far and away the easiest and most beneficial travel credit program out there.
Protection Insurance Saved My Butt!
Another valuable benefit is that the Reserve offers some incredible built-in insurance benefits. While in Kauai, Hawaii earlier this year, I had to make a quick visit to the local Emergency Room for some chest pain (it’s ok, I’m fiinnneeee).
The ER took great care of me and got me back on my feet in no time, but also sent along a hefty $1,500 bill to go with it… However, since I used my CSR to pay for PART of the trip to Kauai, I was able to submit an insurance claim with the credit card and get reimbursed the FULL AMOUNT minus deductible ($50) for all of my medical bills! Seriously, how incredible is that?!
The Reserve’s Emergency Medical Insurance works like this: If you use your CSR to purchase any part of your travel / trip where the destination is over 100 miles from your home, you automatically qualify for the benefit. Yep, it’s that easy. The only part that required some extra work on my part was submitting the ER bills and proof of purchase…
In this case I submitted my claim to an insurance call center contracted by Chase, which required me to submit photos / copies of the flight purchase, credit card statement, and ER bills. With that information, they were able to confirm that I used my card for the travel purchase, then approved a check for the full amount of my claim (minus deductible)! A few weeks later I received a check for ~$1,450 dollars! That’s a huge value just for putting a purchase on that card. The next best part about this feature is that the full amount was also applied towards the deductible on my personal medical insurance. Winning!
Primary Insurance for Car Rentals
One of the biggest costs associated with renting a car is the insurance they pitch you at the window during pickup. It’s always quoted at a relatively low daily rate, but skyrockets once the total amount is added up. Now, many cards do offer coverage when you’re renting a car, but most of them only provide SECONDARY rental car insurance. The great thing about the CSR is that it affords you PRIMARY coverage, meaning it will be the first-line defense to your pocketbook when a physical damage claim needs to be submitted.
What that means to you is that the CSR’s insurance benefit will pay up to $75,000 of theft or physical damage coverage to the rental car FIRST before you even need to start thinking about making the claim on your own personal auto insurance policy. This not only saves you money on the deductible, but also keeps your rates from jumping up at renewal time.
Transfer Partners and 3x Points at Hotels
Want another high-point bonus for daily use of your credit card? Well, you got it here! The CSR gives 3x the amount of points for all travel-related purchases (yes, even those purchases that are reimbursed from the travel credit!). That means you can use the card to book a hotel room, then get the $300 reimbursement AND 3x the amount of points. The 3x multiplier is great simply because of the versatility of how you’re able to use the UR points. They can be used for anything and everything – gift cards, statement credit, cash back, airfare, hotels, car rentals, and even on-location excursions, tours, and events!
Additionally, Chase is transfer partners with multiple different airlines and hotels. This means that you’re able to instantly transfer your Chase UR points directly to the partner loyalty-programs for real-time bookings using their own websites. This is great if the transfer parter (Hyatt Hotels, for example) is having an end of the season flash sale or something similar where the points can go a long, long way. Most recently, I transferred about 50,000 UR points to Hyatt for a 4 night, 5 day all-inclusive vacation at the Hyatt Zilara in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Had I booked this through the Chase travel portal, the point cost would’ve been closer to 100,000. Still free since I was using points, but now I have some left over for another trip next year!
Great Redemptions on Airfare
The Chase travel portal also allows you to transfer the points to some of their great airline partners, such as United and Korean Air. While United may not be your favorite airline at this moment in time, and you may have never even heard of Korean Air, they offer some of the most valuable transfer rewards out there!
United is a great choice for those of us who want to vacation overseas, so long as their Saver Awards are available to book. Just a few weeks ago I was able to help a friend transfer their Chase UR points to United at a 1:1 ratio to book round trip international and in-country domestic flights to Australia for less than 100,000 points TOTAL. This was an incredible redemption considering the cash price the trip would have cost without points.
Korean Air is a great option for getting out of the cold and heading to the Hawaiian islands. Because of KA’s partnership terms with Delta Airlines (which has a Detroit hub at DTW), you can get a round trip ticket from Detroit to Hawaii (multiple islands) in a Delta plane for a low, low, low, low point cost of only 25,000 Chase UR. Yep, it’s ridiculously low… There are a couple extra steps to book this flight, but well worth the time.
Reservations and Great Customer Service
In addition to the point-earning opportunities and outrageous travel benefits, you also gain access to your very own account concierge. While the concierge is limited to what it can do for you, they’re certainly helpful when trying to book a hard-to-obtain dinner reservation, or even concert tickets to a sold out local event. For my upcoming trip to Bangkok, I relentlessly tried to book a seat at Gaggan, one of Asia’s top-rated restaurants for the last few years running. After multiple unsuccessful attempts, I finally gave my Chase Concierge a call to request the booking. They worked their magic, called me back within 48 hours, and had my confirmed reservation details ready to deliver. Couldn’t be happier :)
Overall Impression
Take a look at the earnings potential with 3x categories, the insurance benefits, trip delay / cancellation, and the travel credit, and you’ve got yourself one hell of a travel tool! There are plenty of options out there that offer points, miles, and status, but this one takes the cake with all the added extras and benefits.
On top of the benefits themselves, the ease of benefitting (ie, submitting an insurance claim, receiving travel credit reimbursements, etc) makes this a game-changer. This card will definitely be sticking around in my wallet for quite some time!
If you’re interested in applying for your own Chase Sapphire Reserve card, use the link below to sign up and earn a 50,000 UR point sign-up bonus.
**(If you read all the info above, you’d know that those 50k points are good for 2 RT tickets to Hawaii this winter!)
https://applynow.chase.com/FlexAppWeb/renderApp.do?SPID=FPZY&CELL=61T9&MSC=1537530824
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