Credit: Shutterstock photoWhenever the conversation of saving money through credit cards comes up, it inevitably turns to cash back rewards, points, miles, and bonuses. While these are indeed vehicles that can put some extra money in your pocket, credit cards come with many other build-in features that can help you save. Consumers who are interested in squeezing every penny, and saving as much of their money as possible, should consider all of these techniques to optimize their efforts.
Price protection. Most Mastercard branded credit cards come with a benefit called ‘price protection’. With it, if an item you buy goes on sale within a set amount of time after your transaction, the company will refund you the difference. Typically you cannot receive more than $500 per claim. While the benefit comes with a long list of exclusions and caveats, it’s still better than the alternative of simply being out the difference. Price protection gives consumers a chance to receive some of their money back, if they were unlucky enough to miss out on an upcoming deal. Price Rewind, a similar concept available through Citibank issued credit cards, estimates that in 2015 close to $4M was refunded to cardholders. The average customer received $33.50.
Purchase protection. If an item you paid for using a credit card is lost or stolen, and the vendor is refusing to refund or replace the item, you may still have options. Credit cards come with purchase protection benefits that can compensate you for qualified losses. In the event that something were to happen, save your receipt and call up your card issuer's benefits line. Among all the credit cards we’ve come across with such protection features, Wells Fargo stood out the most. If you pay your cell phone bill using one of their credit cards, you will receive insurance on that device. If it’s lost or damaged, Wells Fargo may pay to have it fixed or replaced. Typically, one would need to pay a monthly fee for such a benefit to be offered directly through the wireless cellphone provider.
Free expedited shipping. If you have an American Express issued credit card or charge card, you may be eligible to receive free membership to ShopRunner –- a service which provides 2-day shipping with a select number of online merchants. Normally, you would need to pay $79 per year for the membership. If you didn’t know about this benefit, you wouldn’t be the only one. Strangely enough, this service is not advertised on Amex’s website, and is buried deep in the terms & conditions of their benefits page. If you frequently order items online, this benefit can come in handy.
Trip cancellation/interruption insurance. Those who fly often enough know the pain of a cancelled itinerary. If a flight is cancelled, your hotel booking goes out the window. Unless you opted for a more expensive reservation that allows last-minute changes, such a scenario can mean you’re out hundreds of dollars. However, some credit cards offer trip cancellation insurance which protects your wallet from such events. So long as you pay for the itinerary using a card with this benefit, you can receive compensation for your monetary losses. There exists one big catch: the reason for the cancellation must be deemed acceptable by the issuer. Qualifying events include things like a death in your immediate family, an illness, the airline cancelling a flight due to inclement weather, and other similar occurrences that are beyond your control. If you simply choose to not go on the trip because you changed your mind about it, the insurance will not cover your costs.
Fraud protection. If your debit card is lost or stolen, federal law mandates that if you report unauthorized charges within two business days the cost to you will be minimal. If you wait any longer, however, you may be held liable for up to $500. The same is not true of credit cards. If your information is stolen, most issuers will remove any disputed charges so long as you report them within 60 days. Legally, you will not be responsible for more than $50 of the total purchases made by the fraudster.
If you are unsure whether or not your credit card comes with any of the benefits discussed above, you can either call the customer service line and ask. You can also ask to have a copy of your cardmember agreement mailed to you. This will contain all the benefits, and the crucial details you need to be aware of to take advantage of them.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
