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$1,600 in annual cell phone insurance is coming to these Amex cards

  • Joseph Hostetler

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    Baked-in cell phone protection is becoming less of a rarity among credit cards. One of the most notable cards to carry this benefit is the Chase Freedom Flex℠ — a no-annual-fee credit card that offers up to $800 per claim (up to $1,000 each year) for damaged and stolen cell phones, and just a $50 deductible! MMS readers adore that card.

    Now Amex wants in on the action. Many of the best American Express cards will soon offer cell phone insurance — and while the cards will have an annual fee, the insurance will be better, too.

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    Select Amex credit cards now give you up to $1,600 in coverage per 12-month period. (Photo by Orapruek/Shutterstock)

    These Amex cards will offer cell phone insurance

    Starting April 1, 2021, the following American Express cards will offer cell phone insurance:

    You’ll be covered from theft or damage for $800 per claim, capped at two claims per 12 months (i.e. potential coverage of $1,600 per year). As long as you pay your phone bill with the card, you’re covered. You’ll just have to pay a very reasonable $50 deductible if you do make a claim.

    Note: For your phone to be covered, you’ll need to have paid the previous month’s phone bill with the card. In other words, you can’t pay your first phone bill with your qualifying Amex card and report damage the next day.

    This new benefit stacks nicely with the recently issued credits on select Amex business cards for U.S wireless telephone services:

    Read this post to learn how to use these limited-time statement credits.

    Additionally, The Business Platinum Card temporarily comes with 5 points per dollar on eligible purchases in 5 select business categories (including wireless telephone services from U.S. service providers) during the first three months of account opening capped at 80,000 bonus points.

    However, once these temporary benefits expire and credits disappear at the end of the year, Amex cards may still not be your best option for paying your cell phone bill. That’s because you won’t earn any bonus points in the wireless category.

    The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card, on the other hand, is a stellar card for earning points and phone insurance. You get up to $1,000 of protection against damage or theft, and can file up to three claims per 12-month period — although you’ll pay a $100 deductible. Plus, you’ll get 3 points per dollar on your cell phone bill! We estimate Chase points to be worth to be 1.7 cents on average, so that’s like getting 5.1% back on your bill.

    Read our post on the Ink Business Preferred cell phone insurance for all the details.

    Bottom line

    It’s nice to see Amex cards steadily increasing useful perks! Cell phone protection is an underreported credit card perk, and now a handful of Amex cards offer the benefit. With up to $1,600 in potential coverage per 12-month period and a $50 deductible per claim — this is one of the better insurance terms we’ve seen.

    Let us know what you think of this new benefit! And subscribe to our newsletter for more card updates like this delivered to your inbox once per day.

    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)