2 missing basic card features could crown Chase "king" of card issuers
Aug 30, 2016 | 2:26 am
#16
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 144
In what way is Citi's travel delay, trip delay and baggage insurance superior? Are you comparing it to the chase Freedom or Chase Sapphire?
Chase also has "price protection" on the Freedom and Sapphire (I have the Visa Signature versions on the card), but it don't have a fancy name for it like Citi (i.e., "Price Rewind"). I believe Price Protection is a VISA benefit available to card issuers but Citi was very clever to give it a fancy name and better market it. So, it is not an exclusive Citi benefit.
Of the 3 items on your list, only the first item makes Citi unique.
Chase also has "price protection" on the Freedom and Sapphire (I have the Visa Signature versions on the card), but it don't have a fancy name for it like Citi (i.e., "Price Rewind"). I believe Price Protection is a VISA benefit available to card issuers but Citi was very clever to give it a fancy name and better market it. So, it is not an exclusive Citi benefit.
Of the 3 items on your list, only the first item makes Citi unique.
Re price rewind - yes both offer this. Citi mostly issues Mastercards (including my Prestige & AT&T card), so it's not just a visa thing. Some reading online suggests that Chase is more picky on these claims, and it specifically excludes seasonal sales (ie black friday). From personal experience, Citi is very generous & is more friendly to evidence that isn't from a direct advertisement - I regularly get black friday deals w/o the hassle weeks in advance, I had an air purifier and sump pump go out and need a quick (in the case of the pump - emergency) repair - just have the salesman itemized the item from labor and boom - $500 & $210 respectively with just an amazon item page printout.
Some extra perks I didn't mention - free roadside assistance for 10 mile tow, jump, 2 gallons of gas (only used once - Chase's cost $50 if I recall), and event ticket protection (used for a dinner&play combo and movie tickets in the last year).
Hope that explains my comment a bit better.
Aug 30, 2016 | 8:25 am
#17
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Seattle, WA
Programs: AS MVP Gold 75K, DL Platinum, UA Gold, Marriott LT Titanium, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Gold
Posts: 89
I would love to see a couple things:
1. $100 off airfare bookings on Visa Infinite branded cards. This is missing on the new CSR
2. Chip + PIN - I would really like to see this. Even though I usually don't have problems, I recently returned from Iceland where I couldn't use any of the automatic gas pumps. This was a real problem when the attached stores themselves were closed. I've had luck bypassing this in the past by simply hitting enter or cancel, but it wouldn't work. Funny thing is that many countries are already moving away from this and shifting towards contactless.
3. Contactless would be nice, but it's not 100% necessary with Apple Pay or Android. I've successfully used my iPhone even in countries that don't yet have Apple Pay, but do have contactless.
The sad thing is that chip technology (PIN aside) and contactless weren't really issues with the card issuer. I had a card over 10 years ago with a chip and many cards with contactless, but nobody accepted them. It's the merchants and overall regulations (or lack thereof) that stifle widespread use.
1. $100 off airfare bookings on Visa Infinite branded cards. This is missing on the new CSR
2. Chip + PIN - I would really like to see this. Even though I usually don't have problems, I recently returned from Iceland where I couldn't use any of the automatic gas pumps. This was a real problem when the attached stores themselves were closed. I've had luck bypassing this in the past by simply hitting enter or cancel, but it wouldn't work. Funny thing is that many countries are already moving away from this and shifting towards contactless.
3. Contactless would be nice, but it's not 100% necessary with Apple Pay or Android. I've successfully used my iPhone even in countries that don't yet have Apple Pay, but do have contactless.
The sad thing is that chip technology (PIN aside) and contactless weren't really issues with the card issuer. I had a card over 10 years ago with a chip and many cards with contactless, but nobody accepted them. It's the merchants and overall regulations (or lack thereof) that stifle widespread use.
Aug 30, 2016 | 11:09 am
#18
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,745
I would love to see a couple things:
1. $100 off airfare bookings on Visa Infinite branded cards. This is missing on the new CSR
2. Chip + PIN - I would really like to see this. Even though I usually don't have problems, I recently returned from Iceland where I couldn't use any of the automatic gas pumps. This was a real problem when the attached stores themselves were closed. I've had luck bypassing this in the past by simply hitting enter or cancel, but it wouldn't work. Funny thing is that many countries are already moving away from this and shifting towards contactless.
3. Contactless would be nice, but it's not 100% necessary with Apple Pay or Android. I've successfully used my iPhone even in countries that don't yet have Apple Pay, but do have contactless.
The sad thing is that chip technology (PIN aside) and contactless weren't really issues with the card issuer. I had a card over 10 years ago with a chip and many cards with contactless, but nobody accepted them. It's the merchants and overall regulations (or lack thereof) that stifle widespread use.
1. $100 off airfare bookings on Visa Infinite branded cards. This is missing on the new CSR
2. Chip + PIN - I would really like to see this. Even though I usually don't have problems, I recently returned from Iceland where I couldn't use any of the automatic gas pumps. This was a real problem when the attached stores themselves were closed. I've had luck bypassing this in the past by simply hitting enter or cancel, but it wouldn't work. Funny thing is that many countries are already moving away from this and shifting towards contactless.
3. Contactless would be nice, but it's not 100% necessary with Apple Pay or Android. I've successfully used my iPhone even in countries that don't yet have Apple Pay, but do have contactless.
The sad thing is that chip technology (PIN aside) and contactless weren't really issues with the card issuer. I had a card over 10 years ago with a chip and many cards with contactless, but nobody accepted them. It's the merchants and overall regulations (or lack thereof) that stifle widespread use.
Also, I find that I'm using my contactless AmEx PRG a lot more often than Apple Pay in general simply because there's less explanation involved at the register. (Cashiers know to turn on the terminal if they see a card in your hand; Apple Pay, not so much.) Now that I'm switching back to Chase to do minimum spend for the CSR, I'm definitely going to miss the contactless feature.
Aug 30, 2016 | 3:44 pm
#19
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Somewhere in Florida
Posts: 2,891
Chip + PIN:
Both cards lose here. Why is it so difficult for a bank to understand that people who use $400-500/yr TRAVEL credit card will likely TRAVEL internationally?
Even going to Canada or Mexico, Chip+Sig SUCKS - make sure you carry a pen with you at all times as many cashiers don't carry them. It's even worse in Europe with unattended gas stations & unattended subway / train ticket machines which do Chip+ OFFline PIN only. To be honest, Chip + SIG sucks even in the USA, especially after you've been so used to using Chip+PIN in other countries and come back here for awhile.
Contactless Payment:
Handy, but I'd rather have Chip+PIN. It's also been made redundant with NFC (Apple/Android Pay). I already have 2 contactless cards in my wallet. I keep my metal CSP between them, so depending on which side of my wallet hits the reader is which one it reads. The metal design of the CSP/R cards precludes being able to do contactless, and I'm fine with that.
Extended Warranty:
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
Club Access:
Citi -- Priority Pass (+2 guests free), AA (AA fight req, goes away Jun 2017)
Chase -- Priority Pass (+ "guests" free)
Amex -- Priority Pass ($27 per person, even primary cardholder), Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Club (DL flight req, 2 guests @$27 each)
For Jun 2017 onwards, between Citi & Chase, Chase wins by a hair by allowing more free guests.
Amex is a tough one to classify. It gets you access to the most number of clubs, but also pays for the least people. The Centurion lounges certainly are quite good by domestic standards but there's so few of them, none where I find myself often, unfortunately. DL Sky Club is good, but no free guests and I'm not always on DL metal. Amex's Priority Pass option is almost an insult when you have to pay for everyone. Even more so with it being the most expensive card (annual fee - credits) of the bunch.
Price Protection:
Citi -- Up to 60 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year.
EXCLUDES: Going Out-of-Business Sales, Auctions, vehicles & their parts, food/medications, tickets (airline/concert), jewelry, collectables, items for resale, services (that are not goods), anything with a service contract (cell phone), items with rebates, refurbished or used items.
Chase -- Up to 90 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year per card.
INCLUDES: ads for Cash Only sales, close-out/liquidation/going-out-of-business sales but only $50 per incident on these.
EXCLUDES: flea markets, limited quantities, seasonal sales, auctions, discounts of seasonal items, same as Citi from here.
NOTES: MUST file claim within 21 days of the advertised price.
Amex -- NONE. Again, Amex Plat is the highest priced card out of the bunch but fails to deliver.
Winner: Chase. 90 days vs. 60 for Citi AND Chase pays quickly. I know others may disagree with me, BUT I'm going by my experiences.
Citi's Price Rewind has a slick-looking website, but disappoints when it comes to reimbursements. First, they've NEVER found a lower price than what I've paid. I have 20+ items up on there and Citi's found nothing. I've found about 10. Second, when I submit for a lower price, they take forever to pay the claim. I submitted my claims about 3.5 weeks ago. Other than the "we've received your claim" e-mail, nothing. Third, there's no way to track manual claims.
Chase's claims website (eclaimsline.com) may not be flashy, but it works. It's easy to upload the original receipt, screen shot of Amazon (even 3rd party sellers), and hit Submit. I've been getting checks in the mailbox in 7-10 days. The only denial I received was for 60 fluorescent light bulbs. The bulbs were indeed bought for my office (although it didn't say on the receipt I sent to them), so I can see where they'd say it was a resale / commercial item. I've racked up about $450 in the past two months alone. Also note the $2500 per year per card. I'll leave it at that. I just hope the hard-core churners don't burn this bridge.
Shoprunner:
Meh. Give me Amazon Prime and I'd be more interested.
Customer Service:
Citi -- I've had limited dealings with them, but it's always been a very long wait on hold. Did get an American eventually.
Chase -- Excellent. A real, live American answers immediately, every time I've called. Reps were quite good & friendly and weren't script readers.
Amex -- Acceptable wait times, but often got off-shore reps who were script-readers. They were always able to get me the answers I needed though, so still pleased overall.
Both cards lose here. Why is it so difficult for a bank to understand that people who use $400-500/yr TRAVEL credit card will likely TRAVEL internationally?
Even going to Canada or Mexico, Chip+Sig SUCKS - make sure you carry a pen with you at all times as many cashiers don't carry them. It's even worse in Europe with unattended gas stations & unattended subway / train ticket machines which do Chip+ OFFline PIN only. To be honest, Chip + SIG sucks even in the USA, especially after you've been so used to using Chip+PIN in other countries and come back here for awhile.
Contactless Payment:
Handy, but I'd rather have Chip+PIN. It's also been made redundant with NFC (Apple/Android Pay). I already have 2 contactless cards in my wallet. I keep my metal CSP between them, so depending on which side of my wallet hits the reader is which one it reads. The metal design of the CSP/R cards precludes being able to do contactless, and I'm fine with that.
Extended Warranty:
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
Club Access:
Citi -- Priority Pass (+2 guests free), AA (AA fight req, goes away Jun 2017)
Chase -- Priority Pass (+ "guests" free)
Amex -- Priority Pass ($27 per person, even primary cardholder), Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Club (DL flight req, 2 guests @$27 each)
For Jun 2017 onwards, between Citi & Chase, Chase wins by a hair by allowing more free guests.
Amex is a tough one to classify. It gets you access to the most number of clubs, but also pays for the least people. The Centurion lounges certainly are quite good by domestic standards but there's so few of them, none where I find myself often, unfortunately. DL Sky Club is good, but no free guests and I'm not always on DL metal. Amex's Priority Pass option is almost an insult when you have to pay for everyone. Even more so with it being the most expensive card (annual fee - credits) of the bunch.
Price Protection:
Citi -- Up to 60 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year.
EXCLUDES: Going Out-of-Business Sales, Auctions, vehicles & their parts, food/medications, tickets (airline/concert), jewelry, collectables, items for resale, services (that are not goods), anything with a service contract (cell phone), items with rebates, refurbished or used items.
Chase -- Up to 90 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year per card.
INCLUDES: ads for Cash Only sales, close-out/liquidation/going-out-of-business sales but only $50 per incident on these.
EXCLUDES: flea markets, limited quantities, seasonal sales, auctions, discounts of seasonal items, same as Citi from here.
NOTES: MUST file claim within 21 days of the advertised price.
Amex -- NONE. Again, Amex Plat is the highest priced card out of the bunch but fails to deliver.
Winner: Chase. 90 days vs. 60 for Citi AND Chase pays quickly. I know others may disagree with me, BUT I'm going by my experiences.
Citi's Price Rewind has a slick-looking website, but disappoints when it comes to reimbursements. First, they've NEVER found a lower price than what I've paid. I have 20+ items up on there and Citi's found nothing. I've found about 10. Second, when I submit for a lower price, they take forever to pay the claim. I submitted my claims about 3.5 weeks ago. Other than the "we've received your claim" e-mail, nothing. Third, there's no way to track manual claims.
Chase's claims website (eclaimsline.com) may not be flashy, but it works. It's easy to upload the original receipt, screen shot of Amazon (even 3rd party sellers), and hit Submit. I've been getting checks in the mailbox in 7-10 days. The only denial I received was for 60 fluorescent light bulbs. The bulbs were indeed bought for my office (although it didn't say on the receipt I sent to them), so I can see where they'd say it was a resale / commercial item. I've racked up about $450 in the past two months alone. Also note the $2500 per year per card. I'll leave it at that. I just hope the hard-core churners don't burn this bridge.
Shoprunner:
Meh. Give me Amazon Prime and I'd be more interested.
Customer Service:
Citi -- I've had limited dealings with them, but it's always been a very long wait on hold. Did get an American eventually.
Chase -- Excellent. A real, live American answers immediately, every time I've called. Reps were quite good & friendly and weren't script readers.
Amex -- Acceptable wait times, but often got off-shore reps who were script-readers. They were always able to get me the answers I needed though, so still pleased overall.
Last edited by KRSW; Aug 30, 2016 at 3:49 pm
Aug 30, 2016 | 5:56 pm
#20
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 392
I do have to agree that Chase customer service is the best of the companies that have been discussed in this thread. I once thought Amex was king, but in the past few years, it's been Chase, by a wide margin.
Not even in the same ballpark is Barclays. So bad.
Not even in the same ballpark is Barclays. So bad.
Aug 30, 2016 | 8:52 pm
#21
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,745
Oh, here's another thing to add to the list: Make Freedom Unlimited 2x on everything instead of just 1.5x. An extra 0.5x doesn't sound like much but it would put it on par with cards like Citi Double Cash and Fidelity Visa. (On the other hand it'd make the case for the CSP more difficult to justify.)
Last edited by tmiw; Aug 30, 2016 at 9:11 pm Reason: forgot a sentence
Aug 30, 2016 | 9:04 pm
#22
Suspended
Join Date: Feb 2007
Programs: DL Silver, AS MVP, Marriott Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 180
Chase CS is much worse than AMEX (at least for their Plat card, their prg cs is terrible). Chase CS is fine unless you have an issue (including the JPM exec line). Took 2 months, about 5 hours on the phone, and eventually contact with an executive at Chase to resolve an issue with points not posting at all. Chase always promises a return phone call in 4-5 business days for an atypical issue and never actually does anything and when you call again after 5 business days the timer starts over. Citi is much worse for basic questions. Because of Chase CS I only use their cards to reach min spend requirements and put the rest (most) of my spend on Amex despite the lower earn rate. This also means I will never use the JP Morgan private bank, if they can't get the simple things right I won't let them manage my money.
Aug 30, 2016 | 9:21 pm
#23
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,745
Chase CS is much worse than AMEX (at least for their Plat card, their prg cs is terrible). Chase CS is fine unless you have an issue (including the JPM exec line). Took 2 months, about 5 hours on the phone, and eventually contact with an executive at Chase to resolve an issue with points not posting at all. Chase always promises a return phone call in 4-5 business days for an atypical issue and never actually does anything and when you call again after 5 business days the timer starts over. Citi is much worse for basic questions. Because of Chase CS I only use their cards to reach min spend requirements and put the rest (most) of my spend on Amex despite the lower earn rate. This also means I will never use the JP Morgan private bank, if they can't get the simple things right I won't let them manage my money.
- I had to file a dispute against an online vendor who didn't deliver the product I ordered and didn't respond to contact attempts. The next morning after initiating the dispute online, I got a call from someone at Chase who asked a few questions and immediately put a provisional credit on my card. (It became permanent after a couple months because the merchant never responded.)
- I had a weird secure message bug on my account where it was showing 1 unread message despite having nothing in there. CS walked me through some troubleshooting steps and then filed a ticket with their IT team. I got a followup call a month or so later confirming that it was a bug on their end and gave me a ETA for resolution. Actually, it looks like it was fixed within a couple of weeks of that date since there aren't any unread messages anymore.
Aug 31, 2016 | 6:21 pm
#24
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 535
Re trip delay & baggage insurance - I'm comparing the prestige - which is up to $500 for 3hrs for both - to the Reserve - which is $500/$100 for 6hrs. Three extra hours is an eternity when hungry in an airport, having to book another ticket, deciding to spend the night, or waiting on baggage. I've not had to use it, but I now book some carriers I'd be concerned about otherwise with no worries (ie big seats on Spirit = cheap business domestically, Norwegian business flying to europe, or LATAM in SA for example).
Re price rewind - yes both offer this. Citi mostly issues Mastercards (including my Prestige & AT&T card), so it's not just a visa thing. Some reading online suggests that Chase is more picky on these claims, and it specifically excludes seasonal sales (ie black friday). From personal experience, Citi is very generous & is more friendly to evidence that isn't from a direct advertisement - I regularly get black friday deals w/o the hassle weeks in advance, I had an air purifier and sump pump go out and need a quick (in the case of the pump - emergency) repair - just have the salesman itemized the item from labor and boom - $500 & $210 respectively with just an amazon item page printout.
Some extra perks I didn't mention - free roadside assistance for 10 mile tow, jump, 2 gallons of gas (only used once - Chase's cost $50 if I recall), and event ticket protection (used for a dinner&play combo and movie tickets in the last year).
Hope that explains my comment a bit better.
Re price rewind - yes both offer this. Citi mostly issues Mastercards (including my Prestige & AT&T card), so it's not just a visa thing. Some reading online suggests that Chase is more picky on these claims, and it specifically excludes seasonal sales (ie black friday). From personal experience, Citi is very generous & is more friendly to evidence that isn't from a direct advertisement - I regularly get black friday deals w/o the hassle weeks in advance, I had an air purifier and sump pump go out and need a quick (in the case of the pump - emergency) repair - just have the salesman itemized the item from labor and boom - $500 & $210 respectively with just an amazon item page printout.
Some extra perks I didn't mention - free roadside assistance for 10 mile tow, jump, 2 gallons of gas (only used once - Chase's cost $50 if I recall), and event ticket protection (used for a dinner&play combo and movie tickets in the last year).
Hope that explains my comment a bit better.
Aug 31, 2016 | 6:29 pm
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 535
Chip + PIN:
Both cards lose here. Why is it so difficult for a bank to understand that people who use $400-500/yr TRAVEL credit card will likely TRAVEL internationally?
Even going to Canada or Mexico, Chip+Sig SUCKS - make sure you carry a pen with you at all times as many cashiers don't carry them. It's even worse in Europe with unattended gas stations & unattended subway / train ticket machines which do Chip+ OFFline PIN only. To be honest, Chip + SIG sucks even in the USA, especially after you've been so used to using Chip+PIN in other countries and come back here for awhile.
Contactless Payment:
Handy, but I'd rather have Chip+PIN. It's also been made redundant with NFC (Apple/Android Pay). I already have 2 contactless cards in my wallet. I keep my metal CSP between them, so depending on which side of my wallet hits the reader is which one it reads. The metal design of the CSP/R cards precludes being able to do contactless, and I'm fine with that.
Extended Warranty:
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
Club Access:
Citi -- Priority Pass (+2 guests free), AA (AA fight req, goes away Jun 2017)
Chase -- Priority Pass (+ "guests" free)
Amex -- Priority Pass ($27 per person, even primary cardholder), Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Club (DL flight req, 2 guests @$27 each)
For Jun 2017 onwards, between Citi & Chase, Chase wins by a hair by allowing more free guests.
Amex is a tough one to classify. It gets you access to the most number of clubs, but also pays for the least people. The Centurion lounges certainly are quite good by domestic standards but there's so few of them, none where I find myself often, unfortunately. DL Sky Club is good, but no free guests and I'm not always on DL metal. Amex's Priority Pass option is almost an insult when you have to pay for everyone. Even more so with it being the most expensive card (annual fee - credits) of the bunch.
Price Protection:
Citi -- Up to 60 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year.
EXCLUDES: Going Out-of-Business Sales, Auctions, vehicles & their parts, food/medications, tickets (airline/concert), jewelry, collectables, items for resale, services (that are not goods), anything with a service contract (cell phone), items with rebates, refurbished or used items.
Chase -- Up to 90 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year per card.
INCLUDES: ads for Cash Only sales, close-out/liquidation/going-out-of-business sales but only $50 per incident on these.
EXCLUDES: flea markets, limited quantities, seasonal sales, auctions, discounts of seasonal items, same as Citi from here.
NOTES: MUST file claim within 21 days of the advertised price.
Amex -- NONE. Again, Amex Plat is the highest priced card out of the bunch but fails to deliver.
Winner: Chase. 90 days vs. 60 for Citi AND Chase pays quickly. I know others may disagree with me, BUT I'm going by my experiences.
Citi's Price Rewind has a slick-looking website, but disappoints when it comes to reimbursements. First, they've NEVER found a lower price than what I've paid. I have 20+ items up on there and Citi's found nothing. I've found about 10. Second, when I submit for a lower price, they take forever to pay the claim. I submitted my claims about 3.5 weeks ago. Other than the "we've received your claim" e-mail, nothing. Third, there's no way to track manual claims.
Chase's claims website (eclaimsline.com) may not be flashy, but it works. It's easy to upload the original receipt, screen shot of Amazon (even 3rd party sellers), and hit Submit. I've been getting checks in the mailbox in 7-10 days. The only denial I received was for 60 fluorescent light bulbs. The bulbs were indeed bought for my office (although it didn't say on the receipt I sent to them), so I can see where they'd say it was a resale / commercial item. I've racked up about $450 in the past two months alone. Also note the $2500 per year per card. I'll leave it at that. I just hope the hard-core churners don't burn this bridge.
Shoprunner:
Meh. Give me Amazon Prime and I'd be more interested.
Customer Service:
Citi -- I've had limited dealings with them, but it's always been a very long wait on hold. Did get an American eventually.
Chase -- Excellent. A real, live American answers immediately, every time I've called. Reps were quite good & friendly and weren't script readers.
Amex -- Acceptable wait times, but often got off-shore reps who were script-readers. They were always able to get me the answers I needed though, so still pleased overall.
Both cards lose here. Why is it so difficult for a bank to understand that people who use $400-500/yr TRAVEL credit card will likely TRAVEL internationally?
Even going to Canada or Mexico, Chip+Sig SUCKS - make sure you carry a pen with you at all times as many cashiers don't carry them. It's even worse in Europe with unattended gas stations & unattended subway / train ticket machines which do Chip+ OFFline PIN only. To be honest, Chip + SIG sucks even in the USA, especially after you've been so used to using Chip+PIN in other countries and come back here for awhile.
Contactless Payment:
Handy, but I'd rather have Chip+PIN. It's also been made redundant with NFC (Apple/Android Pay). I already have 2 contactless cards in my wallet. I keep my metal CSP between them, so depending on which side of my wallet hits the reader is which one it reads. The metal design of the CSP/R cards precludes being able to do contactless, and I'm fine with that.
Extended Warranty:
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
Club Access:
Citi -- Priority Pass (+2 guests free), AA (AA fight req, goes away Jun 2017)
Chase -- Priority Pass (+ "guests" free)
Amex -- Priority Pass ($27 per person, even primary cardholder), Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Club (DL flight req, 2 guests @$27 each)
For Jun 2017 onwards, between Citi & Chase, Chase wins by a hair by allowing more free guests.
Amex is a tough one to classify. It gets you access to the most number of clubs, but also pays for the least people. The Centurion lounges certainly are quite good by domestic standards but there's so few of them, none where I find myself often, unfortunately. DL Sky Club is good, but no free guests and I'm not always on DL metal. Amex's Priority Pass option is almost an insult when you have to pay for everyone. Even more so with it being the most expensive card (annual fee - credits) of the bunch.
Price Protection:
Citi -- Up to 60 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year.
EXCLUDES: Going Out-of-Business Sales, Auctions, vehicles & their parts, food/medications, tickets (airline/concert), jewelry, collectables, items for resale, services (that are not goods), anything with a service contract (cell phone), items with rebates, refurbished or used items.
Chase -- Up to 90 days after purchase, up to $500 per incident, up to $2,500 per year per card.
INCLUDES: ads for Cash Only sales, close-out/liquidation/going-out-of-business sales but only $50 per incident on these.
EXCLUDES: flea markets, limited quantities, seasonal sales, auctions, discounts of seasonal items, same as Citi from here.
NOTES: MUST file claim within 21 days of the advertised price.
Amex -- NONE. Again, Amex Plat is the highest priced card out of the bunch but fails to deliver.
Winner: Chase. 90 days vs. 60 for Citi AND Chase pays quickly. I know others may disagree with me, BUT I'm going by my experiences.
Citi's Price Rewind has a slick-looking website, but disappoints when it comes to reimbursements. First, they've NEVER found a lower price than what I've paid. I have 20+ items up on there and Citi's found nothing. I've found about 10. Second, when I submit for a lower price, they take forever to pay the claim. I submitted my claims about 3.5 weeks ago. Other than the "we've received your claim" e-mail, nothing. Third, there's no way to track manual claims.
Chase's claims website (eclaimsline.com) may not be flashy, but it works. It's easy to upload the original receipt, screen shot of Amazon (even 3rd party sellers), and hit Submit. I've been getting checks in the mailbox in 7-10 days. The only denial I received was for 60 fluorescent light bulbs. The bulbs were indeed bought for my office (although it didn't say on the receipt I sent to them), so I can see where they'd say it was a resale / commercial item. I've racked up about $450 in the past two months alone. Also note the $2500 per year per card. I'll leave it at that. I just hope the hard-core churners don't burn this bridge.
Shoprunner:
Meh. Give me Amazon Prime and I'd be more interested.
Customer Service:
Citi -- I've had limited dealings with them, but it's always been a very long wait on hold. Did get an American eventually.
Chase -- Excellent. A real, live American answers immediately, every time I've called. Reps were quite good & friendly and weren't script readers.
Amex -- Acceptable wait times, but often got off-shore reps who were script-readers. They were always able to get me the answers I needed though, so still pleased overall.
Sep 1, 2016 | 8:00 am
#26
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: NYC
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold, Hertz PC, National Exec
Posts: 6,736
If they did that, then it would be a "3% back on everything" card (if you use the UR points for travel) for anyone with a CSR. It's already 2.25% back (if you use the points for travel) for anyone with a CSR.
Sep 2, 2016 | 12:06 pm
#27
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Somewhere in Florida
Posts: 2,891
Oh, here's another thing to add to the list: Make Freedom Unlimited 2x on everything instead of just 1.5x. An extra 0.5x doesn't sound like much but it would put it on par with cards like Citi Double Cash and Fidelity Visa. (On the other hand it'd make the case for the CSP more difficult to justify.)
I wish Chase would have rolled some of the lower card bonuses into their upper cards. CSR with 3x travel, 3x dining, 3x groceries, 3x Ink categories, 1.5x everything else would have blown away Amex Plat & Citi Prestige, even with some of Amex Plat's extra benefits. It still surprises me that travel & rental car coverage on Plat is extra.
Sep 3, 2016 | 3:09 pm
#29
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 535
Extended Warranty:
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
Citi -- 2 years additional, up to 5 years original (7 years total), up to $10k per item. "Item will be replaced with like kind and quality. However, we cannot guarantee to match exact color, material, brand, size, or model."
Chase -- 1 year additional, up to 3 years original (4 years total), up to $10k per claim, up to $50k per account. They'll try to repair, but if that's not possibly or reasonable cost, they'll credit you the full purchase price.
Winner: Mostly Citi. 2 years add'l by Citi seems nice, but the vagueness of their compensation leaves me unsure about it. Would you want a Funai TV to replace your Samsung or LG? I wouldn't. On a spec sheet they're "equivalent", which is what I'd imagine an insurance co would say. Now, I *do* use my Citi Costco card for known problematic items. Dehumidifier? Yep. FitBit? Yep.
In your opinion, how do you think Citibank would have processed it?
I ask because I will be purchasing and iphone 7 and Macbook and am unclear whether I should charge it to be Citi or Chase card with the extended warranty being the only deciding factor between the two.
Thanks in advance for your opinion.
Sep 3, 2016 | 3:15 pm
#30
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2016
Posts: 535
I wanted to mention that I sent high level Chase executives an e-mail stating the 2 things I would like to see most from the card. They thanked me for my feedback and promised to pass it to the decision makers. I asked for the extended warranty (+2 years) and ShopRunner. I believe the former will eventually be accepted and the latter discarded because Amex had the foresight to anticipate their benefit being copied and picked up an equity stake in ShopRunner presumably to also block any competitor from offering the same benefit.