4 Underrated Chase Sapphire Preferred Benefits You Should Be Using

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We've long considered the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card one of the best credit card options out there for all travelers. A bonus of 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first three months just makes that case even stronger.

But look beyond the headlines and you'll find some equally valuable Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits that shouldn't be ignored. Some are permanent perks while others are temporary benefits (that could stick around for good.) Either way, there are reasons beyond the initial signup bonus to pick up and keep a Preferred card.

Let's break down some of the lesser-known Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits that you should know about to get the most out of this card.

Click Here to learn more about the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card.

Pay Yourself Back for Everyday Purchases

Back when travel ground to a halt, Chase got creative by rolling out a new benefit for Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve® cardholders called “Pay Yourself Back,” allowing you to use Chase Ultimate Rewards points to cover everyday expenses. Read our full guide to using Chase Pay Yourself Back!

Currently, Chase Sapphire Preferred cardholders can cover an Airbnb using points. But Chase has continually extended this benefit, and the bank has since confirmed it will be a permanent fixture with rotating categories. The current categories are set to end as of June 30.

It's easy enough to use. All you need to do is make a purchase directly with Airbnb and pay with your Chase Sapphire Preferred. Once that charge officially posts to your Sapphire card statement, it will then be eligible for the Pay Yourself Back benefit. This typically takes two to four days to post. You will not be able to redeem points via Pay Yourself back while the purchase is still pending.

To do so, simply log into your Chase online account and head to the Ultimate Rewards homepage. From here, you will see the Pay Yourself Back feature listed as one of the options in the top navigation bar.

Once you select Pay Yourself Back, you will see a list of transactions on your card from the past 90 days that are eligible to remove with Chase Ultimate Rewards points. You’ve only got 90 days from the date your purchase posts to your account to remove it with the Pay Yourself Back feature. If you don’t use Pay Yourself Back within 90 days of the transactions posting to your account, they will no longer be available.

When you find the transaction you want to pay yourself back for, simply select the “Apply Full Amount” checkbox, or select any cash value that you would like to credit yourself back for and Chase will calculate the appropriate amount of Ultimate Rewards points that it will cost.

With the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, every point is worth 1.25 cents when using Pay Yourself Back – the exact same value you get when booking flights or hotels through the Chase travel portal. That means the 60,000 point bonus on the Sapphire Preferred Card after spending $4,000 in the first three months is worth $750 whether you book flights, hotels, or other travel expenses.

Primary Rental Car Insurance Coverage

This certainly isn't a new Chase Sapphire Preferred benefit, but it's worth calling out. You won't find a card with better insurance coverage the next time you rent a car.

Chase Sapphire cards aren’t the only credit cards that offer some level of insurance when renting a car, but the coverage it does offer is better. And at this low $95 annual fee, that's tough to beat.

Almost every other card on the market offers only secondary rental car coverage. That means you’ll have to turn to your own insurance policy first, pay your deductible – and your auto insurance premiums will likely go up, too. But it’s different on the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve. You get primary rental car coverage. And that means you can skip your own policy and head straight to Chase for help.

This primary coverage from Chase Sapphire cards replaces the typical “collision damage waivers” – or loss damage waivers – that car rental companies are required to offer. It will provide reimbursement for damage due to collision or theft on a rental car. So if you get into an accident, it will cover the costs of any damage up to the cash value of the vehicle.

All you need to do to qualify for this coverage is pay for your rental car using your Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and decline additional coverage from the rental company itself.

Baggage Delay Insurance

If you pay for your flight with your Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (or Chase Ultimate Rewards points from your card), you can get reimbursed if you need to buy essential items like toiletries and clothing, when baggage is delayed or misdirected for more than six hours by a common carrier, such as an airline, bus, cruise ship or train, while on a covered trip.

The cardholder, the cardholder's spouse or domestic partner, and any immediate family will be covered for up to $100 per day for a maximum of five days.

If you have to use this benefit even once, it could cover multiple years of the card's $95 annual fee.

Trip Delay Reimbursement

This Chase Sapphire Preferred benefit will provide reimbursement for expenses such as meals and lodging if your common carrier (airline, bus, cruise ship, train) travel is delayed more than 12 hours or requires an overnight stay.

Again, this coverage only kicks in after expenses paid by any other party, including trip insurance. And the trip must be away from the cardholder’s city of residence – and for less than a year.

The cardholder, the cardholder's spouse or domestic partner, and any immediate family will be covered for up to $500 for each purchased ticket – as long as you purchased your ticket with the card, or with Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

You'll be covered for what Chase considered “reasonable additional expenses incurred for meals, lodging, toiletries, medication, and other personal use items due to the covered delay.”

Bottom Line

Most of these Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits alone can justify the card's $95 annual fee. Add them all together and it's not hard to see why we think the card provides so much value, both upfront and in the long term.

And considering new cardholders will earn 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points after spending $4,000 in the first three months of card membership … well, that just sweetens the deal. A lot.