Which Credit Cards Offer the Best Extended Warranty and Purchase Protection?
There are few realizations quite as crushing as that moment you lift up your gym bag to find it mysteriously lighter than it was 30 minutes ago, and your pricey new headphones vanished. Actually, the only thing comparably exasperating might be for those headphones to fizzle out just a few weeks after their warranty expires.
But before you throw the busted Beats against the wall, take a deep breath and read through your credit card agreement. Does it come with an extended warranty and/or purchase protection? If so, follow our general guidelines below for either being reimbursed or getting the item replaced. If not, write it off as a learning experience and consider applying for one of the following cards that will have your back next time.
We conducted an analysis to determine which Canadian credit cards offer the best terms for extended warranty and purchase protection. Our considerations included the length of coverage, scope of coverage, and the ease of getting items covered—and we also tried to provide options to suit a variety of income levels and credit scores.
In This Article:
Best Credit Cards for Extended Warranty and Purchase Protection
| Card Name | Annual Fee | Purchase Protection Coverage Period | Years Added by Extended Warranty | Max Coverage Payout | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BMO® CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®* | $120 | 180 days | 2 | $60K over an account’s lifetime | Read more |
| RBC Cash Back Preferred World Elite Mastercard | $99 | 120 days | 2 | $50K annually per card | Read more |
| Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card | $0 | 90 days | 1 | $60K over an account’s lifetime | Read more |
| MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus® Mastercard® | $0 | 90 days | 1 | $60K over an account’s lifetime | Read more |
| Home Trust Secured Visa | $0 | 90 days | N/A | $5K per occurrence | Read more |
BMO® CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®*
– Minimum Credit Score: Good/Excellent
– Minimum Income: $80,000 individual or $150,000 household
– Age: Age of majority in your province or territory.
– Other Requirements: No bankruptcies in the last seven years
The BMO® CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®* will cover repair, replacement, or reimbursement of items purchased by the card that have been either stolen or damaged, up to 180 days after the purchase was made*—that’s double the length of coverage provided by most credit cards’ purchase protection terms. The card also extends an item’s original manufacturer’s warranty up to two additional years—again, double the usual warranty extension length. Though extended warranty protection can be applied to items purchased anywhere in the world, the original manufacturer’s warranty must be valid in Canada to apply. Purchase protection and extended warranty benefits are capped at a lifetime maximum of $60,000 per credit card account.
Key Features
- Annual Fee: $120 (waived in first year)
- Welcome Offer: 10% cash back for first three months (max $260 cash back)*
- Regular Cash Back Rates: 5% back on groceries*; 4% on transit*; 3% on gas*; 2% on recurring bills*; 1% on all other eligible purchases* (limits apply)
- Other Features: Free LoungeKey airport lounge membership*; free roadside assistance*; limited travel medical and car rental insurance*; etc.
Click here to apply or learn more by reading our complete BMO® CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®* review.
*Terms and conditions apply
RBC Cash Back Preferred World Elite Mastercard
– Recommended Credit Score: Good-Excellent
– Minimum Income: $80,000 personal/$150,000 household
– Age: You must be the age of majority in your home province
– Residency: Canadian
Like the BMO® CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®*, the RBC Cash Back Preferred World Elite Mastercard offers up to a two-year extension for a product’s original manufacturer’s warranty, but it offers ‘only’ 120 days of coverage for purchase protection (compared to the BMO card’s 180 days). That said, the RBC Cash Back Preferred World Elite Mastercard does clearly beat out the BMO card in one aspect of its coverage: It offers a max coverage amount of $50K per card per year, which could potentially add up to an enormously high amount of combined coverage over the card’s lifetime.
Key Features
- Annual Fee: $99 for primary cardholder
- Welcome Offer: N/A
- Regular Cash Back Rates: 1.5% cash back on first $25K spent annually; 1% back on all purchases after $25K
- Other Features: Extra savings and additional Petro-Points at Petro-Canada; complimentary access to Wi-Fi hotspots via Boingo; free LoungeKey airport lounge membership; no annual fee for adding additional cardholders; etc.
Click here to apply or learn more by reading our complete RBC Cash Back Preferred World Elite Mastercard review.
Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card
– Minimum Credit Score: Fair-Good
– Minimum Income: $12,000
– Age: 18+/Age of majority
– Residency: Canadian Citizen/Permanent Resident
– Other: No bankruptcy for the past 7 years
Though it’s not a guaranteed feature for every credit card, there are nonetheless a number of no annual fee credit cards that offer at least a basic level of extended warranty and purchase protection benefits. Among the most popular is the Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card, which gives 90 days of purchase assurance for lost, stolen or damaged items, as well as double an item’s manufacturer’s warranty for up to one additional year. Coverage is limited to a lifetime maximum of $60K.
Key Features
- Annual Fee: $0
- Welcome Offer: Special 10% cash back rate on the first $1,000 spent with the card ($100 cash back) in the first two months*, apply by July 31, 2022.
- Regular Cash Back Rates: 2% cash back on 2-3 purchase categories of your choice; 0.5% cash back on everything else
- Other Features: New cardholders get 1.95% interest on balance transfers for the first 6 months (1% balance transfer fee applies)
Click here to apply or learn more by reading our complete Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card review.
*Terms and Conditions apply
MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus® Mastercard®
– Minimum Credit Score: Fair/Good
– Minimum Income: N/A
– Age: Age of majority in province/territory
– Residency: Canadian resident
Extended warranty and purchase protection coverage is more commonly offered by cash back cards rather than rewards cards, but there are exceptions. The MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus® Mastercard® is one of the most popular rewards cards in Canada and it offers coverage similar to the Tangerine Money-Back Credit Card: Manufacturer’s warranties are doubled for up to one additional year, and purchase assurance is provided for 90 days after an item’s purchase. Coverage is limited to a lifetime maximum of $60K.
Key Features
- Annual Fee: $0
- Welcome Offer: 4 MBNA Rewards points for every $1 spent on gas, grocery, and restaurant purchases for the first 90 days + up to 10,000 additional bonus points (conditions apply)
- Regular Rewards Rates: 2 points for every $1 spent on eligible gas, grocery and restaurant purchases (limitations apply); 1 point for every $1 spent everywhere else
- Interest Rates: 19.99% on purchases; 22.99% on balance transfers; 24.99% on cash advances
Click here to apply or learn more by reading our complete MBNA Rewards Platinum Plus® Mastercard® review.
Sponsored advertising. MBNA is a division of The Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) and TD is not responsible for the contents of this site including any editorials or reviews that may appear on this site. For complete information on this MBNA credit card, please click on the “Apply Now” button.
This offer is not available for residents of Quebec. For residents of Quebec, please click here.
Home Trust Secured Visa
– Minimum Credit Score: Bad-Poor
– Minimum Income: $0
– Age: Age of majority in your province/territory
– Residency: Permanent Canadian resident
– Other: Not available to Quebec residents or to those currently in bankruptcy
Secured credit cards are usually very basic, typically offering few if any special features, and rarely providing purchase protection or extended warranty. The Home Trust Secured Visa is one of the few secured credit cards that provides 90 days of purchase protection against stolen or damaged items, for up to $5K in coverage per occurrence. The card unfortunately does not offer extended warranty coverage, but it’s nonetheless a great option for those looking to build their credit score while benefitting from some basic level of insurance for the items they purchase.
Key Features
- Annual Fee: $0
- Cash Back/Rewards Rates: N/A
- Interest Rates: 19.99% on purchases and 19.99% on cash advances
- Deposit Amount/Spending Limit: $500–$10,0000
Click here to apply or learn more by reading our complete Home Trust Secured Visa Card review.
What Are Extended Warranty Protection and Purchase Protection?
Credit card extended warranty protection extends the manufacturer’s warranty on an item purchased with your credit card. Most credit cards extend the warranty by the lesser of either one additional year or double the warranty; some credit cards may offer longer warranty extensions than this, others may offer no such extended warranty protection at all. If this kind of coverage is offered by your card it can save you a substantial amount of money that you might otherwise fork over to the likes of Best Buy for an à la carte extended warranty.
Purchase protection covers you in a different way than extended warranty protection, in that rather than extending a manufacturer’s warranty it compensates you for loss, theft, or damage of an item. The insurer will elect to either repair or replace the item, or reimburse you for the item’s purchase price. Purchase protection usually applies only for a limited amount of time after you’ve purchased the item (the ‘coverage period’), typically 90 days.
A credit card’s extended warranty and purchase protection will specify a maximum dollar value of coverage payable, either for an individual item; a year within a credit card account; the ‘lifetime’ of a credit card account; or some combination of the above.
What’s Covered By Extended Warranty and Purchase Protection?
A product’s warranty will usually cover an item if it is flawed or defected in some way, provided the defect manifests within the warranty’s designated time period, and the defect is not the result of the product’s misuse by its owner. For example, if you buy a new laptop with a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty, and nine months after the purchase the keyboard starts to freeze up, you should be able to invoke the warranty so that the keyboard will be replaced for free—unless of course the manufacturer investigates the issue and traces the busted keyboard to a latte you spilled on it. The same terms and conditions of the original manufacturer’s warranty are typically honored by a credit card’s extended warranty protection, except perhaps in the event that the manufacturer has gone out of business.
Purchase protection covers items that have been stolen or significantly damaged. Some policies may also cover the accidental loss of an item in which you are at fault.
What’s Not Covered By Extended Warranty and Purchase Protection?
Each insurance policy lists a variety of item categories that are excluded from coverage. The excluded categories vary from one card to the next, but they generally include:
- Hard currency; traveler’s cheques; event tickets; gift cards/certificates
- Animals and living plants
- Consumable or perishable goods
- Used/secondhand items and refurbished items
- Motorized vehicles
- Jewelry, gemstones, and precious metals
- Items used commercially (e.g. office equipment)
- Unique or irreplaceable items
Not all extended warranty and purchase protection policies will cover items purchased outside Canada; or if the item was purchased outside Canada, the manufacturer’s warranty must at least be valid within Canada for the extended warranty to apply.
As with most forms of credit card insurance, you’ll typically need to have paid for the item entirely with your credit card in order for the extended warranty or purchase protection to be valid. So if you have a credit card with great extended warranty coverage but you bought your defective television with your debit card, you’re probably out of luck.
How Do I Make an Extended Warranty or Purchase Protection Claim?
It’s best to file a claim as quickly as possible after you notice the item is missing, damaged, or defected. The claim process may vary slightly from one insurer to the next, but it will likely be similar to the below:
- Double check to make sure the item in question is still covered according to the terms of the extended warranty or purchase protection. *Note that if your item’s manufacturer’s warranty is for five years or more, many credit card issuers will require that you register the item within the first year of purchase, which in our opinion is a little shady albeit common.
- Consult with your credit card issuer to obtain the contact information of your card’s insurer. Keep in mind that credit card issuers are not insurance companies, so they aren’t directly responsible for providing your insurance, and your claim will be processed by the insurer itself.
- Notify your credit card’s insurer of your intent to file a claim, describe the nature of the claim to them, and request the forms you’ll need to fill out.
- Gather relevant documents that you’ll need for the claim. For example, if your laptop was stolen you should be ready to provide a copy of the police report you filed. No matter what the circumstances are of your claim you’ll always need to provide a copy of the item’s original sales receipt, and most likely the part of your credit card statement that shows you bought the specific item in question with your credit card. If your claim is for an extended warranty you’ll need to provide a copy of the item’s original manufacturer’s warranty.
- Submit all the required claim forms and supplementary documents to the insurer. Your insurer may also require you to send damaged or defective items to a designated address for assessment.
- Confirm with your insurer that they have received the documents you sent and that they are evaluating your claim; find out how long the claim review process will take.
Key Lessons
Extended warranty and purchase protection are two forms of credit card insurance that can not only save you the bummer of replacing a defected or stolen item, but can also save you a substantial amount of money. There’s tons of value to be gleaned from getting extended warranty and purchase protection through your credit card, considering many retailers charge from 10% to 20% of an item’s purchase price to include extended warranty coverage. Talk about margin! So the next time someone at Best Buy, Staples, The Brick or Leon’s offers you an additional warranty, just remember, if you pay for the entire purchase with the right credit card, you’re likely already covered and can save yourself some loonies.
Though a card’s insurance policies may be a bit nuanced, the main takeaways from this article are fairly simple:
- Get at least one credit card that provides extended warranty coverage and purchase protection of some kind; it doesn’t have to have an annual fee.
- When buying a big-ticket item (electronics, appliances, furniture, instruments, and tools), be certain to make the purchase with your credit card that has extended warranty and purchase protection.
- Never buy extended manufacturer warranties from a retailer unless you’re certain that your credit card doesn’t provide comparable coverage already.
Article comments
I tried to make a claim using the extended warranty on my TD Visa Gold (the insurance is underwrriten by Global Excel). THe experience has been horrible, confusing, slow, etc. They seem to put up barriers making it impossible to claim. I am claiming a $400 dehumidifer which failed withiin their extended warranty period. THey need me to get a repair estimate, but stores I visit tell me these are not repairable. So TD Visa/Global Excel will no process the claim since I cannot provide a written letter saying its not repairable (and they stores look at me like I’m an idiot when I say I want to pay them to write down they they can’t fix it). Just going in circles with TD Visa. I’ve been with them for 30 years and this is my first claim…and they are making it impossible. Do NOT count on VISA’s extended warranty (consider another card if that’s your primary motive).
Hi Jane,
Sounds frustrating- dealing with insurance is always a mind bender. Consider reaching out to the original manufacturer or store via email to initiate a repair. They should turn around and write you that the item is out of warranty and cannot be repaired. The email reply should be sufficient to satisfy the requirement for you to continue the claim and get a refund. Good luck!
Hello, since Capital One will now be pulling out of Canada (Costco) and I have their MC, I am wondering if making a purchase using this card right now in Canada is smart? Will they still honor their warranty coverage if they no longer are here? I won’t be buying the article at Costco, but a fridge at Canadian Appliance Store and I’m wondering if I am just better to use my AirMiles CC if I am going to have issues with Capital One?
Hi Dayna,
Capital One is not pulling out of Canada but ending their partnership with Costco by the end of 2021 and Hudson’s Bay by mid-2021 to focus on their own brand of credit cards in Canada. The company itself is not leaving, but it remains to be seen where Costco card users such as yourself may end up. Questions remain as to who will be Costco’s new credit card partner and whether current Costco card users will have the option of being transferred to another Capital One card, remains to be seen. I would say that since Capital One isn’t leaving the country entirely, they will still honour warranties on purchases made on the Costco card for as long as those warranties last. However, if you are skittish, then yes, it’s good to have another card waiting in the wings as you use your Costco card less and less up to the year’s end.
Would I need to confirm with the Credit card company before I send the device for repair?
Hi Mike,
You can just to get it on the record and give you piece of mind, but whether you actually need to and what you need to do to get the benefit of the warranty should be outlined in the benefits guide for your credit card which should be available as a downloadable PDF on your credit card issuer’s website.
I have a question regarding extended coverage that I hope isn’t a stupid one to ask. Let’s say I purchase a TV from Costco Canada, it comes with the standard 1 year warranty and then a second year of warranty coverage is included (thanks to Costco’s Concierge Services which extends the manufacturer’s warranty to 2 years). I use my Capital One credit card for the purchase, since the card doubles the warranty length, does it effectively extend the warranty to only 2 years because it won’t count Costco’s Concierge warranty extension as “original manufacturer’s warranty” or 4 years (standard 1 year warranty + Costco concierge warranty extension + Capital One’s warranty coverage for another 2 more years)?
Hi Jeremy,
Usually credit card extended warranties go off of the manufacturer’s warranty and that’s the only thing that gets extended so the Costco Concierge Service would be ignored and would not be extended.
Darn! I was hoping that it would make it a 4 year warranty. This would have saved me $100 because I wouldn’t need to purchase Costco’s extended warranty, which adds another 3 years on top of the 2 years. Thank you for providing an answer to my question Aaron!
Question: Apple air laptop went black after just under two years. Apple’s estimate including taxes comes to about $850. Original price:$1129 incl taxes. Called RBC Visa extended warrant and opened a claim which looks like they will pay. Will an extended warranty give us the estimated repair amount towards a brand new laptop…being that the repair price is not far off from the original price, if we ask????
Good question Adel, but no. Coverage does not exceed the purchase price of the laptop that was originally charged to your RBC credit card. However, if you think there’s wiggle room there you can always ask, but you’re only actually entitled to what you paid
This entire article needs to be deleted. Literally none of the information is accurate for any of the cards mentioned.
Hi Miguel,
The article has been updated. I’m sure you’re aware that credit card purchase warranty information is changing all the time.
I got my money back from CIBC for the dryer !!! So this is very true…..
Congratulations Maxwell. See? Sometimes people win.
You didn’t mention the Capital one card , no annual fee, I use it for my Costco card too gives you 2 years extended warranty on appliance purchases and more. Its the best card I have for this without fees. As my AMEX GOLD is $150 a year. Capital ONE- no fee
Great, thanks for the tip Barbara, I’m sure our readers will find it helpful.
If you look at the terms, it only doubles the warranty up to a maximum of 2 years. As most warranties are only 1 year, it will only add an additional one year instead of two. Instead look for a card that triples the warranty up an additional 2 years.
Nice article. Funny enough, I read this article when it was originally published (thanks for the update). I purchased appliances with a credit card that had a good extended warranty plan. After 2 years, the annual fees went up and I changed cards. Now I am in a situation where I want to make a claim against my old card (AMEX). They told me that my extended warranty no longer applies because I don’t have the card anymore. Does that make sense? If I purchased the appliance on the card and the extended warranty was valid on the date of purchase, isn’t that enough? Do I need to keep the card active in order to make a claim?
Hi Alastair,
Sorry you’re in a situation where you want to make an extended warranty claim – that must mean you’ve suffered a broken item. Unfortunately, you can’t get covered by an extended warranty benefit for a card you don’t currently own, and the “extension” isn’t retroactive or applied to the item somehow. Essentially how it works is that the card network (Amex) agrees to provide the same warranty coverage as the manufacturer but for longer, as long as you hold the card. So, you may have had the item past the original 1-year warranty, but now that you don’t have the Amex card you bought it with, you also can’t go back to Amex and claim warranty coverage.
GreedyRates
I had an accident with a stove that I purchased with a Visa Infinite. Is accidental damage covered under the extended warranty
Hey George,
Interesting comment. Thanks for coming to GreedyRates. In our opinion, the better question to ask is whether or not accidental damage is covered by the original manufacturer’s warranty. Did the stove manufacturer give a warranty to you upon purchase, or did the merchant let you know if there was one? Extended warranty perks only apply to original manufacturer’s warranties and not coverage provided by the retailer or merchant.
You may be able to get covered with the card’s Purchase Security perk rather than the extended warranties benefit, but only if you bought the stove within 90 days. If that is true, then you could be reimbursed for the lesser of the stove’s repair cost, replacement cost, or original purchase price—but you first need to call the issuer and determine what’s covered. At least now you know how to describe your inquiry—and if you need any further assistance just let us know. Thanks again and good luck!
GreedyRates
I think Capital One’s Costco Platinum mastercard should be mentioned in this article as a highly recommended card because it has $0 annual fee, good benefits and the cash back rewards are decent. Since this article is about extended warranties, this card’s extended warranty
coverage automatically doubles the original manufacturer’s warranty for
up to two years. So that’s pretty good if you bought a big ticket item with this card and it a 2 year manufacturer’s warranty then you should have a total of 4 years warranty coverage. Not bad at all for a no annual fee card!
Hi Jeremy!
Great observations—the Costco Capital One Platinum Mastercard is a solid option if you’re a frequent Costco-goer in Canada, for a few choice reasons. It earns cash back reliably at 1.00%, but also accelerates that rate when you use it at restaurants and some other categories. No annual fee is also appreciated but remember that Costco’s own Mastercards collect cash back that can only be redeemed in the store itself. Given that literally every Mastercard works in Canadian Costco locations, you have a much wider pool of options to choose from that won’t limit you in such a way.
Take the Rogers Platinum Mastercard, for example. This one also is accepted at Costco and has a $0 annual fee, but you can use the cash back you collect anywhere. With a higher cash back rate of 1.25% in Costco (and everywhere else in Canada), plus 3.00% back when you purchase in a foreign currency (net 0.50% after the transaction fee), you’ll earn more cash back with this card and use it with greater flexibility than Costco’s own card. Rogers’ cards are compatible with the Mastercard Pay with Rewards application as well, so you can use your smartphone to apply your cash back on-demand whenever you like. Let us know what you think!
GreedyRates
That’s pretty good for a cc with no annual fee but what is the extended warranty coverage? I asked since this article talks about cc’s with good extended warranty coverage. I should look into this card to use for online purchases outside of Canada, especially when I buy stuff in the states that are sold as USD rates, a net of 0.50% is not too shabby at all!
Did you copy and paste this from some older article? Other than what the other comments are saying, Future shop has Been closed for years now. Yet this article was posted in may 2018.
I guess it just goes to show you that if you want something done right you should do it yourself.
Greetings Stan,
Thanks for your feedback. We always appreciate when our readers are able to spot out-of-date information on our page and help us determine the best way to update it. Things change quickly in the Canadian market, and we’re always juggling multiple new declarations from the banks in Canada and must consider how to incorporate them into our articles. Rest assured, however, that we’ll be giving this article a thorough refresh very soon. In the meantime, we apologize that we mentioned a store that is no longer in business. We’re sorry if it caused you an inconvenience.
GreedyRates
The information in this article is completely out of date and not accurate. I’ve checked the insurance terms of many of these cards and they don’t match what is in this article.
You guys need to do a follow-up article!
Hey Miguel!
Thanks for your feedback. There have been some changes in the way issuers operate as of late, and so you’re correct – this and possibly some other articles we’ve written will get another look. We’re currently in the process of updating all our articles (a constant struggle given the frequency with which issuers change their terms), but will get to this one straightaway. Thanks again.
GreedyRates Staff
a company may say this when changing a motherboard is more expensive due to labour and parts than a new computer. tell the repair company you want a quote for a repair regards of cost because you have insurance coverage.
I claimed an extended warranty through MBNA platinum master card for my broke laptop which was non-repairable. Allianz declined my claim saying my policy only covers repairs and if it is not repairable they do not pay for the replacement. I can’t find the policy details saying that. Any idea to save me please?
Hi Aidan,
A couple of things. You can call MBNA and have them mail you a copy of the policy (lame). That said, we also called Allianz on your behalf and they confirmed they only repair, they do not replace.
However, you should check the original manufacturers warranty to see if you’re covered (although we’re guessing your original manufacturers warranty expired, otherwise you wouldn’t be exploring the cardholder coverage). If it happened within the first 90 days of purchase, you could get coverage through the purchases protection insurance the card offers against theft and damage – which actually does offer replacement.
Sorry we don’t have better news!
GreedyRates Staff