Earlier I wrote approximately how Citi is losing their Price Rewind benefit as of September 22, 2019. As it turns out, that’s now not the only issue changing about Citi playing cards as of that date. Looking on the Citi card benefits internet site, quite a piece is converting on Citi playing cards as of that date.

Ouch: Citi Drops Car Rental Coverage, Travel 1

Citi advantages cut coming as of September 22, 2019

For purchases as of September 22, 2019, Citi will be discontinuing the following on cards that presently offer those perks:

Worldwide Car Rental Insurance

  • Trip Cancellation & Interruption Protection
  • Worldwide Travel Accident Insurance
  • Trip Delay Protection
  • Baggage Delay Protection
  • Lost Baggage Protection
  • Citi Price Rewind
  • 90 Day Return Protection
  • Roadside Assistance Dispatch Service

Travel & Emergency Assistance

The insurance will remain for purchases made earlier than that date, apart from roadside help and travel & emergency help. However, those blessings will stop as of that date, irrespective of while you made your buy.

My take on those adjustments

These changes truly sting, and albeit I’m surprised simply how sizeable these modifications are. To me, the maximum precious advantages here are auto rental insurance and tour protection. For instance, I use the Citi Prestige for airfare purchases, given that it offers 5x factors, and it also offers excellent tour protection. That will trade going ahead. The trouble for Citi is that a number of the blessings they’re taking away have to turn out to be popular with different issuers, particularly among premium playing cards.

While I remember that those perks are often tied to the type of card (World Elite Mastercard, Visa Signature, etc.), it doesn’t make experience to me that they’d cut blessings within the same way for a excessive annual charge card as they might for a miles lower annual charge card. In trendy, it seems like Citi has been struggling with the method ever given their Costco acquisition. They spent a variety of money buying the Costco portfolio, and that has seemingly taken far away from their potential to spend money on different cards.

The Prestige Card is the proper instance — it was once splendid, then they stopped accepting applications. Then, they relaunched it with some new advantages that had been extra or less a wash. Then, they stopped accepting packages again, and then they introduced extra modifications; however, they don’t honestly appear to be advertising and marketing the card.

Part of creating a terrific portfolio of cards is, without a doubt giving customers a regular enjoy. The problem is that such a lot of adjustments are being made to those cards that it can be difficult to hold a song. For instance, the Prestige is undergoing modifications at some stage in the 12 months, and it can be hard to preserve song of while various matters are changing… and I comply with this stuff for a residing!