5 Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits make it one of the most valuable credit cards, beyond a huge sign-up bonus and rewards

The Chase Sapphire Preferred comes with valuable benefits like primary car rental insurance, trip delay reimbursement, and purchase protection. Crystal Cox/Business Insider

• The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has a great sign-up bonus and earns valuable rewards points. 
• The card includes travel and purchase protections that can save you money and aggravation.
• You can transfer points from other Chase cards to your Sapphire Preferred to get more value.
• Read Insider's guide to the best travel rewards credit cards.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card is easily the best starter credit card for travel rewards. Not only does it start you out with a sign-up bonus of 100,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months, but it earns you 2x points on dining and travel (and 5x points on Lyft rides through March 2022).

While I was excited by the welcome offer and 2x rate on dining and travel purchases when I signed up in March 2012, there are many lesser-known benefits I've come to appreciate that supercharge this card's value — including perks you can use even if you're not traveling right now.

Here's a look at five useful things you may not know about the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits

The Sapphire Preferred will cover your hotel if your flight is canceled 

The Chase Sapphire Preferred card comes loaded with a handful of excellent benefits. Two that come in very valuable for frequent travelers are trip cancellation and interruption insurance and trip delay reimbursement coverage.

Read more: Your credit card might cover your next flight delay — as long as you have the right one

If you ever miss a connection or have a flight canceled due to weather, the airline will probably rebook you, but you're on your own figuring out a place to stay. But you won't be on the hook for that expense if you booked with the Sapphire Preferred. Just file a claim with the card's benefits administrator and you could find yourself reimbursed for a wide range of expenses.

If your trip is canceled or interrupted by illness, severe weather, or a limited list of other covered situations, the card will pay up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip to reimburse eligible pre-paid, non-refundable reservations. If you get delayed by at least 12 hours or require an overnight stay, trip delay reimbursement covers up to $500 per ticket for meals and lodging.

It will fix a new gadget that broke the day you opened it

Getting a new phone or another gadget can be a lot of fun, but not if that item breaks or is stolen right away. If you drop your brand new phone and the screen breaks, Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits may cover the repair as long as you used the card to pay.

Read more: 5 reasons why the Chase Sapphire Preferred is still one of the best travel credit cards you can get

Purchase protection covers all new eligible purchases for 120 days against damage or theft. Coverage is limited to $500 per claim and $50,000 per account. So whether it was a phone or something else completely, as long as it is new, the cost is under $500, and it wasn't intentionally damaged, you shouldn't have trouble getting a repair or replacement paid for by the benefit administrator.

You can transfer points from other Chase cards to increase their value

The Ultimate Rewards points you earn with the Chase Sapphire Preferredand Chase Sapphire Reserve are among the most valuable rewards you can get from a credit card.

If you have a card like the Chase Freedom Flex℠, Chase Freedom Unlimited, Ink Business Cash Credit Card, or Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, your points are worth 1 cent apiece toward cash back, gift cards, and travel. But when you transfer points from those cards to your Sapphire card, you'll unlock better, more valuable redemption options.

Read more: How to earn, redeem, and maximize Chase Ultimate Rewards points

With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, points are worth 1.25 cents each when redeemed through the Chase Travel Portal or toward grocery, dining, home improvement store, and eligible charity purchases through the Pay Yourself Back program (until September 30, 2021). With the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you can also transfer points to Chase's travel partners like United, Southwest, and Marriott, and you may be able to get even more value per point.

Insider values Chase Ultimate Rewards points as worth 1.8 cents apiece on average, due to the fact that you can often get a higher rate of return by transferring points to partners and booking award travel.

The Sapphire Preferred covers your rental car for collision damage and theft

Car rental companies do a good job at scaring renters into paying an extra $10 to $20 per day for insurance, but that's usually not necessary if you have a good travel rewards card. The Chase Sapphire Preferred includes auto rental collision damage waiver coverage, which works as primary insurance for rental cars.

Read more: 5 credit card benefits that can protect your summer travels, from rental car coverage to trip cancellation insurance

The benefit covers up to the cash value of the vehicle for theft and collision on most US and international rental cars. There are some limits to be aware of and types of damage that may not be covered, so it's a good idea to read up on how the benefit works before heading to the rental car desk to get the keys.

It extends manufacturer warranties

A couple of years ago, my wife and I finally gave in and bought a robot vacuum. When it stopped working about a week after the warranty ended, I wondered if I had fallen victim to planned obsolescence. But I wasn't too worried. My credit card included an automatic extended warranty. I was ultimately able to get a replacement at no cost.

The Sapphire Preferred card adds an additional year to most warranties of three years or less. Coverage is up to $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per account.

Put your Chase Sapphire Preferred card benefits to good use

Countless people pay for hotels or sleep at the airport because they don't have or don't know about coverage from their credit cards. Many people get upset by broken new purchases and don't know they can get reimbursed. There are many scenarios where Chase Sapphire Preferred benefits come into play, but only if you remember and really use them.

Read more: 7 reasons to choose the Chase Sapphire Preferred over the Sapphire Reserve — even though it doesn't come with as many fancy perks

The Chase Sapphire Preferred has an annual fee of $95 per year. If you use the card regularly, you'll likely earn enough rewards points to pay for the annual fee multiple times over. The benefits provide even more value. But it only works if you know about it and take advantage. 

Eric Rosenberg is a finance, travel, and technology writer in Ventura, California. He has in-depth experience writing about banking, credit cards, investing, and other financial topics, and is an avid travel hacker.

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