Credit Cards – Protecting Your Purchases

Whether it's a new TV, a grill for the deck or a computer, there are some purchases that are just larger than your normal day to day buys. These are purchases that you toil over making. You may budget for them for months before finally making the purchase.

Once you make the purchase, everything is great, until something goes wrong. It could be that not long after you purchase the items it breaks down. Consider your new TV not turning on anymore or the screen not holding color the way it should. You contact the store but it is beyond their 30 day return period.

Are you out all of that money and just stuck with a less than picture-perfect television set? Not necessarily. Your credit card company may be your saving grace in a situation like this. Many credit card companies offer extended warranties on the items you purchase through them. That means if something breaks, and you purchased it on your credit card, you can contact the credit card company to take advantage of their extended warranty plan. In many cases they will credit you the cost of the item and tell you to purchase a new one.

What about something that could have been prevented going wrong? Try this one on for size. I had a barbeque pit that fell out of a truck on the way home from the store. Needless to say, it was not in working order once it was picked up out of the street. Since I had used my American Express BlueSky Card, I found out that the damage was covered. As a matter of fact, they told me to go right back to the store where I purchased the first one and buy a new one, and refunded the price of the initial purchase within a few days. Had I made the same purchase in cash, I would have just been out all of that money.

Most people have no idea that their credit cards offer these types of product protections. This is why they need to pay closer attention to the fine print of those benefits packages from their credit card companies. These great perks from credit cards are listed in that little booklet your credit card company sent you when you first got your cards.

If you go through your credit card benefits and find there are not a lot of benefits that are attractive to you, you may want to shop around for a credit card that can offer you more for your business.

About the Author

Stephen Sikes is the owner of the credit card comparison site www.CreditCardWave.com. Visit the site to read articles and reviews on the best ways to utilize credit cards. You can compare and apply online for top personal and business credit cards.