I could easily squeeze another $500-$1,000 in benefits out of my Amex Business Platinum card, but here are the ones I’ve used (or am reassured that they’re available) while traveling over the past few years.
Lounge access
The American Express Business Platinum offers multiple lounge access options, including over a dozen Amex-owned Centurion Lounges, as well as a partnership with Priority Pass and other lounge networks to give cardholders access to over 1,400 lounges around the world.
I now live in Florida but travel back to Washington State frequently to visit family. In the last few years, I have traveled through Seattle’s SeaTac Airport (SEA) at least five times and had access to one of the newest Centurion lounges in the country.
The SeaTac Centurion Lounge is located on the second floor next to the food courts – and I was able to save money (and my sanity) by spending some time in the lounge before my flight.
At the Centurion Lounge, you can arrive up to three hours before departure and enjoy free coffee, excellent food (buffet style), access to private restrooms and lightning fast WiFi. I book most of my flights for late morning because SeaTac is far away and I hate getting up early. The breakfast buffet is excellent and the coffee bar offers Seattle-style lattes at no extra cost.
I also spent some time in Denver’s Centurion Lounge – and was able to enjoy fantastic scrambled eggs and mimosas for breakfast before a late morning flight.
Both lounges take the hustle and bustle of busy airports away, allowing me to actually work in a quiet and comfortable environment while enjoying better food than most airports offer.
I haven’t had to use the Priority Pass lounge access yet, but the Centurion lounges alone were definitely worth it for me.
Travel delay insurance
I occasionally (OK – more than occasionally) fly with Frontier and Allegiant Airlines. These airlines are notorious for flight delays and missed connections as well as flight cancellations.
Although I have not yet used the Travel Delay Insurance¹, I am happy to know that I can be compensated for travel delays of six hours or more. Amex partners with New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG company, and will reimburse me for up to $500 in expenses related to a delayed trip. It is important to note that Amex’s Travel Delay Insurance covers round-trip flights.
I did miss a connecting flight on Frontier once, but the airline gave me a hotel credit and a shuttle and a meal credit, but it was a lot less stressful knowing I could pay for it with my Platinum card if needed.
Rental car insurance
American Express offers rental car insurance as part of the benefits of many cards⁴, but the Platinum card offers higher coverage amounts. For example, the Amex Business Platinum card covers up to $75,000 in damage or theft costs, while the Amex Gold card (and Business Gold) covers up to $50,000 in damage or theft costs.
However, these are secondary types of insurance, meaning I must either be covered by my private car insurance or I must purchase primary insurance coverage from the car rental company.
Instead, I upgrade my car insurance to the Premium Car Rental Protection plan from American Express, a paid service that allows me to purchase primary car insurance on a rental car for up to 42 consecutive days—at a flat rate (not per day).
All I have to do is subscribe to this insurance coverage on the Amex website. Then, when I rent a car, the insurance coverage applies automatically – provided I pay for the car rental with my Amex Platinum card.
I have rented several cars over the past few years and have always opted for this coverage. The cost ranges from $12.25 to $24.95 per rental period – while a car rental company’s main insurance coverage can cost up to $50 per day!
As a Florida resident, I have paid as little as $15.25 for a week-long rental on several occasions. This covers up to $100,000 in primary coverage for damage or theft, up to $100,000 for accidental death and disability, up to $15,000 in secondary medical expenses (per passenger), and up to $15,000 for damage to personal property.
- Note. For everyone else, the coverage limit for damage to personal property is $5,000, but as a Florida resident, I get $15,000 in coverage.
With my Amex Business Platinum, I can save hundreds on the cost of primary and secondary insurance – and also have the certainty of having high levels of coverage.
Hertz Status
Another rental car benefit is Hertz’s President’s Circle status. As an Amex Platinum cardholder, I simply applied for President’s Circle status through my American Express benefits portal. Once approved, I was able to take advantage of free car upgrades and Hertz Ultimate Choice® parking at several airports, and choose any available car in that lot.
I was able to get minivans for the price of a basic midsize sedan—saving hundreds of dollars on a week-long rental. And Hertz also offers preferential rates for Amex Platinum cardholders—giving me lower rates than most other car rental companies—and more choices.
I enjoy this advantage and even impressed my family when they came to the site and I said, “Pick any car, any car!”
CLEAR® Plus credit
One time I was late. I only had an hour left before departure.
And I found myself stuck in a nightmarish TSA line at Denver International Airport.
Luckily, I remembered that I had just purchased an Amex Platinum card—and it came with $189 in CLEAR® Plus credit. I quickly grabbed a CLEAR agent, told him I needed to sign up immediately, and became a CLEAR® Plus member in about five minutes.
I was immediately processed through security (much to the chagrin of my colleagues who were waiting in the TSA line), moved to the front of the line, and was through the TSA checkpoint in about eight minutes. I made it to my flight on time and was even able to grab a coffee before boarding.
A few weeks later, the CLEAR® Plus credit was in my Amex account – and I didn’t have to pay a cent. Since then, I’ve used CLEAR® Plus about four or five times and it’s usually a huge time saver. It was another benefit I could use without thinking twice.
