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The Business Platinum Card® from American Express ($595, see rates and fees) routinely ranks as one of the best business credit cards thanks to its great travel benefits, not to mention a welcome bonus that is currently 75,000 points (or even higher for targeted consumers).
But the card also offers many other perks that might not be as familiar to cardholders or those considering getting the card — all for an annual fee that’s just $45 more than the personal Platinum Card® from American Express ($550, see rates and fees).
Here’s a list of some of the card’s best benefits, including many you might not have known about before.
The Basics
As a reminder, here’s the current offer on the card and some of its notable travel benefits:
- The Business Platinum Card currently offers 75,000 points after you spend $15,000 on qualifying purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.
- Annual airline-fee credit of up to $200 on charges by the airline you select
- Annual credit of up to $200 with Dell (for U.S. purchases)
- 5x Membership Rewards points on flights and on eligible hotels booked directly on amextravel.com
- 1.5x points per dollar on eligible purchases of $5,000 or more (up to an additional 1 million points per calendar year)
- 35% Pay with Points bonus when booking airfare through Amex Travel (up to 500,000 additional points per calendar year)
- $100 fee credit for Global Entry or an $85 fee credit for TSA PreCheck every four years
- 17 airline and hotel transfer partners
- Access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection, which includes Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges and Delta Sky Clubs
- Complimentary Gold elite status at Hilton and Marriott Hotels
- Complimentary memberships in Hertz Gold Plus Rewards, Avis Preferred and National Car Rental Emerald Club Executive
- Access to Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts
- International Airline Program airfare purchase discounts
- No foreign transaction fees
- $595 annual fee (see rates and fees)
- Terms apply
The newest Centurion Lounge location is at Philadelphia Airport.
Lesser-Known Benefits
Now that we’ve got the banner travel benefits out of the way, let’s get into the nitty-gritty perks that cardholders might not be taking advantage of, or even know they have.
Trip cancellation and interruption insurance: If you book a round-trip flight entirely with your eligible card and the flight is canceled for a “covered reason” — including inclement weather, terrorist action, call to jury duty, sudden illness or injury to you or an eligible traveler — you may receive reimbursement of nonrefundable travel expenses of up to $10,000 per trip, with a maximum of up to $20,000 per eligible account for each consecutive 12-month period. This was included in the perks added to higher-end Amex cards as of Jan. 1, 2020.
Trip delay insurance: This was another perk added as of Jan. 1. Trip delay protection covers round-trip flights purchased entirely with an eligible card. (This includes using the card to pay taxes and fees on award tickets or Pay With Points tickets.) If your trip is delayed by more than six hours because of a covered reason, this perk will reimburse unexpected expenses — such as meals, lodging and personal-use items — up to $500 per trip.
Lost or stolen baggage insurance: Like many other travel cards, this one offers insurance for lost or stolen bags. When you use your card to purchase the entire fare on a common carrier, coverage is provided up to $2,000 for checked baggage and up to a combined maximum of $3,000 for checked and carry-on baggage. The coverage is also subject to a $3,000 aggregate limit per covered trip. For New York State residents, there’s a $2,000 limit per bag/suitcase for each covered person with a $10,000 aggregate maximum for all people per trip.
The Business Platinum Amex provides coverage if luggage is lost or stolen. (Photo by John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Car rental loss and damage insurance: This is secondary rental insurance, rather than the primary insurance offered by other cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve, but will cover you up to $75,000 for damage or theft.
Purchase protection: This oft-overlooked benefit gives cardholders coverage up to 90 days from the date of purchase if an item is stolen, accidentally damaged or lost. The coverage is limited up to $10,000 per occurrence, and up to $50,000 per account per calendar year.
Extended warranty: This benefit adds up to one extra year to the original manufacturer’s warranty of five years or less. Coverage is up to $10,000 per item and $50,000 per account per calendar year.
Return protection: Return protection provides refunds to cardholders when a merchant won’t take back an eligible item up to 90 days from purchase. The benefit applies to eligible purchases charged entirely to your card up to $300 per item, and up to a maximum of $1,000 per account per calendar year, based on the date of purchase.
Enjoy peace of mind when you shop with your Business Platinum card.
Pay Over Time Feature: This is especially handy for small-business owners whose cash flow might be irregular at times. If eligible, cardholders can enroll and pay certain purchases over time, though they do accrue interest on the balance, as with a credit card (remember, the Business Platinum is a charge card on which you generally cannot carry a balance).
Concierge: Cardholders have access to a special phone service that can assist with tasks such as booking restaurants and events, or delivering items on demand. You must call to activate this benefit, but you can also sign up for texting for more convenience.
The card comes with a concierge service.
Preferred Seating Program: Thanks to Amex’s connections, its high-end cardholders get access to premium seats for cultural and sporting events based on availability — including some impossible-to-get tickets like Hamilton.
Premium Private Jet Program: Delta and Amex teamed up in 2016 to provide this benefit through which Platinum, Business Platinum and Centurion cardholders can purchase the Delta Private Jets Card for a reduced price of $50,000 (instead of the standard $100,000). Standard memberships come with 20% discounts on full-fare tickets for scheduled Delta flights as well as automatic Diamond Medallion status. You’ll also enjoy perks like a 3% Preferred bonus added to the value of the card, an inflight catering credit up to $250 per trip and a credit toward transfer services of up to $200 per trip.
(Image courtesy of Delta Private Jets)
Connect to QuickBooks: Amex business cardholders get this perk, which automatically logs transactions using their associated card to their Quickbooks account daily, which makes keeping track of purchases and expenses that much easier.
InCircle: This is Neiman Marcus’s loyalty program. When you enroll your Business Platinum Card with InCircle, you receive 1 point for every dollar of eligible purchases charged on your card at Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Last Call, Horchow or Cusp. For every 10,000 points you earn, you’ll get a $100 InCircle Point Card. Points are not awarded for the costs of sales tax, shipping, alterations, gift packaging, fur services, repair and cleaning of shoes, handbags, optical, precious jewelry, monogramming, salon products and services, and valet parking.
Departures Magazine: This is a luxury magazine that is published seven times a year exclusively for Platinum Card and Business Platinum Card members.
Bottom Line
Although the Business Platinum Card comes with plenty of widely advertised perks, there are dozens of lesser-known benefits which can add tremendous value to the card if you maximize them. These include travel and purchase protections as well as exclusive access to events, premium travel experiences and more. If you carry the card or are thinking of applying for it, be sure to look through the card’s benefits guide in detail to make sure you will take advantage of all it has to offer.
Additional reporting by Carissa Rawson.
Feature photo by Isabelle Raphael /The Points Guy.
