Price Protection Saved Me Hundreds — Reader Success Story

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Today I want to share a story from TPG reader Rob, whose credit card benefits helped him save on a recent purchase when the price dropped:

I bought a large number of LED lights to decorate my house and tree for the holidays (through a shopping portal to maximize that purchase). Since this fell into my non-bonus, everyday spend category, I used my Citi® Double Cash Card for the reliable 2% back.

After Christmas, the lights were available for 50% off, and I was still within the 60-day window for Citi's price protection policy. I filed a Citi Price Rewind claim and it was approved, saving me hundreds of dollars (it was a lot of lights across a couple of orders). Even with the recently lowered limits, the Price Rewind program is one of the more valuable benefits I have on my cards — I also have it on my Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard and Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi.

My advice is to make sure you check the price of seasonal items after you buy, since you can set up a price rewind at any point during the 60-day period!

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The information for the Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Deciding which credit card to use for a given purchase involves more than simply picking the one that earns the most points. Many cards offer benefits like extended warranty and purchase protection that can save you thousands of dollars if something you buy is lost, damaged or fails prematurely. Price protection doesn't pack quite the same punch, since there's a $200 cap on each claim and you can only be reimbursed up to $1,000 annually per account. However, prices change all the time, so price protection is more likely to be useful than the other benefits even if the average claim is smaller.

One impressive aspect of Price Rewind is that it's offered across most of Citi's credit card portfolio, including no-fee options like the Citi Double Cash Card and the new Citi Rewards+ Card. That's a potent benefit for a card with no annual fee, especially since it has relatively few restrictions — Rob's purchase wouldn't have been eligible for price protection from Barclays, for example, since sales of seasonal items like holiday decorations are excluded. Citi's automated Price Rewind tracker is inconsistent, but it's easy to file a claim online when you find a lower price yourself, so altogether I think it's the best available benefit of its kind.

I love this story and I want to hear more like it! In appreciation for sharing this experience (and for allowing me to post it online), I'm sending Rob a $200 airline gift card to enjoy on future travels, and I'd like to do the same for you. Please email your own award travel success stories to info@thepointsguy.com; be sure to include details about how you earned and redeemed your rewards, and put "Reader Success Story" in the subject line. Feel free to also submit your most woeful travel mistakes, or to contribute to our new award redemption series. If your story is published in either case, I'll send you a gift to jump-start your next adventure.

Safe and happy travels to all, and I look forward to hearing from you!