I’m the queen of finding and utilizing as many “rewards” credit cards as possible. After all, it’s “free money”, so why not take advantage of it? As long as you are the type of person who can control their credit card expenditures, and pay off the balance in full each month, the use of credit cards can make you money.

But there are other little-known and rarely advertised benefits associated with many credit cards that consumers can take advantage of. Most are free but some may require a small fee, which naturally you will need to assess your needs and determine whether they are worthwhile for your situation. Bear in mind, you’ll need to contact your card issuer (or comb through the small print in your card agreements) to confirm details for each of your specific cards, but here is a list of these perks:

1. Rental Car Insurance. If you use your credit card to pay for your automobile rental, you may be covered by collision damage waiver (CDW) protection at no charge. To confirm whether this perk applies to your card, call the card issuer and ask whether it comes with CDW coverage. If your regular auto insurance doesn’t afford you coverage on rental cars, you may be able to use your free credit card coverage in place of the $10-$20/day policy offered by the rental agency.

2. Traveler’s Insurance. This is one I’m hopeful I never get to use, but nonetheless it’s a good perk. Use your credit card to book your travel arrangements for your next vacation, and in the unlikely event that a catastrophe occurs, you’ll have up to 1 million of accidental death and dismemberment insurance for your heirs.

3. Purchase Protection. This is a good one. Many cards offer free replacement of an item you’ve bought with your card within a specific time period (typically 90 days or less) if that item is lost, stolen, or even just breaks (if the manufacturer won’t replace it). Naturally, there will be limits on cost, damages covered, etc, so you’d need to contact your card issuer to determine these specifics.

4. Extended Manufacturer’s Warranties. If you use your credit card to purchase certain products, you may be eligible for a free extension of the manufacturers warranty. Instead of letting that salesman talk you into that extra 20% to add another year to your “warranty”, see if your credit card offers this for free. Extended warranties are rarely a good deal, so why pay for one if you don’t have to??

5. International Travel Discounts. When traveling abroad, you’ll have to deal with the exchange of currency at each destination. In many cases, credit cards offer a better exchange rate than we can get as individuals paying a “retail rate”. You’ll want to research in advance what the foreign transaction fees are associated with any card you are considering (these may range from 0 to 3%) and choose accordingly.

6. Lost Luggage Assistance. Another traveling perk, you hope won’t happen to you. But if it does, you may have a toll-free number and folks that can help you stay connected to the status of your luggage search and possibly even provide monetary coverage to assist you in replacing items necessary in the interim.

7. Credit Insurance. This is one of those “perks” that has a fee associated with it, but it is totally voluntary. This may make sense if you have large debt plan to be ill (er, you are in poor health). Credit insurance will ensure that your monthly minimum payments are covered in the event you cannot make your payments due to various reasons (illness, job loss, etc).

8. Price or Retail Protection. In the event you buy something with your card and later find the identical item for less money, you may be eligible for a refund of the difference. Of course, restrictions will apply and there will be a typical 30 to 90 day period which this will apply to, it’s still as sweet deal!

9. Merchandise Discounts. Generally means that some (probably useless) item is available for you for free as a “reward”. Need another travel bag? Probably not. Always select cash as a reward if possible as opposed to merchandise!!!

10. Card Protection Services. Another item that isn’t free, and may or may not be worth your fee. You register all your credit cards so that if your wallet is stolen, you’ve got everything covered in one phone call. If you are a frequent victim of this (or just plain scatterbrained) it might be a service for you!!!

Anyone else have some great perks that we haven’t listed here, please share !!

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