The best American Express Platinum card benefits are baggage insurance and return protection. The Platinum Card® from American Express also has extended warranty and purchase protection, which are more common perks across American Express cards.

American Express Platinum card Benefits

• Baggage insurance
• Return protection
• Extended warranty
• Purchase protection
• Lowest hotel rates guarantee
• Instant card numbers
• Rental car insurance
• Airport lounge access
• Air travel fees reimbursement
• Statement credits for eligible hotel bookings

Along with these benefits, the American Express Platinum card has a $695 annual fee and gives rewards on all purchases. As long as you have good credit, The Platinum Card® from American Express is certainly a card to consider adding to your wallet.

Yes, the American Express Platinum card does offer 100,000 points for spending $6,000 in the first 6 months.

The initial 100,000 points are worth enough to offset the cost of the American Express Platinum card's hefty $695 annual fee, at least for the first year. In addition to the welcome offer, the American Express Platinum card offers many other benefits and extensive ongoing rewards: 5 points per $1 on flights booked with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 spent per year), 5 points per $1 spent on prepaid hotels booked through Amex, and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases.

Once you've met the spending requirement ($6,000 in the first 6 months) for the American Express Platinum card's bonus, the points will post to your account within 8-12 weeks.

The American Express Concierge Service works as a virtual assistant, helping cardholders secure concert tickets, deliver flowers, make reservations, and much more. It is an exclusive benefit for the American Express Platinum card, the Centurion® Card from American Express, the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card and the Hilton Honors American Express Card cardholders. You can contact the concierge service by phone at (800) 525-3355 or by sending an email.

There are no service charges for using the Amex concierge, as it's a complimentary benefit. Any purchases required to complete your request are charged to your credit card. Most cardholders report getting their requests completed within a couple of hours or days.

Here are some of the types of requests you can make:

• Restaurant reservations
• Concert, movies and events tickets
• Travel and tour bookings
• Gift shopping and delivery
• Help planning an event
• Research for special requests
• Help finding a doctor, lawyer, plumber, handyman, etc.

You'll likely have more success with some types of requests than others. According to cardholders, if you make a travel booking request, you'll generally just be referred to Amex Travel. On the other hand, cardholders have found great success when submitting requests for things like concert and event tickets. If given enough notice, the concierge can get tickets the second they go on sale. Even better, when the concierge secures tickets, you don't have to pay any Ticketmaster service fees.

American Express also states the concierge can be used for personalized gift-shopping. You can provide some basic information about the person you need a gift for, and they'll do the gifting for you. Requests you make through the concierge will never be shared with anyone, including any authorized users on your card, so you can rest assured no surprises will be ruined.

While there's not much information regarding the parameters of what requests you can and can't make, many cardholders said that it mostly depends on who your assigned concierge is from one request to the next. In general, the American Express concierge can be a valuable benefit for those who don't want to spend time making reservations or gift-shopping.

The American Express Platinum card benefits at Hertz include reduced rates and other privileges on Hertz car rentals. The American Express Platinum card also offers free membership in the Hertz Gold Plus rewards program. Some of the best benefits you get at Hertz with this card are:

• Free one-car-class upgrades.
• Expedited service.
• Up to 4 hours grace period when returning the vehicle late with no penalty.
• Automatic 15% - 25% discount on all rentals, along with Hertz points.
• Pick pretty much any car you want, without a reservation.
• Add your spouse/partner as a driver.

To get the benefits, just pay for a Hertz rental with your American Express Platinum card and include “CDP #211762” in your reservation.

Yes, the American Express Platinum card does have travel insurance benefits, the best of which are trip cancellation and interruption insurance and car rental loss and damage insurance. To be eligible to file a travel insurance claim, you'll need to pay for your travel using your American Express Platinum card.

Types of American Express Platinum card Travel Insurance

• Trip delay insurance: This benefit reimburses you for necessary expenses – such as a hotel room, for example – if your trip is delayed for more than 6 hours.
• Trip cancellation/interruption insurance: This benefit covers your trip for unforeseen cancellations or for interruptions that cut your trip short. It only applies to pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses.
• Lost/damaged baggage insurance: If your luggage is lost or stolen, you can get reimbursed for the contents of the luggage up to $3,000 for carry-on baggage and up to $2,000 for checked baggage, per covered person.
• Rental car insurance: This benefit covers the cardholder for damage to the rental vehicle that results from collision or theft.

Exclusions and coverage limits apply to many of these benefits, so make sure to check your American Express Platinum card's guide to benefits for more details on each type of insurance.

The American Express Platinum card Uber benefit is up to $200 in Uber credit annually: up to $15 in credit per month, plus a $20 bonus in December (up to $35 total). Cardholders are automatically enrolled when adding the American Express Platinum card to their Uber account.

The American Express Platinum card Uber credit post to the Uber app (for iOS and Android) on the first day of each month. Unused credit expire at midnight on the last day of the month (HST) and will not roll over to the following month. Aside from the Uber Cash benefit, you also gain access to Uber VIP in select locations.

Here's what you should know about the American Express Platinum card benefit:

• What you get:
  Up to $200 in Uber Cash for rides or Uber Eats orders – up to $15 in credit per month, plus a $20 bonus in December (up to $35 total). You'll also become an Uber VIP and be matched with top-rated drivers, where available.
• How to get it:
  Add the American Express Platinum card as a payment method to your Uber account. You must add your card through the Uber App (for iOS or Android).
   
  The American Express Platinum card Uber Cash benefit posts to the app by 5 p.m. HST, on the first day of each month. If you do not see it there, simply call the number on the back of your card.
• How to use it:
  In order to use the American Express Platinum card Uber benefit, the “Uber Cash” function at the top of the app must be enabled. This will allow you to apply credit to the cost of the ride when booking.
   
  To check how much Uber credit you have left for the month, tap the Uber Cash Balance menu icon in top left corner of the app. If there aren't enough Uber credit to cover the cost of the ride, Uber will charge the difference to the American Express Platinum card linked to your account.
   
  Cardholders can use the Uber app to apply credit to the cost of rides anywhere in the U.S., but only primary accountholders are eligible for this free benefit – not authorized users.
• Expiry:
  The American Express Platinum card Uber Cash benefit expires at 11:59 p.m. HST, on the last day of each month. Unused credit balance does not carry over to the following month.

As you can see, whether you prefer a free meal or rides to the airport for your next trip, you have multiple solid options when it comes to how you redeem your American Express Platinum card's Uber credits each month.

The American Express Platinum card car rental insurance covers cardholders for up to $75,000 in collision damage and theft for vehicles rented with the American Express Platinum card or American Express rewards points. To get the American Express Platinum card car rental insurance coverage, you must decline the rental agency's supplemental insurance policy. To make a American Express Platinum card rental car insurance claim, call (800) 338-1670 within 30 days of a covered incident.

There are a few exceptions you should be aware of, though. And there are more details about the process you'll need to follow to actually get your money. You can find the key points below.

Here's more info about the American Express Platinum card car rental insurance:

• You're covered up to $75,000 per claim for collision damage or theft.
• You must pay for the entire rental with your American Express Platinum card or rewards points.
• You must decline the rental agency's insurance policy.
• The following types of vehicles are not covered by American Express Platinum card rental car insurance:
   
  Cargo vans, vans that carry 9+ people, box trucks, trucks that weight 10k+ lbs., modified vehicles (except for handicapped accessibility), antiques, limos, off-road vehicles, motorcycles/motorbikes/mopeds, RVs, golf carts, and a few others.
• The following situations and types of damage are not covered by American Express Platinum card rental insurance:
   
  Manufacturing defects, wear and tear, damage from illegal activities, accidents caused by driver's intoxication, seizure by authorities, damage by war, and a few others.
• To make an American Express Platinum card rental car insurance claim, call (800) 338-1670 within 30 days of the incident. If you're abroad, collect at (303) 273-6497.
   
  Amex will then mail you instructions for what to do next. You'll have 60 days to return any proof they request, which may include damage estimates, police reports, etc.

The American Express Platinum card rental car insurance will reimburse you within 90 days of American Express receiving your proof of the incident. Before you rent a car with your American Express Platinum card, you should take some time to read through the benefits guide. It will give you the full information.

The American Express Platinum card airline credit pays you back for up to $200 in fees from one airline every year. This credit applies to fees charged for things like checked baggage, date changes, pet travel, in-flight purchases and more. To get the American Express Platinum card airline credit, you just have to tell American Express which airline you want the credit to apply to. Then, Amex will automatically reimburse you with statement credits after that airline charges fees to your card. To choose your airline, simply log in to your Amex account, or call their Travel Service at (800) 263-1616.

Here's how the American Express Platinum card airline credit works:

• Amex automatically gives you $200 per year for fees from one specific airline.
• You can choose your preferred airline by logging in to your account on American Express Travel Online and selecting from the dropdown menu. Alternatively, you can call the American Express Platinum card Travel Service at (800) 263-1616.
• You can select your preferred airline at any time during the first year your account is open. But you can't change your pick whenever you want. You can only make a change from January 1 to January 31 each year. Otherwise, Amex will use the same airline you picked previously.
• Unused airline credits do not roll over from year to year. You get no more than $200 each year.
• The American Express Platinum card airline credit covers fees for: baggage, date changes, bringing pets, picking your seat ahead of time, reservations by phone, in-flight purchases (food, drinks, entertainment), and extra guest passes for airport lounges.
• The card's airline credit does not apply to: airfare, services provided by third parties (e.g. Wi-Fi), gift cards, fees for transferring points, using a travel agent, duty-free purchases or insurance.

With this card's airline credit, you don't need to worry about $200 in fees that you'd normally have to pay out of pocket each year. Plus, aside from designating which airline you want the credit for, you don't have to do anything to redeem.

Your first $200 in eligible charges each year will automatically be taken care of. Your transaction history will show “AMEX Airline Fee Reimbursement,” with the dollar amount Amex subtracted from your balance.

The American Express Platinum card Priority Pass benefit gives you access to more than 1,300 airport lounges around the world. It's a $429-per-year value. Plus, Priority Pass is just one of the six chains of airport lounges that American Express Platinum card gives you access to for free. It also gets you into the Centurion Lounge, International American Express Lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges, Delta SkyClub, Airspace and Escape Lounges. You can use the Amex lounge finder tool to see which lounges are in the airport you're headed to.

Out of all the lounge programs you get access to with the American Express Platinum card, Priority Pass is special because it's the only one that requires enrollment. You'll need a membership card, not just the American Express Platinum card, to enter Priority Pass lounges.

Here's how to get your American Express Platinum card Priority Pass benefit:

1. Log into your Amex account with your username and password.
2. Select the "Membership" tab, then click "Benefits."
3. Find the Priority Pass section and click "Enroll in Priority Pass Select."
4. Wait for your card to arrive. It should take 10-14 business days.

If you don't want to enroll online, you can do it over the phone at (800) 801 6564. Once you receive your membership card in the mail, just show it at the entrance to any Priority Pass lounge and you'll be admitted. You can bring in guests, too, although individual lounges can limit the number of people you're allowed. Once inside, you'll get to enjoy amenities like free food and beverages, Wifi, comfortable seating, and more.  

The American Express Platinum card annual fee is $695 per year. American Express Platinum card's $695 annual fee is higher than the average annual fee among new credit card offers right now. It's not the only fee you need to worry about with The Platinum Card® from American Express, either.

American Express Platinum card Fees

• Annual Fee: $695
• Cash Advance Fee: 5% (min $10)
• Foreign Fee: 0%
• Max Late Fee: $40