Debbie Fischer

In terms of selecting a specific card, you can check out unsecured options here, and the Credit One Visa in particular is pretty decent. But even decent is expensive when it comes to unsecured credit cards for people with bad credit, and your annual fee could be as high as $75 the first year and $99 thereafter, so you may also want to consider the Capital One Secured MasterCard, which has the potential to be “partially secured,” providing a credit line as high as $3,000 for a deposit as low as $49.

It's unlikely, as this card usually requires at least good credit for approval. You may therefore want to check out our editors' picks for the best starter credit cards: https://wallethub.com/credit-cards/starter/ . In particular, Capital One's Platinum ( https://wallethub.com/d/capital-one-platinum-83c/ ) and QuicksilverOne ( https://wallethub.com/d/quicksilverone-rewards-75c/ ) cards are two of our favorites, as they can be very inexpensive to use. Hope this helps!

You can transfer points from a Chase Sapphire, Sapphire Preferred or Sapphire Reserve credit card to one of Chase’s nine airline partners or simply book a flight on any major airline with points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards website. In other words, there are some official Chase Sapphire airline partners, but most any airline you’ll want to fly on qualifies unofficially.

Here are the official Chase Sapphire airline partners:

• Aer Lingus AerClub
• British Airways Executive Club
• Flying Blue AIR FRANCE KLM
• Iberia Plus
• JetBlue TrueBlue
• Singapore Airlines
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

You can transfer your Chase Sapphire points to any of these airline loyalty programs at a 1:1 ratio. That means 1 Sapphire point for 1 partner mile/point. But you can only do so in 1,000-point increments.

Transferring your earnings to an official airline partner isn’t the only way to turn Chase Sapphire points into airfare, though.

Here are your other Chase Sapphire airline purchase options:

1. Redeem Points Through Chase Ultimate Rewards. You can book flights on pretty much any major airline directly through the Ultimate Rewards portal. This option also allows you to charge part of the flight to your card if you don't have enough points to cover the full fare.
2. Get Cash Back.You can redeem your Chase Sapphire points for a statement credit and use the savings to pay for your plane ticket, wherever you book it. Bear in mind that you need at least 2,000 points to redeem for cash, and your points would be worth 25% more if you redeemed them for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards, so I definitely wouldn’t recommend this method.

Finally, the most obvious of your options doesn't really involve rewards. But it's nevertheless worth noting that all three Chase Sapphire cards can be used to purchase airfare directly from airlines, travel-comparison sites, etc. Besides, paying for a plane ticket could help you reach one of the Sapphire cards' initial spending requirements, thereby earning you a lucrative initial bonus.

No, there is not a Chase Sapphire Preferred authorized user fee. You can add as many authorized users as you want to your Chase Sapphire Preferred account, and neither you nor your authorized users will have to pay any extra money. You’ll only be responsible for the one $95 annual fee that comes with the card ($0 the first year) – the same fee you’d pay if you had no authorized users.

This is another reason why Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of the best rewards credit cards around. Other high-end rewards cards do have authorized user annual fees. They’re usually a lot lower than the main accountholder’s annual fee and are meant to offset some of the rewards an authorized user might earn. But still, it’s not ideal. For example, the Chase Sapphire Reserve Card has a $450 annual fee for the main accountholder and a $75 annual fee for each authorized user.

One downside to adding an authorized user is that you’re responsible for their purchases, but if they behave irresponsibly you can dispute the charges with Chase. In addition, authorized users take up some of your credit line, so keep an eye on your utilization. But in general, adding an authorized user to Chase Sapphire Preferred is a big plus.

Just about. Mastercard and Visa are the giants in this business, so they both have their logos plastered almost everywhere a card's accepted. That's why it's a good idea to have one of each.

Yes, the Chase Sapphire rental car insurance is very good. When you pay for a rental car with your Chase Sapphire, Sapphire Preferred, or Sapphire Reserve card, you are covered against collision damage and theft. Chase will pay out up to the cash value of the car you rented, depending on the situation. And coverage is completely free. You don’t even need to sign up. Just having a Sapphire card, using it to pay for your rental, and declining the rental agency’s supplemental insurance is enough.

But as you might expect, there are a few exceptions. The biggest have to do with the type of car you rent and where you drive it.

These types of vehicles are not covered by Chase Sapphire rental car insurance:

• Expensive/exotic cars (e.g. Aston Martin, DeLorean, Lamborghini)
  
• Antique vehicles (20+ years old or not manufactured for 10+ years)
  
• Large vans (designed for 9+ people)
  
• Trucks
  
• Vehicles with open beds
  
• Motorcycles/motorbikes/mopeds
  
• Limousines
  
• Recreational vehicles (RVs)

But the vast majority of cars are eligible. If it’s not on the exceptions list, you should be good…assuming you handle your rental responsibly, that is. Most of the situations that are excluded from coverage relate to things you shouldn’t be doing.

Chase Sapphire rental car insurance will not cover:

• Damage resulting from intoxicated driving
  
• Damage caused by driving off road
  
• Seizure by police
  
• Regular wear and tear/breakdown
  
• Loss of your personal belongings in the car

There’s more, if you want to read the full rental car insurance portion of the Chase Sapphire benefits guide. I know I won’t be doing that again anytime soon. But it’s good to know what’s covered and what isn’t.

Just take it from @annaq2, who said: “Our accident was in England, but Chase still covered it. Chase card services were quick with communication, and although it took a little while to sort, they paid us back within 3 weeks of the charge to our credit card. It's miraculous to me that a credit card company actually stood behind one of their insurance benefit claims.”

I think that last line really sums up how worthwhile Chase Sapphire rental car insurance is. And filing a claim really does seem to be easy.

Here’s how to file a Chase Sapphire rental car insurance claim:

1.     Call the Chase Sapphire Benefits Administrator within 60 days of the incident. They can be reached at 1-888-320-9961. They’ll ask you to describe the basics of the incident so they can sent you the appropriate paperwork.

2.     Complete the claim form within 100 days of the incident. You’ll also have to provide any other materials Chase requests, like the rental agreement, police reports, and photographs of the damage.

3.     Wait for Chase’s decision. If they agree your claim is valid, they should pay the claim within 15 days of receiving and approving it.

So, the next time you rent a car with your Chase Sapphire card (or Chase Ultimate Rewards points), I recommend you decline the renter’s insurance offer. Chase Sapphire rental car insurance is all you need in most situations.

Please note that the Capital One® Spark® Cash for Business credit card is designed for business owners with excellent credit scores. Thus, if you and your partner have excellent credit you can apply for this credit card. If not, you could consider the Spark® Classic for Business which is designed for business owners with fair credit or no credit history at all. Please find more details here: https://wallethub.com/d/capital-one-spark-classic-89c/. Hope this helps!

The Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus is 50,000 points when you spend at least $4,000 on purchases within 3 months of opening an account. Chase Sapphire Preferred’s bonus points are worth $500 in cash, if you opt for a statement credit. But you can get 25% more – $625 in total – if you redeem for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards.

There’s a second Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus opportunity, too. You’ll get 10,000 bonus points ($125 in travel) for each friend you invite to apply for Chase Sapphire Preferred who opens an account. You can earn up to 50,000 points ($625 in travel) per year that way. Just go to Chase’s refer-a-friend website to get started.

Finally, you get bonus points (2 per $1 spent) whenever you use your card for travel and dining expenses.

Here are the details of Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus offers:

• Initial bonus: 50,000 points ($625 in travel) when you spend $4,000 in the first 3 months.
• Referral bonus: 10,000 points ($125 in travel) for every friend you refer who gets approved for the card. You can refer an unlimited number of people but can only earn 50,000 points per year.
• Spending bonus: You get 2 points per $1 on travel and dining purchases, plus 1 point per $1 on everything else.
• Authorized user bonus: No longer available – used to be 5,000 points for adding an authorized user.

It takes six to eight weeks for a Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus to show up in your account, from when you meet the spending requirement. So don’t stress if you don’t see it right away. That goes for both the initial bonus and referral bonuses. But you should see your bonus points from dining and travel purchases in your account after your statement closes each month.

Understanding the value of the Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus offers is key to fully appreciating what the card brings to the table. Its $95 annual fee (starting the second year) doesn’t seem so high when you consider that the initial bonus has you covered for at least seven years. And earning just one referral bonus each year after that will more than cover the fee. All of these bonuses are a big reason why Sapphire Preferred is considered one of the best credit card deals around. And they help explain why you need excellent credit to get it.

Yes, there are. The following cards don’t require a bank account, as all three allow you to fund your deposit via money order:

OpenSky Secured Credit Card: https://wallethub.com/d/credit-card-503c/

Harley-Davidson Secured Credit Card: https://wallethub.com/d/harley-davidson-secured-credit-card-444c/

Wells Fargo Secured Credit Card: https://wallethub.com/d/wells-fargo-secured-credit-card-2123c/

Best wishes on rebuilding!

Capital One Spark Cash for Business is one of the best options, as it offers a range of business benefits such as year-end summaries, employee cards at no extra cost and experienced small business customer service.

Plus, it offers 2% cash back on every purchase and a one-time $500 cash bonus once you spend $4,500 on purchases within the first 3 months.

You can also compare other business credit cards at: https://wallethub.com/best-business-credit-card/.