I used to crack the screen on my smartphone all the time, but I was always too cheap to get it fixed. Eventually, I upgraded to a tougher phone case but even that wasn’t bulletproof against everything. Over the past few years, I’ve managed to drop my phone in the ocean, ‘misplace it’ and even had it stolen once!
As a rideshare driver, I’d argue that your phone is probably your second most important tool (right behind your car) so it makes sense to invest in a solid product and to protect it. Personally, I use a Samsung Galaxy S8+ and love it, but I’ve noticed that iPhones are even more prone to the famous spider-cracked screen, which can make it tougher to do your job and cost you money to get it fixed.
So when I heard about the new Uber Visa Card, issued by Barclays, I was impressed to see the card offered $600 in cell phone insurance among other benefits. Best of all, there was no annual fee.
Disclaimer: I want to be clear that in general, I only recommend applying for a credit card if you’re able to pay off the balance in full every month. There are a lot of benefits and rewards that can be had from signing up for the right credit cards but you need to use them responsibly. Ok enough babysitting, read on!
Mobile Phone Insurance
The Uber Visa Card offers mobile phone insurance of up to $600 for damage and theft, when the card is used to pay the monthly mobile phone bill. This is similar to the insurance that the big carriers offer directly for around $7-$14/month, but it’s completely free to Uber Visa cardholders as long as you pay the entire bill with your card. As you can see below, a lot of drivers are already paying for cell phone insurance (but with much higher deductibles) so this should save you some money right off the bat.
Mobile phone insurance seems like a big deal to me since the Uber Visa Card has no annual fee. Normally, this type of benefit is only seen on premium credit cards that also come with hefty annual fees. So with the Uber Visa Card, you are literally getting paid to use this card.
You can read all the fine print below in the FAQs section, but in short there is only a $25 deductible and you can only make 2 claims per year and no more than $1,200 total. You’ll also receive no more than the suggested retail value of the replacement cell phone, so if you have a 1 year old phone, you’ll receive the current retail price as opposed to the price you paid for it (which was probably more).
Related article: Essential gear every rideshare driver should have
$50 Credit for Subscription Services
I love to consume content so I subscribe to everything from Amazon Prime and Google Music to HBO and Netflix. But even if you’re not as crazy as I am, I’m willing to bet that you subscribe to at least one service and if you spend $5,000 a year on the Uber card, you’ll get a $50 credit for that subscription service.
The most obvious subscription service for rideshare drivers is going to be music since it can get boring listening to the radio for hours at a time, and there are only so many episodes of The Rideshare Guy Podcast. Personally, I use Google Music but I know a lot of drivers use subscription services like Pandora, Spotify, and Sirius XM – all of which are great.
You can see a full list of eligible subscriptions below in the FAQ.
Related: How to Add More Magic to Your Uber Ride with Music
Sign-Up Bonus
You can apply for this card from the Uber rider app or online at Barclay’s website. As of right now, there’s an offer for a $100 sign up bonus after you spend $500 in 90 days. This is a pretty standard bonus offer for your typical no annual fee card and should be pretty easy to hit.
You can also find a list of credit cards for rideshare drivers here.
Rewards for Everyday Purchases
When I’m not working, I love to travel and eat, so the reward categories line up nicely with my spending habits. The Uber Visa Card will get you 4% cash back on dining (including UberEATS), 3% on hotel and airfare, 2% on online purchases (including Uber), and 1% back on everything else.
When it comes to rewards, I think this card is well tailored to your typical millennial Uber passenger who’s going to eat, drink, travel and spend lots of money. 1-2% cash back is pretty typical for the top no annual fee cards, so it’s nice to see a bunch of categories that fall under the 3-4% cash back zone. It would be nice though if Uber rides (2%) were in the 4% category with UberEATS, since I take Uber all the time these days when I don’t want to deal with traffic, parking, etc.
The only rewards category missing for rideshare drivers is gas purchases, since you’ll only get 1% back here. But as we’ve covered in the past, you may be better off paying cash and/or visiting places like Costco in order to get gas since you can save more money that way (even when you take into account the rewards).
Related: Is the Uber Fuel Card Worth It?
Redeeming Cash Back and Rewards
With this card, you can redeem for cash back, Uber credits or gift cards. Uber actually built a cool feature into the passenger app that allows you to redeem your points for ride credits instantly, but there’s no real incentive to do so since 1,000 points = $10 in Uber ride credits OR $10 cash back. I suspect Uber may incentivize passengers more in the future with an extra 25% Uber credit redemption for example, but for now, I think it’s always better to have cash since you can spend it on whatever you want.
Overall, I’d say this is a pretty solid credit card for Uber drivers and Uber passengers. The cell phone insurance, $50 off subscription services and sign-up bonus should save you money right off the bat and if you spend heavily on the card, you’ll end up with a fair amount of rewards.
Looking for more business credit card options for drivers? Check out this list of some of the best credit card options for Uber drivers.
FAQs
Cellular Telephone Protection
What types of things are covered?
Coverage for stolen and damaged cell phones as well as involuntary and accidental parting of your cell phone is provided. Certain terms and conditions apply. Please contact the Benefits Administrator at 866-894-8569 or visit CardBenefitServices.com for additional details.
What amount of coverage and reimbursement will I receive?
Once all other available insurance has been utilized, Cellular Telephone Protection will provide coverage up to six hundred ($600) dollars per claim after the twenty-five ($25.00) dollar deductible, with a maximum of two (2) claims and twelve-hundred ($1,200.00) dollars per twelve (12) month period. You will receive no more than the suggested retail value of the replacement cell phone, up to the program maximum, less the twenty-five ($25) dollar deductible.
How do I file a claim?
You have 90 days to file a claim from the date of the damage or theft. Simply contact the Benefits Administrator at 866-894-8569, outside the U.S. call collect at 1-303-967-1096, or visit CardBenefitServices.com. The Benefits Administrator will ask you some preliminary questions and send you the appropriate claim form.
$50 Online Subscription Credit Anniversary Benefit
What are the eligible online subscription services?
Eligible digital music, video, and shopping subscription services are: Apple Music, Pandora, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Music, Audible, Sirius XM, Netflix, Hulu, HBO NOW, DirecTV NOW, the membership fee for Amazon Prime, and Shoprunner.
Readers, does this sound like a card you’d be interested in using? Do you currently use a rewards or cash-back credit card?
-Harry @ RSG
Read next: Essential gear every rideshare driver should have
