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How to Use Chase Ultimate Rewards Points for Rental Cars

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You can get free flights and hotels in Hawaii. You can also get free rental cars. Here’s how to use Chase Ultimate Rewards points for rental cars in Hawaii.

Imagine cruising along the Pacific Ocean in a convertible. The sun shining on your face, the cool breeze blowing through your hair as the waves crashing softly into the white sand beach. Sounds great, right?

What if that rental car was free?

Even better.

You can use Chase Ultimate Rewards points to pay for your rental car in Hawaii.

Pro-tip: You can also redeem points to rent cars throughout the world.

How to Use Chase Ultimate Rewards Points for Rental Cars in Hawaii

Rear view of smiling young woman enjoying scenery while her boyfriend sitting near on front seat of their convertible

You can get a free trip to Hawaii by using miles and points for airfare and hotels AND car rentals.

Here’s how to use points for free rental cars.

Some point programs let you redeem your travel expenses as statement credits. While others like Chase Ultimate Rewards, let you pay for your car rental with points.

In this post, you’ll learn how to redeem Ultimate Rewards for rental cars in Hawaii and other cities.

This is the third post in the four-part series on how to use Chase Ultimate Rewards points for Hawaii.

It’s easy to rent a car using Chase Ultimate Rewards points. There are lots of ways to earn Ultimate Rewards points, so redeeming them for car rentals makes a lot of sense. Because you can save cash and book a rental car for points.

Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

These are all the cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

Chase Freedom Unlimited®

With the Chase Freedom Unlimited®, you can earn an additional 1.5% cash back on all your purchases your first year up to $20,000, 5% cash back on travel booked through the Chase travel portal, 3% cash back at drugstores and restaurants, and 1.5% cash back on all other purchases without an annual fee. Plus you can transfer points to cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card.

Learn more about the Chase Freedom Unlimited® and how to apply

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns a 60,000 point bonus when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of opening your account.

You earn 5X points on travel when booked through the Chase portal (2 when booked direct), 3X points on dining, and 1 point on all other purchases.

Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer on a 1:1 basis to 13 participating partners like Hyatt, United, and Southwest. There are no foreign transaction fees on purchases outside the US.

Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and how to apply

Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card

The Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card earn a 60,000 point bonus when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.

You get a $300 annual travel credit, 10X points on car rentals and hotels booked through the Chase portal (3X booked direct), 5X points on airfare, 3X points on dining, and 1 point on all other purchases. You also get free airport lounge access and can redeem points for 1.5 cents on travel purchases. You can transfer points on a 1:1 basis to 13 partners like Southwest and Hyatt. Plus there are no foreign transaction fees.

Learn more about the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card and how to apply

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card earns a 100,000 point bonus when you spend $8,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of account opening. This equals $1,250 in travel when you use your points through the Chase Travel Portal or $1,000 cash back.

You get 3X points on up to $150K on select categories and 1 point on all other eligible purchases. Points are worth 1.5 cents towards travel. Or you can transfer to 13 participating partners like Hyatt and United.

Learn more about the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card and how to apply

Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card

With the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card, you can earn a $750 bonus when you spend $6,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of opening your account. This is worth 75,000 Ultimate Rewards points.

You earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on purchases made for your business and can transfer points to cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card, all without an annual fee.

Learn more about the Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card and how to apply

Ink Business Cash® Credit Card

The Ink Business Cash® Credit Card earns a bonus of $750 when you spend $6,000 in purchases in the first three months of opening your account.

You get 5% cash back at office supply stores, internet, cable, and phone services on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases, 2% cash back at restaurants and gas stations on the first $25,000 spent on combined purchases, and 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.

Maximize the value of your points by transferring points to cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card and Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card.

Learn more about the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card and how to apply

How to Book a Rental Car in Hawaii With the Chase Travel Portal

You can use your Chase Ultimate Rewards points to book a hotel in Hawaii through the Chase portal. Here’s how…

Step 1. Log In

Log in to your Chase account.

Choose your Chase card with the highest value when redeeming points. Click the “redeem” link under “Ultimate Rewards” on the right side of your screen.

Or click the blue “Ultimate Rewards” box and choose your Chase card with the highest point redemption value.

Step 2. Choose Travel or Redeem for Travel

Choose Travel from the top menu or “Redeem for travel” in the dashboard in the Ultimate Rewards portal.

Then click on the “Cars” link.

Step 3. Search for a Rental Car

Enter the pickup and drop off location, travel dates, and times.

Use the Advanced Options link if you have a preferred car type and/or rental car company.

Click the green “Search” box.

Step 4. Choose Your Rental Car

Chose your rental car from the options provided.

You can narrow the search by using the “filter cars by” feature on the left side of the screen. You can filter by car type, price, rental car company, and specifics like manual transmission, and air conditioning.

For faster sorting, click the “Price” link in the Sort by section to filter by lowest price.

Pro-tip: Be sure and compare rental car prices from other sites like Expedia and Costco.

Step 5. Pay With Points

Once you’ve selected your rental car you can pay with points, cash, or points plus cash. Both the cash rate and the points rate are shown.

When you check out, you choose how many points you want to redeem for your car rental.

There’s no minimum amount of points required. You can use 1 Chase Ultimate Rewards point to pay for your rental car.

Choose your payment option and confirm your rental car booking.

Pro-tip: When you use points to pay for your rental car in Hawaii, your credit card auto insurance policy usually won’t cover the rental.

Because you’re paying with points vs paying with cash. Your personal auto insurance policy will cover rentals in the United States.

If you rent outside the US and pay with your points, you’ll have to pay for insurance coverage.

Pro-tip: When not renting in Hawaii, here’s how to get $5 car rentals.

Credit Cards that Provide Insurance for Rental Cars

You can save a lot of money by declining the optional insurance on rental cars. But only do so if you have a personal auto insurance policy or have a credit card that provides insurance for car rentals.

Some credit cards offer collision damage waiver (CDW) insurance. This means they’ll reimburse you if you damage the rental.

But coverage can vary depending on the credit card.

Some cards offer primary coverage which pays for everything. While others offer secondary coverage which requires your personal auto insurance, homeowners, or other insurance to pay first before the credit card company will pay.

These credit cards offer primary insurance on car rentals:

Pro-tip: Some countries prohibit credit card companies from providing primary coverage. Check with your credit card before your rental to make sure you have the right coverage.

*Eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered, and geographic restrictions apply. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for details. Policies are underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.

These business credit cards also provide primary CDW insurance:

You have to pay for the rental with your business card and be on a business trip. Otherwise, you void the CDW policy

Conclusion

You can get a free Hawaii vacation using miles and points for flights, hotels, and car rentals. You can use Chase Ultimate Rewards points for rental cars in Hawaii and other cities.

Redeeming points for car rentals is easy through the Chase Travel Portal. In less than 5 minutes you can book and pay for your rental car with Ultimate Rewards points.

There are lots of ways to earn points. But the fastest way is from a bonus on cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred, Chase Sapphire Reserve, and the Ink Preferred.

You have the option to pay for your rental using all points, a combination of points and cash, or cash. There’s no minimum amount of points required. So you could use as few as 1 point!

Where have you used Chase Ultimate Rewards points for rental cars?

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Traveling Well For Less has partnered with Your Best Credit Cards for our coverage of credit card products. Traveling Well For Less and YBCC may receive a commission from card issuers.


Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the best card to get started in the world of miles and points. It is the first card you should get to start traveling for free because the welcome offer is 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first three months.
 
My favorite perks about this card are earning 5X points on travel when booked through the Chase portal (2X if direct purchase), 3X points on dining, $50 yearly credit on hotels booked through the Chase portal, no foreign transaction fees, and transferring points to 13 airline and hotel partners like Hyatt, United, and Southwest.
 

Chase Freedom Unlimited®

The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is one of my favorite cards for earning cash back card and travel rewards. It offers a welcome offer of an additional 1.5% cash back on all your purchases up to $20,000 your first year.
 
My favorite perks about this card are earning 5% cash back on travel booked through the Chase Travel Portal, 3% cash back at drugstores and restaurants (including delivery and takeout), 1.5% cash back on all other purchases and no annual fee. When paired with cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card or Ink Business Cash® Credit Card, you can use your points to travel for free.
 

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craig

Saturday 22nd of June 2019

seems to be a problem though with chase ultimate rewards with renting cars I have check places like sydney australia, melbourne, and aruba and there is no ability to rent cars with your points find it no problem with Expedia but when using ultimate rewards nothing is found even called in they couldn't find anything either and they didn't know why is there a reason for this that you know of?

Debra Schroeder

Saturday 12th of October 2019

Hi Craig,

I haven't tried renting a car with points in Sydney or Melbourne. Public transportation is great in both cities and they are very walkable so I didn't rent cars in either one.

Just looked and you're right, I couldn't find a rental car through the portal in Sydney, Melbourne, or Aruba. But I was able to find rental cars using Chase Ultimate Rewards points in several other cities like London, Rome, Madrid, and Helsinki. Looks like they aren't available in some countries.

Nish

Wednesday 20th of March 2019

Getting reward points is the best. I use AMEX, and have enjoyed some great benefits using the card.

Debra Schroeder

Thursday 21st of March 2019

Hi Nish,

Glad to hear it!

Gavin

Wednesday 20th of March 2019

That’s the one thing (other than amazon prime) that I miss about living in the states. We used to use our AMEX and Delta all the time to travel on the cheap. Sadly OZ ain’t as good with rewards as America is

Debra Schroeder

Thursday 21st of March 2019

Hi Gavin,

True, we have more travel rewards cards in the US. I think OZ has been adding more cards, there are even a few Australian miles and points blogs.

Alisha

Wednesday 13th of March 2019

I didn't start credit card hacking until this year and because of it, I was able to fly at a discounted rate. Chase is the best one I have heard but I am currently using Amex gold.

Debra Schroeder

Wednesday 20th of March 2019

Hi Alisha,

Credit card rewards are awesome! They're on the best ways to travel more for less. :)

Dalene Ekirapa

Wednesday 13th of March 2019

I'm a fan of such loyalty programs. Currently, I'm using my loyalty card hoping to get a free international trip come December as a reward.

Debra Schroeder

Wednesday 20th of March 2019

Hi Dalene,

That's awesome! Hope you have a great trip.

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