The other day, you reached for your wallet and realised that you had lost it. And your wallet contained credit cards from three different banks, debit cards from two banks, besides your PAN card. Now, if you are methodical, you would call up each bank and report the cards missing for them to be blocked and then get around to applying for new ones.

But it’s harder if you are instead prone to panic or are pressed for time. Here, card protection plans offered by players such as CPP India and OneAssist come to your aid.

One call only In a card protection plan, you have to register the details of all your credit and debit cards, and other identification cards, such as driver’s licence or PAN card.

If you lose any or all of these, you can simply call the plan provider who will then set about blocking the cards for you and helping you get them replaced. There is no limit on the number of cards you can register under the plan, either. Besides, PAN cards will be replaced for free. OneAssist will also help replace your driver’s licence, again, free of charge.

This is the primary benefit of card protection plans. The next rung of benefits pertains to protection against fraudulent transactions made on your card, up to a limit. CPP India’s Classic plan, for example, which costs ₹1,399, offers fraud protection up to ₹1,00,000. Cover begins 15 days before the date you reported the cards’ loss.

OneAssist’s protection begins seven days prior to reporting the loss. But if your card is misused after reporting the loss, transactions which involve PIN or password authorisations or by family members you have entrusted your card details to will not be covered. The next benefit is that you will get emergency cash advance, emergency settling of hotel bills, or ticket replacements, if you need it. The amounts for each depend on the plan chosen and whether you are in India or abroad. For instance, CPP’s Premium plan provides ₹20,000 cash assistance, will settle hotel bills or replace tickets up to ₹1.2 lakh overseas and ₹60,000 in India. These benefits are , however, the discretion of the plan provider. The amount advanced must also be repaid within 28 days. Yet another benefit is that the SIM card of your phone will be blocked if you happen to lose it. OneAssist’s plan allows you to store documents with it too.

Now, most credit and debit cards already come with zero liability on lost cards. Limits are specified for debit cards and for credit cards, it usually is up to the credit limit you have. So, a similar benefit being offered by card protection plans doesn’t add much. Plans are also valid for only one year, and starting prices of ₹1,299 for OneAssist and ₹1,399 for CPP India don't come cheap either.

When to choose

So, when does it make sense to go for such plans? Well, if you don’t mind forking out the money, card protection plans make good sense if you hold multiple credit or debit cards, issued by more than one bank. For frequent travellers too, these plans are useful. The plans remove the hassle of calling bank after bank, especially if you are pressed for time or are travelling. You do have assistance services offered by card players American Express, Visa, and MasterCard. American Express, for example, provides emergency medical support, cash advances, referrals for lawyers or relaying of urgent messages back home, under its Global Assist facility.

But such services can come at a fee; if you have multiple cards from different providers, your total cost shoots up. Similarly, travel insurance plans offer emergency assistance, but can again involve higher premiums and don’t suit your purpose much if you are a frequent traveller. But note that plans from both CPP India and OneAssist automatically renew each year.

If you cancel the membership within 30 days of renewal, you get a full refund. Beyond this, depending on when you do cancel, you will wind up forfeiting between half to the entire amount.

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