What is "Signature"?

[bigbang91]

How do you know whether your card is Visa signature or not?

I have Amex BC,BOA travel reward, CHASE United explorer+freedom

[TheConductor]

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@too-much-time wrote:

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@azguy13 wrote:

Basically it offers good purchase protection, concierge service, and ...

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My United Explorer card is not Signature, and yet it has purchase protection and concierge service!

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Card issuers do have the ability to add some Signature benefits to Platinum tier cards a la carte. But as far as what is available by default, those features are Signature-only.  

As far as what is included in the Signature tier that is not automatically included in other tiers, this chart from Visa breaks it down pretty simply:

http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/benefits/index.html

[TheConductor]

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@bigbang91 wrote:

How do you know whether your card is Visa signature or not?

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The Visa Signature version of the Visa logo will appear on the card.  If it's Visa Signature, it will say so in plain English.

[Pat94108]

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@bigbang91 wrote:

How do you know whether your card is Visa signature or not?

I have Amex BC,BOA travel reward, CHASE United explorer+freedom

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I am pretty sure there is the term "signature" under the VISA logo on cards that are Signature. You can't have signature on an AMEX it's a VISA thing. The equivalent for MC is World MC.

[09Lexie]

Signature status is for Visa cardholders only. The issuing bank has some flexibility on the benefits. World or World Elite is for MC .

The cards and your welcome kit will indicate signature status.

[JSS3]

I have a $4,000 Chase Amazon visa signature with no annual fee. 

[longtimelurker]

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@JSS3 wrote:

I have a $4,000 Chase Amazon visa signature with no annual fee. 

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And I have a $33K Cap One Visa that is just a plain Platinum....

[WillF360]

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@jeffg330 wrote:
OP, congrats on the mortgage and new cards! A great turn around in 18 months

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Thanks Jeffg, I appreciate it.

Thanks everyone else for chiming in. Looks like it wasn't a necessarily dumb question, lol, a lot of good information.  I don't think I'd really use any of the "Signature" services, other than maybe the warranty thing. But I do have the Discover.it for that type of thing.  I like the "Signature" wording, makes it feel really exclusive though.

[takeshi74]

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@WillF360 wrote:

What specifically is a "Signature" card, and how does it differ/help?

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See also:

http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/benefits/index.html

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@WillF360 wrote:
I like the "Signature" wording, makes it feel really exclusive though.

Don't look around too much or you'll find the ubiquity of Signature cards to be disappointing. 

[drkaje]

Two of my Citi cards are world. "Signature" looks cooler but world is actually a higher tier, according to Citi.

FWIW, I've tried using the consierge service a few times and never once were they able to find a better deal than a well executed search.

If a reservation, or any other aspect of a trip were to go wrong..... I'd hope it had been paid for using an Amex charge card. They're incredible advocates and more likely to fix/mitigate a problem while it's still unfolding. Other companies are great at refunds but Amex will find another hotel room and save the trip.