Author Bowtie Team
Updated on 2025-05-28
Disclaimer: This article is translated with the assistance of AI.
Many decides to pay insurance premiums with credit cards to earn points, miles, or cashback easily. Which credit card is best to pay insurance premium? Learn the most convenient and rewarding ways, plus key things to note from the Bowtie team.
Insurance Premium Payment Methods
Generally, there are the following 4 methods to pay insurance premiums:
- In-person: Visit the insurance company in person to pay the premium
- Automatic transfer: Register for credit card automatic transfer service for regular deductions
- e-Banking online payment: Log in to online banking (e-Banking) to pay the premium
- Insurance company website payment: This mostly applies to non-contribution insurance and allows direct payment on the insurance company’s website
Bowtie is an online-only insurance company that collects premiums on a monthly basis. You can pay your monthly premiums through credit card automatic transfer . Additionally, Bowtie currently supports Visa , Mastercard , and AMEX credit cards!
Contribution vs Non-Contribution Insurance
Common insurance products on the market are mainly divided into two categories: (1) Contribution insurance and (2) Non-contribution insurance .
- Contribution insurance
For this type of insurance, the policyholder needs to pay premiums at regular intervals, commonly known as “contribution insurance.” It is often found in Life Insurance , Voluntary Health Insurance (VHIS) , Cancer Insurance , Accident Insurance , and so on.
When purchasing, the policyholder can choose the premium payment frequency, such as “monthly,” “annually,” “quarterly,” etc., depending on the insurance company’s terms and conditions. If the policyholder does not pay the premium within the grace period , the policy may be terminated.
- Non-contribution insurance
Unlike contribution insurance, non-contribution insurance does not require regular premium payments. Common examples include travel insurance, home insurance, and domestic helper insurance.
The policyholder only needs to pay the full premium in a lump sum at the time of purchase, and the policy will remain in effect until it expires, without worrying about losing coverage due to missed payments.
Credit Card Payments for Insurance: Miles and Cashback Overview
Miles Rebate
| Credit Card | Miles Rebate |
| HSBC EveryMile Credit Card | HK$5 per mile ( Online payment: HK$12.5 per mile) |
| HSBC Red Credit Card | HK$25 per mile |
| American Express Explorer™ Credit Card | HK$3 per mile (First 3 months, online payment excluded) |
| American Express Platinum Credit Card | HK$6 per mile ( online payment excluded) |
| American Express Platinum Card | HK$9 per mile ( online payment excluded) |
| Citi PremierMiles Credit Card | HK$8 per mile ( online payment excluded) |
| Citi Prestige Credit Card | HK$6 per mile ( online payment excluded) |
| CCB (Asia) Visa Infinite Credit Card | HK$6 per mile ( online payment: HK$8 per mile) |
Cash Rebate
| Credit Card | Cash Rebate |
| AEON CARD WAKUWAKU | 6% (First $5,000 online transactions only ) |
| EarnMORE UnionPay Credit Card | 2% (Online payment excluded) |
| ICBC Horoscope Card | 1.5% (Online payment excluded) |
| American Express Blue Cash Credit Card | 1.2% (Online payment excluded) |
| Dah Sing ONE+ Credit Card | 1% |
| Citi Cash Back Credit Card | 1% (Online payment excluded) |
| HSBC EveryMile Credit Card | 1% (Online payment: 0.4%) |
| Hang Seng enJoy Card | 0.5% (Online payment excluded) |
| HSBC Red Credit Card | 0.4% |
| Citi Clear Credit Card | 0.4% (Online payment excluded) |
| Hang Seng Mpower Credit Card | 0.4% (Online payment excluded) |
No Rebate
| Credit Card | No Rebate Reason |
| Standard Chartered All Credit Cards | Insurance payments are not considered “eligible transactions” |
| DBS All Credit Cards | Insurance payments are not considered “eligible transactions” |
| Mox Card | Insurance payments are not considered “eligible transactions” |
| Bank of East Asia Flyer World Mastercard | Insurance payments are not considered “eligible transactions” |
| BOC Motion Credit Card | Insurance fees are not considered “eligible transactions” |
| Citi Octopus Platinum Card | Insurance fees are not considered “eligible transactions” |
- * The above information is updated as of January 17, 2025, for reference only. Banks reserve the right to change the rebate terms at any time. Please refer to the latest bank information.
Most insurance companies’ payment counters only accept cash and checks, so if you want to pay with a credit card, it’s best to check with the insurance company first whether it’s possible and if there are any additional fees.
If you use automatic transfer to pay Bowtie VHIS premiums, for example, for a 40-year-old non-smoking male, the standard premium for the Bowtie Flexi (Plus) is only $602/month. Using a credit card with 2% cashback or $5 per mile, you can earn over $140 or over 1,400 miles in rewards in a year! If the whole family insures together, you can earn even more miles/cashback!
| Example: Bowtie Flexi Plan (Plus) 40-year-old non-smoking male Monthly standard premium $602/month; Annual premium $7,224 | ||
| Highest Cash Rebate | Highest Miles Rebate | |
| Rebate Rate | 2% | $5 per mile |
| Monthly Rebate | $12.04 | 120 miles |
| Annual Rebate Earned | $144.48 | 1,440 miles |
Important Notes for Paying Insurance Premiums with Credit Cards
When calculating cash and miles rebates, you must carefully check each credit card’s definition of “eligible transactions”!
There are often “devilish details” in the fine print; not all insurance companies allow policyholders to pay premiums in person at their offices, and some may charge a processing fee.
Additionally, not all policies accept automatic transfers, so you should ask the insurance company about payment methods before proceeding and then choose an appropriate credit card.
Meanwhile, most credit cards classify “insurance fees” as ineligible transactions, meaning that even if you pay thousands or tens of thousands in premiums with that card, you won’t receive any cash or miles rebates.
Therefore, before paying premiums, it’s a good idea to visit the official websites of various credit cards to review the relevant terms and conditions.
Additionally, please note the following:
- Credit Card Limit: If the credit card limit is insufficient to pay the premium, you can first call the bank or apply online to increase the credit card limit. You can also deposit money into your own credit card account for premium payment purposes to ensure a smooth transaction.
- Cashback Limit: Some credit cards have a premium cashback cap; once the spending reaches the limit, no further cashback will be earned. For example, some banks’ credit cards only offer cashback on the first $10,000 of premium transactions.
- Payment Limit: Most credit cards have a daily payment limit. For some banks, the daily limit is $500,000 or the cardholder’s available credit limit, whichever is lower.
- Transaction Fee: Credit card companies may charge a transaction fee to the insurance company, so paying renewal premiums with a credit card might incur an additional fee.
It’s worth noting that Bowtie will only charge the final premium displayed after underwriting and will not charge any additional transaction fees.
- * The above information is updated as of January 17, 2025, for reference only. Banks have the right to change the cashback terms at any time; please refer to the latest information from the banks.
FAQs About Paying Premiums with Credit Cards
1. Is automatic transfer or online payment more beneficial?
Using automatic transfer to pay premiums generally offers a higher cashback rate than online payment.
2. Can supplementary credit cards earn cashback?
Supplementary cardholders share the same credit limit as the primary cardholder. Paying premiums with a supplementary card usually allows you to earn cashback. However, policies may vary between banks, so if you have any questions, please inquire with the relevant bank.
3. Can you choose the payment date when paying premiums online?
Yes, you can choose immediate payment or set a payment instruction, with a validity period of up to 13 days.
Sources
- 1 Various bank websites
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