You love your new iPod so much you take it everywhere. Now it's missing. Or, you dropped it at the gym.

With some cards, you have protection against theft, loss and breakage, if you used that card to buy the item in question.

That means you can return what's left of the item -- like those new leather shoes your dog turned into a chew toy -- and your card will refund the purchase price to your card allowing you to go get a new one.

"Most people don't realize that," says Crosta.

However, it pays to understand your card's rules. Your card likely requires you to file your claim within a specified number of days after the purchase. Also, many cards will limit the number of times you can use this feature within a certain time period. Most cap the amount you can recover as well.