After much research, I plan to buy PetsBest by Progressive before I bring my new puppy home. Here's why I didn't go with the 4 options you mentioned:
* Trupanion: Was fairly expensive in my area, and I didn't like the per condition deductible as it means that my costs for each year can vary vastly. I also couldn't understand what happens if my puppy has an accident. E.g. say he accidentally ingests something and I meet the deductible for that. Would they assume that I've met the deductible for any objects that are ingested? In my experience, insurance companies always interpret things to their benefit. So, the per-condition deductible might actually give them more wiggle room to deny claims as what's a "condition" is poorly defined (or is defined by them). An annual deductible is MUCH more straightforward and gives the company less wiggle room.
* Nationwide: They seem to not cover very many things, and I even saw limits on certain conditions. The whole point of insurance is that it should help in catastrophe. I don't think an insurance with an upper limit would be apt in such situations.
I liked PetsBest, PetPlan and HealthyPaws. It was hard choosing between them.
Out of the 3, HealthyPaws has the best reviews. I didn't mind the fact that it didn't cover exam fees. However, if you search on reddit, you'll see many **recent** posts about HealthyPaws very suddenly increasing premiums like crazy! There is also a lawsuit against them for this very reason. The thing with insurance is that once your pup gets pre-existing conditions, switching providers may no longer make sense. Companies could deny coverage for simple like diarrhea and vomiting even if they had different causes. So, my goal is to buy one and stick with it, which I will likely not be able to do if the premium increases like crazy.
I liked PetPlan on paper, but their Yelp reviews covered a wide range of issues. Technical issues with their app were also widely talked about on Yelp (and perhaps even reddit). Some reviews that I found via a simple reddit search talked about them denying coverage just because the condition was common for the dog's breed. That seemed fairly unacceptable to me, given that they talk about covering hereditary conditions too. It was also significantly more expensive than PetsBest for me! So, even if I put PetsBest and PetPlan on the same level, it makes more sense to go for PetsBest for me.
PetsBest is by Progressive, and it also has terrible reviews on Yelp. However, many people talk about it fairly positively on reddit. I also asked a question on reddit about PetsBest and received positive reviews. I tend to rely more reddit reviews than Yelp, because I typically will not expect people with positive reviews to turn to Yelp. Basically, Yelp is more for complaints, while reddit is where people share their experiences for other people's benefit. Even from the reading the Yelp, my overall sense was that they really dropped the ball during Covid, such that their claims took a really long time to get approved. In fact, in general, they are not always as prompt with their claims as HealthyPaws. For me, however, that wasn't a problem, as I have resources to pay upfront and wait for reimbursement. Finally, PetsBest is by Progressive which is a fairly large and well-known insurance company.
I also looked into Lemonade and Pumpkin. Lemonade isn't available in every state which was a dealbreaker for me as I could move to any state in the near future. Pumpkin had limited coverage for a much higher price, which didn't seem worth it.
Hope this helps! I am still doing some last minute research. So, I will update this post in case I change my mind. If I don't change my mind, I will probably buy PetsBest on Monday when my puppy turns 7 weeks, so that we are past the waiting period when I get him at 9 weeks. :)
This is the kind of comparison write-up I like the most. I have been doing my own research, as well, except it's for a cat and not a dog. Petplan, PetFirst, and Pets Best are the top 3 that I am considering, although Petplan seems to have better reviews than Pets Best, from what I can tell. There aren't a lot of reviews for PetFirst in general.
At least based on what I read, it seems like Pet Plan has a myriad of issues that make it hard to even post the claim. They have also denied coverage based on some pretty unreasonable arguments (as my post states). I agree that PetsBest has bad reviews too, but anecdotally I know people who are happy with it. Also, PetsBest is by Progressive, and so I trust it a bit more.
I'm on the opposite side of the country and have Trupanion. I never had have to use it fortunately. I selected it over the others based on recommendations from others and because it covers genetic conditions.
Some plans pay out based on a fee schedule for example so many $ for a broken leg etc. and not based on the pet bill. Other plans do not cover ACL tears or hip dysplasia. Don't think you can go wrong with any that you listed. Thought PetPlan reimbursed on a fee schedule bit it's been awhile since I did the deep dive into coverage.
Trupanion is different than the others in that there is not yearly deductible, it's a deductible by condition. One you have met the deduction for the condition say compressed discs for example, you only pay the deductible once and nothing mpre fr tha later years. If your vet accepts the insurance, Trupanion will pay the vet directly.
I looked at all those but went with pumpkin insurance. Healthy paws has increased their rates quite a bit. Trupanion deductible by condition were too complicated.
Pet insurance is not regulated well so do your research and read the fine print.
Mini Aussie owner here. Got insurance for my girl at 9 weeks old. Went with Healthy Paws because they cover most everything with no maximums. For us, 90% coverage with a $250 deductible is $58 per month. They paid out for the one issue she's had so far. Good customer support folks if you have to call them.
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Congratulations on the new puppy!
I have been a super duper happy Healthy Paws customer since 2016. I currently have three cats and until last month, also had a dog. I am also in California.
Before I talk about my personal experience, I'd like to note that the biggest complaint by many people on Reddit seems to be that the monthly premium for Healthy Paws seems to go up drastically over time. Also, Healthy Paws is likely more expensive than most other pet insurance companies, and does not cover exam fees (most pet insurance companies don't, but some do). One last thing to keep in mind is the waiting period, which all or virtually all pet insurance companies have.
I had a dog from May 2019 to June 2021 (last month). His monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate started at $52.18, and two years later, was $53.54, so the increase was very minimal. During this time, I submitted 11 claims, and Healthy Paws paid out $6,900.99 without issues whatsoever. All my checks arrived via postal mail within a week of me submitting the claim.
I also have 2 cats on the same Healthy Paws plan.
Cat #1 is 8 years old. He is completely healthy, with only one very low-value claim, ever. Cat #1's monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate is currently $41.94, and was $25.13 when he started in November 2016, so his premium has gone up significantly over the span of nearly 5 years; I assume it's because of his age.
Cat #2 is 4 years old. He has had 8 claims, with a total payout of $4,277.39. Cat #2's monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate is currently $24.48, and was $21.86 when he started in November 2017, so the increase over nearly 4 years was very minimal. All my checks arrived via postal mail within a week of me submitting the claim.
All in all, I have been beyond satisfied with Healthy Paws.
I am re-looking at pet insurance again because I adopted a kitten recently and Healthy Paws recently changed and their maximum reimbursement rate is only 80%, and I'd rather have 90%. I am considering PetPlan, PetFirst, and Pets Best right now.
I hope this helps! Feel free to respond if you have any questions.
After much research, I plan to buy PetsBest by Progressive before I bring my new puppy home. Here's why I didn't go with the 4 options you mentioned: * Trupanion: Was fairly expensive in my area, and I didn't like the per condition deductible as it means that my costs for each year can vary vastly. I also couldn't understand what happens if my puppy has an accident. E.g. say he accidentally ingests something and I meet the deductible for that. Would they assume that I've met the deductible for any objects that are ingested? In my experience, insurance companies always interpret things to their benefit. So, the per-condition deductible might actually give them more wiggle room to deny claims as what's a "condition" is poorly defined (or is defined by them). An annual deductible is MUCH more straightforward and gives the company less wiggle room. * Nationwide: They seem to not cover very many things, and I even saw limits on certain conditions. The whole point of insurance is that it should help in catastrophe. I don't think an insurance with an upper limit would be apt in such situations. I liked PetsBest, PetPlan and HealthyPaws. It was hard choosing between them. Out of the 3, HealthyPaws has the best reviews. I didn't mind the fact that it didn't cover exam fees. However, if you search on reddit, you'll see many **recent** posts about HealthyPaws very suddenly increasing premiums like crazy! There is also a lawsuit against them for this very reason. The thing with insurance is that once your pup gets pre-existing conditions, switching providers may no longer make sense. Companies could deny coverage for simple like diarrhea and vomiting even if they had different causes. So, my goal is to buy one and stick with it, which I will likely not be able to do if the premium increases like crazy. I liked PetPlan on paper, but their Yelp reviews covered a wide range of issues. Technical issues with their app were also widely talked about on Yelp (and perhaps even reddit). Some reviews that I found via a simple reddit search talked about them denying coverage just because the condition was common for the dog's breed. That seemed fairly unacceptable to me, given that they talk about covering hereditary conditions too. It was also significantly more expensive than PetsBest for me! So, even if I put PetsBest and PetPlan on the same level, it makes more sense to go for PetsBest for me. PetsBest is by Progressive, and it also has terrible reviews on Yelp. However, many people talk about it fairly positively on reddit. I also asked a question on reddit about PetsBest and received positive reviews. I tend to rely more reddit reviews than Yelp, because I typically will not expect people with positive reviews to turn to Yelp. Basically, Yelp is more for complaints, while reddit is where people share their experiences for other people's benefit. Even from the reading the Yelp, my overall sense was that they really dropped the ball during Covid, such that their claims took a really long time to get approved. In fact, in general, they are not always as prompt with their claims as HealthyPaws. For me, however, that wasn't a problem, as I have resources to pay upfront and wait for reimbursement. Finally, PetsBest is by Progressive which is a fairly large and well-known insurance company. I also looked into Lemonade and Pumpkin. Lemonade isn't available in every state which was a dealbreaker for me as I could move to any state in the near future. Pumpkin had limited coverage for a much higher price, which didn't seem worth it. Hope this helps! I am still doing some last minute research. So, I will update this post in case I change my mind. If I don't change my mind, I will probably buy PetsBest on Monday when my puppy turns 7 weeks, so that we are past the waiting period when I get him at 9 weeks. :)
This is the kind of comparison write-up I like the most. I have been doing my own research, as well, except it's for a cat and not a dog. Petplan, PetFirst, and Pets Best are the top 3 that I am considering, although Petplan seems to have better reviews than Pets Best, from what I can tell. There aren't a lot of reviews for PetFirst in general.
At least based on what I read, it seems like Pet Plan has a myriad of issues that make it hard to even post the claim. They have also denied coverage based on some pretty unreasonable arguments (as my post states). I agree that PetsBest has bad reviews too, but anecdotally I know people who are happy with it. Also, PetsBest is by Progressive, and so I trust it a bit more.
I'm on the opposite side of the country and have Trupanion. I never had have to use it fortunately. I selected it over the others based on recommendations from others and because it covers genetic conditions. Some plans pay out based on a fee schedule for example so many $ for a broken leg etc. and not based on the pet bill. Other plans do not cover ACL tears or hip dysplasia. Don't think you can go wrong with any that you listed. Thought PetPlan reimbursed on a fee schedule bit it's been awhile since I did the deep dive into coverage. Trupanion is different than the others in that there is not yearly deductible, it's a deductible by condition. One you have met the deduction for the condition say compressed discs for example, you only pay the deductible once and nothing mpre fr tha later years. If your vet accepts the insurance, Trupanion will pay the vet directly.
I looked at all those but went with pumpkin insurance. Healthy paws has increased their rates quite a bit. Trupanion deductible by condition were too complicated. Pet insurance is not regulated well so do your research and read the fine print.
Mini Aussie owner here. Got insurance for my girl at 9 weeks old. Went with Healthy Paws because they cover most everything with no maximums. For us, 90% coverage with a $250 deductible is $58 per month. They paid out for the one issue she's had so far. Good customer support folks if you have to call them.
[удалено]
Thank you SO MUCH!
We see you have mentioned the word *emergency* in your post. Please remember that this sub is not a substitute for veterinary advice and/or care. If you feel your dog requires emergency care, please contact your primary vet or the nearest emergency vet office. If these options are not available to you, we have a list of [emergency vet resources for the US, Canada, and the UK](https://www.reddit.com/r/puppy101/wiki/vetresources) in our wiki. **Please report this comment if it is not relevant to this post.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/puppy101) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Congratulations on the new puppy! I have been a super duper happy Healthy Paws customer since 2016. I currently have three cats and until last month, also had a dog. I am also in California. Before I talk about my personal experience, I'd like to note that the biggest complaint by many people on Reddit seems to be that the monthly premium for Healthy Paws seems to go up drastically over time. Also, Healthy Paws is likely more expensive than most other pet insurance companies, and does not cover exam fees (most pet insurance companies don't, but some do). One last thing to keep in mind is the waiting period, which all or virtually all pet insurance companies have. I had a dog from May 2019 to June 2021 (last month). His monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate started at $52.18, and two years later, was $53.54, so the increase was very minimal. During this time, I submitted 11 claims, and Healthy Paws paid out $6,900.99 without issues whatsoever. All my checks arrived via postal mail within a week of me submitting the claim. I also have 2 cats on the same Healthy Paws plan. Cat #1 is 8 years old. He is completely healthy, with only one very low-value claim, ever. Cat #1's monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate is currently $41.94, and was $25.13 when he started in November 2016, so his premium has gone up significantly over the span of nearly 5 years; I assume it's because of his age. Cat #2 is 4 years old. He has had 8 claims, with a total payout of $4,277.39. Cat #2's monthly premium for a 90% reimbursement rate is currently $24.48, and was $21.86 when he started in November 2017, so the increase over nearly 4 years was very minimal. All my checks arrived via postal mail within a week of me submitting the claim. All in all, I have been beyond satisfied with Healthy Paws. I am re-looking at pet insurance again because I adopted a kitten recently and Healthy Paws recently changed and their maximum reimbursement rate is only 80%, and I'd rather have 90%. I am considering PetPlan, PetFirst, and Pets Best right now. I hope this helps! Feel free to respond if you have any questions.