Keeping Your Pets Safe is a Priority
You want your pets to remain healthy and live the best life possible. However, unexpected illness and injury can occur. To ensure they're well-protected, it's a smart idea to invest in pet insurance. What is the best pet insurance available? Picking a plan will depend on your pet's specific needs, so let's take a closer look at some popular options.
Leading Pet Insurance Providers
Here are some of the top providers, what they offer and why many pet owners like them:
1. Healthy Paws
Healthy Paws is often praised for its no payout caps, meaning there are no annual or lifetime limits on how much you can claim, as long as the condition isn’t pre-existing. Their plan covers accidents and illnesses, including hereditary and congenital conditions, cancer, chronic conditions, diagnostic tests, emergency treatments, surgeries, hospitalization and prescription medications.
Healthy Paws does not cover are preventative or wellness care (vaccines, routine dental cleanings, etc.), exam fees or pre-existing conditions. They also get high marks for fast claims processing (often in two days via app or online).
If you want comprehensive illness and accident coverage without restrictions on how much you can claim over your pet’s life, and you don’t need routine preventive care included, Healthy Paws may be among the best picks.
2. ASPCA Pet Health Insurance
ASPCA’s pet insurance provides a strong level of coverage, particularly when you select their more comprehensive plans. They cover illnesses, injuries, hereditary/congenital conditions, diagnostics, hospitalization and they allow a wellness add-on for routine and preventive care (vaccinations, heartworm prevention, etc.).
A few standout features: ASPCA permits enrollment regardless of your pet’s existing health conditions (for new conditions), subject to waiting periods; coverage for behavioral issues and prescription food in certain plans; and multiple pet discounts.
If you like the idea of wellness perks, handling routine care and major medical events under one provider, ASPCA gives more flexibility. It's particularly good if you want both preventive and illness coverage.
3. Embrace
Embrace is another strong player. Its core accident and illness policy includes complementary/holistic treatments (when prescribed by a vet) such as acupuncture, hydrotherapy and physiotherapy. Wellness Rewards is Embrace’s optional membership plan to help cover routine and preventive care: vaccines, grooming, spay/neuter, etc.
With Embrace, you can choose your deductible, reimbursement level and customize how much you want in wellness benefits. It tends to balance cost vs coverage well for pet owners who want both serious medical coverage and some help keeping up with everyday health.
4. Trupanion
Trupanion is known for simplifying things in some respects. Their policies tend to offer high coverage for illnesses, accidents, congenital and hereditary conditions and they allow choosing any licensed vet. They are often chosen for pets enrolled when young. One of their advantages: once a policy is in place, many of the breed-specific issues and serious diseases are covered without lifetime caps.
A trade-off can be higher premiums, especially for older pets or breeds more prone to health issues, and there could be waiting periods for certain conditions like hip dysplasia. But many pet parents who anticipate large veterinary bills (e.g. for illnesses or emergencies) find Trupanion’s coverage worth the cost.
5. Spot Pet Insurance
Spot is regularly praised for quick claim reimbursement and flexible plans. NerdWallet highlights them among the top choices for fast turnaround on claims. They also offer customizable deductibles and co-payment options, which helps you tailor the plan to your budget. Some of their plans let you get 100% reimbursement of covered vet bills (after deductible) for certain options.
If you want fast payout, transparency and the ability to pick how much you're out-of-pocket vs how much you want the insurer to pay, Spot can offer good flexibility.
Things to Check and Compare Carefully
When evaluating these providers, watch out for:
- Waiting periods for illness, accidents and hereditary issues, especially for conditions like hip dysplasia.
- Pre-existing conditions are almost universally excluded, but how “pre-existing” is defined (symptoms vs diagnosis) matters.
- Deductibles, reimbursement percentages (co-insurance) and annual vs lifetime payout caps (if any). Lower deductible + high reimbursement + no cap = higher premiums.
- What preventive or wellness coverage is included or offered as add-on (if at all). Some providers include optional wellness packages, but others don’t.
- Max enrollment age and breed exclusions for certain conditions. If enrolling a senior pet, some insurers have restrictions.
- Claims process speed and ease; how smoothly you can file and get reimbursement. Many good companies offer apps, upload photos of bills, etc.
Get the Best Coverage For Your Furry Friends
If your pet is young and healthy, getting insurance early often yields better premiums and fewer exclusions. If routine care is important to you (vaccines, grooming, dental cleanings), go with a provider that lets you add wellness/routine care or includes it. Or, if what you care most about is peace of mind for large, unexpected medical bills, prioritize providers with unlimited payouts, solid illness and accident coverage and flexible reimbursement options.
Be sure to get quotes, compare them side by side, read the fine print and pick a plan that fits both your pet’s expected health needs and your financial situation. Your vet might also be able to guide based on breed, age and known risks. Proper coverage can make a huge difference, not just in dollars, but in your peace of mind when something unexpected happens.