Healthy Paws Pet Insurance: Is it the right choice?

Best For…

• Pet owners with young pets

• Dog and cat owners looking solely for accident and illness coverage

• Those who want alternative treatments like acupuncture and chiropractic therapy for their pets

Not the Best For…

• Those who want coverage for vet visits, vaccinations, and dental

• Pet owners with older pets

Why buy pet insurance?

Most pet parents are familiar with the sinking feeling of realizing their pet is sick. Aside from the obvious emotional turmoil a pet owner faces when having to take care of a sick pet, the financial strain of constant vet visits, medical care, and prescriptions can put many in a tight spot.

Buying a health care plan for your pet would give you peace of mind knowing that your pet will be taken care of, regardless of your personal finances.

Apart from covering treatment costs for your sick pet, a lot of pet health insurance companies also help cover vet bills, routine care, preventative measures to ward off parasites, and even behavioral therapy.

If you’re considering pet insurance, make sure you compare quotes, companies, and policies on Insurify!

Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Policies and Pricing

Healthy Paws offers pet insurance in all 50 states.

Healthy Paws’ coverage options depend on your pet’s age and breed, with dogs and cats under the age of five having different policy options than dogs and cats over the age of six. Dogs and cats over the age of 14 aren’t eligible for a Healthy Paws policy.

As your pet ages, your ability to adjust your Healthy Paws policy and get higher reimbursement levels will decrease. For example, you’re able to get 90 percent reimbursement with a $100 deductible for a one-year-old small mixed-breed dog. However, if that same dog was 11 years old, you will have to settle for a low, 50 percent reimbursement rate with a whopping $1,000 deductible. You can also expect premium increases the older your pet gets.

So if you have a middle- or older-aged dog, you might have to do a cost-benefit analysis on what Healthy Paws will cover and what you’ll have to pay between and out-of-pocket costs, deductibles, and your monthly premium.

Healthy Paws Insurance for your dog or cat

Healthy Paws covers most accidents and injuries your dog or cat may face, including:

• Hereditary conditions

• Congenital conditions

• Chronic conditions

• Cancer treatment

• Diagnostic treatment

Healthy Paws will also cover diagnostic tests and related treatments should your furry friend need it:

• X-Rays, Blood Tests, Ultrasounds

• Surgery

• Hospitalization

• Prescription Medications

• Emergency Care

• Specialty Care

• Alternative Treatment

Healthy Paws includes hip dysplasia coverage if you enroll your pet before they turn six. If your pet is older than six, you’ll have to pay for all hip dysplasia-related treatment. The company will also cover cruciate ligament injury, but only if there were no signs of it in either leg before enrollment or during the 15-day waiting period.

What doesn’t Healthy Paws cover?

No pet insurance company currently covers pre-existing conditions, which refers to issues your pet was facing before you purchased a policy or any they developed during your policy waiting period (see below). When you file your first claim with Healthy Paws, the company may require you to send over your pet’s medical records and other medical information to determine what counts as a pre-existing condition.

Healthy Paws also doesn’t cover any vet exam fees, cruciate ligament injury if your pet already had it in one leg before enrollment or during the waiting period, and spaying or neutering procedures.

Healthy Paws won’t cover your dog or cat’s dental care. However, if your pet’s teeth are injured in a covered accident, the company will pay for extracting the teeth or reconstructing the damaged teeth.

Similar to Trupanion, Healthy Paws also doesn’t cover routine veterinary care visits or preventative care like vaccinations, de-worming, heartworm medications, flea control, titer tests, and grooming.

Healthy Paws Insurance for your bird or exotic animal

Trupanion doesn’t currently insure any other animals aside from dogs and cats. At this time, Nationwide is the only insurance company to offer exotic animal insurance.

Healthy Paws Claims, Deductibles and Benefits

If your dog or cat falls sick or is injured, you have the option to pick any Healthy Paws-licensed vet, specialty vet, or animal hospital.

Vet Direct

If you’re unable to pay your vet’s office or hospital at the time of treatment, you can contact Healthy Paws and ask a representative if it’s possible for Healthy Paws to pay its portion of the bill directly to the vet or hospital. If your vet agrees to accept payment from Healthy Paws, the company will work with your vet to make the payment as soon as possible. Healthy Paws offers the option to pay licensed U.S. vets directly regardless of whether or not they’re part of the Healthy Paws network.

Filing a claim

After paying for your pet’s medical treatment, you can upload a picture of your veterinary invoice and upload it to the Healthy Paws mobile app, Healthy Paws customer care, email it to claims@healthypawspetinsurance.com, or fax it to 1 (888) 228-4129. If you have a discount for your invoice, Healthy Paws applies the discount to the non-covered items you paid for out-of-pocket.

According to Healthy Paws’ website, the company will process most claims within ten days. Once Healthy Paws has reviewed the claim, you can expect to have your reimbursement issued within 24 hours. It’ll take about ten days for your reimbursement to either be mailed to you via check or deposited into your bank account. You can change how you want to be reimbursed through your Healthy Paws account.

Healthy Paws doesn’t have any payout limits for its plans. That means Healthy Paws will reimburse you for covered items, regardless of how expensive your bills get.

Deductibles

Your deductible is the amount of money you have to pay for a covered condition before your Healthy Paws policy kicks in. So if your dog develops an illness and you have a $250 deductible, you’ll have to pay $250 before Healthy Paws steps in and starts paying for treatment. Healthy Paws has an annual deductible, so once you’ve hit your deductible limit, Healthy Paws will reimburse you for covered items for the rest of the year.

Healthy Paws’ Waiting Period

Healthy Paws requires a 15-day waiting period for all accidents, injuries, and illnesses. This means if your pet develops an illness or has an accident resulting in an injury within 15 days of your policy starting, it will be considered a pre-existing condition.

Again, Healthy Paws doesn’t cover any pre-existing conditions or any conditions that develop as a result of a pre-existing condition.

For hip dysplasia, there is a twelve-month waiting period before your Healthy Paws coverage kicks in, this applies to all states but Maryland and New Hampshire. So if your pet develops hip dysplasia within 12 months of your policy starting, it will be considered a pre-existing condition.

Healthy Paws vs. Trupanion, Pets Best, and PetPlan: Compare Pet Insurance Quotes

To see how Healthy Paws’ quotes stacked up to those from its competitors, Insurify’s data team compared its pet insurance quotes to those from Trupanion, Pets Best, and PetPlan.

Below are the pet insurance quotes for a two-year-old purebred labrador retriever named Sally who lives in San Jose, California:

These are the pet insurance quotes for a one-year-old German shepherd named Jerry who also lives in San Jose, California:

Finally, these are the quotes for a three-year-old labradoodle named Sandy in San Jose. Mixed breed dogs usually have lower insurance premiums since they aren’t as susceptible to genetic diseases:

Now moving on to cats, these are the cat health insurance quotes for Simon, a three-year-old British shorthair who lives in Houston, Texas:

And these are the quotes for Wesley, a mixed-breed long-haired cat who also lives in Houston, Texas:

Healthy Paws’ policies are quite well-priced compared to competitors like Trupanion and Petplan, although its quotes are a couple of dollars more expensive than quotes from Nationwide.

At the end of the day, it’s up to you to pick which company works best for you and your dog. It all depends on how much coverage you need and how much you’re willing to pay.

Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Reviews from Policyholders

Success stories

Positive customer reviews for Healthy Paws on websites like ConsumerAffairs often cite how the company paid out hefty claims that would’ve otherwise caused great financial strain on pet parents. Others lauded Healthy Paws’ customer service and attentiveness.

Not-so-successful stories

Negative customer reviews, however, complain about unfair and unnecessary premium increases, also mentioning that Healthy Paws sometimes denies claims for shaky reasons:

The last review is a prime example of why you should always shop around for pet insurance when it’s time to renew your premium. Just because one company worked for you when your pet was younger, doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll still be a good option four years later. Always make sure you’ve got the best deal for your pet!

Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Ratings

Healthy Paws’ pet insurance policies are underwritten by the following members of the Chubb group:

Frequently Asked Questions: Healthy Paws Pet Insurance

Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Contact Information