Trupanion Pet Insurance Review

Pros Explained

• Invoice paid at checkout: Trupanion is the only provider with software that allows them to pay veterinarians directly at the time of checkout.
• $0 deductible available: With a $0 deductible, you won’t have to pay a certain amount out of pocket every year before your insurance coverage kicks in.
• All plans include 90% coverage: Each policy automatically includes a 90% reimbursement rate for all covered treatments.
• Pricing guarantee: Unlike most pet insurers, which raise premiums each year as the insured pet gets older, Trupanion will never raise your policy price due to your pet’s age.
• 24/7 customer service: Trupanion’s customer service phone line is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Cons Explained

• Few customization options: Each of Trupanion’s plans include no annual limit and 90% reimbursement. This is a great level of coverage, but it means you can’t play around with different options to lower your monthly premium.
• Preventive care not available: It’s fairly standard for pet insurers not to include preventive care in their base policy, but Trupanion doesn’t offer any riders that cover routine wellness.
• Limited payment terms: Trupanion only accepts monthly payments, so you may not be able to pay for your policy upfront in full.
• No discounts: Not only does Trupanion fail to offer a discount for paying upfront, but you also won’t get any savings by enrolling multiple pets or if you’re a member of the armed forces.

Available Plans

Trupanion offers one single base plan, other than in Florida, that covers both cats and dogs. The only part of the base plan that can be customized is the annual deductible, with a sliding scale of deductibles in $5 increments between $0 and $1,000. There are no policy payout limits.

For those who want additional coverage, Trupanion sells two policy enhancements. The Recovery and Complementary Care rider covers procedures such as physical therapy, behavioral modification, and homeopathy. An additional Pet Owner Assistance rider helps with a range of unexpected costs including property damage liability, advertising, and rewards if your pet goes missing, and cremation or burial if your pet dies in an accident. This is not available in Missouri.

Note that neither the Trupanion base plan nor any of its riders cover preventive care. Some pet insurers offer riders for preventive care and wellness that might include routine checkups, vaccinations, microchipping, and spay or neuter surgery. If this type of coverage is important to you, you’ll have to look for a different provider.

Plan Pricing

Since Trupanion includes 90% reimbursement and no annual limits with every policy, it’s impressive that the company’s cheapest policies are priced comparably to low-premium options from competitors, many of which include reimbursement rates of just 70% and annual limits under $5,000. However, Trupanion’s higher-end policies tend to run much more expensive than other pet insurers’ plans with comparable terms. The price ranges below are based on the various deductible options.

Waiting Periods

Trupanion enforces a waiting period of five days for injuries and 30 days for illnesses, which are a bit longer than we see from other pet insurers. This means that, upon signing up for a policy, you’ll have to wait this amount of time (while paying premiums) before you can use any of the benefits. The good news is that orthopedic conditions, upon which many providers place a six-month waiting period, are covered as soon as the 30-day waiting period is up if no symptoms present prior to enroll or within 30 day waiting period.

Pre-Existing Conditions

Virtually no pet insurer covers pre-existing conditions, so it’s no surprise that these are only available for limited conditions. Trupanion defines a pre-existing condition as one that appeared in the 18 months prior to the policy enrollment or during the applicable waiting period. This also applies to events that occurred before benefits went into effect. For example, if your dog is in an accident before the policy start date, but doesn’t show signs of an injury until several weeks later once you’re insured, the injury won’t be eligible for reimbursement.

Payout Limits

With no annual or lifetime limits on any of its policies, Trupanion offers the best possible terms for payout limits.

Plan Exclusions

As we’ve noted, Trupanion excludes all forms of preventive treatment and does not offer supplemental riders with this type of coverage. Something else important to know about Trupanion’s plan exclusions is that examination fees are not covered. This means that if your pet is sick and goes to the veterinarian, the policy will cover the necessary tests, procedures, and/or medications needed if eligible, but the exam itself will be your responsibility. A full list of plan exclusions can be found in Trupanion’s sample policy documents.

Claims

One perk of working with Trupanion is that the company offers a direct payment system with many providers. If your veterinarian participates, you’ll only need to pay your out-of-pocket costs at checkout; Trupanion can pay the rest directly to them. This is much more efficient than the traditional process of paying your vet bill in full, submitting a copy to the pet insurance company, and waiting for reimbursement.

If your vet doesn’t have an existing direct payment relationship with Trupanion, the process to submit claims is still easy. Just log into your account and submit a claim with a digital copy of your invoice, or send it by snail mail if you prefer.

Customer Service

Trupanion offers customer service via phone, email, and live chat. Phone lines are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so you’ll be able to get through to someone even if you need help with an emergency vet visit in the middle of the night. Live chat is available on the Trupanion website; the customer service phone number is 888-733-2685.

Third-Party Ratings

Despite underwriting Trupanion’s pet insurance policies for over a decade, the American Pet Insurance Company is not rated by any of the major credit rating agencies such as AM Best or Moody’s. However, financial analysis firm Demotech, which primarily rates financial stability for property and casualty insurance companies, gives the American Pet Insurance Company an A (Exceptional) rating. This is the third-highest rating awarded by the agency.

Unfortunately, Trupanion appears to have some issues with its business practices, particularly in how the company sells policies. There has been government action against Trupanion in recent years in the state of Washington. It implicates Trupanion in failing to ensure its sales representatives were properly licensed. But this isn’t where the company’s troubles end. Including the most recent action, the insurance commissioner in Washington, where Trupanion is based, has issued the company three separate fines. One thing to note is that these violations primarily involve third-party sellers, so those purchasing policies directly from the Trupanion website shouldn’t experience any issues with improperly licensed agents.

Competition: Trupanion vs. Healthy Paws

Healthy Paws is similar to Trupanion in that it offers accident and illness coverage only, with no option to add preventive care. Healthy Paws also imposes no annual limits on any of its policies, although coverage levels vary from 70% to 90% and there’s no option to eliminate an annual deductible.

Still, when we asked for quotes from both insurers for a policy with 90% coverage and no annual limit, Trupanion was more than twice as expensive as Healthy Paws. The Trupanion policy had no annual deductible while the Healthy Paws plan had a $100 deductible. For this type of high-coverage plan, Healthy Paws is the clear winner here.

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Methodology

Our methodology for reviewing pet insurance companies is based on a quantitative approach that analyzes many different aspects of each provider. First, we look at the types of plans available, which treatments are and aren’t covered, and if there are any waiting periods or exclusions. We also compare the terms of each policy, including deductibles, limits, and coverage levels, and see how premiums stack up against competitors. Finally, we gauge the provider’s overall reputation by reviewing customer service options and seeing what third-party agencies and existing customers have to say.