Your guide to filing claims.
Here’s everything you need to know about the claim process.
How to submit a claim >
Claim requirements >
How to submit missing documents >
Understanding your claim reimbursement >
How to set up direct deposit >
90-day time limit for claims >
“It’s so easy a cat could do it.”
How to submit a claim.
What you need
There are two types of documents you need to submit a claim:
A finalized invoice from your vet showing what your pet was treated for and how much you were charged. An invoice has to show a zero balance or that it was paid in full in order for us to accept it.
Detailed medical records, including from your pet’s most recent annual exam (a vet visit unrelated to your pet getting sick or hurt). Medical records show us your pet’s medical history and let us see what we can cover, which allows us to process claims quickly.
NOTE: If you're not sure if you have the right medical records, ask your vet for “SOAP notes.” The records you receive should include any exam notes and lab results.
How to submit your claim
To submit your claim, either click here or follow these instructions:
Make sure you’re logged into the app or your online account
Go to Claims
Go to Submit a claim
Follow the instructions in the claim form
What happens next?
Claims are typically processed within 15 days from when we receive all your documents. We’ll email you with updates, so keep an eye on your inbox. And be sure to set up direct deposit now if you haven’t already — it gets you paid back 5-10 days faster than checks do.
Claim requirements.
You need two types of documents to submit a claim: a finalized invoice and detailed medical records.
Finalized invoice
An itemized bill from your vet showing what your pet was treated for and how much you were charged. An invoice has to show a zero balance or that it was paid in full in order for us to accept it.
Sample invoice
ABC Animal Hospital
123 Main St
Any town, USA
John Jones
Spot, 2-year-old pug
Date
Description
QTY
Price
7/21/21
Exam fee
1.0
$200.00
Ultrasound
1.0
$50.00
Surgery: foreign object removal
1.0
$1,200.00
Total Invoice
$1,450.00
Total Payments
$1,450.00
Balance Due
$0.00
Medical records from a recent checkup
Medical records from a checkup show us your pet’s medical history and let us see what we can cover, which allows us to process your claim quickly. If you're not sure if you have the right records, ask your vet for “SOAP notes.” The records you receive should include any exam notes and lab results.
Sample medical record
ABC Animal Hospital
123 Main St
Any town, USA
John Jones
Spot, 2-year-old pug
Diagnosis
-Suspect FIC episode
Vaccination history
UTD
History
Acute-onset stranguria, this happened about 2 weeks ago as well.
Medications
None
Physical Exam
Temperature (°F): 100.5
Pulse (BPM): 200
Respiration (RPM): 36
Weight (kg): 8.1
NOTE: To keep your pet’s medical records current, you need to get them a checkup when you first sign up, then once every policy year after that.
How to submit missing documents.
See what your claim is missing
Start by checking your inbox for an email with the subject line “ACTION NEEDED: Documents missing.” It gives an exact breakdown of everything we still need in order to process your claim.
(Most of the time, the documents we’re missing are detailed medical records from your pet’s most recent checkup, including any exam notes and lab results. Your vet may refer to these records as “SOAP notes.”)
Get the missing documents
If you already have what we’re asking for, skip ahead to step #3. If you don’t, reach out to your vet’s office to have them email you the additional documents.
How to submit your claim
To submit your additional documents, either click here or follow these instructions:
Make sure you’re logged into the app or your online account
Go to Claims
You’ll see a “Missing docs” alert on the Claims tab
Hit Upload to submit your missing documents
Understanding your claim reimbursement.
Injury or illness claims
There are two main factors that determine your reimbursement for approved claims: your deductible and your reimbursement rate, both of which you chose when you signed up.
Deductible
Your deductible is the amount of veterinary care you need to pay for yourself each year before we can reimburse you for claims. So if your annual deductible is $300, you have to pay for $300 worth of approved veterinary care before we can start reimbursing you.
Reimbursement rate
Your reimbursement rate is the percentage of an approved claim total that we can cover. For example, if your reimbursement rate is 80% and you submit a claim for $500, we can cover up to $400.
Example
Let's say you submit a claim for $1,000 with a $300 deductible and an 80% reimbursement rate. (To keep it simple, let's also say that everything in the claim can be covered.) $1,000 in claimed services x 80% reimbursement rate gives you a maximum possible reimbursement of $800.
If you hadn't made any progress towards your deductible yet — in other words, if your deductible was still at $300 — you would receive $500 ($800 minus $300). But if you had already met the deductible, you would receive the full $800.
“No need to go chasing after those reimbursement checks.”
How to set up direct deposit.
Direct deposit gets you paid back 5-10 days faster than checks do when claims are approved. Payments are secure, and there are no hidden fees.
To set up direct deposit, either click here or follow these instructions:
Grab your debit card
Make sure you’re logged into the app or your online account
Go to Account
Go to Billing
Go to Preferred Reimbursement Method
Claims have to be filed within 90 days of treatment.
If your pet gets sick or hurt, we know that dealing with insurance will probably not be the first thing on your mind. Still, this is really important to be aware of:
There's a 90-day time limit for claims. If you submit a claim more than 90 days after the date of service, it won’t be covered.
Want to get your claims in quickly? The fastest, easiest way to submit claims and get paid back is through the Fetch by The Dodo app. Get it in the App Store or Google Play.