Shopping for a pet insurance plan can be an intimidating process for many reasons. For starters, there are a lot of companies to choose from and they’re all going to say they’re “the best.” Then, there’s the task of learning the ins and outs of what each provider covers and what the coverage rules are, because that also affects your monthly price. Many offer options to “add on” coverage, which gives you more flexibility and control over what you’re getting — but comes with the impossible task of trying to predict what health issues your pet may face at any point in their life. To top it all off, each of these companies will warn you against those dreaded “pre-existing conditions.” This means if you start filing claims with one insurer and then decide to switch to another one, the conditions your pet has already had probably won't be covered by your new insurer. Why? Because they're considered “pre-existing."
Most pet insurance companies will be upfront about what is covered because they want you to feel confident that you’re prepared for whatever the future holds for you and your pet. But it can be tough to understand what isn’t covered with your plan, and policies can be laden with confusing jargon. If you don’t read carefully, you may not find those coverage holes until you’re hit with an expensive vet bill and your claim is denied. Here’s an example: maybe you didn’t realize that your dental coverage won’t cover the particular tooth that your dog just broke chewing on a bone.
Full disclosure: I work at Fetch Pet Insurance. And just like every other pet insurance provider, Fetch has its own terms and conditions. To provide some clarity on what to look out for when you’re comparison shopping, here’s a closer look at some of the biggest pet insurance companies in the U.S. and Canada and how their coverage compares to Fetch.
Lemonade
Lemonade started out as a company selling homeowners and renters insurance, and later tacked on pet insurance to bundle with their other products. This means they’re not focused solely on pet health and wellness.
Getting a quote with Lemonade also requires making a lot of on-the-spot decisions about coverage, which can feel overwhelming for a new pet parent who is unsure of what treatment their dog or cat may need in the future.
Lemonade offers a lot of add-on options that ultimately make your price significantly higher. You’d have to pay for 5 separate add-ons to reach their maximum coverage. For me, this added an additional $29 a month to the first quoted price. (And you’d still be getting more coverage if you went with Fetch.) Check out the video above to see my real-time experience quoting with Lemonade.
Those add-ons include coverage for dental illness, physical therapy, behavioral therapy and end-of-life care — all of which come standard with Fetch (no difficult decision-making required).
The fact that Lemonade doesn’t include dental illness coverage in their standard plan could really cost a pet parent on a budget. It may seem enticing to skip this coverage to keep your monthly price low, but periodontal disease (AKA gum disease) is the most common disease in dogs and cats, and can lead to much bigger health issues. And even if you add this coverage, Lemonade caps dental coverage at $1,000 a year. Fetch’s complete dental coverage includes every tooth, plus gums, (without the $1,000 cap) so pet parents don’t have to choose between their pet and costly dental care.
As with all other providers, Lemonade can’t match Fetch when it comes to getting paid back for your pet’s medications. Fetch is the only insurer that offers 100% reimbursement on qualifying medications when you use its online pharmacy, Fetch Pet Rx.
As part of your Fetch Pet Insurance membership, you’ll get exclusive access to Fetch Health Perks — over $1,500 savings on pet food, treats, therapy and more products and services — all included at no extra cost. Lemonade doesn’t have a perks program.
Pets Best
Your quoted monthly price with Pets Best may look lower than Fetch’s, but there’s a reason: Pets Best requires a more expensive plan to add coverage that comes standard with Fetch.
Sick-visit exam fees come with every vet appointment, and can cost anywhere from $50 - $250 on average. Fetch covers those visits as part of their plan, but this is considered an “optional benefit” with Pets Best that you have to pay extra for by choosing a more expensive plan.
Alternative and holistic care is also considered an “optional benefit” with Pets Best, but comes standard with Fetch. This includes treatment like acupuncture, massage and chiropractic care that your vet may recommend as part of the healing process.
Pets Best doesn’t offer the full dental coverage you’d get with Fetch. They don’t include endodontic treatment like root canals for every tooth. This means your pet may need dental treatment that won’t be covered. While this may not sound like a big deal, 1 out of 4 pets experience a traumatic dental injury and endodontic procedures can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
Fetch has its own online pharmacy that offers members 100% reimbursement on qualifying pet medications when they shop there. Pets Best doesn’t.
Pets Best also doesn’t have a perks program, so you’ll miss out on over $1,500 in additional savings that Fetch offers via discounts on pet products and services to help keep your pet healthy.
Nationwide
Nationwide made headlines last year with the announcement that they were dropping about 100,000 pet insurance policies. Fetch may change your premiums or coverage configuration at renewal; however, the company has publicly stated that they don't cancel policies based on claims history.
Nationwide didn’t make it easy for me to see what’s covered and what isn’t. When I quoted with them, I had to read through a very dense 5-page sample policy just to learn more about what’s covered. Check out the video to see for yourself.
Even with their most extensive (and expensive) plan, Nationwide doesn’t have coverage for behavioral therapy. Fetch does.
Nationwide only covers some breed-specific conditions and doesn’t cover congenital conditions — unless you pay extra. These conditions are covered with Fetch at no additional cost.
If you want to match the dental coverage that comes standard with Fetch, you’ll have to pay for their most expensive plan.
With Nationwide, you won’t get 100% reimbursement on your pet’s medications.
Embrace
Embrace’s coverage comes close to Fetch — but it’s not quite as complete. The major difference here is dental coverage. As I’ve said earlier, having comprehensive dental coverage is crucial, because there is a very wide range of issues that can affect your pet’s tooth and gums, and you want to ensure that you have protection for as many teeth and procedures as possible. Embrace has a $1,000 limit on dental coverage per year, which may seem high at first, but if your pet needs a dental surgery that requires anesthesia, for example, you’ll hit that limit much faster than you may think.
Embrace only offers coverage for prescriptions as an add-on to your base policy, meaning your monthly price will go up if you want to get any level of reimbursement of medications. Even if you opt in, Embrace still can’t compete with Fetch’s 100% reimbursement on qualifying pet meds when you use Fetch Pet Rx.
Vet-visit fees also aren’t included in Embrace’s base plan, which means your original quoted price will go up if you want this coverage. These fees, around $50 - $250 each time, come standard with Fetch.
A bit more about dental coverage: Fetch covers injury and disease in every adult tooth. You also get full coverage for periodontal disease (the most common disease in dogs and cats), oral tumors, trauma and more. Embrace only covers up to $1,000 in dental illnesses per year. If your pet requires costly dental surgery that costs more than your annual limit, you’ll have to pay out of pocket to make up the difference.
Spot
Spot’s coverage is competitive, and they even offered me a $25 Amazon gift card when I submitted a quote with them which felt like a nice perk. But that $25 dollars doesn’t make up for Spot’s limitations in dental coverage and prescription reimbursement.
Spot’s limited dental coverage doesn’t include endodontic or orthodontic dental services like caps, crowns, crown amputations, fillings, implants or root canals. Dental coverage is not an area you want to skimp on — especially since treatment like root canals can cost thousands of dollars.
Spot offers telehealth coverage, but those claims will be subject to a copay and deductible, just like other forms of treatment. With Fetch, online vet visits are covered up to $1,000 a year but there’s no copay, deductible or additional costs.
Fetch also offers $1,000 a year for behavioral therapy with no copay and no deductible. With Spot, this treatment will go through the standard claims process with copay and deductible, meaning you’ll save more with Fetch.
As with other providers, Spot won’t cover the full price of your pet’s medications. Fetch is the only provider that offers 100% reimbursement on qualifying medications when you use online pharmacy Fetch Pet Rx.
Fetch
When you get a quote with Fetch, the monthly cost may look higher than other pet insurance companies at first glance. This is because you’re getting more complete coverage — specifically, Fetch covers more accidents and illnesses than any other provider and has more complete dental coverage. Fetch also has Health Perks — over $1,500 in savings on pet food, litter and more exclusively for members. So you're getting big benefits even if you never have to file a claim for your pet.
Fetch will reimburse 100% of your pet’s qualifying medications when you use online pharmacy Fetch Pet Rx. This is an incredible benefit you can’t get elsewhere, but if you’re a Fetch Member and you buy your meds at the vet or a pharmacy besides Fetch Pet Rx, your prescription coverage will be capped at $1,500 per year.
Fetch may change your price or coverage configuration at your renewal period, especially if you’ve filed a lot of claims. (This is common practice among other types of insurance, like home and auto.) That said, customers can have full confidence and peace of mind that Fetch doesn't cancel policies based on claims history.
Fetch will only cover one foreign body ingestion per year. This means if your pet is constantly swallowing items that need surgical removal and anesthesia, only one of those claims per year will be covered. Ingestions that don’t require surgical removal aren’t subject to this cap.
In most cases, Fetch won’t cover claims unless your pet’s medical records are on file. If you haven’t been to the vet prior to signing up, you’ll need to schedule a vet visit and submit your medical records as soon as possible after you enroll.
Fetch does not cover pre-existing conditions. In general, no pet insurance policy does. A pre-existing condition is any injury, illness or condition your pet has exhibited before you enroll in pet insurance or during your waiting period. Mature pets without health concerns can also benefit from coverage, but the cost of covering an older pet will be more expensive.
The Dig, Fetch Pet Insurance's expert-backed editorial, answers all of the questions you forget to ask your vet or are too embarrassed to ask at the dog park. We help make sure you and your best friend have more good days, but we’re there on bad days, too.
†Subject to deductible and policy limit; applies to qualifying medications purchased from Fetch Pet Rx.All orders from FetchPetRx.com are fulfilled by Allivet. Allivet is a fully licensed pharmacy, licensed to sell pet prescription medication in all states.
