Healthy Paws | Pet Insurance Review

Claims service is wonderful. Claims are paid promptly and fairly. I wish my health insurance was as good as my dogs!

Two weeks ago, my dog was attacked by a large unleashed dog while being walked. She was bit, and had several serious lacerations on her neck, requiring the insertion of a drain, several stitches, medications and a 2-day hospital stay. The cost of it all came to $787.64. My plan provides for a $500 deductible, with an 80% reimbursement percentage, so I assumed my reimbursement would be $230.11 (80% of the $287. 64 allowed after subtracting my deductible.). To my utter shock, I received a completed claim notice advising me that I would receive a total of $17.32 on my $787.64 claim! I immediately called and was told that the $141 “emergency exam” charge was not covered. The policy exclusion does in fact list “veterinary exams,” although it does not state “emergency veterinary exams,” which this one was listed as by my vet. I interpreted the exam exclusion to mean routine examinations, as I’m guessing most people would. After all, how can a veterinarian be expected to treat a badly injured dog brought in as an emergency without first ascertaining the type and degree of its injuries? Would it have been preferable for her to take xrays, or do a CAT scan, or even surgery without examining my dog to insure there was nothing more serious going on? Of course not…yet these more invasive diagnostic procedures would have been covered. Then to add insult to injury, I was advised that of the $646.64 allowable charges ($787.64 minus the $141 emergency exam), I had a co-insurance obligation and was required to pay 20%, or $129.32 before subtracting the $500 deductible. In other words, $129.32 would be subtracted from the $646.64, giving me $517.32. After subtracting my $500 deductible from this amount, the reimbursement for my $787.64 fee would be $17.32. I am not challenging this later charge, as I clearly did not pay attention to this little bit of very expensive and confusing fine-print in the policy! But I find it interesting that none of the so-called pet insurance review sites ever mention it under the list of policy “cons.” And, by the way, this is not a standard requirement of all pet insurance companies (see Embrace, for instance), so I encourage pet owners to read the fine print more carefully than I did before deciding on a plan. And to take Healthy Pets off the list of “one of the best.”

I have been a customer since 2016. My first claim was filed in February 2023. It took 4 weeks for the company to tell me that they needed additional documents, which I provided the next day. It’s been another two weeks, and my claim is still awaiting review from a claims processor. I currently have six claims pending. The 2-10 day processing that they advertise is a false claim in my experience. Update: I followed up with a Customer Manager as the Healthy Paws social media message below suggested. I have made multiple calls and spent several hours with Healthy Paws. Another 10 days has gone by since leaving my review and my claims are still “processing”. Healthy Paws has been getting away with false / misleading advertising. If you’re shopping for pet insurance, please consider all of your options carefully. If you switch pet insurance, many insurers will not cover pre-existing conditions.

We are very happy with the service provided by Healthy Paws. The claims process and the app were very easy to navigate. The insurance is worth every penny. We’ve had two instances of needing the insurance and Healthy Paws was quick to process and pay out the claims. They also checked in on how our dog was doing. This has probably been the best insurance process I’ve been through with any type of insurance.

My pug, who had always been incredibly healthy, simply jumped off of our couch (something he had always done!) and immediately lost feeling in his back legs. We had to rush him to the hospital for immediate care and hospitalization. An MRI showed a herniated disc and significant spinal trauma. The hospital kept him for a period of days as he was going to need medication, rest and rehabilitation (and maybe eventual surgery). With the vet, we came up with a care plan in order to bring him home. But the first day we brought him home - he had a bad reaction to medication and had to be hospitalized again. All in all, he was hospitalized for almost a week. We were devastated and very stressed, to say the least. In the background, knowing we had Healthy Paws made all the difference. The claims process was so smooth and simple, and the reimbursement was in my account so quickly. Not having to fight on the financial end of things made our lives easier when all we wanted to do was focus on our fur baby. I am grateful that we have pet insurance with Healthy Paws, 10000%!!!