Since you have many different choices between pet insurance carriers, it can be hard to know if you’re making the right decision for you and your pet. One of the main choices for coverage is Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation. Below we’ll look at the background of Healthy Paws, pros and cons, company ratings, coverage options, and pricing.
- About Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation
- Pros and Cons
- Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Ratings
- How Much does Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Cost?
- How Paw Healthy Pet Insurance Quotes Compare with Other Similar Companies?
- How Easy to Get a Quote from Healthy Paws Pet Insurance
- Coverage Options
About Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation:
Healthy Paws was founded in 2009 and is based in Bellevue, Wash. The company states on its about page that it created the first iPhone app so that customers wouldn’t have to submit cumbersome claim forms. It was started when an insurance executive and a shelter director met at a local, no-kill shelter. The two wanted to prepare pet owners for the financial responsibilities of owning a pet.
Healthy Paws is somewhat unique in that it also operates as a foundation. Healthy Paws runs the Every Quote Gives Hope medical grant program, which helps pet rescues and animal shelters care for sick homeless animals.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation is partnered with the Aon Corporation, the world’s largest insurance broker. The company’s policies are underwritten by the Chubb Group.
Pros:
- Offers coverage for both illness and accident under one comprehensive plan.
- It’s a good option if you value a company that gives back, as Healthy Paws is part foundation.
- Healthy Paws has very good reviews online.
- It’s on the modest side for monthly pricing.
Cons:
- Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation does not have preventative/routine care coverage and only covers dental under its main plan in the event of an accident.
- It’s very strict about not covering pre-existing conditions.
- It only covers cats and dogs, no exotics like reptiles or birds.
- Exam and office visit fees are not covered.
- The one plan structure can be a negative if you highly value customization between plan tiers and add-ons.
>>MORE: Pet Insurance that Covers Preventative Care
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Ratings:
Healthy Paws has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) since 2011. It currently holds an A+ rating and has an average customer rating of about 4 stars from the BBB.
The company even has a 4-star rating with Yelp, the website most known for attracting more complaints than positive reviews. Reviewers like the speed of communications with the company and many state it was easy to get claims approved, though other people state problems with getting claims approved due to pre-existing conditions and slow communications. One reviewer states that rates tend to increase as the pet ages, which is common for pet health insurance. A common complaint on Yelp is people having issues with being told their paperwork is incomplete when documents have been sent. People also state they have issues with long hold times on the customer service line.
Consumers Advocate rated Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation as the best overall in pet insurance companies, giving it a full 5/5 stars. They rate it best for its comprehensive illness and accident coverage, no claim caps and the free mobile app with no claims forms, as a few reasons.
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation is not accredited with ConsumerAffairs and reviews at the site are mixed, with an average rating of a little under two stars.
How Much does Healthy Paws Pet Insurance Cost?
We got eight quotes from Healthy Paws. We tried to cover main scenarios. We looked at the difference between prices in Texas and Florida, as well as the difference between a 1-year-old and a 5-year-old dog. We also compared two breeds: German Shepherd, representing big dogs, and Labrador Retriever for small/medium dogs.
- Texas, small/medium dog, 1-year-old: $36 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $250 annual deductible
- Texas, small/medium dog, 5-year-old: $51 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $250 annual deductible
- Texas, big dog, 1-year-old: $36 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $250 annual deductible
- Texas, big dog, 5-year-old: $51 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $250 annual deductible
- Florida, small/medium dog, 1-year-old: $42 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $200 annual deductible
- Florida, small/medium dog, 5-year-old: $55 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $200 annual deductible
- Florida, big dog, 1-year-old: $39 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $200 annual deductible
- Florida, big dog, 5-year-old: $51 per month – unlimited annual benefit – $200 annual deductible
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance quotes are in the lower end compared with other similar pet insurance companies. Its quotes are very similar between small/medium and big dogs. The quotes are a bit more expensive in Florida than in Texas. As expected, quotes are more expensive for older dogs than younger ones at the $250 deductible level.
How Paw Healthy Pet Insurance Quotes Compare with Other Similar Companies?
In order to compare quotes, we also got eight quotes from Pets Best Pet Insurance and API Pet Insurance with similar variations.
In order to keep things even between coverage, we compared the rates between plans that didn’t cover exams since Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation doesn’t cover those. The results are as follows:
| Pets Best Insurance | Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation | VPI Pet Insurance: | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | small/medium dog | 1-year-old | $35 | $36 | $71 |
| 5-year-old | $48 | $51 | $103 | ||
| big dog | 1-year-old | $36 | $36 | $71 | |
| 5-year-old | $48 | $51 | $103 | ||
| Florida | small/medium dog | 1-year-old | $33 | $42 | $80 |
| 5-year-old | $44 | $55 | $96 | ||
| big dog | 1-year-old | $33 | $39 | $80 | |
| 5-year-old | $45 | $51 | $96 |
Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation tends to be slightly more expensive monthly than Pets Best; however, it’s drastically less expensive than VPI. Also, VPI has a $10,000 total annual benefit, whereas both Healthy Paws and Pets Best are unlimited.
>>MORE: Pets Best Insurance Review ; VPI Pet Insurance Review
How Easy to Get a Quote from Healthy Paws Pet Insurance?
Getting a quote from Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation is fairly simple. There’s a large form in the middle of the home page that lets you enter your pet’s name, and that gets the quote process started. Then this page appears:
One factor that makes getting a quote a little different than other sites is that rather than selecting your pet’s age, like “1-year-old,” you have to either know or guess what month and year your pet was born.
However, once you put in the information, this page shows up:
It’s good at outlining your rate in an easy-to-understand format. You can also customize between different reimbursement and deductible options, which can change according to what state you are in. Selecting different options updates the monthly rate in real-time. For instance, if we change the reimbursement option to 70 percent and the deductible to $500, the monthly rate changes to $27.74:
While this page is simple and easy to understand, you have to scroll down to see what benefits are actually covered for this plan. You can see them here:
That part could be easy to miss, especially since the top of the page boasts the big orange “next” button prompting you to the enroll page.
Coverage Options:
As you can see in the screenshot above, Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation has a pretty extensive list of conditions it covers. It covers both illnesses and accidents. It even covers prescription medications, alternative treatment and hereditary conditions.
However, like all pet insurance, it does not cover ongoing pre-existing conditions. It also offers no coverage options for preventative/routine care, spay/neuter or office visit/exam fees. As far as dental care goes, it only covers accidental dental care as part of its one main plan, and it covers extraction or reconstruction.
>>MORE: What does Pet Insurance Cover?
The Bottom Line:
- Healthy Paws Pet Insurance & Foundation is a solid company with overall good ratings that’s been around for about 10 years. A huge perk is its spirit of giving back to rescues and shelters.
- The company offers one no-fuss plan that’s very clear on what it covers and what it does not. There are no tiers of plans to navigate, which can be either of plus or a negative depending on how much you like to customize your options. However, you can still adjust between different reimbursement amounts and deductibles.
- Getting a quote through the website is a simple process, made only slightly complex by needing to know the month and year your pet was born. The one-plan layout also makes everything very straightforward.