Additional pets get 10% Discount
Pros
- Lifetime Insurance coverage + Preventative Care
- 90% reimbursement for every plan
- No penalties for claims
- Applicable in all USA and Canada vets
- Covers dental diseases & chronic conditions
- Discounts for multiple pets
- Annual deductible
- Sick exam fees covered
Cons
- No options for reimbursement percentage
About Pumpkin Pet Insurance
Pumpkin is a fresh new player in the pet insurance industry. The company was launched in 2019 but it’s taking huge steps to mark its place in the industry. Most pet insurance providers follow similar guidelines and offer customers the same standard plans. Pumpkin, however, takes one step ahead of its competitors by giving focus on preventative care and health insurance.
Pumpkin kept their insurance plans simple with deductibles that are easy to comprehend, which, in our books, means that they’re starting on the right foot. Pet owners are given the option to choose between a standard insurance package and an insurance package that has a preventive care add-on. This makes Pumpkin an effective choice for pet owners with various needs. Pumpkin maintains that their plan limits, deductible options, standard reimbursement, and plan coverage provide the ideal level of protection for every cat and dog.
How It Works?
Pumpkin operates in a similar manner as every pet insurance provider. They provide reimbursement for expenses that are eligible when your pet gets injured or sick and needs to visit a vet. Pumpkin makes things easy for pet owners by allowing them to go to any licensed veterinarian, specialist, hospital, or emergency clinic in the US and Canada. If you travel often between these two countries, you get the peace of mind that your pet is protected without paying for any extra insurance.
Before you can sign up for a Pumpkin insurance plan, you need to visit their website and get a quote. You’ll be asked whether you have a dog or a cat as well as their name. If you have multiple pets, you can also add them simultaneously and you will receive a 10% family discount at checkout.
Next, you need to select the breed, age, and gender for each pet that you enroll. Many pet insurance providers set an age cap that limits insurance coverage to younger pets only. Pumpkin, however, will accept pets that are at least 8 weeks old. Once you input all of your pet’s information, you can complete the process by providing your name, email, and zip code so that Pumpkin can send you a quote based on your location.
Pumpkin provides the options of a standard insurance plan and an additional package that covers preventative care. When you choose to add preventative care, you get additional benefits including coverage for annual screening tests, reimbursements for annual checkups, and refunds on annual vaccinations that you or the veterinarian chooses. Preventative care coverage helps you detect health issues early on and ensures that you can provide your pet a healthy long life.
Coverage for preventative care starts as soon as possible and Pumpkin will accept claims 14 days prior to the start date of your coverage. Submitting a claim is easy and simple. You can file a claim through your Pumpkin account along with a receipt from the vet. Pumpkin quickly processes claims and sends the reimbursement through direct deposit or to your address by check. Pumpkin doesn’t have any limits to the number of claims you are allowed to submit in a year.
Coverage
You can visit the Pumpkin website and you can see the details of their coverage. Many of the items they cover are excluded or require additional charges by other insurance providers. For the standard coverage, it includes:
• Accidents & illnesses
• Diagnostics & treatments
• Prescription meds
• Emergencies & hospitalization
• Surgery & specialized care
• Hereditary conditions
• Dental & gum disease
• Behavioral issues
• Sick exam fees
• Advanced care
• Alternative therapies
• Prescription food for eligible conditions
If you decide to get the preventative coverage, you’ll also get access to additional coverage including
• Full refund on an annual wellness exam
• 2 vaccines for dogs, 1 vaccine for cats, and 4 annual vaccines for puppies
• Full refund on a fecal exam for cats, dogs, and puppies
• Yearly screening of vector-borne diseases for dogs
Exclusions
No insurance provider would cover everything so it’s important that you read the terms and conditions of your insurance policy and be completely aware of what’s covered and what’s not. Pumpkin does its best to be transparent about the coverage and exclusions of its insurance policies. You can take a look at a sample policy from their website.
Similar to other insurance providers, Pumpkin’s insurance plans do not cover pre-existing conditions. There are, however, some exceptions. You can learn more about pre-existing conditions and how they’re treated on Pumpkin’s website.
Pricing
Pumpkin offers insurance coverage for cats and dogs, but there is a slight price difference between the two types of pets. If you have a cat, your monthly fees are smaller but the annual limit will also be lower. The exact monthly premium will be based on several different factors associated with the type of pet and coverage that you select. Due to several variables, it’s not easy to determine the exact amount each pet owner would pay without getting a quote from Pumpkin directly.
When discussing different prices, the first things we need to look at are deductibles, annual limits, and reimbursement percentages. Many insurance providers give the option to choose between different coverage limits and reimbursement amounts. Pumpkin has set these options in place which makes them more unique. They’ve analyzed several years of data to determine the ideal amount that would work for most pet owners. Reimbursement is fixed at 90% but pet owners can choose their annual coverage limits. We broke down the details in the table below for dog and cat owners.
Coverage
You can visit the Pumpkin website and you can see the details of their coverage. Many of the items they cover are excluded or require additional charges by other insurance providers. For the standard coverage, it includes:
• Accidents & illnesses
• Diagnostics & treatments
• Prescription meds
• Emergencies & hospitalization
• Surgery & specialized care
• Hereditary conditions
• Dental & gum disease
• Behavioral issues
• Sick exam fees
• Advanced care
• Alternative therapies
• Prescription food for eligible conditions
If you decide to get the preventative coverage, you’ll also get access to additional coverage including
• Full refund on an annual wellness exam
• 2 vaccines for dogs, 1 vaccine for cats, and 4 annual vaccines for puppies
• Full refund on a fecal exam for cats, dogs, and puppies
• Yearly screening of vector-borne diseases for dogs
Exclusions
No insurance provider would cover everything so it’s important that you read the terms and conditions of your insurance policy and be completely aware of what’s covered and what’s not. Pumpkin does its best to be transparent about the coverage and exclusions of its insurance policies. You can take a look at a sample policy from their website.
Similar to other insurance providers, Pumpkin’s insurance plans do not cover pre-existing conditions. There are, however, some exceptions. You can learn more about pre-existing conditions and how they’re treated on Pumpkin’s website.
Pricing
Pumpkin offers insurance coverage for cats and dogs, but there is a slight price difference between the two types of pets. If you have a cat, your monthly fees are smaller but the annual limit will also be lower. The exact monthly premium will be based on several different factors associated with the type of pet and coverage that you select. Due to several variables, it’s not easy to determine the exact amount each pet owner would pay without getting a quote from Pumpkin directly.
When discussing different prices, the first things we need to look at are deductibles, annual limits, and reimbursement percentages. Many insurance providers give the option to choose between different coverage limits and reimbursement amounts. Pumpkin has set these options in place which makes them more unique. They’ve analyzed several years of data to determine the ideal amount that would work for most pet owners. Reimbursement is fixed at 90% but pet owners can choose their annual coverage limits. We broke down the details in the table below for dog and cat owners.
What Do People Say About Pumpkin Pet Insurance?
I have a dog and a cat and I have made sure that I have their health covered with a good pet insurance company. However, it’s really disheartening to see that most companies look for ways to avoid paying for the claims made. But not MetLife! In fact, MetLife is one of the very few pet insurance companies I have come across that offers good coverage at a good premium cost. In fact, when my little Labrador suffered an injury and needed to undergo an operation, MetLife paid for the claim in full amount.
We just got our puppy this spring and I did a pretty extensive amount of research to make sure I found the right vet in the area. I have nothing but good things to say about this place, so far. They are upfront about their pricing and genuinely seem to enjoy seeing our puppy. Although I hope we don’t have to come here often, I have enjoyed our visits and would recommend for a vet in hells kitchen if you need one!
| Item | Pumpkin | Figo | Healthy Paws | Trupanion |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Limits | $7,000 – $20,000 | $5,000 – None | None | None |
| Deductibles | $250 (Annual) | $100 – $750 (Annual) | $100 – $500 (Annual) | $0 – $1,000 (per Claim) |
| Reimbursement | 90% | 10% – 100% | 70% – 90% | 90% |
| Exam Fees | Covered | Added Cost | Not Covered | Not Covered |
| Age Limit | All pets 8 weeks and older | None | Limited Coverage | 13 Years Old |
| Preventative Care | $11.95 – $18.95 monthly | Not Covered | Not Covered | Not Covered |
| Alternative Therapy | Included | Limited Included | Included | Added Cost |
| Multi-Pet Discount | 10% | None | None | None |
In terms of annual coverage limits, there are only two options that pet owners can choose from. Pumpkin’s logic behind this is that there are fewer people who exceed these amounts annually but many pet owners are paying higher premiums for plans with higher annual limits. Pumpkin’s research found that less than 1% of pet owners with insured pets spend beyond these annual limits. Pumpkin’s choices annual coverage limits help prevent pet owners from overpaying for pet insurance. The reimbursement rate means that pet owners can get back 90% of their covered vet bills. If you’ve met your annual deductible and you get a $1,000 invoice from the vet, you can get a $900 refund and only pay $100 out of pocket.
Pumpkin does allow pet owners to have control over their deductibles. A deductible is an amount you need to pay before your insurance coverage starts. Pumpkin’s insurance plans have a $250 deductible as a default but you can set it lower to $100 and higher up to $500. Pumpkin recommends pet owners to set their deductibles at $250 since it provides the best value overall, but they’ll let you make your own choice.
Aside from the type of pet you have (cat or dog), the monthly premiums for your pet’s insurance plan will also be based on your location and the age of the pet. Although each pet owner’s premiums differ based on these factors, we created the table below to show the differences between the prices for each type of pet. For the values below, the deductible is set at $250 for a medium mixed-breed cat and dog located in 79936.
Do take note that these values would change if you have a larger or smaller-sized dog or live in a different city or state. In addition to the standard plan, you can also opt for preventative coverage which costs an extra $11.95 a month for cats and $18.95 a month for dogs and puppies.
| Item | Cat | Dog |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Weeks to 5 Months | $21.72 | $41.96 |
| 1 Year Old | $21.72 | $41.96 |
| 5 Years Old | $25.34> | $50.96 |
| 10 Years Old | $45.25 | $107.91 |
Pumpkin vs. Competitors
Before you sign up for any insurance policy, it’s important to spend time comparing different options available. You may try to get recommendations from other pet owners but you can’t be 100% sure that what worked for others would work well for you too. It’s essential that you know what to look out for so that you can narrow down your choices. Monthly costs and breadth of coverage are just a couple of factors. Below we’ve summarized what makes Pumpkin stand and how they compare to other insurance providers.
Since Pumpkin’s annual limit and reimbursement percentage are already set, pet owners can be more prepared for their pet’s insurance policy. Pumpkin’s insurance plans also provide generous coverage which includes treatments for which many of their competitors would charge an additional fee. There are no age limits, although pets need to be at least 8 weeks old, and they also offer a 10% discount if you enroll multiple pets. It’s not difficult to see why many pet owners would find Pumpkin a great choice.
Offering preventative care as an add-on to their standard insurance plans also takes Pumpkin one step ahead. The package covers essentials that are recommended by every veterinarian namely annual wellness exams, vaccinations, and laboratory tests. Pet owners can get a full refund for vaccinations to keep their pets healthy.
Conclusion
Some pet owners may be put off by the lack of choices when it comes to annual limits especially if they believe that they need unlimited coverage to get the best protection. Contrary to this belief, Pumpkin has spent time and effort researching the ideal coverage limits that would provide pet owners the best value for their money. They examined trends and looked at pet owners’ spending and how much money is wasted on premiums for unlimited pans. Less than 1% of pet owners actually spend beyond $10,000 a year on veterinary care. For 99% of pet owners, getting unlimited coverage becomes pointless. Although getting more options seems nice, saving more of your money would be better. Pumpkin makes sure that you get the latter.
You don’t have to worry about reimbursement percentage if you want to save money on your monthly premiums. Other insurance providers would only cover up to 70 or 80 percent if you want to pay lower monthly premiums. Although it sounds great upon starting an insurance plan, you might wish that you signed up for higher coverage when you get your vet bill and still have several hundred out-of-pocket expenses.
Although Pumpkin is a new name in the industry, they have several years of data and lessons from other companies to back up their insurance plans. Pumpkin evaluated where their competitors excelled and fell short and designed an insurance plan that suits both cat and dog owners.
