Quick answer: Well-known pet insurance providers in the USA include Healthy Paws, Embrace, Fetch (formerly Petplan), Nationwide, Trupanion, ASPCA Pet Health Insurance, Figo, PetFirst and Crum & Forster’s Hartville brand. Pet Assure, also in our original list, is a veterinary discount plan, not insurance. The best choice depends on your pet’s age and breed, the annual limit and deductible you want, whether you need wellness cover, and the provider’s waiting periods and exclusions in your state.
An earlier version of this article gave payout limits and “unique features” for each company that we could not confirm, and some were wrong or out of date. Petplan has since been renamed Fetch, and Nationwide stopped renewing many pet policies in 2024 and 2025. We have kept the original ten names and rewritten each entry using what the providers publish, with changes noted.
What pet insurance is and why it matters
Pet insurance pays back part of your vet bills when your dog or cat (and, with some providers, other animals) is injured or falls ill. Most policies work on reimbursement: you pay the vet, submit a claim and receive a percentage of the eligible cost after your deductible. Common choices are:
- Accident-only plans: cover injuries such as broken bones, cuts or swallowed objects.
- Accident and illness plans: also cover conditions such as infections, cancer, diabetes and many hereditary conditions.
- Wellness add-ons: help with routine care such as vaccinations and check-ups. These are often separate from the insurance policy itself.
Pet insurance can make an expensive emergency easier to afford and lets you choose treatment based on what your pet needs rather than only on cost. It almost never covers pre-existing conditions, and most plans have waiting periods before cover starts.
How we chose and how to compare providers
The list keeps the providers from the original article. We have not tested them or ranked them. To compare quotes fairly, look at the same items for each:
- Annual limit: the most the policy pays in a year. Some providers offer unlimited options.
- Deductible: whether it is annual or per condition, and how much it is.
- Reimbursement rate: usually 70%, 80% or 90% of eligible costs.
- Waiting periods: how long after buying the policy before accidents and illnesses are covered.
- Exclusions: pre-existing conditions, exam fees, dental care, and limits on hereditary or orthopaedic conditions.
- Premium increases: premiums usually rise as your pet gets older. Ask how renewals are priced.
- Who underwrites the policy: many pet insurance brands are sold by an agency while a separate insurance company carries the risk. Check that insurer’s financial strength and complaint record with your state insurance department.
In 2022, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) adopted a Pet Insurance Model Act that sets out how pre-existing conditions are defined, requires clear disclosure of waiting periods and limits, and puts the burden on the insurer to show that a pre-existing condition exclusion applies. Each state decides whether to adopt it, so protections vary.
The providers in detail
Healthy Paws
Healthy Paws offers an accident and illness plan for dogs and cats. Its website says the plan has no per-incident, annual or lifetime caps on payouts. It does not cover routine wellness care or exam fees. Chubb, which had underwritten the Healthy Paws programme for years, agreed to buy the business from Aon in April 2024. The original article mentioned a charitable foundation for animal rescue groups; check Healthy Paws’ site for its current charitable programme.
Embrace Pet Insurance
Embrace sells accident and illness cover for dogs and cats, with an optional Wellness Rewards programme for routine care. Embrace notes that Wellness Rewards is not insurance. Embrace’s coverage page says dental illness, such as extractions and periodontal disease, is covered up to $1,000 a year, and that some “curable” pre-existing conditions can become eligible after 12 months without symptoms or treatment. Embrace belongs to the same pet insurance group as Figo and Pets Best. The original article’s “$30,000 annual limit” could not be confirmed against Embrace’s current pages, so check the limits offered in your quote.
Fetch (formerly Petplan)
Petplan, which was in our original list, rebranded as “Fetch by The Dodo” after a 2020 deal with the pet media brand, and the company now trades as Fetch. Fetch sells accident and illness plans for dogs and cats in the US and Canada. The original article’s $22,000 annual limit and travel cover option applied to the old Petplan products; check Fetch’s current plan details for limits, deductibles and extras.
Nationwide Pet Insurance
Nationwide offers pet insurance for dogs and cats and has a separate plan for birds and exotic pets, which is unusual in the US market. In mid-2024, Nationwide said it would not renew about 100,000 pet policies between spring 2024 and summer 2025, citing rising veterinary costs and product withdrawals in some states. If you are buying from Nationwide, check which plans are available in your state. The original article’s $10,000 annual limit could not be confirmed.
Trupanion
Trupanion offers one main plan for dogs and cats that pays 90% of eligible costs after a deductible in most states, with no annual or lifetime payout limits. Its deductible is per condition: once you meet it for a condition, you do not pay it again for that condition. Trupanion’s Express system, which the original article mentioned, lets participating vet clinics receive Trupanion’s share of the bill at checkout, so you pay only your portion. Exam fees are not covered.
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance
ASPCA-branded plans are not sold by the ASPCA itself. The ASPCA licenses its name, and the policies are underwritten by United States Fire Insurance Company and administered by an agency of Crum & Forster. The programme offers accident-only and accident and illness plans, with a choice of annual limits and optional preventive care add-ons. The original article said the plans have no payout limits; the limit depends on the option you choose.
PetFirst Pet Insurance
PetFirst is a long-running US pet insurance brand. MetLife’s pet insurance pages name PetFirst Healthcare as the administrator of its policies. We could not confirm whether PetFirst still sells its own branded plans to new customers in every state, or the “Pet Cloud” feature described in our original article. Check PetFirst’s site or your state insurance department before you buy.
Figo Pet Insurance
Figo sells accident and illness plans for dogs and cats, with a choice of annual limits that includes an unlimited option, and a mobile app for managing your policy and claims. Figo is part of Independence Pet Holdings, the group that also owns Embrace and Pets Best. The original article said Figo has no payout limits; that is true only if you choose the unlimited option.
Pet Assure (a discount plan, not insurance)
Pet Assure sells veterinary discount and wellness plans, not insurance. Members get a discount on in-house services at participating vets, and because it is not insurance, pre-existing conditions are not excluded and there is no deductible or claim to file. The discount is much smaller than what an insurance policy pays back on a large bill, and it only works at vets in Pet Assure’s network. Some people use a discount plan alongside insurance.
Hartville Pet Insurance
Hartville is part of Crum & Forster’s pet insurance group, which also runs the ASPCA programme. It offers accident-only and accident and illness plans with optional preventive care. The original article described a Pet Poison Helpline as a unique Hartville feature; we could not confirm this as a current Hartville benefit, so check the plan documents.
Keeping vet costs down
Insurance is only part of the picture. Regular check-ups catch problems early, and keeping vaccinations and flea, tick and heartworm prevention up to date helps avoid some illnesses altogether. It also helps to set aside a small emergency fund for vet bills, because every policy has a deductible and a share you pay yourself.
If you are reviewing your family’s other cover too, see our guides to the largest US health insurance companies and the top car insurance companies in the USA.
This article is general information, not insurance advice. Coverage, limits and prices vary by state and by pet. Read the sample policy for your state before you buy.
Frequently asked questions
Does pet insurance cover pre-existing conditions?
Generally no. Most providers exclude conditions that showed signs or were treated before cover started. Some, such as Embrace, may cover a “curable” condition after a set period without symptoms or treatment. Check the policy wording.
Is Pet Assure the same as pet insurance?
No. Pet Assure is a discount plan. You get a reduced price at participating vets, but it does not reimburse your bills the way insurance does.
What happened to Petplan?
Petplan in the US rebranded as Fetch by The Dodo after a deal announced in 2020, and the company now trades as Fetch.
Can any pet insurer pay my vet directly?
Trupanion can pay its share directly to vet clinics that use its Express system. Most other providers reimburse you after you pay the vet, and a few offer direct payment only in limited cases.
Why did my pet insurance premium go up?
Premiums usually rise as pets age and as veterinary costs increase in your area. Ask your provider how it prices renewals before you buy, and compare quotes if increases become too steep.
Checked in October 2026 against the providers’ own coverage pages (Healthy Paws, Embrace, Trupanion), Chubb’s April 2024 announcement on Healthy Paws, MetLife’s pet insurance disclosures, published reports of Nationwide’s 2024 non-renewals and the Petplan rebrand, and the NAIC Pet Insurance Model Act (2022).
