ASPCA | Pet Insurance Review

Honest answer, you need to add a place for co-owners or spouse so that way another person can address questions or reference reimbursement issues.

Great experience, can't improve on excellent

My experience with this pet insurance company has been a complete nightmare. I signed my dachshund up with ASPCA in August 1st of 2016. My dog Winston was 9 years old at the time and had no preexisting conditions. In the past two years the plan has gone up in price substantially (I started out paying $36.00 a month and I now pay $56.00 a month). Now get this. It is June of this year when my dog got diagnosed with Lymphoma (a quick growing cancer that has a prognosis of two months). For the first time in Winston's life he has an illness that is severe and needs significant treatment. At this point I am overjoyed that I have put so much money into a pet insurance company that has a limit of $3,000 dollars in order to help prolong Winston’s life (being that I am a grad school student graduate I have significant student loan debt and this monthly $56.00 of allotted money that I was putting towards my pet insurance was precious and significant). Because of ASPCA’s policy that refuses to provide reimbursement for continued treatment after the renewal date (as in—because I started my pet insurance on August 1st, they refuse to reimburse me should Winstons’ treatment’s continue beyond this date, although the yearly limit they provide that they will reimburse towards is $3,000) This appears to violate the agreement that I and many others might assume to exist in that they will provide reimbursement for bills accrued due to illness, accidents, etc. Their abrupt cancelations for canceling reimbursement for my dogs treatment appeared callous and cold as well as only covered two chemotherapy treatments out of the minimum of five that were recommended. My vet (Dr. Lauren Silverman, DVM) at Healthy Pet’s Veterinary Hospital in the West Portal District of San Francisco (where Winston was diagnosed with lymphoma), as well as my current Oncologist (Dr. Bryan Marker DVM, DACVIM) have expressed their dismay and disrespect for the insurance companies apparent disregard for their abrupt cessation of reimbursement support for vet bills right before a renewal date. Had Winston been diagnosed with cancer in September, he would have had 11 months of reimbursable treatments that could have prolonged his life (as Winston was responding favorably to the chemotherapy). I am extremely disappointed that the massive fine print in the ASPCA pet insurance allows them to feel compelled to not reimburse me for any treatment taking place after August 3rd when my pet insurance is renewed. The vets that have grown to love Winston have decided to stop recommending ASPCA pet insurance to their patients due to the numerous loop holes which allow them to escape responsibility for reimbursing for vet bills. That said, some companies use benefit schedules or “usual and customary” charges to determine how much they’ll reimburse. The issue with these reimbursements is that the company sets a limit for how much they’ll pay based on your pet’s diagnosis. That means if your vet happens to charge more than what they have designated for that condition, you’ll end up footing the difference like I have done all too often with this pet insurance. I have now only been reimbursed $1,038 dollars an entire month after submitting my claim for $1,300. Not only has this pet insurance nickeled and dimed me as much as possible, but they have made it so I am now paying even MORE based on the interest this amount has accrued on my credit card. I too must speak out against this grave injustice that I feel I have experienced at the detriment of my pet’s lifespan. I am crying writing this review, knowing my baby has only about a month left and has already started to decline dramatically due to his cancer tumors returning. I only hope that this review can assist someone who loves their pet the way that I do in making a better pet insurance decision.

Fairly satisfied. Prompt responses. Wish they paid out on more items. Expensive but better than others.

My experience with this pet insurance company has been a complete nightmare. I signed my dachshund up with ASPCA in August 1st of 2016. My dog Winston was 9 years old at the time and had no preexisting conditions. In the past two years the plan has gone up in price substantially (I started out paying $36.00 a month and I now pay $56.00 a month). Now get this. It is June of this year when my dog got diagnosed with Lymphoma (a quick growing cancer that has a prognosis of two months). For the first time in Winston's life he has an illness that is severe and needs significant treatment. At this point I am overjoyed that I have put so much money into a pet insurance company that has a limit of $3,000 dollars in order to help prolong Winston’s life (being that I am a grad school student graduate I have significant student loan debt and this monthly $56.00 of allotted money that I was putting towards my pet insurance was precious and significant). Because of ASPCA’s policy that refuses to provide reimbursement for continued treatment after the renewal date (as in—because I started my pet insurance on August 1st, they refuse to reimburse me should Winstons’ treatment’s continue beyond this date, although the yearly limit they provide that they will reimburse towards is $3,000) This appears to violate the agreement that I and many others might assume to exist in that they will provide reimbursement for bills accrued due to illness, accidents, etc. Their abrupt cancelations for canceling reimbursement for my dogs treatment appeared callous and cold as well as only covered two chemotherapy treatments out of the minimum of five that were recommended. My vet (Dr. Lauren Silverman, DVM) at Healthy Pet’s Veterinary Hospital in the West Portal District of San Francisco (where Winston was diagnosed with lymphoma), as well as my current Oncologist (Dr. Bryan Marker DVM, DACVIM) have expressed their dismay and disrespect for the insurance companies apparent disregard for their abrupt cessation of reimbursement support for vet bills right before a renewal date. Had Winston been diagnosed with cancer in September, he would have had 11 months of reimbursable treatments that could have prolonged his life (as Winston was responding favorably to the chemotherapy). I am extremely disappointed that the massive fine print in the ASPCA pet insurance allows them to feel compelled to not reimburse me for any treatment taking place after August 3rd when my pet insurance is renewed. The vets that have grown to love Winston have decided to stop recommending ASPCA pet insurance to their patients due to the numerous loop holes which allow them to escape responsibility for reimbursing for vet bills. I have now only been reimbursed $1,038 dollars an entire month after submitting my claim for $1,300. Not only has this pet insurance nickeled and dimed me as much as possible, but they have made it so I am now paying even MORE based on the interest this amount has accrued on my credit card. I too must speak out against this grave injustice that I feel I have experienced at the detriment of my pet’s lifespan. I cry writing this review while knowing my baby has only about a month left and has already started to decline dramatically due to his cancer tumors returning. I only hope that this review can assist someone who loves their pet the way that I do in making a better pet insurance decision.