Healthy Paws is one of the largest pet insurers in the United States. In 2022, Healthy Paws had the third highest gross written premiums (GWP) for pet insurance in the U.S., with $379.4 million.
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance as a brand is grouped with other Crum & Forster companies in the NAPHIA State of the Industry Report. As a company, Crum & Forster brands in total had a little over half ($195 million) of the GWP that Healthy Paws had.1
But just because Healthy Paws has almost double the amount of GWP than Crum & Forster brands (including ASPCA Pet Health Insurance, 24Petprotect, Hartville, Spot, Pumpkin, and PetCoach (aka Petco)), doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best pet insurance for you.
Let’s dive in to compare Healthy Paws and ASPCA Pet Health Insurance head-to-head and choose a clear winner. We explain our reasoning along with each company’s strengths and weaknesses to help you better understand what each has to offer.
Policy Coverage
Policy Coverage Winner
The table below shows precisely what Healthy Paws and ASPCA Pet Health Insurance cover. Both companies cover emergency care, surgery and hospitalization, specialized exams and specialty care, X-rays, blood tests, ultrasounds, cat scans, MRIs, rehabilitation, cancer, chronic conditions, euthanasia, hereditary conditions, congenital conditions, non-routine dental treatment, and prescription medications. Neither covers pre-existing conditions, cremation and burial costs, pregnancy and breeding, or unnecessary cosmetic procedures.
*Waiting periods for California, Delaware, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, and Washington are as follows:
- Accidents – 0 days
- Illnesses – 14 days
- Cruciate Ligament Conditions – 30 days
- Routine Care – 0 days
†Healthy Paws only offers hip dysplasia coverage to dogs enrolled before the age of 6.
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance offers some of the best coverage in the pet insurance industry. As you can see, it covers several items that Healthy Paws excludes in its policies. ASPCA Pet Health Insurance also has a 14-day waiting period across the board, which is fewer days than Healthy Paws.
Healthy Paws’ underwriter is top-notch, with an A++ rating by A.M. Best (a measurement of financial stability). This means Healthy Paws is considered lower risk than an unrated or lower-rated company. But, ASPCA Pet Health Insurance’s underwriter has a good rating, too, with an A.
Another key deciding factor for you may be the age restrictions attached to Healthy Paws, which doesn’t enroll pets older than 14 years old. Additionally, Healthy Paws will not enroll pets older than four years old in New York state. And if you choose to enroll your pet with Healthy Paws after their sixth birthday, you’ll notice plan customization restrictions and exclusions for hip dysplasia coverage.
Overall, the winner is ASPCA Pet Health Insurance because it excludes fewer conditions, has shorter waiting periods, and has no age restrictions.
Customer Service & Reputation
Customer Service & Reputation Winner
Healthy Paws has one of the best reputations in the pet insurance industry. The majority of Healthy Paws customer complaints are from customers who, unfortunately, didn’t read or understand their policy (a common customer complaint about all pet insurance providers).
This is why we feel it is crucial to explain all the pet insurance details so pet parents fully understand what is and isn’t covered. We also focus on explaining the policies in layman terms, making it easy to comprehend and feel confident about what you are getting before you buy.
As for ASPCA Pet Health Insurance, there are many complaints from customers regarding low reimbursements, slow claim processing, conditions flagged as pre-existing, and more. This is frustrating for customers because they purchase a policy expecting certain things to be covered and reimbursed but feel disappointed by what they actually get when they need ASPCA Pet Health Insurance the most.
In the end, Healthy Paws has a better, consistent reputation, which is why it wins this category.
Claim Processing
Claim Processing Winner
Healthy Paws pays most of its claims within two days. This is shorter than many pet insurance competitors, including ASPCA Pet Health Insurance, which averages 15-30 days for claim processing.
One perk you may wish to explore for ASPCA Pet Health Insurance is to have them pay your vet directly. If your vet office allows this, you could work with your insurance company to have them pay the vet directly for the covered portion of your bill. In this case, you are not left paying a hefty vet bill in advance and then waiting for reimbursement. But this isn’t available everywhere, so check with your vet to see if it’s an option for you. No matter which veterinarian you use, Healthy Paws doesn’t offer a direct payment option.
Because Healthy Paws has a much shorter claim processing period, it’s the winner of this category. However, you may be able to avoid waiting for a claim reimbursement altogether if your vet is willing to receive direct payments from ASPCA Pet Health Insurance.
Price Of Policy
Price Of Policy Winner
Healthy Paws has no transaction or enrollment fees. ASPCA Pet Health Insurance has no enrollment fees but a $2 per month transaction fee. It is common for providers to allow customers the option to pay their full annual premium at once each year, saving you monthly transaction fees.
Pricing is based on your pet’s details (age, breed, location, etc.). We recommend obtaining quotes from each company for your specific pet. You can also visit our pet insurance comparison quotes to see a few sample prices we’ve gathered.Â
Healthy Paws’ prices tend to be less predictable; sometimes, they’re among the lowest, but other times, they’re in the middle. Meanwhile, ASPCA Pet Health Insurance is often priced in the middle but sometimes among the most expensive. However, because Healthy Paws isn’t typically among the most expensive, it wins this category.
Remember that it’s always best to get quotes for your specific dog to compare what pet insurance could cost you. You can use our pet insurance quote form below to get multiple company quotes when you complete this one quick form.
Coupons
Healthy Paws
Use this link to take advantage of the best possible price and get a quote for your pet from Healthy Paws.
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance offers the following discount:
- 10% off for multiple petsÂ
Use this link to take advantage of the best possible price. No promo code is needed.
Plan Customization
Plan Customization Tie
Healthy Paws has unlimited payouts on all plans, but there are some restrictions on available reimbursement and annual deductible amounts, depending on your pet’s age at enrollment.
- Dogs and cats 5 years and under:
- 90%, 80%, and 70% reimbursement
- $100, $250, and $500 deductible
- Dogs and cats 6 and 7 years old:
- 80%, 70%, or 60% reimbursement
- $250, $500, or $750 deductible
- Dogs 8 years and older:Â
- 50% or 60% reimbursement
- $750 or $1,000 deductible
ASPCA Pet Health Insurance offers customizable options with no age restrictions. You can choose your annual payout option from $3,000, $4,000, $5,000, $7,000, or $10,000. They also offer reimbursements of 70%, 80%, or 90% and annual deductibles of $100, $250, or $500.
We’re disappointed that Healthy Paws has so many plan restrictions based on your pet’s age. But we’re also bummed that ASPCA Pet Health Insurance doesn’t offer as wide a range of annual payout options and deductibles as other insurers, which is why this category is a tie.
What’s The Verdict?
Overall Winner
Healthy Paws is the pet insurance winner in this comparison against ASPCA Pet Health Insurance. With its outstanding customer service and reputation, fast claim processing, and oftentimes better pricing, it’s hard to beat Healthy Paws. However, if you need coverage for behavioral therapies, alternative/holistic therapy, and sick exam fees, you may want to consider ASPCA Pet Health Insurance (Healthy Paws does not cover these).
If you didn’t find what you were looking for in this comparison, our insurance experts have gone in-depth with individual reviews of Healthy Paws and ASPCA Pet Health Insurance.
Our experts have spent thousands of hours researching to bring you our comprehensive and frequently updated pet insurance reviews, including our top picks, along with details on each of the most popular pet insurance companies. So, if you want to know how other providers compare against one another, you may find this review helpful in your pet insurance search.
Sources: [1] NAPHIA
Tagged With: Reviewed By Insurance Agent, Vs
