Best Pet Insurance Companies for Cats (2024 Review)
The best cat insurance plan could help you save thousands of dollars if your cat gets unexpectedly injured or develops an illness. One day in an animal hospital can set pet owners back as much as $1,500, with treatments like emergency surgery costing thousands of dollars, oxygen therapy costing up to $2,500, and wound treatments costing $800 to $1,500 on average for cats. These are serious bills that can leave many pet owners in a financial pinch, especially considering one in four Americans have no emergency fund and less than four in 10 people have enough savings to cover an unexpected cost of $1,000.
As a result, cat insurance is an important investment for pet owners because we never want to say no to critical treatments for our beloved cats.
Best Cat Insurance Plans and Providers
In this guide, we will discuss the best pet insurance companies and their cat insurance plan offerings:
- Spot: Best overall
- Lemonade: Most affordable
- ASPCA: Most experienced
- Embrace: Best for deductibles
- Healthy Paws: Best for chronic conditions
- Prudent Pet: Best for dog and cat parents who want basic options
Compare Cat Insurance Companies
*Certain conditions, such as cruciate ligaments or orthopedic conditions, may have longer waiting period times, usually six months to a year. This is common among many pet insurance providers, but most illnesses will be covered after the waiting period listed above.
What is Cat Insurance?
Cat insurance is pet insurance that protects your cat in the case of a medical emergency. Emergency vet bills or ongoing care for chronic illnesses and conditions can be costly. Some reports even say that the average cost of unexpected veterinary care for cats and dogs is around $800 to $1,500. Cat insurance allows you to always provide your cat with the best veterinary care without worrying about the cost.
Simply take your cat to any licensed veterinarian and have it treated. Then submit your claim directly to your cat insurance provider. Once the claim has been processed and approved, your provider will reimburse you for the agreed-upon percentage in your policy, which is often between 60 and 90% of the total vet bill.
Cat insurance provides you with peace of mind that you won’t ever need to pass up critical care for your cat or put yourself into debt paying for important medical treatments. Depending on your policy, you can choose cat insurance for accidents, illnesses, routine veterinary care, or all three to give yourself the ultimate financial safety net.
How To Find the Best Cat Insurance for You
Before choosing a cat insurance provider, we recommend thinking about the type of coverage you’re interested in getting for your cat. Most providers offer three primary types of pet insurance plans:
Accident-only
- Accident-only plans offer coverage for injuries and emergencies related to accidents. This can include incidents such as broken bones, snake bites, ingested foreign objects, and more. This plan type will not cover any costs for treatments related to illnesses.
Accident and illness
- Accident and illness plans will cover many veterinary costs related to accidents and diseases, including things like broken bones, diabetes, cancer, infections, and more. This plan will not include pre-existing illnesses or conditions that your pet has.
Wellness plans
- Some pet insurance providers offer wellness or preventative care plans that cover routine veterinary care, such as wellness exams, vaccinations, regular blood work, urinalysis, and more. Wellness plans are typically an add-on fee to your existing accident or accident and illness plan with the provider.
Factors to Consider When Choosing Cat Insurance
Reimbursement time
- Before selecting a pet insurance provider, consider how long a pet insurance company will take to reimburse you for your claim. Some companies have mobile apps that process claims with artificial intelligence, which will help reduce the waiting time. If being repaid quickly is very important to you, make sure that you consider this before picking a provider.
Maximum limits
- Different pet insurance providers and plans have different maximum limits. A maximum limit for the year will determine the maximum a company will pay within one year. A maximum lifetime limit defines how much a company will pay out within your pet’s lifetime. If you are concerned with being covered for huge emergencies or chronic illnesses your cat may develop, a low maximum limit may be something you want to avoid. We recommend looking for companies that offer unlimited maximum limits if you are concerned about this.
Communication methods
- Before enrolling with a pet insurance provider, consider your preferred communication method. If you like talking on the phone or using an app, look for companies that offer this form of communication. Some companies only provide an online interface which may not suit you if you prefer speaking with someone directly.
Customization
- Most pet insurance companies offer various customization options for their pet insurance plans, including personalized deductibles, reimbursement rates, maximum limits, and more. Some companies also offer discounts, such as multi-pet, military, or employee discounts.
All of the cat insurance providers in this article offer free personalized quotes so that you will know exactly how much your cat’s monthly premium will cost. We recommend gathering several quotes before choosing a cat insurance provider. Your cat’s age, health, and location will affect the cost, and comparing prices between providers can help you narrow down your choices.
Final Thoughts
We hope our article helps you choose the best cat insurance plan for you and your cat. Cat insurance is a highly personal choice that can provide you with a wide variety of coverage for accidents, accidents and illnesses, and wellness care.
We at Quartz hope you find the best cat insurance plan that provides you with plenty of value and the right amount of coverage for your cat. Peace of mind is a valuable side effect of having a cat insurance plan in place. Just knowing that your cat is covered can help you rest easy, knowing that you will never need to turn down necessary medical treatment for your furry friend.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average monthly premium for the best cat insurance?
Most cat insurance plans are between $15 and $20 per month, not including the cost of any wellness or preventative care plan add-ons. Most wellness plan add-ons will cost between $10 and $25 per month, depending on the type of plan and coverage offered. Please remember that these numbers will vary depending on your cat’s age, breed, health, and location.
What are some things that are covered by cat insurance?
Cat insurance can cover many veterinary expenses, ranging from accidents to illnesses to routine veterinary care. Depending on the type of plan you choose, your cat can be covered for chronic conditions, hereditary conditions, congenital diseases, allergies, prescription medications, prescription pet food, and more. Pet insurance will cover the cost of treatment for different accidents and conditions and the costs of diagnosis, such as X-rays, bloodwork, urinalysis, physical exams, scans, and more. Wellness plans can cover your cat for routine veterinary care, such as regular wellness exams, bloodwork, vaccinations, and more.
What are some things that are not covered by cat insurance?
Pre-existing conditions are never included in any pet insurance plans. So, if your cat has allergies before you enroll it in a pet insurance plan, then your cat insurance plan will not cover any allergy-related costs since these were pre-existing. This is one of the reasons that it’s recommended that you enroll your cat in pet insurance as early as possible since your cat will have less time to develop pre-existing conditions or have an accident. Other standard exclusions include breeding or pregnancy-related costs, behavioral issues, and cosmetic or elective procedures
Why do cat insurance rates increase over time?
Cat insurance premiums go up over time to account for the increasing cost of veterinary care. With technological advances, vets are using newer and better technology to treat our pets, which is terrific, but can be more expensive to operate with. Cat insurance premiums will also increase as your cat ages because your cat’s chances of having greater or more frequent health problems increases. This increase allows your pet insurance provider to continue reimbursing you for your cat’s health claims throughout its entire lifetime.
When should I sign up my cat for cat insurance?
We recommend signing your cat up for cat insurance as early as possible. The sooner it’s protected on a pet insurance plan, the sooner you can rest easy knowing that any accidents or illnesses it has will be covered. You also won’t have to worry about pre-existing conditions that won’t be covered if you sign it up when it’s young and healthy. Even if your cat has a health problem already, it will still be covered for other conditions it develops or accidents it has. It may seem like a waste to sign up your kitten, but it is just as prone to having dangerous accidents and can still become sick from a young age.
How do I get reimbursed for a vet bill?
Simply take your cat to any licensed veterinarian and submit your claim. Depending on your provider, you can submit your claim through its mobile app, online member center, or through the mail. Then, you’ll wait for your provider to approve the claim. Once approved, it will reimburse you for the allocated amount in your pet insurance policy through direct deposit or check.