What should you expect when filing your first claim with Trupanion?

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Hey everyone, Just wanted to share my experience filing my first claim with Trupanion for my puppy. For some context, I’ve got a nearly 6-month-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, an unaltered male. I signed up for his Trupanion policy before bringing him home since they allow you to get coverage once you’ve put down a deposit.

Trupanion doesn’t cover wellness, so I’ve been paying out of pocket for his puppy shots and exams. But this weekend, he had some diarrhea and an upset stomach. We tried the usual pumpkin, rice, and boiled chicken, but it didn’t clear up by Monday morning, so off to the vet we went. The vet suspected dietary indiscretion but wanted to rule out parasites, so they also did a fecal test. The total bill came to $160, which included FortiFlora for home.

I submitted the invoice through the Trupanion app around 11:30 AM yesterday, and by midnight, it was approved and closed out. Since everything went toward his deductible, I didn’t get reimbursed, but I was impressed with how fast it was processed. The $60 exam fee was excluded, as I expected, so I was responsible for 10% of the remaining $100, or $10. The other $90 went toward his $250 lifetime deductible. Overall, it was pretty painless!

I imagine this process might be different for older pets since the first claim usually involves reviewing their full medical history. But because my pup is young and has only had wellness visits, I guess it made the review much faster.

Right now, my Trupanion premium is $111 a month, and I still have the alternative therapies rider, though I’m debating whether to keep it. Without that, my premium would drop to about $99 a month.

Cavaliers are known to have sensitive stomachs, so I’m sure I’ll hit that lifetime deductible sooner rather than later. I’m curious to see how things go long term. :paw_prints:

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I like how smooth the claims process is with Trupanion, but the yearly premium hikes are brutal. I started with one of my cats two years ago when he was a kitten, no pre-existing conditions, and the premium jumped from $66 in the first year to $96 the next, and now they’ve notified me it’ll be $123 starting in mid-September. It’s almost doubled in just two years, and I’m not sure where the limit is. I’ve only filed one $600 claim in those two years. We’re paying $83 a month for our other cat, and I’m dreading the thought of paying over $200 a month for two young, healthy cats. I’m honestly thinking about switching them before they develop any pre-existing conditions, but I have no clue where to go :confused:

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Yeah, the whole pet insurance industry has been going through some major changes recently. It’s not great, but I’m kind of resigned to the fact that by the time my pup is older, I’ll probably be paying hundreds of dollars a month for his premium.

Vet costs have risen 30% since 2020, so I don’t see how premiums could stay low. Add to that the shortage of vets and the increased demand for diagnostics, plus the popularity of breeds that need more interventions, yeah, it’s a recipe for disaster.

I’m hoping that by raising premiums, Trupanion will at least still be around in a few years. I’m not so sure about some of the other companies. They’re hiking rates like crazy, too. I’ve heard about Embrace quadrupling someone’s rates recently, and Nationwide has been dropping policies and increasing rates by up to 300%. PetsBest is making owners jump through hoops just to get claims processed. MetLife’s pulling similar tricks. It’s honestly wild out there. I even saw a post where someone said Lemonade is jacking up their rates, and they’ve been losing money to gain market share.

I think the next few years are going to be rough. JAB Holdings owns like 10 companies now, and once they get more control, I wouldn’t be surprised if we never see $20-$50 premiums again.

My health insurance premium just went up again, and there’s another increase on the way, so…yeah. It’s rough out here. I’m just holding on and hoping I made the right choice with Trupanion :crossed_fingers:

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Ugh, every year the premiums go up. My dog is 7 now, and his monthly premium is about to hit $80, and I’ve never even made a claim! My last dog was around the same age when I started, and the premiums were similar.

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What’s a lifetime deductible? I thought deductibles reset every year.

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Trupanion does things a bit differently. They have a lifetime deductible per condition instead of an annual deductible. So, once you hit that deductible for a specific condition, you’re done paying for that condition forever. It doesn’t reset each year.

This is my first time using Trupanion, so I can’t say how it compares long term to an annual deductible. But I’m curious to see how it works out. I imagine they’ll try to classify things as “new conditions” that really shouldn’t be. But I’m ready to keep an eye on that and fight it if needed.

I used to have Embrace, which had an annual deductible. Since my dogs would often go to the vet for similar issues, I think a lifetime deductible might actually work in my favor. For example, Cavaliers often develop heart murmurs or other heart conditions. If I could hit the deductible early for that, I’d probably only have to pay the co-insurance for the rest of my dog’s life. We’ll see if this works out or not.

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Oh man, insurance is so confusing and stressful. I wish it was straightforward without all these sneaky loopholes. I’m trying to figure out the best plan for my 8-year-old rescue mix, and it’s been such a struggle keeping everything straight :weary:

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Yeah, it’s such a headache! I just had to switch my own health insurance, and that was a huge time suck too, ugh.

And I used to work in health insurance, so I can’t even imagine how tough it must be for someone without that background. It’s such an annoying, opaque process. The fact that I’m doing all this for my pets just shows how much I love them :joy:

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Thanks for sharing all this info! I do have one question, though. I thought Trupanion paid the vet directly, but it sounds like you had to pay and then upload the invoice. How does it work if you’ve already met the deductible?

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Good question. I knew everything was going toward the deductible this time, so I didn’t bother having the vet run it through Trupanion’s system. They would’ve just told me I had to pay the whole amount anyway. But I did submit the claim myself to start chipping away at that deductible.

If you’ve met the deductible and want Trupanion to pay the vet directly, you can tell the vet’s office, and they’ll open up Trupanion’s software to start the claim for you. It takes a few minutes, and Trupanion gives a “soft” determination of what your responsibility is and what they’ll pay the vet. You pay your part, and Trupanion sends the rest directly to the vet.

I think I can also start the claim on the app, but I haven’t tried that yet. If anyone has experience with that, feel free to jump in.