Spot Pet Insurance: A Detailed Look
Spot Pet Insurance, a relative newcomer to the pet insurance market, has quickly gained traction since its 2019 launch. It’s become a favorite of reviewers, and for good reason: Spot offers several appealing features, including no upper age limit for enrollment and a comprehensive wellness plan.
What Spot Pet Insurance Offers
Spot aims to cover unexpected veterinary expenses, offering both accident-only and accident and illness plans. They also provide two tiers of wellness add-ons to help with routine care. One of the biggest advantages of Spot is the ability to choose unlimited annual coverage, giving pet owners peace of mind.
Policy Highlights
- Plans: Accident-only, Accident and Illness, and Wellness add-ons.
- Age Limits: No upper age limit.
- Coverage Limit Options: $2,500 to unlimited.
- Annual Deductible: $100, $250, $500, $750, or $1,000.
- Reimbursement Rate: 70%, 80%, or 90%.
- Waiting Period: 14 days for accidents and illnesses.
- Discounts: 10% multi-pet discount.
- Direct Vet Pay: Not available.
Pros and Cons
Pros:
- No upper age limits for enrollment.
- Exam fees are covered in some plans.
- Offers a 10% discount for additional pets.
- Covers curable pre-existing conditions, after a waiting period and provided the condition has been cured for a certain amount of time.
Cons:
- 14-day waiting period for accident coverage.
- A $2 monthly processing fee is charged for monthly payments
- No direct vet payment option.
- Higher average monthly rates for cats than some competitors.
Spot Pet Insurance Plans
Accident-Only: This plan covers expenses related to emergencies, such as broken bones, swallowed objects, and snakebites. It does not cover medical issues like parasites, cancer, or cruciate ligament injuries.
Accident and Illness: This plan includes all accident-only benefits and adds coverage for emergency care, hospitalization, surgery, veterinary exams, prescription medication, chronic illnesses, hereditary conditions, diagnostic procedures, behavioral conditions, dental coverage, and microchipping.
Wellness: Two wellness plans are available as add-ons.
- Gold Plan: Includes annual wellness exams, vaccinations, flea and heartworm prevention, deworming, and dental cleaning. Annual benefit limit: $250.
- Platinum Plan: Includes the Gold plan benefits, plus spaying/neutering, urinalysis and blood testing, and $25 for health certificates. Annual benefit limit: $450.
Cost
To illustrate the cost of Spot pet insurance, let’s consider a 1-year-old domestic shorthair cat and a 1-year-old, 55-pound mixed-breed dog, both with a $500 deductible, 90% reimbursement, and a $5,000 annual coverage limit. For the accident and illness plan, we were quoted $56 per month for the dog and $26 a month for the cat. The dog rate is on par with the 2023 national average, while the cat rate is cheaper than the $32 average.
For the wellness add-ons, the Gold plan costs $9.95 per month, and the Platinum plan costs $24.95 a month.
Spot offers a 10% discount for the second pet enrolled. A $2 surcharge is assessed for monthly payments, whereas paying annually avoids the fee.
Coverage Options
Spot is available in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. Coverage limits and waiting periods may vary depending on your state. Options include:
- Annual Coverage Limits: $2,500, $3,000, $4,000, $5,000, $7,000, $10,000, or unlimited coverage.
- Reimbursement Rate: 70%, 80%, or 90%.
- Deductible: $100 to $1,000.
- Age Limits: Pets must be at least eight weeks old. No upper age limit.
- Waiting Periods: Accident coverage: 14 days; Illness coverage: 14 days; Orthopedic conditions: 14 days; Wellness plans: 1 day after enrollment.
How Spot Compares to Competitors
Spot Pet Insurance stacks up well against other popular pet insurance companies:
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Pets Best: Both Spot and Pets Best offer an unlimited coverage option, and cover prescriptions, treatments for behavioral issues, and some alternative therapies. Neither has an upper age limit. Spot’s 10% multi-pet discount is higher than Pets Best’s 5%. However, Pets Best may have lower rates for some pets, and their accident coverage waiting period is shorter.
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Pumpkin: Pumpkin could be a better fit if you’re looking for higher coverage limits, offering $10,000 and $20,000 caps, while Spot has a $10,000 limit or unlimited. Both companies include exam fees and prescription medication and food in their accident and illness plans. Spot’s wellness plans are more comprehensive, covering additional services, and potentially making it the better pick.
The Verdict: Is Spot Pet Insurance Right for You?
Spot is a great choice for older pets, given the lack of an age limit. The unlimited coverage is also ideal for animals needing extensive care. The plans are very comprehensive. However, Spot may not be the cheapest pet insurance option.
If you’re looking for a policy that offers a wide range of coverage options, competitive pricing, and no upper age limit, Spot Pet Insurance is well worth considering.
