Embrace Pet Insurance Review 2024
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Embrace
5.0
/5Annual max coverage
Reimbursement rates
Deductibles
Policy highlight
About Embrace pet insurance
Embrace earned 5 stars out of 5 for overall performance. Based in Cleveland, Embrace offers popular and comprehensive pet insurance for cats and dogs. In fact, big-name insurers Allstate, Geico and USAA use Embrace as a third-party pet insurance provider. So if you're an Allstate customer trying to buy a policy for your dog, for instance, Allstate will provide you with a quote from Embrace.
Embrace pet insurance plans are easy to customize and cover a wide variety of conditions and treatments, such as alternative therapies and dental illnesses. Embrace appears on NerdWallet's list of the Best Pet Insurance Companies.
Covers curable pre-existing conditions.
Many ways to customize your plan.
Orthopedic waiting period can be reduced with a vet exam.
Doesn't cover prescription food or supplements unless you buy a wellness plan.
Choose Embrace if...
Note: Coverage options and availability may vary depending on where you live and the age and breed of your pet.
Embrace pet insurance plans and coverage
Embrace offers several types of coverage to choose from.
Coverage for accidents and illnesses
For most pets, Embrace offers a single policy covering accidents and illnesses. It will reimburse you a certain percentage of your vet bill, up to your annual limit and minus your deductible. As long as you enroll your pet by the age of 14, the pet can have accident and illness coverage for life.
Pets who start their policies at age 15 or older are eligible for accident-only coverage.
Embrace’s accident and illness plan covers:
Treatment, hospitalization and surgery for injuries and illnesses, including cancer.
Diagnostic tests.
Hereditary and congenital conditions.
Dental illnesses, including gingivitis, up to $1,000 a year.
Complementary treatments such as acupuncture and laser therapy.
Treatments prescribed by veterinary specialists, such as behavioralists and oncologists.
You can opt to add coverage for accident/injury exam fees and prescription medicine.
Accident-only coverage
The accident-only plan for senior pets doesn’t pay for treatment of any illnesses. However, it will cover scenarios like your cat swallowing a toy or your dog getting hit by a car. This policy also covers bloat, an emergency condition in which the stomach twists upon itself. The plan can pay for prescription medication to help treat these accidents in every state except New York.
Wellness Rewards
In most states, you can add Wellness Rewards, which helps pay for routine procedures like:
Vaccinations.
Flea, tick and heartworm preventives.
Microchipping.
Wellness exams.
Grooming and nail clipping.
Cremation or burial.
Nutritional supplements and prescription diet food.
Training.
Preventive teeth cleaning.
There’s no copayment for Wellness Rewards, and your spending under this plan doesn’t count toward the deductible on your accident and illness policy.
The Wellness Rewards plan is designed to save you about $25 on care per year, as long as you use your entire reimbursement allowance. For example, the plan with a $250 annual allowance costs $18.75 a month in premiums, or $225 for the year. But if you don’t spend the full $250 allowance at the vet that year, you could end up paying more for the coverage than you get out of it.
Wellness Rewards isn’t available in Rhode Island.
What Embrace doesn't cover
Embrace accident and illness insurance doesn’t cover:
Pre-existing conditions, except for curable conditions that haven’t recurred in at least a year.
Expenses associated with breeding or pregnancy.
Illness or injury due to fighting, racing or mistreatment.
Cosmetic procedures.
Wellness care.
Prescription supplements or diets (unless you’ve added Wellness Rewards).
The accident-only plan won’t cover the above or treatment for any illness.
Embrace pet insurance plan options
Deductibles: A pet insurance deductible is the amount of your vet bills you need to pay before your insurer starts reimbursing you. Embrace’s annual deductibles for the accident and illness policy range from $100 to $1,000 per year. For the accident-only policy, an annual deductible of $100 applies.
Reimbursement amounts: For the accident and illness policy, you can choose to be reimbursed for 70%, 80% or 90% of your vet expenses. The accident-only policy pays 90% of your expenses.
Embrace uses a more generous method of calculating claim payouts than many other insurers, subtracting your deductible from your vet bill before applying your reimbursement rate. Here’s how that could work if you had a $2,000 vet bill, $500 deductible and 80% reimbursement rate:
$2,000 vet bill - $500 deductible = $1,500.
$1,500 x 0.8 (80% reimbursement rate) = $1,200 reimbursement.
You’d pay the remaining $800 of the vet bill.
Watch your wallet
Many pet insurers apply the reimbursement rate to your vet bill first, then subtract the deductible, resulting in a lower payout for you. Here’s how the math would work for the example above:
$2,000 vet bill x 0.8 (80% reimbursement rate) = $1,600.
$1,600 - $500 deductible = $1,100 reimbursement.
Coverage limits: For the accident and illness policy, annual coverage limits range from $5,000 to unlimited. For the accident-only policy, the annual limit is $5,000.
Restrictions and waiting periods
Age restrictions: Pets must be at least 6 weeks old to get a policy. In most states, pets 15 and up at the time of enrollment can’t get accident and illness insurance, only coverage for accidents. In California, pets may be enrolled only up to age 4.
Waiting periods: A waiting period is the time between when you buy your policy and when your coverage starts. Embrace waiting periods are two days for accidents, 14 days for illnesses and six months for orthopedic conditions for dogs. You may be able to reduce the latter period to 14 days by taking your dog for an orthopedic exam. There’s no waiting period for routine care with Wellness Rewards.
Embrace pet insurance sample rates
The cost of Embrace pet insurance depends on where you live, the coverage limits you choose, and your pet’s breed and age.
To give you a rough idea of how much you might pay, we gathered quotes for several popular dog breeds at ages 2 and 8. Rates below are sample monthly premiums for dogs living in Katy, Texas. Our sample plan was for accident and illness coverage with a $250 deductible, $5,000 of annual coverage and an 80% reimbursement rate. Your own price will vary.
Breed | Age 2 | Age 8 |
|---|---|---|
French bulldog | $110 | $203 |
German shepherd | $71 | $132 |
Golden retriever | $71 | $132 |
Labrador retriever | $71 | $132 |
Medium mixed-breed dog | $44 | $80 |
Poodle | $89 | $165 |
We also gathered rates for a variety of cat breeds with the same coverage limits as above. Rates below are sample monthly premiums for cats living in Katy, Texas.
Breed | Age 2 | Age 8 |
|---|---|---|
Devon rex | $30 | $52 |
Domestic shorthair | $24 | $42 |
Exotic longhair | $30 | $52 |
Maine coon | $30 | $52 |
Persian | $30 | $52 |
Ragdoll | $30 | $52 |
» MORE: The best cheap pet insurance
Embrace pet insurance discounts
Embrace may offer the following ways to save on pet insurance, depending on where you live:
10% multiple pet discount.
5% military discount (not available in New York or Tennessee).
5% to 10% healthy pet discount.
You can avoid a monthly billing fee by paying your annual premium in full, upfront.
We recommend getting pet insurance quotes from at least three companies to make sure you’ve found the best deal.
» MORE: Is pet insurance worth it?
State availability
Embrace pet insurance is available in Washington, D.C., and all states except Maine.
Digital experience
The Embrace website is easy to navigate, offers quick online quotes and has plenty of coverage information. You can log in to the MyEmbrace portal to file and track claims, update your billing or policy information, add a new pet, or contact customer support.
The highly rated Embrace mobile app lets you file claims, check remaining coverage limits, update your policy or add a new pet.
How to file a claim with Embrace
You can submit a claim online, through the app, or by email, fax or physical mail. It generally takes 10 to 15 business days for Embrace to process a claim. For faster payment, sign up for direct deposit rather than receiving a check in the mail.
How to contact Embrace customer service
You can call Embrace’s customer service representatives at 855-540-2104, Monday through Saturday. You can also use the online chatbot. The PawSupport telemedicine service offers 24/7 support if you have questions about your pet’s care. You can access PawSupport by logging into your online portal.
Embrace pet insurance vs. competitors
Here’s how Embrace stacks up against three other popular pet insurance companies.
Embrace vs. Healthy Paws
Company | Embrace | Healthy Paws |
|---|---|---|
Star rating | ||
Annual max coverage | Unlimited. | Unlimited. |
Reimbursement rates | 70%, 80% or 90%. | 50% to 90%, depending on the pet. |
Policy highlight | Many ways to save on your policy. | May be able to pay your vet directly. |
The Healthy Paws plan has no annual or lifetime limits but offers similar reimbursement options to the Embrace plan. Healthy Paws doesn’t sell wellness coverage, though.
Embrace covers a few things Healthy Paws doesn’t, including behavioral therapies and dental illnesses. However, neither plan pays for prescription diets.
Healthy Paws promises quicker claims processing than Embrace, handling most claims within two business days.
Read our full Healthy Paws pet insurance review.
Embrace vs. Trupanion
Company | Embrace | Trupanion |
|---|---|---|
Star rating | ||
Annual max coverage | Unlimited. | Unlimited. |
Reimbursement rates | 70%, 80% or 90%. | 90% in most states. |
Policy highlight | Many ways to save on your policy. | Unlimited annual coverage for all pets. |
One major difference between Embrace and Trupanion is how each company treats deductibles. Like many pet insurers, Embrace uses annual deductibles that apply across all injuries and illnesses and reset every year.
In most states, Trupanion charges lifetime per-condition deductibles instead. Say your pet develops chronic allergies and requires ongoing treatment. Once you’ve met the deductible for that condition, you no longer have to pay it for the life of your pet.
Trupanion’s standard plans offer 90% reimbursement and unlimited coverage amounts in most states, while Embrace offers more ways to customize your plan (and potentially reduce your premium).
Some treatments that Embrace’s plan covers cost extra from Trupanion, such as acupuncture and behavioral therapies. And unlike Trupanion, Embrace offers optional wellness coverage.
Read our full Trupanion pet insurance review to learn more.
Embrace vs. ASPCA
Company | Embrace | ASPCA |
|---|---|---|
Star rating | ||
Annual max coverage | Unlimited. | Unlimited. |
Reimbursement rates | 70%, 80% or 90%. | 70%, 80% or 90%. |
Policy highlight | Many ways to save on your policy. | Broader coverage than most other plans. |
ASPCA’s accident and illness plan covers most of the same things Embrace’s plan does, including hereditary and congenital conditions, alternative treatments, and behavioral therapies. However, ASPCA also covers prescription food and supplements, while Embrace does so only if you add a wellness plan.
ASPCA’s waiting period is 14 days for all conditions, including cruciate ligament issues. That’s shorter than Embrace’s six-month orthopedic waiting period for dogs, but longer than its two-day period for illnesses.
While Embrace has an accident-only plan for pets who enroll at age 15 or above, ASPCA’s accident-only plan is available for any pet owner who doesn’t want illness coverage, regardless of the animal's age.
ASPCA’s claim processing may be a little slower than Embrace’s — up to 30 days instead of 10 to 15 business days.
Read our ASPCA pet insurance review to learn more.
How we review pet insurance
Our writers and editors follow strict editorial guidelines that ensure fairness and accuracy to help you choose the financial products that work best for you. In our pet insurance reviews, we consider coverage, discounts, financial strength ratings from AM Best and more to determine our star ratings.
In our evaluation, we:
Analyzed 2,100 data points.
Got 800+ quotes from pet insurers.
Compared 20+ companies.
Our rating system rewards companies that cover a wide range of potential expenses, offer many ways to customize your plan and have a strong financial rating. Within the consumer experience category, we looked at features such as mobile app ratings and whether the company offers direct vet payments. To calculate each insurer’s rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale.
Dive deeper with our criteria for evaluating pet insurance companies.
Methodology
Pet insurance star ratings
NerdWallet’s pet insurance ratings reward companies for customer-first features and practices. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including financial strength, scope of coverage, the ability to customize your plan and more. Our “consumer experience” category looks at factors such as website transparency and mobile app ratings. To calculate each insurer’s star rating, we adjusted the scores to a curved 5-point scale. See our full pet insurance methodology.
These ratings are a guide, but we encourage you to shop around and compare several insurance quotes to find the best rate for you. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
Pet insurance sample rates
To find sample pet insurance rates, NerdWallet gathered quotes for the base level of accident and illness coverage on each insurer’s website. Quotes reflect the monthly cost of a policy and do not include wellness coverage or other optional add-ons. Each plan for a given company had the same deductible, coverage limit and reimbursement rate for all sample pets.
These are sample rates gathered for specific pets living in Katy, Texas. Your own rates will be different.
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