Key Takeaways
- PetPremium is a referral platform, not a direct carrier. It routes shoppers to policies from multiple underwriters, including United States Fire Insurance Company (a Crum & Forster company, A+ AM Best) and Independence American Insurance Company, depending on your pet profile and state.
- Best fit: owners of dogs under 12 or cats under 14 who want immediate accident coverage, flexible deductible and reimbursement options, and are comfortable calling for quotes and using a paper-based claims process.
- Key catch: no online or app-based claims filing. You download a form, fill it out, and submit by mail, fax, or email. Claim processing targets 30 days. That’s the slowest workflow in the current market.
- Senior pet owners, digital-first shoppers, and anyone who needs transparent upfront pricing without providing contact information should look elsewhere before committing.
- Compare pet insurance rates and quotes
PetPremium: The Verdict Up Front
PetPremium works well for a specific kind of buyer: owner of a young or middle-aged dog or cat, comfortable with phone-based customer service, and willing to trade digital convenience for day-one accident coverage. If that’s you, PetPremium deserves a serious look.
If you need a mobile app, instant claims filing, upfront pricing without giving your contact information, or comprehensive coverage for a senior pet. Stop here. There are better options for each of those needs.
PetPremium earned a 7.8 out of 10 in our scoring, which wasn’t high enough to place on our list of the best pet insurance providers. The score reflects real structural limitations, not just pricing.
What PetPremium Actually Is
Most pet insurance brands aren’t carriers. They’re distribution-layer products on top of actual underwriters. PetPremium fits that pattern, but with a twist: it functions as both a legacy insurer and a referral platform, depending on when you enrolled and what state you’re in.
Existing customers with policies underwritten by United States Fire Insurance Company and administered by C&F Insurance Agency (a Crum & Forster company) remain on that structure. New shoppers who come through PetPremium today may be routed to multiple underwriters. United States Fire Insurance Company, Independence American Insurance Company, American Pet Insurance Company, or American Modern Insurance Group. Based on their pet profile and state. PetPremium Inc. (NPN #17028173) is licensed to provide pet insurance quotations, not to underwrite policies itself.
That distinction matters at claim time. The underwriter is who actually pays the claim and decides denials. Before you enroll, confirm which underwriter your specific policy runs through and verify that carrier’s AM Best rating separately from PetPremium’s marketing.
One more structural note: Crum & Forster’s pet insurance operations (C&F Pet) were acquired by Independence Pet Group (JAB Holdings) in late 2022. United States Fire Insurance Company itself remains a Fairfax Financial subsidiary, but the C&F Pet administration infrastructure changed ownership. Long-term policyholders on the older C&F structure should verify their current policy terms at renewal rather than assuming nothing has changed.
Who Is PetPremium Best For?
This insurer works well for pet owners who want immediate accident protection and don’t mind a traditional claims process. If you have a younger dog or cat, prefer customizing deductible and reimbursement levels, and are comfortable calling for a quote, PetPremium deserves consideration. Owners of senior pets or those who expect a fully digital experience should look elsewhere.
PetPremium Strengths
- Accident coverage kicks in immediately. Unlike most competitors with 2-14 day accident waiting periods, PetPremium starts protecting against accidents on day one of your policy. That’s a genuine differentiator if your pet finds trouble fast.
- Strong underwriting backing on legacy policies. For customers on the United States Fire Insurance Company structure, Crum & Forster Insurance Group now holds an A+ (Superior) AM Best rating as of August 2025, upgraded from A (Excellent). That’s the highest tier in the market. Your claims won’t be at risk of insolvency issues.
- Flexible customization options. You can set deductibles at $100, $250, or $500 and pick reimbursement levels at 70%, 80%, or 90%. This lets budget-conscious pet owners find a balance between premium costs and out-of-pocket exposure.
- Pre-existing conditions can become eligible. If your pet had a curable condition and stays symptom-free for 180 days after treatment ends, that condition may qualify for future coverage. Not all insurers offer this pathway.
PetPremium Weaknesses
- No online or app-based claims submission. You download a form, fill it out, and submit by mail, fax, or email. Competitors offer instant mobile photo uploads. This is the most significant operational gap in PetPremium’s product.
- Pricing isn’t transparent. The website won’t show you rates without contact information and a conversation. That friction pushes shoppers elsewhere before they see what plans cost.
- Age caps exclude senior pets from comprehensive coverage. Dogs over 12 and cats over 14 can only get accident-only protection. Illness coverage is unavailable at exactly the age when most pets need it most.
- Wellness coverage adds meaningful cost. Preventive care isn’t in base plans. Adding it runs $9.95 to $24.95 monthly on top of your main premium.
PetPremium Overview
PetPremium launched in 2013 with a prevention-first philosophy. The company operates from New York City with a small team. Legacy policies were underwritten by United States Fire Insurance Company (a Crum & Forster company) and administered by C&F Insurance Agency. New shoppers today may be presented with policies from multiple underwriters, depending on their state and pet profile.
The platform covers dogs and cats. Washington state residents may have limited options depending on which carrier is offered. There’s no exotic animal coverage, so rabbit, bird, and reptile owners need to look elsewhere.
PetPremium publishes an extensive pet health content library: breed guides, care tips, and veterinary research. Whether this educational focus translates to better outcomes is debatable, but it differentiates the brand from pure price-comparison tools.
PetPremium Reliability
For customers whose policies sit on the United States Fire Insurance Company structure, the financial foundation is strong. AM Best upgraded the Crum & Forster Insurance Group, which includes United States Fire Insurance Company, to A+ (Superior) in August 2025, with a stable outlook. That’s a step up from the A (Excellent) rating the group held previously, and it reflects C&F’s growth in scale and underwriting consistency.
If your policy routes through a different underwriter, check that carrier’s AM Best rating directly. Independence American Insurance Company and American Modern Insurance Group are both established underwriters, but their ratings and financial profiles differ from C&F’s.
PetPremium itself has operated since 2013. The company has been registered with the Better Business Bureau since 2014 but has not pursued BBB accreditation. The BBB has not issued a letter rating due to insufficient information, which is not unusual for smaller insurance agencies. No major regulatory actions appear in public records.
From a regulatory standpoint, PetPremium holds proper licensing (NPN #17028173) as an insurance quotation provider across its operating states.
PetPremium Coverage Options
Plan Types Offered
PetPremium keeps things relatively simple with two main plan tiers.
The Accident-Only plan covers injuries from unexpected events: broken bones, swallowed objects, burns, and poison ingestion. This option has no upper age limit for enrollment, making it the only choice for senior pets. The incident limit sits at $2,500.
The Total Coverage plan bundles accident and illness protection. Coverage includes diagnostic testing, prescriptions, hospitalization, emergency visits, surgeries, and behavioral therapy. Incident limits range from $2,500 to $5,000 depending on plan level, with unlimited annual maximums available at higher tiers.
Preventive care options come in three tiers:
- Basic ($9.95/month) – Wellness exams, some vaccines, and basic testing
- Standard ($14.95/month) – Adds more vaccine coverage and testing
- Prime ($24.95/month) – Full coverage including dental cleaning, flea and heartworm prevention, and blood testing
Both main plans include alternative therapy coverage: acupuncture, physiotherapy, chiropractic care, hydrotherapy, rehabilitative care, and low-level laser therapy when treating eligible conditions.
What’s Covered
On the Total Coverage plan, protection extends to hereditary and congenital conditions (on higher plan levels), chronic conditions, cancer treatment, emergency care, prescriptions, diagnostic tests, surgeries, specialty care, behavioral therapy, and hospitalization. Reimbursement is based on usual and customary charges in your geographic area, which sometimes means reimbursement falls below what your vet actually charged.
Ongoing conditions that span multiple policy periods can receive coverage through a Continuing Care Endorsement, though this comes with separate deductibles and limits.
What’s NOT Covered
Pre-existing conditions top the exclusion list. The 180-day curable-condition rule offers a pathway: if the condition has been treated and your pet remains symptom-free for 180 days after treatment completion, it may qualify for future coverage. That’s a narrower window than some articles suggest. The clock starts after the last treatment, not after the initial diagnosis, and the condition must be fully resolved.
Knee and ligament issues that occur before coverage or during waiting periods are permanently excluded from future related claims. That’s a lifetime exclusion, not a waiting period. An ACL tear in week 3 of your policy means the knee is off the table going forward.
Other exclusions include boarding fees, breeding and pregnancy costs, grooming expenses, prescription food for maintenance purposes, vitamins and supplements, dental cleanings outside wellness plans, and conditions resulting from owner neglect or malicious treatment. Elective procedures, tail docking, ear cropping, and claw removal, also fall outside coverage.
Policy Terms
Accident coverage starts immediately on your policy’s effective date. Illness coverage kicks in after 14 days. Hereditary and congenital conditions require a 180-day waiting period on applicable plans. Knee and ligament issues carry a 12-month waiting period across all plans, and that permanent exclusion applies if the injury occurs before coverage or during that waiting period.
That 12-month orthopedic waiting period is standard across most of the industry. Owners who enroll a dog and expect knee coverage in month three will find out at the vet that they’re not covered yet.
Minimum enrollment age is 8 weeks. For Total Coverage, dogs must be 12 or younger and cats 14 or younger at enrollment. Accident-only plans have no upper age limit.
Policies renew automatically each year. The company won’t cancel coverage due to your pet’s age, though premiums will increase as pets get older. Budget for that. Most carriers raise rates 10-30% annually as a pet ages, separate from any inflation adjustment. A $40/month policy for a 3-year-old dog often becomes $90-140/month by age 10.
You can cancel anytime. A 30-day money-back guarantee applies if you haven’t filed any claims during that initial period.
You can visit any licensed veterinarian in the United States or Canada, including specialists and emergency clinics.
Special Features
PetPremium doesn’t offer a 24/7 vet helpline or lost pet assistance as standard policy benefits. Behavioral therapy coverage is included with Total Coverage plans. Exam fees may be covered depending on your plan level. Confirm this in the specific policy form before enrolling. End-of-life coverage details vary by policy.
The company’s pet health resource library goes beyond typical insurer content, with breed-specific information, care guides, and veterinary insights. It’s genuinely useful for first-time pet owners.
PetPremium Affordability
Sample Pricing
PetPremium doesn’t publish pricing on its website. You’ll need to call or submit contact information to receive quotes. Customer reports place PetPremium in the mid-range of the pet insurance market.
For context, the 2026 national average for accident and illness coverage runs approximately $52 per month for dogs and $28 per month for cats, based on MetLife’s 2026 data. NAPHIA data puts the average closer to $62 for dogs. PetPremium’s pricing will vary significantly based on your pet, location, and chosen carrier, but customers generally describe rates as competitive, though not the cheapest available.
Wellness add-ons at $9.95 to $24.95 monthly increase total costs. A pet owner choosing Total Coverage with the Prime wellness tier could pay $80 to $100 or more monthly for comprehensive protection.
Pricing Factors
Your premium reflects pet species (cats cost less than dogs), breed, age, and ZIP code. Urban areas with higher vet costs produce higher premiums. Your chosen deductible, reimbursement percentage, and coverage limits also directly affect what you’ll pay.
Customization Options
Deductibles: $100, $250, or $500 annually. Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%. Annual coverage limits extend to unlimited on Total Coverage plans, with incident limits from $2,500 to $5,000 depending on plan level.
Discounts Available
A 10% multi-pet discount applies when insuring multiple animals. Paying annually saves approximately $18 by waiving installment fees. No military or veteran discounts appear in company materials.
Value Assessment
PetPremium delivers decent coverage flexibility and a real differentiator in day-one accident coverage. The lack of price transparency creates comparison friction. Value-conscious shoppers should gather quotes from at least two or three providers before committing. The usual and customary reimbursement model also means your actual payout may fall short of your vet’s bill, something customers report hitting at claim time.
PetPremium Claims Process
Claims Submission Methods
Here’s where PetPremium shows its age. There’s no online portal or mobile app for filing claims. Download a claim form from the website, complete it with treatment details and diagnosis information, attach your itemized vet receipt, and submit by mail, fax, or email. Competitors offer instant photo uploads and AI-assisted claim filing. This is the single biggest operational gap in PetPremium’s product.
Average Reimbursement Timeframe
The company targets claim processing within 30 days of receiving all required documentation. Customer reports suggest actual turnaround often lands in the two to four week range. Some policyholders describe faster experiences around one week, while others report waits exceeding a month during claim investigations.
Reimbursement Process
PetPremium operates on a reimbursement model. You pay your vet directly, then submit claims for your portion back. The company can send payments via direct deposit, which speeds things up compared to waiting for a check. There’s no direct vet payment option.
Claims Approval Rate
Public claims approval data isn’t available. Customer feedback suggests most straightforward claims get approved without issues. Disputes arise mainly around pre-existing condition determinations and reimbursement amounts, particularly when the usual and customary charge calculation produces a payment lower than the actual vet bill.
Ease of Claims Process
The claims form itself is one page and straightforward. Getting to that point requires unnecessary effort compared to what competitors offer. Once submitted, tracking claim status online through the Member Center works adequately.
Claims must be filed within 270 days of treatment, giving reasonable flexibility for documentation collection.
PetPremium Customer Service
Accessibility
Phone support reaches representatives at 1-(888) 966-7120. Email contact goes to help@petpremium.com. No live chat is available. Social media presence exists but is limited compared to larger insurers.
Digital Experience
No mobile app exists for iOS or Android. For pet owners accustomed to managing insurance through smartphones, this is a dealbreaker. The website contains extensive pet health content but getting to actual insurance information and quotes requires more steps and more information sharing than most competitors require.
The online Member Center allows policy management, payment method changes, and claim status tracking once enrolled. Digital documentation access through the portal works adequately.
Customer Satisfaction Metrics
BBB Status: Not accredited, no letter rating assigned due to insufficient information. One complaint was noted in recent reporting periods, which was resolved.
Trustpilot: Limited presence with insufficient reviews for a meaningful aggregate score.
Third-party review aggregates show an average of 4.2 out of 5 stars where reviews exist. Total review volume remains small compared to major pet insurers, a thin base means a single negative experience can swing the number noticeably.
Common praise: Customer service representatives consistently receive compliments for being helpful and knowledgeable on phone calls. The educational resources earn appreciation from first-time pet owners. Policy customization flexibility gets positive mentions.
Common complaints: Website friction for getting quotes, lack of online claims filing, reimbursement delays, and the requirement to call for pricing generate the most negative feedback.
Customer Highlights
Real customer experiences are mixed in ways that track directly with the structural limitations.
One policyholder reported submitting two claims without issues, receiving payment within one week each time. They found the process straightforward once they understood the paper-based workflow.
Another customer waited four weeks for claim investigation, followed by three more weeks for reimbursement. The extended timeline created financial pressure during an already difficult situation.
A first-time pet owner credited the breed-specific care guides with helping them anticipate potential health issues before they became expensive problems. That’s the educational content doing what it’s designed to do.
Several customers note that reimbursement amounts fall short of actual vet charges because of the usual and customary charge calculation. One example: $45 reimbursed toward a $65 office visit. That gap is real. It’s built into how the policy works, not an error or dispute.
Phone interactions consistently get positive reviews. Representatives take time to explain coverage without pressure, which is more than you can say for some of the larger, more automated carriers.
Pros and Cons of PetPremium
Pros
- Day-one accident coverage is a real differentiator. Most insurers make you wait 2-14 days before accident protection starts. PetPremium covers accidents from the policy effective date.
- Strong financial backing on C&F-underwritten policies. United States Fire Insurance Company is part of Crum & Forster Insurance Group, rated A+ (Superior) by AM Best as of August 2025. That’s the highest tier in the market.
- Flexible plan customization. Setting your own deductible, reimbursement percentage, and coverage limits lets you manage the premium-vs-exposure trade-off for your actual budget.
- 180-day curable condition pathway. Pets with fully resolved health issues have a realistic route to future coverage that many carriers deny outright.
Cons
- Paper-based claims submission. Downloading, filling out, and mailing or faxing a form in 2026 is a legitimate inconvenience. Competitors take photo uploads through an app in seconds.
- Pricing requires contact before you can compare. Not showing quotes upfront frustrates comparison shoppers and suggests the company may not compete well on price alone.
- Senior pet exclusions cut off illness coverage when pets need it most. Dogs over 12 and cats over 14 can only access accident-only plans.
- Wellness coverage adds to an already opaque total cost. Base plans exclude preventive care. Adding it runs $9.95 to $24.95 monthly on top of your base premium.
Our Verdict & Score for PetPremium
PetPremium works best for owners of younger, active pets who prioritize immediate accident coverage and don’t need a digital-first experience. The strong underwriting backing on C&F-structure policies and flexible customization options deliver solid foundational coverage. The paper-based claims process and senior pet limitations are real drawbacks that matter at claim time, not just in the comparison stage.
Before you enroll, confirm which underwriter your specific policy will run through. That’s who pays the claim. Verify their AM Best rating. Check whether the pre-existing condition definitions in your specific policy form match what you expect, particularly the curable-condition 180-day rule, the bilateral condition handling, and the knee and ligament permanent exclusion.
Recommended for:
- Pet owners with dogs under 12 or cats under 14 who want customizable accident and illness coverage
- Owners who value educational pet health resources and appreciate phone-based customer service
- Pet owners comfortable with a paper claims process who prioritize day-one accident protection over digital convenience
Not ideal for:
- Senior pet owners needing comprehensive illness coverage (consider Pumpkin pet insurance, which has no upper age limit for enrollment)
- Pet owners expecting digital insurance management with mobile app claims (consider Lemonade pet insurance)
- Comparison shoppers who need transparent pricing without providing contact information (consider ASPCA Pet Insurance)
Methodology
Our evaluation weighted five categories based on their importance to the average pet insurance buyer:
Affordability (30%): We compared pet insurance premium costs across multiple pet profiles, factoring in available discounts and fee structures. Lack of transparent pricing and above-average reported premiums limited PetPremium’s score here.
Claims Process (20%): We evaluated submission options, processing times, reimbursement speed, and the availability of direct vet payment. The paper-only submission requirement pulled this score down significantly relative to competitors.
Customer Service (20%): We assessed accessibility, digital tools, and customer satisfaction metrics from Trustpilot, BBB, and third-party review aggregates. The absence of a mobile app and live chat hurt this score, partly offset by consistently positive phone service reviews.
Stability (20%): We examined AM Best ratings, years in business, corporate backing, and regulatory standing. The Crum & Forster upgrade to A+ (Superior) in August 2025 is a genuine positive for customers on the United States Fire Insurance structure.
Coverage Options (10%): We reviewed plan variety, what’s covered and excluded, waiting periods, and special features. Day-one accident coverage is a real differentiator. The 12-month orthopedic waiting period and senior pet age caps are real limitations.
PetPremium Pet Insurance Category Scores
- Financial Strength: 8/10
- Coverage Options: 7/10
- Affordability: 6/10
- Claims Experience: 5/10
- Customer Experience: 6/10
- Overall Score: 7.8/10
Check out our complete methodology and see how every provider stacked up in our Pet Insurance Reviews.
