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FAQ by catgory

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  Pet insurance

  • How does pet insurance work?

    Pet insurance works on a reimbursement basis. That means:

    1. You’ll pay the Vet directly and upfront.
    2. You’ll then submit your bill for reimbursement on our website.
    3. Once your claim is reviewed and approved, you’ll get reimbursed based on the options you selected for your policy (annual limit, reimbursement rate, and annual deductible – see later).

  • Why should I insure my pet?

    Well for starters, your pet relies on you! They can’t protect themselves. They’re also, just like us humans, vulnerable to the unexpected. Luckily, Veterinary medicine has progressed dramatically, allowing groundbreaking medical solutions for pets. Did you know for instance, that animal prosthetics, laser therapy, cancer vaccines, Laparoscopy and even MRI, are all veterinary treatments that weren’t an option just ten years ago? These advancements, however, come with a cost.

    Pet insurance offers you freedom from cost-based decisions and allows you to focus on healing, not billing.

  • Why should I get pet insurance and not a savings account?

    Certainly, both options have their sets of benefits and drawbacks, but which option truly is the best for you and your pet? In theory, putting a little away each month in anticipation of future Vet bills sounds quite logical. It really does.  

     

    But let’s say you did manage to save $5,000 before your dog swallowed a rock during one of your daily walks. The cheaper option would be abdominal X-rays and close observation for 24-48 hours. Only $520. The risk? Potential internal injury or intestinal obstruction. And then there’s the better option- endoscopic retrieval or surgical removal that will prevent life-threatening complications that may occur if the object is left within the gastrointestinal tract. $1,500-$3,500. 

     

    And let’s say you go with the more expensive and better option. Good for you. But what if an emergency strikes again? And again? And again? When it comes to your money, you’ll probably think twice. That’s the beauty of insurance. It allows you to use our money instead of your money.  

     

    With pet insurance you can finally say: “Doc, do whatever it takes. I have Animalia”. No hesitation whatsoever. 

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  Our policy

  • How does policy renewal work?

    Don’t worry about forgetting to renew or running the risk of being uninsured as your policy will be automatically renewed once a year, assuming your account remains current. For your convenience, we’ll send you a reminder 30 days before the renewal date.

  • Can I cancel anytime?

    You may cancel your policy at any time by notifying us in writing. No hard feelings. You may even be entitled to a pro-rated refund of your premium.

  • Can I enroll my pet at any age? 

    Pets are unpredictable and an illness or injury can happen at any time and even sooner than you think. And if you’re thinking “Well, my pup is too young to get sick”, you should bear in mind that younger animals are just as prone (if not more) to accidents as older ones, and there are lots of illnesses that can affect them too. That’s why it’s best to insure your pet as soon as you can. With Animalia, you can start as soon as your pet reaches 8 weeks. You can also insure your senior pet, as long as they’re under 15 years old.

  • What is a waiting period?

    When it comes to pet insurance, your waiting period is important. That’s the amount of time you’ll need to wait before your coverage kicks in. Some plans have extended waiting periods of up to a year on specific illnesses. At Animalia, we don’t believe in waiting for that long after enrollment. That’s why we have only a 5-day waiting period. Period. For illnesses too*.

    *Except for cancer where you’ll need to wait 30 days.

  • Do you need my pet’s medical records?

    Yes. Your pet’s medical history allows us to get to know them better and determine which conditions, if any, are considered pre-existing. When purchasing our policy, you agree to allow us to communicate with your Vet on your behalf to obtain that information. This also helps us speed up any claim reviews.

  • What do I need in order to enroll?

    Well, to start with, a pet will be nice. If you do have one, you’re almost ready! All you need to do is  contact Animalia pet insurance and we’ll send you a quote in less than 60 seconds.   

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  Coverage

  • What are pre-existing conditions and are they covered?

    It doesn’t take a miracle to cure conditions like ear, urinary tract, or respiratory infections. It does take a miracle to have them covered by insurance even though they’re considered pre-existing conditions.  Confused? Let us explain.  

     

    Pre-existing conditions are any health condition developed before your insurance kicks in.  Here you need to understand the difference between two kinds of pre-existing conditions- incurable pre-existing conditions are conditions that aren’t likely to go away or improve over your pet’s lifetime and therefore, won’t be covered. Hip dysplasia, cancer, diabetes, or heart disease are good examples. Curable pre-existing conditions, on the other hand, are conditions your pet had before, like ear or urinary tract infections, but showed no symptoms for 12 months. These are covered by Animalia. 

  •  What if my pet needs emergency treatment?

    Head to your nearest Vet or Emergency Clinic pronto! No permission or referral is required for emergency visits. Once your pet is back on their feet, simply contact Animalia to file your claim.

  • Can I visit any Vet?

    Absolutely! We trust the Vet you trust. As long as your Vet is licensed to provide Veterinary care in the state they operate in, choose the Vet you, and your pet, are comfortable with. This applies to any licensed Specialist or Emergency Clinic as well.

  • Why doesn’t your policy cover routine Vet visits for checkups and vaccinations? 

    We’re here for the unexpected, remember? Routine care and vaccinations are both predictable as well as significantly cheaper. Adding them to our policy coverage would unnecessarily raise the insurance costs and we see no point in that.

  • What’s not covered?

    There are certain things we won’t cover. Incurable pre-existing conditions, for starters. In addition, as those plans are here for the unexpected, they will not cover routine care and vaccinations. Cosmetic treatments, pregnancy costs, grooming services, and travel costs are off too.  

     

    And if you’re asking why don’t insurance plans just cover it all…well, that’s where statistical parameters like case prevalence and average claim costs kick in. Let’s take, for example, pregnancy costs. As most dogs and cats are spayed or neutered, it doesn’t make any sense to also cover those costs for a very small portion of pets as it will increase insurance costs for all customers. We prefer covering the most prevalent cases and still offer affordable prices.

  • What’s covered?

    Different plans have different coverages. We at Animalia believe in providing your pet with the most comprehensive coverage out there. The whole shebang, as we like to call it.  With Animalia, there’s no such thing as basic coverage. Our all-in-one premium coverage is the crème de la crème; the pick of the litter. 

     

    That means we’ll cover your vet bills following injuries, accidents and illnesses, including diagnostics, procedures and treatments required – lab work, imaging scans, hospitalization, emergency care, surgeries, complete sick visits & exam fees, specialist visits, cancer treatments, prescription meds…But that’s not all. Also included in your coverage (no extra charge) are tele-vet services (as many as you need), Behavioral therapy (with real trainers and behaviorists and even online), alternative care (for when conventional medicine is just not enough),  prescription food & dietary supplements and even orthodentic treatments. And if you’re looking for a more extensive dental coverage, you can always choose our comprehensive dental care add-on. 

     

    Head-to-tail. It’s that simple.

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  Claims

  • What can I do if my claim is denied?

    It is always unfortunate when we can’t help some of our customers. If you believe that your claim has been unfairly denied, the first step is to submit an appeal with a letter from your Vet. We understand things happen and we hope that the next time you’ll need us, we’ll be here for you, proving how efficient pet insurance is.

  • Can a claim be rejected?

    Animalia receives thousands of claims each year and is proud that most of those claims are accepted and paid for. In fact, during the past 12 months, we have rejected no more than 3% of the claims we’ve received during this period. We believe our rejection rate is so low because of our constant efforts to explain our policy while being transparent with our policy holders.

     

  • How will I know you’ve accepted my claim?

    With Animalia, you can track the status of your claim at any time in your personal area on our website. We’ll also update you once your claim has been approved as well as when the money has been deposited in your account.

  • What exactly do you do with my claim?

    Our dedicated team will process it  and we’ll get in touch with your Vet’s clinic to gather all the necessary information, including your pet’s medical records. While we work our magic, you can follow the process and track our progress.  We’ll update you when it’s all done and let you know when the money is in your account.

  • How long will it take for my pet insurance claim to be paid?

    95% of claims submitted to Animalia are reimbursed in less than a week. In order to help speed things up, please make sure you send us all of the receipts from your Vet.

  • What if I don’t have the medical records of my pet?

    Medical history is necessary for submitting a claim. By purchasing this policy you allow us to communicate with your Vet on your behalf and obtain that information. This will allow us to get to know your pet better and determine which conditions, if any, are considered pre-existing.

    Without it, we will not be able to process your claim.

  • Can I file a claim any time?

    Not exactly. You’re allowed to do it within 180 days of the treatment, but no later than 90 days after the expiration of the policy period.

     

  • How do I file a claim?

    Our claim process is simple – We work, you don’t. Here’s all you need to do:

    1. Describe what happened- just type in a brief description outlining the medical condition.
    2. We will use your permission to get your pet’s medical records from your Vet.
    3. Attach the itemized receipt from the Vet – including your pet’s  personal information, date and cost of treatments & services, as well as your Vet’s info.
    4. Once you submit a claim and it’s approved, you’ll get reimbursement directly to your bank account.

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  Payments & Billing

  • What if I miss a premium payment?

    If for some reason your credit card is declined, we’ll provide a few friendly reminders to help you keep your account current and provide an opportunity to change to a different card. If this doesn’t help, we’ll unfortunately have to cancel your policy after a 10 days’ notice period, after which you’ll receive the relative premium refund.

  • How will I get paid for my claim?

    We work on a reimbursement basis, so we will reimburse you for our part of any approved claim by depositing the amount directly to your account or through Venmo. 

  • How do I pay for Animalia pet insurance?

    You can pay using your credit or debit card. We will charge you when you start your policy, and every month thereafter. If you prefer, you can pay for your policy once per year instead.

  • What are the annual limits, reimbursement rates, and the annual deductible?

    Your annual coverage limit is the total amount you can be reimbursed over a 12-month policy period. It starts over when a new policy period begins. Most insurance plans allow you to select your annual coverage limit with options from $10,000 to $50,000. A lower limit will reduce the cost of your premium. A higher limit will give you more financial cushion during the year.   

     

    Annual deductible is the portion of the cost you are responsible for before reimbursement starts. The lower the deductible you choose, the higher the premium you’ll pay. Alternatively, the higher the deductible you pick, the lower the premium will be. Annual deductibles require that you meet your deductible only once per policy term. This means it does not matter how many times your pet goes to the veterinarian each policy year; you still only have to meet the deductible once. 

     

    Your reimbursement rate determines the amount you can get back after you meet your deductible. You can choose to get reimbursed 70%, 80%, or even 90% of covered Veterinary costs with pet insurance. A higher percentage means you can get more cash back on your claims. A lower percentage gives you a lower monthly premium. If, for example, your reimbursement level is 80% and your claim is for $1,000, your policy will pay $800 and you will pay $200.

  • What affects the cost of pet insurance

    These factors may vary from company to company, but most pet-based variables that determine the cost of pet insurance are:

    1. Cat Vs. Dog- The average cost of pet insurance is higher for dogs – 74% more expensive than cats for accidents and illness policies.
    2. Changes in treatment costs- Veterinary costs have almost doubled during the last decade. These changes may increase (or decrease) your policy premium.
    3. Pet’s age- Just like humans, pets can become more prone to illnesses as they get older and treatments become more frequent and expensive.
    4. Pet’s breed- Your pet’s breed will affect your premium calculation because of size and predisposition of genetic conditions.
    5. Location- Veterinary care is more expensive in major metropolitan areas than in suburban or rural regions due to the higher cost of living in cities.
    6. Your monthly premium will also change to reflect your three plan preferences:

    • A higher annual coverage limit will increase your monthly premium.
    • A higher reimbursement rate will increase your monthly premium.
    • A higher annual deductible will decrease your monthly premium.

    The good news is that Animalia won’t penalize you for filing claims and your premium will not change based on your previous claim history.

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  About Animalia

  • Where is Animalia Pet Insurance available?

    We’re currently available in 44 states: 

    AK, AL, AR, AZ, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WI, WV & WY

     

     

  • About Animalia

    Driven by an urge to educate pet owners, enhance their lives and provide them with a great customer experience, Animalia aims at revolutionizing insurance by creating a platform for the entire pet community to interact through. As a fully licensed and regulated insurance agency, Animalia receives compensation based on the premium for each policy sold. Insurance is underwritten by State National Insurance Company (NAIC# 12831, Fort Worth, TX).

Subject to terms and conditions of the policy.

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  Pet insurance
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  Our policy
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  Coverage
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  Claims
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  Payments & Billing
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  About Animalia