Pumpkin Pet Insurance Review: Cost & Coverage 2023

Pumpkin pet insurance has been in the industry for just over two years. With policy options that cater to pets that have injuries or illnesses, Pumpkin can provide peace of mind for pet owners. If you are considering Pumpkin, we will give you all the insider information on age limits, reimbursement rates, enrollment, hospitalization costs, and more.

Here are three of our other top pet insurance picks:

Our Take on Pumpkin Pet Insurance

Pumpkin pet insurance earned a 4.5 out of 5 stars. When scoring this provider, we looked at factors like reliability, add-on options, alternative therapies, and more. Cat and dog owners will find that there are some really great features of Pumpkin’s health insurance plans for pets. Still, there are a few things that you really need to look into before you sign up.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Plans and Coverage

Pumpkin offers one basic plan for accidents and injuries. There is, however, an additional option where you can add Preventive Essentials to your monthly payment and be covered for the basics of an annual wellness exam. Here are the details of each of the plan choices from Pumpkin.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Plan

Pumpkin’s standard coverage is very similar to other pet insurance providers in that it covers things like surgery and hospitalization. Where you will notice differences with Pumpkin is that it has times were pre-existing conditions are covered. Pumpkin also covers dental illnesses, whereas most other pet insurance providers will not. 

Nearly all pet insurance companies exclude pre-existing conditions, making it very hard for pet owners with already sick or injured pets to find any type of coverage. With Pumpkin, however, your pet can still get coverage as long as it is symptom free for 180 days.

Knee and hind leg ligament conditions are not covered at all. You will notice that the standard Pumpkin pet insurance plan does not do anything for essential or wellness care for your pet. 

Hence why Pumpkin offers the Preventive Essentials option as an add-on, which covers: 

• Dental illnesses
• Behavioral issues
• Hereditary conditions, including hip dysplasia
• Prescription food and supplements
• Physical therapy
• Alternative therapies, including acupuncture and stem cell therapy
• Parasite infections
• In-office and virtual exam fees, surgery, and hospitalization
• Cancer treatments and cancer growths
• Some pre-existing conditions under certain conditions
• Illnesses such as digestive issues or ear infections
• Accidents such as orthopedic injuries or a swallowed object
• Emergency visits
• Virtual vet visits for accidents and illnesses
• MRIs and CT scans
• Surgeries
• Specialized care
• Hospitalizations
• Alternative therapies such as acupuncture
• Prescription medications
• Microchipping

Preventative Essentials

The Preventive Essentials package is just another way to keep your vet bills down. This package is simple in that it includes just one annual wellness exam. During that exam, there is an entire list of vaccines and parasite screenings that can also be covered under the plan.

The exact inclusion of parasite screening and vaccines will vary depending on how many years old your pet is and what type of pet you have. Keep this in mind as you sign up for the plan, it will make the claims process easier on you when the time comes.

Not Covered by Pumpkin Pet Insurance

Pumpkin’s website also lists some of the coverages not included in the plan. It is not rare for a pet insurance company to have a long list of exclusions. Remember that the wellness plan from Pumpkin is also added, so technically your typical healthy checkup from Pumpkin is also excluded.

In addition to these exclusions, remember that Pumpkin does not offer coverage for pets that are less than 8 weeks old. Very few companies, aside from Lemonade, offer coverage for young puppies and kittens.

Pumpkin pet insurance policies have that rare inclusion of dental illness, but as you will see, dental cleanings will require a payout on the part of the pet owner.

Costs related to the following are also excluded by Pumpkin:

• Breeding costs
• Spaying and neutering
• Cosmetic or elective procedures
• Dental cleanings not related to illness
• Most pre-existing conditions
• Veterinary costs such as taxes, administration fees, medical waste, and medical records expenses
• Experimental treatments
• Supplements and vitamins used for prevention and general health maintenance
• Grooming and grooming supplies
• Boarding

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Coverages Levels and Deductibles

Pumpkin stands out from other pet insurance companies because it has one set reimbursement level of 90%. This is considerably higher than other pet health insurance options.

Annual Limit

The annual coverage limits on a Pumpkin pet insurance policy can be $7,000, $15,000, or unlimited for a cat. When looking at dog coverage, your choices are $10,000, $20,000, or unlimited. As you increase the annual limit, expect your premium to increase as well.

Deductibles

There are three deductible choices for pet owners to consider with Pumpkin: $100, $250, or $500. The lower your deductible the higher the monthly costs will be. Many pet health insurance companies will have deductibles that go much higher into the thousands.

Reimbursement Levels

The reimbursement level offered by Pumpkin is 90%, which stays the same if you add an additional pet to the policy. Other companies have options for 70% or 80%, and that does help keep pricing down.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Pricing

Pumpkin pet insurance is slightly more expensive than other policies on the market. One of the reasons you will notice that out-of-pocket monthly costs are higher is because of  Pumpkin’s 90% reimbursement rate.

Monthly Premium

Coverage through Pumpkin start at around $30 for dogs, but will increase when adding in some of the extra coverage items like the Preventive Essentials. When we took an in-depth look at a sample policy, the value of the policy was quite good considering the costs of covered services like a blood test, x-rays, and even fecal tests.

This chart highlights average costs based on a mid-range annual deductible and at least $10,000 worth of annual coverage. Playing around with deductibles and annual limits will certainly help impact policy pricing.

Species & Breed	Dog – Large Mixed Breed	Dog – Golden Retriever	Dog – Chihuahua	Cat – Mixed Breed	Cat – Domestic Shorthair
Standard Pumpkin Base Plan	$65	$80	$48	$24	$28
Pumpkin Plan Plus Wellness	$85	$99	$68	$38	$41

Deals and Discounts

The biggest deal or discount that Pumpkin offers is a 10% savings when adding in a second pet. Pumpkin covers both pets, but the policy price does nearly double. This 10% multi-pet discount will apply on both the accident and injury part of the plan as well as preventative care. However, there are times when the company will cap the maximum discount you can get when adding additional pets.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Waiting Periods

All pet insurance companies will have waiting periods that will keep your policy from going into effect until a certain amount of time has passed. The waiting period for Pumpkin is 14 days.

This waiting period is a straight 14 days all across the board, whether you are trying to cover heartworm or hip dysplasia.

Although 14 days is a little longer than average for a waiting period, the company does cover significant, more complicated issues in the 14 day period, which certainly puts them ahead of the competition where these conditions can have waiting periods of up to six months.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Availability

Pumpkin pet insurance is available in all 50 states. From New York to California, you can head to the Pumpkin website and put in information about your pet’s age, type, and health. The availability and coverage options will be given to you within a matter of minutes.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance Reviews and Reputation

Overall, Pumpkin pet insurance has a B- rating from the BBB. This is a relatively new company, and there are, of course, issues that will need to be worked out before the company can get to that A+ rating. Here are some of the positives and negatives from actual Pumpkin customers.

“I adopted my cat and was advised by a family member to get pet insurance, and I chose Pumpkin. After my baby had a dental cleaning, it was found that she needed a dental extraction, which was quite expensive. Pumpkin covered 90% in a very easy process and paid it by direct deposit after only a month. Highly recommended!” -Susan W.

“I really like Pumpkin insurance. Our Saint Bernard had a sudden leg injury that cost a pretty penny. Thankfully we had their Pet Insurance to help with the costs. Now I’m considering adding our 2nd smaller dog to the policy — because their service was so good. Not a hassle at all, … and their website is nice for submitting claims and checking the status.” – Rebecca M.

“I inherited three dogs in December 2020 and February 2021: German Shepherds 7, 6, and 1 year old. I placed in insurance in the first 2 but I placed the wrong name in the 6 years old. I called Pumpkin to ask to change the dog’s name as she needed more insurance than the one-year-old. However, they asked me to cancel the insurance for the 1-year-old and place a new one for the 6 years old. She got an infection on her gums later, and I took her to the vet, and they did extractions in May. Now they will not honor the claim because they said that it was a pre-existing condition. I do not understand why the insurance did not allow me to rectify the name of the dog, and I realized this in a couple of weeks. I am asking for the cover on the gum disease.”– Elizabeth A.

Compare Pumpkin Pet Insurance to Competition

When comparing one pet insurance company to another, it is imperative to look for things like the upper age limits, whether or not there is a money-back guarantee, and how responsive the company is to claims and treatment requests.

Overall, you will find that Pumpkin pet insurance has slightly higher monthly payouts when compared to the competition. This additional monthly payment is a direct result of the 90% reimbursement.

In addition, Pumpkin includes additional coverages like dental illness and prescription dog food that are often excluded by other competing providers. Be very careful with pre-existing conditions, as some are covered, but most are not.

Provider	Sample Premiums (Dogs)	Sample Premium (Cats)	Deductible	Reimbursement Rates	Annual Limits	BBB Rating
Pumpkin	$30-$80	$18-$55	$100, $250 or $500	90%	$7000 to Unlimited	B-
Lemonade	$15-$50	$11-$24	$100,$250, or $500	60%, 70%, 80% or 90%	$5000, $10,000, $20,000, $50,000, or $100,000	D
Spot	$15-$25	$10-$25	$100, $250, $500, $750 and $1,000	70%, 80% and 90%	$2,500, $3,000, $4,000, $5,000, $7,000, $10,000, and unlimited	A
Wagmo	$20-$59	$20-$59	$250, $500. $1000	90%, 100%	$5,000, $10,000, or unlimited	B-
Embrace	$25-$55	$20-$30	$200, $300, $500, $750 and $1,000	70%, 80% and 90%	$5,000, $8,000, $10,000, $15,000, and $30,000	A+
Healthy Paws	$30-$65	$20-$30	$250 or $500	70% or 80%	Unlimited	A
Pawp	$24	$24	None	None	$3,000	B-
Figo	$15-$74	$10-$46	$100 to $750	70%, 80%, 90% or 100%	$5,000, $10,000, or unlimited	B
Fetch Pet Insurance	$35-$45	$15-$25	$250 to $1000, in $50 increments	70%, 80% or 90%	$5,000, $10,000  $15,000, and unlimited	A+
Trupanion	$47-$140	$37-$85	Varying amounts up to $1000	90%	No Coverage Limits	N/A

Pumpkin Pet Insurance vs. Lemonade

When comparing Pumpkin pet insurance with Lemonade, you will notice that Lemonade is considerably more affordable. However, coverage from Lemonade is a bit more limited. In addition, both Lemonade and Pumpkin have some complaints about overall customer service and claim denial.

Provider	Pumpkin Pet Insurance	Lemonade
Annual Coverage Limit Options	$7000 to Unlimited, different for cats and dogs	$5000 to $100,000
Reimbursement Level Options	90%	70%, 80%, 90%
Deductible Options	$100, $250, $500	$100 to $500
Average Cost for Dog	$38	$22
Average Cost for Cat	$24	$18

Our Conclusion

Overall, Pumpkin is a solid choice for pet health insurance. One thing worth noting about Pumpkin is that even though its standard plan does not include wellness, it offers an affordable way to add those services as an optional rider. Pumpkin is a relatively new company, so you will see some complaints and customer service issues. As a pet owner, it is your responsibility to look at the exclusions before investing in the plan.

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