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Paw Protect vs Pets Best

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Verdict

Paw Protect offers all customers an optional $2,000 interest-free line of credit from Paytient to pay covered vet bills* up-front without having to use your own money, using a virtual Paytient Visa card on your phone†. With Pets Best, you have to pay the vet bill up-front, then claim the money back. 

Both offer a more cost-effective, accident-only plan for pets of all ages, plus 24/7 pet telehealth. Here’s how Paw Protect and Pets Best compare:

PawPets
Pet insurance without paying vet bills* up-front†
Annual coverage options$5000, $10,000, Unlimited$5,000, Unlimited
Deductible options$100, $250, $500$50, $100, $200, $250, $500, $1,000
Reimbursement options70%, 80%, 90%70%, 80%, 90%
Coverage start2 days accident,
14 days illness		3 days accident,
14 days illness
Maximum age at sign-up14 years accident and illness,
15+ accident only		No maximum
Vet exam fees included
Dental accidents covered
Dental illness covered
Wellness plan offered
24/7 Telehealth
End of life coverage included
10% Multi-pet discount
Military discount

Information correct as of May 2023

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Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Claims process

Paw Protect offers all customers an optional $2,000 interest-free line of credit from Paytient to pay covered vet bills* up-front, using a virtual Paytient Visa card on your phone.†

  • If approved by Paytient, and if your bill is under $2,000 (nearly all are), you don’t need to pay a cent of your own money up front
  • You’ll need to pay anything over $2,000 up-front but you’ll be reimbursed quickly for any covered condition, less your deductible and copay
  • The rest of the process is like regular insurance – just submit the claim paperwork via our app, online, by email or through the mail. 
  • Use your reimbursement to pay down your Paytient balance and pay off any remaining out-of-pocket costs over up to 12 months interest-free

Regular pet insurance, like Pets Best, involves paying vet bills out of your own money, submitting a claim to your insurance company, and then getting the money back if your claim is successful – minus any copay and deductible.

Dog with bone

How will I know if my vet accepts Paw Protect?

The virtual Paytient Visa card is a 16-digit Visa card that works at any vet in the United States that accepts Visa*. We’re yet to find one that doesn’t!

Number of vets where you can use Paytient†
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Paw Protect vs Pets Best: What do the plans cover?

Pets can get sick or injured in so many different ways that it can be infuriating, heartbreaking and expensive to discover that Lucky’s condition isn’t covered by your pet insurance. 

Luckily, both these insurance plans offer a broad range of cover and treatments for most ailments and injuries likely to afflict any pet, from a six-month old puppy to a senior dog in its teens.

These include, but aren’t limited to

  • Arthritis
  • Cancer
  • Cataracts
  • Dental disease
  • Dermatitis
  • Diabetes
  • Diarrhea
  • Ear infections
  • Hip dysplasia
  • Gastroenteritis
  • Kidney disease
  • Ligament injury
  • Limping
  • Liver disease
  • Lymphoma
  • Pancreatitis
  • Seizures
  • Vomiting

Paw Protect offers one extremely comprehensive plan for accidents and illness, whereas Pets Best has different levels of cover. You’ll need to buy its ‘BestBenefit’ plan to match Paw Protect’s coverage of cancer treatment, prescription medication, older pet protection, behavioral issues, dental coverage, and euthanasia.

Paw Protect and Pets Best lets you visit any registered veterinarian, be it a regular surgery, emergency department or, for example, an ophthalmic or cancer specialist.

Both plans also offer 24/7 helplines, in case you’re ever worried about your pet ‘out of hours’ or don’t know if you need to visit a surgery. Both firms do this via phone and live chat, while Paw Protect offers live-video conferencing and Pets Best an email option.

Do Paw Protect and Pets Best have a wellness plan?

Paw Protect delivers an optional wellness plan with its insurance packages. Included in the benefits are grooming, spaying and neutering, vaccinations, and a range of preventative treatments, such as flea, tick and heartworm medications.

You can select annual limits of $250, $450 or $650, and, by paying upfront like this, you can make significant savings on services you’d be paying for anyway.

Pets Best also delivers a no-deductibles wellness plan. Like Paw Protect, it covers the cost of treatments and services including vaccinations, microchipping and neutering or spaying.  

It’s also worth noting that you get a $25 rebate each year from Paw Protect if you subscribe to its wellness plan. 

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: What are the coverage limits?

Both insurances offer a range of annual maximum coverage limits (the total amount you can claim each year). Pets Best offers two levels: $5,000 and Unlimited. Paw Protect offers $5,000, $10,000 and Unlimited coverage options. 

The higher the limit, the higher your premium, but also the greater the peace of mind.

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Deductibles

Both firms offer a range of annual deductibles to help you to control your expenditure. Pets Best has $50, $100, $200, $250, $500 and $1,000 options, while Paw Protect lets you choose between $100, $250 and $500.

Deductibles are the amount you pay for any treatment, before the insurance claim is made. This is usually an annual amount, as is the case with both companies here, but some do it per-condition.

What are Paw Protect and Pets Best’s reimbursement percentage options?

Paw Protect and Pets Best both offer a choice of 70%, 80% and 90% reimbursement levels. So, after your deductible is removed, you can claim 70%, 80% or 90% of the remaining amount from your insurer for covered vet bills. 

The lower the reimbursement amount you select, the cheaper your annual premium will be, but the more you’ll have to pay yourself.

Do Paw Protect and Pets Best have any exclusions?

All insurance has exclusions, and all pet insurance excludes pre-existing conditions.

That said, Paw Protect may insure some curable pre-existing conditions if the cat or dog has not experienced symptoms or required treatment for a period of 12 consecutive months. 

How expensive are Paw Protect and Pets Best?

How much you spend on any insurance is crucial, as, like most sectors, you tend to get what you pay for.

Insuring your irreplaceable and treasured pet is very different from protecting a car, laptop or camera though, and it’s one area where paying a little more up-front can save both heartache and cold, hard dollars in the long run.

Both Pets Best and Paw Protect offer superior plans, and they’re two good examples of where paying a slight premium delivers extra protection and better service.

Between the two, Paw Protect insurance costs a little more than Pets Best, though the exact amount can be managed via the levels of cover and deductibles you select. Prospective customers need to assess if the extra benefits and unique credit facility are worth the extra expenditure.

Paw Protect
PetsBets logo
$50.46per month
$27.38per month

Medium Mixed Breed Puppy

3 months old
in Pittsburgh, 15211
Unlimited annual coverage

$53.06per month
$33.05per month

Golden Retriever

3 years old
in Orlando, 32807
$5,000 annual coverage

$27.98per month
£25.91

Chihuahua

6 years old
in Columbus, 43004
$5,000 annual coverage

$60.09per month
$31.21per month

Domestic Shorthair Kitten

3 months old
in New York City, 10008
Unlimited annual coverage

$16.12per month
$14.36per month

Tabby Cat

3 years old
in Dallas, 75061
$5,000 annual coverage

All quotes are based on a $500 deductible and 90% reimbursement. Prices correct as of May 2023

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: How quickly are claims paid?

The speed at which a pet insurance claim is paid is usually a worry for pet parents, but Paw Protect’s optional $2,000 interest-free line of credit makes it less important.

That said, Paw Protect aims to pay within five days for wellness claims and 10 to 15 days for accidents and illness.

Pets Best says it processes most claims in five days or less, but this is no guarantee and some reviews suggest it’s optimistic. Once a claim has been approved, it says payment will be made in two days by direct deposit or five to seven days by check.

Do Paw Protect and Pets Best offer any discounts?

Yes, both firms offer worthwhile discounts.

Paw Protect gives a 10% multi-pet discount, along with a 5% reduction for former and active military personnel. 

Pets Best offers a 5% multi-pet discount, plus 5% off for members of the military and their families. You’ll also achieve a $24 rate cut if you pay your premium in one go, rather than monthly.

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Standard waiting periods

Paw Protect customers have just a two-day waiting period for accident claims, among the very best in the sector. For illness the wait is 14 days. 

There’s a six-month wait for orthopedic treatments, but our Waiver Process can bring that down to just 14 days.

Pets Best has similar waiting periods in the industry – three days for accidents, 14 days for illnesses, and six months for cruciate ligament injuries.

Do Paw Protect and Pets Best’s plans include behavioral treatments?

Calm and happy pets are crucial for a harmonious household. Pets Best covers behavioral consultations, along with medications prescribed by a licensed veterinarian. 

Paw Protect also insures for behavioral therapy and training, so long as it’s delivered by a veterinarian for a condition covered by the policy.

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Is there a maximum age for enrollment?

For accident and illness cover, Paw Protect has a maximum new enrollment age limit of 14 years. It also offers an accident-only plan with no maximum age.

Pets Best has no maximum age for enrollment in its illness and accident covers. 

Paw Protect vs Pets Best: Customer reviews

On Trustpilot, Pets Best scores a credible 4.1 stars, while on Forbes it receives a top five-star rating.

†
Subject to approval
*
The Paytient virtual Visa® card works with merchants in certain approved categories and with certain point-of-sale (POS) vendors. Merchants self-select their category and POS vendor, and in some cases a provider might not be categorized as expected or their POS vendor may not support Paytient virtual Visa® card transactions.

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