Embrace Pet Insurance Review
Best for Multiple Discounts
Embrace Pet Insurance can be an excellent option for coverage against accidents and illnesses. It’s one of our picks for the best pet insurance companies.
In addition to its comprehensive coverage, Embrace stood out for its discount options. Policyholders may qualify for a 5% multi-pet discount, a 10% military discount and a healthy pet premium discount that takes 5% to 10% of your monthly payment if you don't file a claim for a year.
The company also stands out for its international coverage. Policyholders who are traveling with their pet can visit any licensed vet in the world for up to six months and Embrace will reimburse all eligible claims.
- Embrace Pet Insurance Pros and Cons
- Embrace Plans
- Embrace Cost/Pricing Tier
- Financial Stability
- Accessibility
- Customer Satisfaction
- How We Evaluated Embrace Pet Insurance
- Summary of Money’s Embrace Pet Insurance Review
Embrace Pet Insurance
- Coverage for curable pre-existing conditions
- High maximum insurable age
- Option for high reimbursement limits
- No wellness insurance
- Caps dental illness coverage at $1,000 a year
Pros Explained
Coverage for curable pre-existing conditions
Like other pet insurance companies, Embrace doesn’t cover chronic conditions your pet has at the time you insure it. However, the company is among those that will reimburse for treatment of pre-existing curable conditions, such as infections, provided your pet is symptom-free for 12 months.
High maximum insurable ages
Most pet insurance companies won’t issue new policies to animals over 10 years of age. Embrace, however, will issue new policies for pets until they turn 15, one of the highest age maximums on the market. And pets above that age can qualify for accident-only coverage, where most companies don’t offer any coverage to pets that old.
High reimbursement limit
Like most other companies, Embrace has an option for an annual limit on reimbursement, which you select. But the company offers a maximum of $30,000, which is more than some other insurers allow. While high limits increase premiums, they also provide increased protection in case your pet has a serious illness or accident.
2-day waiting period for accidents
Pet owners typically have to wait at least 14 days to file a claim after they buy pet insurance. This means that their dog or cat is effectively uninsured if they get ill or injured during that time. In contrast, Embrace accepts accident-related claims after just two days, so pet owners can get financial assistance relatively quickly if their pet suffers an unexpected accident.
Cons Explained
Caps dental illness coverage at $1,000 a year
Embrace’s dental care coverage reimburses for broken teeth, root canals, extractions, periodontal disease, gingivitis and stomatitis. However, there is an extra $1,000 annual cap for dental illness coverage. Other insurance providers that offer comparable dental benefits apply the same annual payout limit that would apply to other covered illnesses.
Offers no wellness insurance
Unlike many other insurers, Embrace Pet Insurance doesn’t offer an extra-cost wellness policy. But those plans are not necessarily good buys anyway, and Embrace does offer an optional Wellness Rewards plan that allows you to create a fund for these expenses — and gives you a $25 annual bonus for doing so.
Embrace Plans
Embrace offers two insurance plans and one wellness plan:
Accident & Illness Plan
Embrace’s accident and illness plan for dogs and cats covers unexpected health issues. The plan will pay for:
- Exam and consultation fees
- Diagnostic tests
- Surgery and hospitalization
- Prescription medications
- Behavioral therapy
Like most or all such plans, routine care, pre-existing conditions, cosmetic procedures, DNA testing, breeding, pregnancy care and whelping are not included.
You can choose from the following coverage options:
- Annual reimbursement limit: You can select a limit of between $5,000 and $30,000 -- the latter being a higher figure than most competitors offer.
- Annual deductible: As with most insurers, your choices of annual deductible ranges from $200 to $1,000.
- Reimbursement percentage: You can opt for a reimbursement percentage of 70%, 80%, or 90% -- a typical range of options.
Accident-Only Plan
Accident and illness insurance is available to pets 14 years of age or younger. If your pet is 15 or older, they can only get coverage through Embrace’s accident-only plan. Not all companies offer accident-only plans, and many won’t issue any new policy to dogs over 10.
Accident-only insurance pays for injuries resulting from accidents, such as bloat, broken limbs, or cuts and lacerations. It doesn’t cover chronic illnesses, cancer, dental disease, or congenital conditions.
The accident-only plan has an annual reimbursement limit of $5,000, a $100 annual deductible and 90% reimbursement percentage. It’s significantly less expensive than Embrace’s accident and illness plans, so it may be a good choice if you’re looking for any pet insurance for an elderly pet.
Optional Features
Unlike many other insurers, Embrace Pet Insurance doesn’t offer an extra-cost wellness policy. You can, however, sign on for an optional Wellness Rewards plan, which earns you a $25 annual enrollment reward. The deposited funds can then be used to pay for routine expenses like vaccinations, wellness exams, microchipping and dental care.
Your contribution can range from $250 to $650 per year. However, since all allowances have the same $25 bonus, there’s no financial benefit to choosing a higher amount -- other than perhaps the convenience of creating a larger wellness-care fund for the year. And Wellness Rewards don’t roll over, so you must use all of the funds by the end of the year or you’ll lose them.
Your Wellness Rewards are separate from your accident and illness coverage, so any rewards you use don’t count toward your deductible.
Embrace Cost/Pricing Tier
In a past price survey, we found Embrace consistently had among the lowest premiums for companies we surveyed. To present a current snapshot of typical costs for Embrace, we gathered quotes for several breeds of cats and dogs at different ages.
Rate quotes are for Orlando, FL and are based on a (fairly high) $10,000 annual reimbursement limit with a $500 deductible and a (fairly low) 70% reimbursement percentage. Keep in mind that quotes for your animal will depend on your pet’s species, breed, and age, along with where you live and the deductible and reimbursement level you choose.
Sample monthly pricing for dogs
| 1 year old | 5 years old | 10 years old | 15 years old | |
| Cocker Spaniel | $34.98 | $53.79 | $103.43 | $120.91 |
| Labrador Retriever | $37.11 | $57.07 | $109.74 | $128.28 |
| Pomeranian | $18.34 | $28.21 | $54.24 | $94.28 |
Sample monthly pricing for cats
| 1 year old | 5 years old | 10 years old | 15 years old | |
| Domestic Shorthair | $13.86 | $20.13 | $33.99 | $53.07 |
| Maine Coon | $22.40 | $32.51 | $54.91 | $85.73 |
| Russian Blue | $22.40 | $32.51 | $54.91 | $85.73 |
Discounts
While many companies offer multiple pet discounts, they may not allow you to combine these offers, as Embrace allows. The company provides price breaks for:
- Multiple pets: If you insure two or more pets, you receive a 10% discount on your premiums.
- Military: Active and former members of the U.S. armed forces can receive a 5% discount.
- Employee Benefits: If your employer offers pet insurance as a benefit, you may get a 10% break on the cost of an Embrace policy. Check with your employer’s human resources department to see if you can take advantage of employee discounts through your benefits program.
- Other discounts: USAA members can get 15% off their Embrace policy. If you purchase Embrace coverage through GEICO, you can also qualify for discounts if you spay or neuter your pet or pay for your coverage annually.
Embrace Financial Stability
When choosing a pet insurer, its financial stability is less important than for, say, the companies that provide your life or home insurance, where your losses would be greater if the company failed. Still, it’s reassuring to know that the company is stable and so should be financially capable of paying out any future claims.
AM Best is a credit rating agency that evaluates and rates insurance companies. In its annual ratings, AM Best rated Embrace and the company that reinsures it — that insures the insurer, essentially — as A + (Superior) rating. While not the very highest score AM Best awards, this accolade indicates that the company has an excellent likelihood of paying out its future policy and contractual obligations.
Embrace Accessibility
Like most pet insurers, Embrace has a blog with educational resources, an online quote tool, and an in-depth help center with frequently asked questions.
However, unlike some other competitors, Embrace doesn’t have 24/7 customer support or online chat.
Availability
Embrace Pet Insurance is available to residents of 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Contact Information
Customer support is available via phone or email. To get help, you can call 800-511-9172 or email hello@embracepetinsurance.com. Embrace’s customer service department is available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. EST and on Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. EST.
User Experience
Current policyholders can log into a customer portal through the website. Customers can use the portal to submit claims, make payments, change their coverage, or add pets to their policy.
Limitations
Embrace Pet Insurance only covers dogs and cats. All other types of pets, including farm animals and exotic animals, are ineligible for coverage.
Embrace Customer Satisfaction
Embrace’s track record in satisfying customers is mixed. The company has a 4.5 out of 5 TrustScore on TrustPilot — a score that TrustPilot designates as “great” and better than the average company. However, Embrace has a 1.17 out of 5 rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which indicates that more consumers have lodged complaints with the agency about Embrace than for most other companies.
Buying pet insurance for additional animals with Embrace is a simple process. If you're an existing policyholder, you can add a pet by logging into the customer portal. Under the "My Pets" section, click on "Add New Pet" and enter your pet's information.
You can opt to add it to your other pet's policy period or update your existing coverage. Then, you can adjust your new pet's coverage maximum, deductible and reimbursement percentage.
How We Evaluated Embrace Pet Insurance
To evaluate Embrace Pet Insurance, we looked at the following factors:
- Plan options
- Cost and available discounts
- Annual reimbursement limits
- Policy exclusions and restrictions
- Wellness benefits
- Customer service options
- Customer reviews
- Third-party ratings
We also compared Embrace to other major pet insurance companies and examined its ratings from third parties.
Summary of Money’s Embrace Pet Insurance Review
Pet ownership can be expensive, especially if your pet gets injured or becomes ill. However, according to our pet insurance survey, Embrace’s premiums are consistently low compared to other insurers. And you can further lower your premium by taking advantage of the multiple discounts it offers.
Embrace is also a great choice for pet owners who travel and want to take their dog or cat along. However, Embrace is limited in the animals it will insure. You'll have to look elsewhere if you're looking to insure an exotic pet such as a lizard or a bird.