About the Company

Lemonade is an insurance carrier that offers renters, homeowners, term life, and pet health insurance. The company offers accident, illness, wellness, and preventive insurance policies for cats and dogs.

Lemonade is rated highly by Forbes at #1 for renters insurance and in the top 10 for pet insurance. One of their strengths is their insurance app, which is rated 4.9/5 on the App Store and 4.5 on Google Play. This app provides customers with a hassle-free way to submit a claim and have their reimbursement deposited directly into their bank account. Customers can also chat live with medical experts directly in the app. 

Their plans are affordable and customizable, with add-on options available for pet owners to choose from. They make it easy to save on essential care, including annual visits and vaccinations.

Best option for:

• 24/7 emergency claim service, should your pet need emergency medical services
• Pet owners who want the option of choosing any licensed veterinary provider in the U.S.
• Individuals who want to bundle their renters or homeowners insurance with pet insurance and save
• Pet owners who prefer fast tech-based products

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Benefits of Choosing Lemonade

Why choose Lemonade for your dog or cat’s pet insurance? Lemonade is easy to access, easy to use, and affordable, making it a good option for pet owners.

Lemonade also has a Giveback program, which allows you to choose a nonprofit that you care about and a portion of the unclaimed money at the end of each year is given to your chosen charity rather than kept as profit by the company.

Features and Services

You can’t predict pet injuries or illnesses, but you can prepare for them. Lemonade offers hassle-free coverage on expected and unexpected costs. 

Here’s a brief overview of what Lemonade offers in their base policy:

If your dog ingests a toxic food, gets into a car accident, or develops cancer, then you want the testing, procedures, and treatments covered. However your dog won’t be covered for any pre-existing conditions, so it’s best to get coverage early before conditions start to present themselves.

To get started, you must provide complete medical records including a full body exam from the last 12 months. 

Accident and Illness Plan

Lemonade covers diagnostic testing, procedures, and medication that is required due to unexpected accidents or illness. The following are all covered:

• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Diabetes
• Arthritis
• Allergies
• Skin conditions
• Blood and eye disorders
• Elbow and hip dysplasia
• Hernias
• Much more

Just know that pre-existing conditions are not covered. If you don’t get pet health insurance until after your pet has been diagnosed with diabetes, then the diabetes and the diabetic medication won’t be covered by your health plan. Make sure you review the plan details, which are available online, to know what’s covered and what’s not.

Extended Accident and Illness Plan

Unfortunately, Lemonade doesn’t reimburse your annual veterinary exam fees under the basic package, but they are covered under the affordable Extended Accident and Illness plan

You can choose the extended plan and gain more benefits for your pet, such as acupuncture and hydrotherapy. Some of the services included in this package are:

• Medications not covered by the base plan
• Hospitalization, should your pet need overnight visits
• Additional testing
• Follow-up exams

With the extended plan, you also get physical therapy benefits, which may be necessary following an accident and/or surgical procedure, among other services.

Preventative and Wellness Care

Not all pet health insurance companies cover wellness, but this is a benefit to choosing Lemonade – they actually try to help you keep your pet healthy. While you can’t predict an illness or disease, like cancer, you can opt for preventive and wellness coverage with Lemonade, which includes the following:

• Wellness exam: annual physical checkup, which is recommended for any pet
• Heartworm test: annual screening of heartworm infestation
• Fecal test: annual parasite evaluation test
• Blood work: annual detection of diseases
• Three vaccines: with the option of choosing Rabies, DHLPP, Bordetella, among others
• Medical advice: expect medical advice, which is available through Lemonade’s app

The better you prepare for possible problems, the more you can save, so this is a good option for pet owners.

Plan Exclusions

Not included in Lemonade’s offerings are the following:

• Pre-existing conditions
• Dental care (unless an accident requires it)
• Elective surgeries not related to accidents or illness
• Conditions resulting from neglect
• Elective cosmetic procedures
• Spraying or neutering
• Obedience training
• Prescription diet food
• Herbal supplements, including CBD
• Travel to/from the vet office

The best thing you can do is purchase pet insurance when your dog or cat is very young; this will save you the most money and ensure that your pet is protected and cared for should anything happen.

Claims Process

Lemonade makes it easy to understand what’s covered, what you owe, and how to file a claim. Through the app, you can create an account, customize your plan, pay for your policy, and file a claim. 

As soon as you purchase your policy, coverage begins:

• Two days for accidents
• 14 days for illnesses 
• Six months for cruciate ligament events

All claims must be conducted online. However, the Lemonade app ensures that you’re reimbursed quickly, and usually the same day. They also give a portion of any unused premium at the end of each year to the charity of your choice.

Insurance Costs

The cost of taking care of your pet can be shockingly high if you don’t have pet insurance. Should your dog develop cancer, for instance, you could be facing thousands upon thousands of dollars in medical payments for diagnostic testing, chemotherapy, surgery, and more. 

Pet premiums are calculated with the following factors in mind:

• Animal breed
• Age of pet
• Location
• Add-on coverage

At Lemonade, the policy for a dog or cat starts at $10 per month. Because Lemonade offers renters and homeowners insurance, you can save on individual services by purchasing a bundled package. 

With Lemonade, you have the option of choosing between the following:

• Deductibles: $100, $250, or $500
• Reimbursement: 70%, 80%, or 90%
• Annual Limits: $5,000 – $100,000

The higher the deductible, the lower the premium. Depending on the services required for your pet, you may reach your deductible with one service, or with many. If you wish to change your deductible, you can do that upon annual renewal.

When you purchase your policy, you have up to 14 days to make any adjustments. You can also cancel the plan at any time once it’s final and receive a refund on the remaining period if you don’t file a claim. If you choose to return for another plan, however, any injuries, illnesses, or conditions diagnosed during the first plan will be considered pre-existing and will not be covered.

Our Choice for Pet Insurance

Customer Service and Support

You can contact customer service through the app or website or by submitting your information online and receiving an email follow-up. Plans can only be purchased through the app or online and not by phone. The company does have a 24/7 Emergency Claim Service. 

Lemonade handles a large portion of support requests using AI, and also works with a team who can be reached if the chatbot can’t provide the right assistance: email help@lemonade.com or call 844-733-8666.

Our Conclusion

Lemonade introduced their pet health insurance in 2020, however, we compared Lemonade to competitors and found that their coverage options are reasonably priced and extensive when you purchase the add-on options.

One of the biggest benefits to choosing Lemonade is knowing what’s available and what’s covered. Before securing a policy, read all of the details outlined on their website. They are forthright about their costs and what’s covered and what’s not.