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| - See the bottom for my tips on working with Embrace.
My first dog died from liver disease, leaving me with vet bills I am still paying off. Later, when I got my current rescue dog, I made sure to get insurance for her right away. I chose Embrace because of the reviews, but also because I could modify the coverage. I chose a high deductible, which made my monthly payments lower. Things were tight and I couldn't afford the regular premium. Plus I only wanted it for major problems.
I opted for the orthopedic exam. She was about 1 year old at the time, and I thought we wouldn't need it, but I figured I'd do it anyway. About 18 months later, she injured her knee. She needed TPL surgery, which would run about $4000. My stomach sank, and I had visions of my previous dog's illness and the massive bills that came with it. On my way home from the vet, I remembered I had insurance.
So this would be the test. You never know how good your insurance company is until you need them. I put in for a pre-certification before getting the surgery. I wanted to know if the claim would go through. They investigated my dogs records. They claimed the earliest records my vet could find were June 1, and they needed information for the year before my insurance started on May 13.
This was weird because I saw my vet before I started the insurance. I was also limited on records because I got the insurance right after I got the dog. Fortunately the rescue gave me her vaccination records, and I think they did an exam at that time. I responded with that vet's information, let them know about the orthopedic and health exam before I got insurance, and told them I had records of everything. That seemed to do it.
They approved the claim and once the surgery was done, they refunded everything they were supposed to. The check came within a week. Now, I had a $1000 deductible and they pay 80%, so it wasn't the full amount, but they covered over half the cost. My premiums are only $12/mo, so they'll never get all that money back.
So a few tips from my experience
1) Get the orthopedic exam.
2) Get a regular wellness exam.
3) Save records from all your vet visits for the year preceding the insurance.
4) Submit a claim early on. Even if it is not enough to exceed your deductible. This will start the initial review process, and will make later claims speedier. If any problems arise, you'll know about then.
5) From reviews, it seems that if an exam shows any indication of injury/illness, Embrace is pretty quick to deny a claim later on. If there are any problems noted in the exams, be prepared for that.
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