Nationwide Pet Insurance Reviews: The Grandfather of Pet Insurance

Kimberly Alt April 27, 2017 Pet Insurance 6 Comments

How do we keep this site running? This post may contain affiliate links — the cost is the same to you, but we get a referral fee. Compensation does not affect rankings. Thanks!

Did you know that Nationwide sells pet insurance, and that it sold its first policy to Lassie? We don’t know about you, but we think it’s pretty cool that Lassie’s pet parents loved her enough to have pet insurance for her. This first sale by Nationwide (formerly known as VPI) quickly grew into multiple sales throughout California and now the rest of the United States. While researching Nationwide pet insurance, we found ourselves a little overwhelmed. They display things differently than other companies. For example, they list exact illnesses that are or aren’t covered, which can be good if your dog’s breed is prone to a specific illness. After digging a little deeper, we unraveled the complexities and offer up a thorough review to help you learn about this product.

Visit Website

Review Overview

Policy Coverage

Customer Service & Reputation

Timeliness of Claim Payment

Price of Policy

2.50/5.00

Nationwide was one of the first pet insurance companies, but some customers report that they're not the best. Their customer service is lacking, they pay claims slowly and their coverage is well below average.

User Rating: Be the first one !

VPI Pet Insurance Is Now Nationwide Pet Insurance

VPI insurance (Veterinary Pet Insurance) started selling pet insurance in 1982 as a brand under the Nationwide umbrella of products. In 2014 all of Nationwide’s insurance companies joined under the one brand. This article therefore covers both Nationwide pet insurance reviews and VPI pet insurance reviews since it is such a new product under the Nationwide brand name.

Nationwide Pet Insurance Review

Nationwide pet insurance has an entire page dedicated to what is excluded from their plans. Take a look at this page for a full listing.

Pros

Cons

Has a Wellness Coverage plan (in some states)
Track claims in real-time online
Unlimited claims for Major Medical and Whole Pet with Wellness plans
One of the only pet health insurance companies to offer exotic pet insurance
Among the lowest monthly cost options

Wellness plans are not available in all states
High number of complaints overall (finding negative reviews is not difficult)
12 month waiting period for CCL (ACL) surgery
14-day waiting period for Whole Pet with Wellness and Major Medical plans. 24-hour waiting period for Pet Wellness plan
Nationwide BBB page has an alert about fraudulent checks
Must purchase Whole Pet with Wellness plan for hip dysplasia coverage
Limits per incident reimbursements over the lifetime of the pet
$2 transaction fee

Pricing

Below is a table showing an overview of what each plan offers at each price. Pricing can vary based on pet, age, breed, location and more.

Pet Wellness	Major Medical	Whole Pet with Wellness
starting at $18/month	starting at $35/month	starting at $65/month
Flea/heartworm prevention	Accidents and illnesses	Accidents and illnesses
Vaccinations	Some hereditary conditions (after 1-yr waiting period)	Hereditary conditions (no waiting period)
Microchipping	Benefits renew in full each year	No maximum benefit
Wellness exam	Chronic conditions covered at no extra cost	Chronic conditions covered at no extra cost
		No age restrictions
		Wellness exams and treatments
		90% back on veterinary bills*

*Grooming, tax, waste disposal, boarding, or pre-existing conditions are not eligible for coverage (read complete contract for full list of exclusions).

Coupon Code

There are not any active Nationwide Pet Insurance coupon codes at this time.

Exotic Pet Insurance

Nationwide offers pet insurance for exotic pets including birds, rabbits, reptiles, rodents or other exotic pets. The plan covers accidents and illnesses in addition to exams, lab fees, x-rays, hospitalization, prescriptions and more. For more information on this plan, checkout their page here.

Nationwide Pet Insurance Quotes

We’ve compiled some quotes from Nationwide to give you an idea of what your Nationwide dog insurance may cost. You can go directly to Nationwide’s site to get a better estimate of what your specific price would be.

Breed	Labrador Retriever	English Cocker Spaniel	German Shepherd	Yorkshire Terrier	Yorkshire Terrier	Yorkshire Terrier	Mixed Breed Cat (Medium Hair)
Age	2	8	4	6	Puppy	Puppy	2
Location	Iowa (zipcode: 50125)	Illinois (zipcode 60604)	California (zipcode: 90001)	New York (zipcode: 10001)	New York (zipcode: 10001)	Iowa (zipcode: 50125)	Ohio (zipcode: 44101)
Annual Deductible	$250	$250	$250	$250	$250	$250	$250
Wellness Basics Price Per Month	$17.75	$17.75	$17.75	$17.75	$17.75	$17.75	$12.00
Major Medical Price Per Month	$24.91	$57.60	$42.81	$49.83	$33.22	$24.16	$14.56
Whole Pet with Wellness Price Per Month	$64.63	$135.71	$79.49	$99.21	$64.01	$52.88	$35.25

Customer Reviews

Positive Nationwide Pet Insurance Reviews

I’m currently a Risk Manager for a large real estate investment trust and was formerly an insurance broker for 20 years prior to my current role. I know how difficult insurance companies can be to deal with for accounts large and small and I have to say I’ve been extremely impressed with the coverage and service provided by Nationwide (formerly VPI). I’ve used them for my 1 year old boxer and have had no issues with recovery under the policy. Their portal is user-friendly and I’ve been impressed with their customer services. I find them to be communicative from the day a claim is submitted through receiving reimbursement and details of that calculation. Even after having several claims in year 1, my premium did not change upon renewal. Overall, I would recommend Nationwide to help you and your family protect your pet and include a full coverage plan for any unforeseen medical costs. Hopefully, you never need them, but its nice to know they are there. – Jason B., Yelp 2/11/2016

I have been reading the reviews and I have to tell you I have had only great experiences with this insurance. I started with VPI (veterinary pet insurance) when my puppy was 4 months old and they changed to Nationwide sometime back. (My dog is now 2). I have to file 5 or 6 claims in this amount of time and I have ALWAYS been reimbursed! I have met my deductible (easy to do on one visit alone!) and the reimbursement in my last 3 visits has been 100% within 2-3 weeks. I am hoping this letter will not jinx me, but so far so good! I actually have no complaints! – Fran, Consumer Affairs 12/31/2016

Negative Nationwide Pet Insurance Reviews

Any review higher than 1 star is either FAKE or from a customer prior to 6/2014. PERIOD NO EXCEPTIONS. VPI is a full on SCAM. Pays nothing, Hit our 500 deductible, only to have a new medication given to our dog for Hip Pain. Total of 130 a bottle. Every 30 days. VPI Cover it? Nope claims it’s pre-existing?? We’ve been with VPI 5 years she was 8 months old when we joined. Can they show me anywhere in the 5 years she’s ever had hip problems? NOPE, nothing rep says pre-existing and nothing can be done. SCAM SCAM SCAM. Happily I paid our $585 premium with my AMEX, Just filed a dispute as services not rendered. Thank god for AMEX. – Scott, Yelp 1/7/2016

I enrolled in Nationwide (then VPI) when I adopted my beagle 9 years ago; she’s healthy and has only had wellness visits, for which I was reimbursed some percentage. In December 2016, she had surgery (at age 10, her first surgery) to remove a perianal adenoma — Nationwide reimbursed me $480 on a $1,487 bill. I’m stunned. Very disappointed. – Carol, Consumer Affairs 1/24/2017

Finding Bumps on Your Dog

Cancer is one of the most common illnesses among dogs. By being proactive and searching your dog regularly you could catch it sooner. Here are some tips from Nationwide Pet Insurance. Not every lump is cancerous, so read our article if you are trying to figure out whether to worry about your dogs bumps and lumps.

What We Don’t Like

We hope you’ve made your own decision on Nationwide pet insurance. Our opinion? We feel they strong arm you into purchasing the Whole Pet with Wellness plan because it’s the only package that offers both prevention and illness coverage. The lower packages are reasonably priced for the amount of coverage you are getting but does it cover enough to justify having pet insurance at all? Then, the price for the Whole Pet with Wellness plan can be pretty high. We feel there are better options available. To learn more about your other choices, take a look at our Dog Insurance Reviews.

Why are you considering getting pet insurance from Nationwide?

Disclaimer: Information regarding insurance company offerings, pricing and other contract details are subject to change by the insurance company at any time and are not under the control of this website. Information published on this website is intended for reference use only. Please review your policy carefully before signing up for a new pet health insurance contract or any other contract as your unique circumstances will differ from those of others who may be used for example purposes in this article.

6 Comments on "Nationwide Pet Insurance Reviews: The Grandfather of Pet Insurance"

Sort by: newest | oldest | most voted

Stephanie

Share On FacebookShare On Twitter Share On Google

We paid for a superior dog plan with a cancer rider. For15 years we paid and every year. The premiums increased. Our beloved Westie became ill at the age of 13. At first it was thought his cough was due to bronchitis. Frisky had cancer! Nationwide was not on his side. Every time the Vet gave them additional information Nationwide requested more. Bottom line, we were not reimbursed as stated on the contract. Nationwide made thousands of dollars from us and did nothing to help out dog. Please be very careful before you enter into a contract with Nationwide Pet… Read more »

Kelli

Very unsatisfied with the responses to submitted claims. Everything we submit request additional information or medical records. Everything is on a medical receipt and includes an itemized receipt. We have no “additional” medical information, as Hitchcock is a rescue dog that we adopted in October 2016. Each and every bit of medical records we have have been submitted. We are seriously reavaluatig whether the cost of this insurance is worth the cost. They sell themselves to us, then all we get for our money are more requests for more information. Trust me, we do not hold back any information and… Read more »

Denise

Kelli.. I agree with you, as my experience is the same. Started with Nationwide Nov. 2016. Will give them two more weeks to honor my claims. If no results, it is wiser to self insure. I will end it with Nationwide.

Stephen Reese M Ferguson

I purchased pet insurance for our dog (AKC Registered Doberman with 4 blue ribbons) who is a pure breed and just about perfect dog. We purchased this insurance knowing in the future he may have hip or joint issues. Or heaven forbid he get into an accident or eat poison or whatever issues could arise. So we adopted our dog on 4/16/2016 from a reputable breeder and she shows all of her dogs. On 4/21 we bought the pet insurance and on 4/25 our account was debited the money. We had to attest that there were no per-existing conditions on… Read more »

elcid07

I first enrolled my bulldog Abby with VPI about 8 years ago when she was a few months old (before Nationwide took over). I had mixed feelings about the value, but after a couple of TPLO procedures later in her life I finally hit the break even mark and decided pet insurance was a worthwhile investment (especially with bulldog breeds). I was optimistic when Nationwide took over and I signed my new puppy Bleu (French Bulldog) up for their Whole Pet With Wellness plan. Around the time I signed Bleu up, we started to notice his paw turning outwards, got… Read more »

Morgan Jean Young

I have Nationwide on my side for car insurance but had no clue that they also sold pet insurance. And really glad to hear they also offer exotic pet insurance because I have a snake that is very expensive to get treated when he gets sick so will look into that too. Thanks Kimberly!