Lemonade Q&A: Pet insurance, consumer education

February 25, 2022 7:05 AM

The website home screen for Lemonade on a smartphone arranged in New York, U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2020. Lemonade Inc. is scheduled to release earnings figures on November 11. Photographer: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg — The website home screen for Lemonade on a smartphone arranged in New York on Nov. 5, 2020.

Digital Insurance received responses via email from Yael Wissner-Levy, vice president of communications at Lemonade about its pet insurance product and consumer education.

The following responses have been lightly edited for clarity.

Can you tell me about Lemonade Pet Insurance and its origin story?

As one of the most requested products, we knew our customers wanted, and needed, protection for their pets. We took their feedback seriously and created what we consider the dream pet health insurance. As a team of pet parents ourselves, we knew what was already out there and found these existing options were lacking. So we spent months studying every insurance product out there, interviewed pet parents, brought on veterinarians and medical experts, to design our digital insurance product, which is focused on our furry friends. The outcome, which launched in July 2020, is Lemonade Pet.

Traditional insurance companies simply make a profit by denying claims, they earn more money. Lemonade aims to transform the insurance industry by taking a different approach. When customers sign up for a Lemonade pet insurance policy, we take a flat fee, which is how we grow and support our company. The remaining premiums are used to pay out claims. If there’s money left over, it goes directly to a social cause chosen by each customer. This changes the nature of our relationship with our policyholders and builds trust.

As a tech company doing insurance, we’re constantly updating and expanding our products. Since the launch in 2020, we’ve expanded and built a variety of packages and offerings in what we consider one of the most customizable options for pet owners. Whether it’s our preventative care package designed specifically for puppies and kittens, or our physical therapy add-on to support those that need a little extra care, various options are available so customers can have pet health insurance that is personalized to their needs.

How is Lemonade educating consumers on pet insurance?

For too long, insurance has been perceived as confusing, complex, expensive and conflicted. Lemonade is designed differently, and specifically with Lemonade Pet, we prioritized simplifying the policy and making claims hassle-free. We want our customers to understand what pet insurance is, how it works and why it’s worth it for them. There’s so much to learn beyond pet health insurance. This includes everything from dog and cat health-related topics, grooming and more.

Lemonade’s veterinary expert, Dr. Stephanie Liff, provides her expertise, which we share with pet parents through our various channels, such as our Instagram account and blog.

We believe Lemonade pet insurance is a ‘no-brainer’ for pet parents, and we’re working daily to build the product to fit even more customers’ needs. To get there, we’re also working on making it available and accessible to more geographies. This means designing a product that’s customizable, affordable-by-design and offers a hassle-free enrollment and claims process, ultimately making it easier for pet parents to take better care of their pets.

Anything else you would like to tell me?

Get your pet insured, even if it’s not with Lemonade. In light of the COVID-19 driven pet adoption boom witnessed in the past year. More pet parents are looking to provide health care for their pets. Getting pet insurance helps take the bite out of veterinary bills, and as a result, enables pet parents to take better care of their pets.

Leveraging technology and our unconflicted business model, Lemonade can resolve many claims within minutes, simply by having customers open the Lemonade app and file a claim with a few taps on their phone. We believe this helps, and delights, pet parents - and their pets - instantly, and also increases our efficiency within the company, allowing our human team of claims experts to deal with more complex claims.