Pet insurance launches urgent pay service

Photo: Justlight/Adobe Stock

Pumpkin Pet Insurance recently introduced a new urgent pay service that provides real-time payment for situations where timely processing is important and cost of treatment is high. The new service, PumpkinNow, allows eligible clients to receive direct payment for up to 90% of veterinary expenses in 15 minutes.

Qualified clients with approved claims for treatments totaling $1000 or more could be paid within 15 minutes after submitting a request, provided the client’s bank accepts real-time payments, according to Pumpkin Pet.¹ Some financial institutions participating in real-time payments include JPMorgan Chase Bank Ohio, Alliance Bank Texas, Bank of America North Carolina, McCoy Federal Credit Union Florida, Citadel Federal Credit Union Pennsylvania, TruBank Iowa, Horizon Bank Indiana, and many others.² The complete list can be found on The Clearing House’s website.²

According to Pumpkin Pet Insurance, the challenges many pet owners face—even those with insurance—in critical care situations, including the uncertainty of coverage and high out-of-pocket payments, prompted the insurance company to develop PumpkinNow. "When your pet is hurt or sick, you should know exactly what is covered on the spot," said Julia Sosa, CEO for Pumpkin, in a company release.¹ "PumpkinNow is a novel, point-of-care experience that provides coverage clarity, expedited claims approvals, and payments for covered expenses within 15 minutes—all before a pet owner checks out and pays their vet bill. It's the type of service we'd want for our own pets."

“Customers want the clarity and confidence to make informed care decisions quickly for their beloved pets without worrying about paying thousands in upfront vet bills or waiting for reimbursement checks,” wrote the pet insurance company in a release.¹

According to Pumpkin Pet Insurance, clients are faced with a veterinary bill of more than $1000 every 6 seconds.¹ Moreover, survey data from the Pumpkin Survey of 522 General Market Consumers reveals that 61% of pet insurance clients bought the policy due to concerns with out-of-pocket costs. Additionally, survey participants cited the ability to make decisions about their pet’s healthcare without the concern of affordability as the top reason they purchased the insurance.

Pumpkin Pet Insurance reports its plans have paid more than $60 million in accident and illness claims totaling more than $1000. According to the company, these claims include medical situations that are not only high-cost and stake but are also stressful, emotionally affecting clients and veterinary teams. “Timely treatment highly impacts patient outcomes,” wrote the company.¹

Pumpkin Pet Insurance clients can have claims settled on the spot with PumpkinNow. Upon enrollment, customer’s pet’s medical records and bank accounts are linked to their Pumpkin profile, allowing the team of claim adjusters with PumpkinNow to adjudicate claims soon after, reducing hours, and occasionally days, from the claims process. After claims are approved, those with bank accounts enabling real-time payment can receive immediate direct deposit funds to cover their veterinary bill before leaving the clinic.¹

References

1. Pumpkin Pet Insurance launches PumpkinNow™ - our first-ever urgent pay service that can pay you before you pay the vet for critical, high-cost care. News release. Pumpkin. April 22, 2025. Accessed April 25, 2025. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/pumpkin-pet-insurance-launches-pumpkinnow--our-first-ever-urgent-pay-service-that-can-pay-you-before-you-pay-the-vet-for-critical-high-cost-care-302433774.html?tc=eml_cleartime
2. RTP network participating financial institutions. The Clearing House Payments Company. Accessed April 25, 2025. https://www.theclearinghouse.org/payment-systems/rtp/rtp-participating-financial-institutions.