Seed to Shift? Overview of the Current Pet Insurance Market

2024 saw the acquisition of three pet insurance companies, two of which were incumbents. Meanwhile, early-stage investments in traditional D2C pet insurance entrants dried up, marking a shift from 2021–2022, when companies like Wagmo, Pawlicy, Odie, Fursure, Rainwalk, Bingo, and Nibbles secured funding.

Growth has slowed.

From 2019 to 2023, premium volume rose from $1.56 billion to $3.91 billion, according to the North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA). The annual growth rate peaked at 28% in 2022 before slowing to 22% in 2023. Additionally, dog-owning households appear to be declining. In 2023, there were over 65 million households with a dog, but that number has now fallen below 60 million.

The pet insurance landscape is constantly evolving. Zurich, CUNA Mutual (TruStage), and ManyPets attempted to enter the US market but failed. Yet, this hasn’t deterred newcomers like Cimarron Insurance and Physicians Mutual.

Looking further back, Lemonade and Policygenius are examples of modern entrants that launched with a pet insurance offering. Today, Kanguro is trying to do the same. While Lemonade is a pet insurance success story, Policygenius is not. This report will demonstrate why Kanguro faces even greater challenges in this market.