I’m about to buy insurance for a new kitten. I’ve been a customer of Figo for nearly a decade with two other cats, and Figo has been great. They’ve paid out nearly a college education’s worth of claims, with very little drama.
With this new kitten, my time horizon is 15-20 years. As great as Figo has been, my paramount concern is that the insurance will still be there in 15 or 20 years. So, what do we know about the long-term corporate viability of Figo?
As I understand it, Figo started as a scrappy startup funded by VC. In 2021, they were acquired by JAB Holding Company, a German private equity firm that owns a large number of U.S. pet insurance brands (ASPCA, Embrace, Pets Best) under its Independence Pet Holdings subsidiary. Figo has switched underwriters at least three times since I’ve been with them, which doesn’t feel rock solid.
The worst-case scenario is that an insurer goes out of business, leaving all customers without coverage. And then there are all kinds of other ways private equity-owned companies can deteriorate.
With most companies you do business with, when the product is bad, you simply stop buying it. But not so with pet insurance: Once a pet gets even a minor illness, that becomes a pre-existing condition, and you’re locked in for life.
So, is it too big a risk to stick with Figo? Is Trupanion, due to its sheer size, the only safe route? Are there other options worth exploring?