Pet insurance in Kansas

Which rules have been established

As of 11 November 2026, this review found no pet insurance law in Kansas. All six specific guarantees in our state data remain unknown. General insurance rules and the terms of the contract apply.

The NAIC Pet Insurance Model Act state page, Summer 2026 edition, shows “No current activity” for Kansas. The Chapter 40 index on the Revisor of Statutes website has no pet insurance article. This is a check of the index and the NAIC summary, not a full search of bills. We read the department’s regulations (K.A.R.) in its own PDFs at insurance.ks.gov; the official compilation on rules.ks.gov did not open for us, so amendments after the dates printed in those PDFs were not checked.

Animals appear in the law only as a kind of insurance. K.S.A. 40-901(g) authorizes insurance of domestic animals against accident, theft or death, and “against any known or contingent event whatever which may lawfully be the subject of insurance”. The department’s rule K.A.R. 40-3-22(c)(5)(N) lists a live animal policy as a kind of inland marine policy for an individual. Neither provision speaks directly of a policy that pays veterinary expenses.

Are rates filed? Two readings

The rate law (K.S.A. 40-952) applies to fire insurance, which covers every class in 40-901: animals (paragraph g) and inland marine (paragraph d) alike. So the question is not whether the law applies, but one exception.

K.S.A. 40-955(a) requires every insurer to file “every manual of classifications, rules and rates, every rating plan, policy form” and their modifications. The exception: “inland marine risks where general custom of the industry is not to use manual rates or rating plans”.

Both statements are in one document: the Kansas Insurance Department’s inland marine checklist, a file last modified on 29 January 2025. We found the file at this address, but the department’s current list of checklists was not available to us, so we have not confirmed that this is the version the department links today. It has no separate code for pet insurance: only 9.0005 (commercial) and 9.0006 (personal inland marine). How the department actually handles pet programs we have not established: its main website returns 403 to us. We do not choose a reading for the regulator.

Policy forms are filed under either reading. K.S.A. 40-216 requires every contract to be filed, including riders, endorsements and applications. The exception in K.A.R. 40-3-32(b) for inland marine forms that cannot practicably be filed before use does not cover forms with standardized wording. ASPCA, Figo and Healthy Paws have forms marked for Kansas (see below). That is consistent with form filing but says nothing about rate filing.

A filed rate can take effect on filing

Under 40-955(d), a rate filing other than for personal lines takes effect on filing or on any later date the insurer selects. The commissioner may disapprove it afterwards. The statute defines personal lines as noncommercial automobile, homeowners, dwelling fire and renters insurance; those have a 30-day waiting period. Pet insurance is not on that list. The department’s checklist, however, says: “Personal filings must be on file with the Department for a minimum of 30 days”. Whether the department treats pet policies as such personal filings has not been established.

Under 40-216(a)(2)(A), a form is effective on filing, or on a later date the insurer selects, unless the commissioner disapproves it within 30 days. A personal lines form must instead be on file for 30 days before it takes effect (40-216(a)(3)). Unlike 40-955(d), that paragraph lists “dwelling, fire and renters” with a comma, and the department’s checklist applies the 30-day rule to personal filings. Whether a pet form is treated as personal lines has not been established.

Under K.S.A. 40-953, rates must not be excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory. But where reasonable competition exists, a rate is presumed not to be excessive, and a competitive market is presumed unless the commissioner decides otherwise after a hearing. We found no such decision for the pet insurance market.

What an owner has:

• anyone aggrieved by a filing in effect may apply in writing to the commissioner for a hearing (40-955(f)(3)). If the commissioner finds the application made in good faith and justified, the hearing is held within 30 days;
• a filed rating plan must be applied uniformly to eligible risks (40-954(g)).

No individual filing, pricing factors or size of any increase for a particular pet was established in this review.

Filings are open to everyone, but there may be nothing to see

Under 40-955(a), a filing and its supporting information are open to public inspection after it is filed. The exception: trade secrets and copyrighted material. The Revisor’s annotations to this section cite Attorney General opinions 2008-3 (filed rates are open records) and 2010-17 (the department may refuse copies of copyrighted material, but the burden of showing that is on the department). We did not read the opinions themselves.

The general public records law, the Kansas Open Records Act:

• K.S.A. 45-218: records are open “by any person”. A request must be acted on no later than the end of the third business day. On denial, a written statement citing the provision of law is given on request;
• K.S.A. 45-219: fees may not exceed actual cost, including staff time. An itemized statement is provided on request. If the work exceeds five hours or $200, the agency must contact you and discuss how to reduce the cost (a 2025 amendment);
• K.S.A. 45-220: an agency may require a written request and proof of identity, but no more than a name, an address and enough to identify the records.

The text of these provisions contains no restriction on nonresidents. We did not test how the department responds to such requests, and we sent none. The department’s records-request page returned 403 to us; after that we did not contact the department’s websites again, and we did not open SERFF.

Trap: if the department treats pet policies under the second reading, there may be no rate filing at all. A request would then return only forms.

Cancellation, nonrenewal and premium refunds

There is no rule specific to pet policies. The general rules:

Applying these rules to a particular pet policy is our reading, not the department’s position.

The closed list of reasons for cancellation after 90 days (K.S.A. 40-2,120) and 60 days’ notice of nonrenewal (40-2,121) apply by their text only to policies for business needs. ASPCA and Figo nevertheless copied the 40-2,120 list into their Kansas forms.

The department’s inland marine checklist says: “Kansas insurance law makes no provisions for the voiding or rescinding of an insurance contract”. A policy may be cancelled or not renewed under 40-3-15 and 40-2,120 to 2,122. This is the department’s position for insurers filing forms, not a statute.

Claims: 10 and 15 working days, 18% interest

K.A.R. 40-1-34 adopts the NAIC’s 1981 model regulation on claims handling, with Kansas amendments. The department’s unofficial compilation shows the text with the amendments. The rule applies to all policies except workers’ compensation.

Under K.S.A. 40-2404(9), breaking these rules is an unfair practice only if done flagrantly and in conscious disregard, or so often that it is a general business practice. A Revisor’s annotation cites a 2003 federal decision holding that this provision creates no private cause of action.

Two other statutes put money in the owner’s hands:

• K.S.A. 40-2,126: if an amount has been agreed but is not paid within 30 calendar days, the insurer owes 18% a year interest from the date of the agreement. If payment is due directly to the veterinarian, the period is 30 days after the treatment is completed and the bill received, and interest runs from receipt of the bill;
• K.S.A. 40-256: if the insurer refused to pay the full loss “without just cause or excuse” and you win in court, the court awards a reasonable attorney’s fee against it. The exception: the insurer tendered an amount before suit and the court awarded no more.

Trap: the 40-2,126 period runs from the date the amount is agreed, not from the date you file the claim. The department’s checklist paraphrases it more broadly: “an insurer must pay a claim within 30 days or will have to pay interest penalties”. Rely on the text of the statute.

An action on a written contract may be brought within five years (K.S.A. 60-511). The department’s checklist cites this statute as the time limit for actions under a policy.

The market

According to the NAIC 2025 market share report, page 248, direct written premiums for pet insurance in Kansas were $18,196 thousand and direct earned premiums $17,827 thousand. Direct losses incurred were 54.95% of earned premium, against 68.10% for all states and territories in the same report (68.07% including Canada and aggregate other alien). NAIC notes that these loss ratios are calendar-year results, not measures of profitability. The three largest groups, JAB Holding Co Grp (25.19%), Trupanion Grp (23.13%) and Nationwide Corp Grp (16.86%), wrote 65.19% of premium together. NAIC is an association of regulators; these are not the Kansas Insurance Department’s own figures.

What the sample policies show

On 11 November 2026 we opened five brands’ document pages for Kansas. Three of them have Kansas forms or amendments.

A sample does not establish that such a policy is issued today or that a new policy can be bought. Check your issued set: the declarations, the form and every endorsement.

What these samples show:

• Only two promise payment within 30 days. The Healthy Paws amendment: “within thirty days after completion of the claim form”; the general form says 60 days. Figo: 30 days after receiving all necessary documentation. These are contract promises. The 18% interest under 40-2,126 runs from the agreed amount.
• Cancellation notice shorter than 30 days. Embrace V5 may cancel within the first 60 days for any reason with 10 days’ notice, and later with 15 days’ notice. The reasons include “foul or abusive language” and failure to provide requested information. K.A.R. 40-3-15 requires 30 days. Whether the rule applies to this policy and whether an issued Kansas policy carries an amendment has not been established. This is not a finding of a violation. See cancellation without cause.
• A contradiction inside Healthy Paws. The Kansas amendment gives 30 days’ notice for nonpayment and refers to item III.1. Item III.1 of the general form still says 20 days.
• Voiding in the contract despite the department’s position. Healthy Paws voids the policy for fraud. Figo voids it for fraud, intentional concealment or misrepresentation of a material fact. Pets Best “may void” the policy for false information. ASPCA’s Kansas form allows backdated rescission. The Kansas amendment rewrites “When We Cancel”, but it is unclear whether the rescission paragraph there survives. The insuring agreement on page 1, which the amendment does not change, still says the insurer may “cancel, invalidate or rescind coverage”. The department’s checklist says Kansas law makes no provision for voiding a contract. This is not a finding that the terms are unlawful.
• No full refund in the first 30 days at Figo. Figo’s general form gives a full refund for cancellation in the first 30 days without a claim. The Kansas form lacks that paragraph. It has only a pro-rata refund after 30 days and a rule that if a claim is made in the first 30 days, the first month’s premium is fully earned. Figo calls the contract an “annual or 30 day contract”. See refund lost after an early claim.
• At Pets Best, cancelling in the first 30 days erases claims. The policy is void from the start, and pending or not yet submitted claims are denied.
• Disputes go to a veterinarian the insurer chooses, with caveats. The Healthy Paws amendment: arbitration only if both sides agree; first the insurer’s veterinarian, then an independent one acceptable to both sides, whose decision is final. At Pets Best the insurer selects the independent veterinarian, whose decision binds the insurer. Embrace V5 requires an appeal “within sixty (60) days of the renewal of your policy”. See disputes decided by the insurer.
• Claim deadlines differ. Pets Best: 180 days from treatment. Figo: 180 calendar days. ASPCA: 270 days. Embrace V5: during the policy term or within 60 days after it ends. See claim deadlines.
• Five years to sue, counted from different dates. Healthy Paws counts from the loss, ASPCA from the claim settlement date, Figo from the date on the Explanation of Benefits. The general Healthy Paws form gives one year, and ASPCA’s Kansas form without its amendment gives 24 months.
• Raising coverage restarts the waiting period. Pets Best issues a new policy with a new pre-existing-condition review, Embrace V5 resets the waiting period and pre-existing conditions as of the date of the change, and Figo applies the waiting period again. See plan changes.
• No exam record, no illness cover. The Healthy Paws CPE moves the end of the waiting period if you do not provide the enrollment-exam record. Without an exam in the 12 months before the start or within 14 days after it, Embrace V5 turns the policy into accident-only cover. See missing records move the waiting period.
• Paid claims can be taken back. Embrace V5 and ASPCA reserve the right to recover payments made in error and to apply the terms to past payments. See paid claims taken back.
• Terms change at renewal. ASPCA: you accept the changes by renewing. Figo reports them in the renewal notice and may change the premium during the term for changes in your address, your pet’s details or “other Policy parameters”. Healthy Paws promises 60 days’ notice of a premium change. See renewal changes.

What to do

• Before buying, ask in writing which form and which Kansas endorsements your policy will be issued on.
• Keep the dates: notice of the claim, sending all documents, agreement on the amount. If the money has not arrived 30 calendar days after the amount was agreed, write to the insurer about 18% interest under K.S.A. 40-2,126.
• If the insurer cancels or does not renew, ask for a written explanation of the reasons under K.S.A. 40-2,122 and check the notice period.
• You can request rates and forms from the Kansas Insurance Department under the Kansas Open Records Act: name the insurer, its NAIC code and the years. Ask for rates and forms separately: there may be no rate filing.
• If you believe a rate filing in effect is wrong, you can apply in writing to the commissioner for a hearing under 40-955(f)(3).