Pet Insurance

This is an attempt to untangle the knots in your pet insurance.

Pet insurance is definitely worth having. Our biggest bill to date has been Ł1800, presented to us when our Golden Retriever ate something she shouldn’t have and needed to be operated on.

It happened over a Bank Holiday weekend which of course was more expensive and she spent two nights at the vets.

Although we had to pay the whole amount up front (luckily we had a credit card!), our excess was Ł40 and this was all we finally had to pay.

There are certain things you should check before taking out a policy just to be sure it’s right for you.

Veterinary Fees
This is the reason most people take out insurance. Often firms offer two or three types of cover.

Most basic
This is the cheapest level of cover. There is usually a fixed time limit often a year (sometimes known as a 12-month policy). This means you are given an amount to use for an individual condition and once the amount has been reached or the time limit has elapsed, the condition will no longer be covered. The company will not pay for that condition again. This is good cover for one-off accidents or illnesses and is better than no cover at all.

Medium level of cover
As before there is often a maximum amount paid out for the individual condition. Once the limit has been reached the condition will no longer be covered. The difference here is that there is no time limit only a monetary limit. Once the maximum monetary amount is reached you will not be able to claim for that condition again.

Higher level of cover
This is often known as ‘cover for life’ and is the most expensive pet insurance. You will have a fixed amount you can claim per condition and it will be reset each year. You can continue to claim for this same condition for the rest of the animal’s life.

If you have a pedigree dog this may be a better option since they are more prone to developing on-going conditions such as arthritis. There is something to be said for finding a company who will cover you for life and sticking with them.

Excess
The excess is the amount you pay yourself before the insurance company pays anything. In the case above our excess was Ł40 and this was all we were required to pay. This stops people from putting claims in for every little amount of money they spend which of course is expensive for the insurance company to administer.

There is often a higher excess for the Public Liability part of the pet insurance usually around Ł250.

Sometimes there are different types of excess. Tesco have a very clear and well-presented pet insurance section. This is taken from their page:

Different companies offer different types of excess: Fixed excess - This type of excess is fixed at the outset, say at Ł50, and stays the same regardless of the size of your claim.

Percentage excess - This is where the excess is based on a percentage of your claim (usually after a fixed minimum has been applied), so the more you claim the higher the excess.

Annual excess - If a single condition spans two policy years the excess will be taken twice.

Variable excess - The excess can vary according to the area in which the pet lives and/or the pet's age.

Most companies will charge you an excess for each condition you claim for, so if you have to claim for two different problems in one year, you'll have to pay two excesses.

Public Liability Insurance
This covers any damage your dog may cause to someone else or their property, which you are legally liable for.

For example, if your dog was to get hit by a car, you'd have to cover the cost of your pet's injuries, but you may also be liable to cover the cost of damage to the car - which could be thousands of pounds.

Usually this is included in the most basic kind of insurance but it may be worth asking.

Extra features The following features are often extra so if you consider them important, do make sure they are included in the price.

Going Abroad

Some companies will not cover you if your pet is ill whilst on holiday abroad. If you are planning to take your pet on holiday, make sure you ask about this. Considerations could be:
- Veterinary fees if your pet should fall ill or have an accident

- Public liability (if your dog causes an accident or damages someone’s property)

- Quarantine costs if you need to use them

- Cover for loss of your pet’s passport.

Complementary Medicine

Do you want your pet to be able to receive Complementary Treatment? If so make sure you are covered for it.

Dental treatment

Dental treatment associated with an illness is unlikely to be included in a basic package.

Exclusions
Be very clear what the company’s exclusions are before you take out insurance.

You are unlikely to be covered for the following:

Pre-existing conditions

If your pet has suffered from a particular condition in the past, it is highly unlikely that you will be able to find cover for that condition again with another company. When deciding on a new pet insurance you will be asked what pre-existing conditions your pet has suffered from.

Fees associated with spaying, neutering, your pet’s pregnancy and birth of puppies.

Fees associated with internal or external parasites or regular booster jabs.

Other considerations

Older dogs

- check what happens to your policy as your pet gets older. Some companies may increase the premiums or excess as your pet gets older. And sometimes they change from charging a flat rate excess to a percentage excess instead. Not all companies continue with cover throughout your dog’s life - they may just think it’s too risky and cover may be restricted or even stop altogether when your dog reaches a certain age.

Think carefully if you are thinking of changing your pet insurance company when your dog is above say eight years old. It may not seem old but if it’s past a certain age you may not be able to get insurance.

Good luck!
Finally, good luck in finding the right insurance. It is a very complicated area but better to ask the right questions now then find out later that you’re not actually covered for what you thought you were.

And the best scenario of all is that your pet stays healthy and happy and you don’t need to use the insurance at all!

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