If there is one thing that you can do as a responsible pet owner, it’s taking out pet insurance. Everyone within the veterinary industry can sympathise with an owner when their animal needs expensive treatment, but unfortunately they do not have pet insurance cover.

Pet insurance allows owners to pay a monthly premium, which will then cover their animal for most accidents, injuries and diseases. If the animal was to receive treatment, owners can then claim the costs back through their insurer. The market is swamped with insurance providers and it can be completely overwhelming when trying to find cover for your furry (or not so furry!) friend. So, let’s take a look at some of the best pet insurers of 2023 and talk about how to choose the best insurer.

Types of cover

Firstly, let’s look at the different types of pet insurance cover that is available to you.

Lifetime cover 

As the name suggests, lifetime cover will cover your pet for life. Lifetime cover offers the most comprehensive protection, but this does mean that monthly premiums are usually higher. Let’s put lifetime cover into a scenario.

“An owner brings their dog to the vets and the veterinary surgeon diagnoses the animal with diabetes. The dog now requires monthly injections twice daily that the owner has to purchase from the veterinary practice.” 

A lifetime policy will continue to cover the cost of the treatment throughout the course of the animal’s life.

Annual cover 

An annual insurance policy will be valid every 12 months of the animal’s life, before being renewed each year. An annual policy will offer a less comprehensive cover, with health conditions often being excluded 12 months from diagnosis. Let’s look at the same scenario. 

“An owner brings their dog to the vets and the veterinary surgeon diagnoses the animal with diabetes. The dog now requires monthly injections twice daily that the owner has to purchase from the veterinary practice.” 

An owner’s animal that is insured on an annual policy will be entitled to claim for the costs for 12 months. After the 12 months, the diabetes will be excluded from the cover and the owner would have to pay for the treatment for the remainder of the animal’s life.

Pet Insurers on the market

Let’s take a look at our affiliated pet insurers and see what services they offer for you and your pet. While there are many others on the market, these are the ones we know best, and they give you a good idea of the market. 

Agria

Agria has been named the UK’s most trusted pet insurance provider. They only offer lifetime cover as standard and can contribute up to £12,500 each year towards veterinary treatment. 

Agria offers insurance cover for horses, dogs, cats and rabbits, whilst also offering a MultiPet insurance cover. With Agria paying almost 97% of insurance claims, it’s easy to see why it makes one of the top insurers of 2023.

PetGuard

Established in 1998, PetGuard is a well trusted pet insurer. What makes it even better is that for new customers, PetGuard offers a 20% on the first year of premiums!

PetGuard offers a multitude of policies including multipet, accident and injury and overseas travel. They also offer pre-existing condition insurance, where they will insure animals who have pre-diagnosed conditions.

PetGuard also offers a ‘direct claim’ service. This means that once you have paid your excess at your veterinary practice, PetGuard will then pay any outstanding fees directly to your vet. However, this must be pre-authorised by your veterinary practice.

Animal Friends

Currently insuring over 1 million pets across the UK, Animal Friends are one of the largest insurance providers. Not only that, but Animal Friends are a huge supporter of animal charities. They have donated close to £8 million to organisations worldwide.

Animal Friends offer insurance cover to cats, dogs and horses and have different types of policies including lifetime, annual and accident only. Animals can be covered for up to £18,000 worth of veterinary treatment.

Animal Friends also insures pets who have a pre-existing condition, subject to specific small print.

4Paws

Insuring cats, dogs and rabbits, 4Paws offers 3 different types of cover – Lifetime, Annual and Maximum benefit. Vet fees are covered up to £12,000 per condition, per year on the lifetime cover and up to £7,000 on the maximum benefit. 

4Paws also offer a ‘FirstVet’ service, which gives policyholders access to a veterinary surgeon 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

4Paws pay 97% of claims and insure animals from 6 weeks of age. On an even better note, 4Paws also offers 20% off the first year of premiums for new customers.

So which is the best?

Unfortunately, as vets and vet nurses, we’re not actually allowed to recommend a particular brand! However,  while there are plenty of insurers across the market, you must ensure that you do your research! Do not go with an insurer just because they offer the cheapest premium. Make sure that you understand your level of coverage so that you and your animal are protected in a worst case scenario.

At the end of the day, the best insurer is the one who will cover you for a price you can afford – or afford better than having no insurance at all.

Conclusion

Pet insurance should not be overlooked when purchasing an animal, no matter if it’s a cat, dog or parrot! With the increased cost of living affecting us all, a large veterinary bill is the last thing an owner needs during the current financial climate.

Whilst a new monthly outgoing may seem counterproductive when you’re trying to cut back on the spending, it’s better than a large overall bill from the vets if the worst was to happen.

Get a quick quote from one of the UK’s leading pet insurers…

Learn more about them on our Pet Insurance page

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