Pet insurance is something which, as an experienced small animal vet with a strong medical interest, I am always keen to discuss with owners; preferably when their pet is young, healthy and recently acquired. Over the course of my career, I have lost count of the times where it has been fortunate that a pet has been insured; allowing for less stress regarding potentially large veterinary bills; allowing owners to focus on their pet and their journey (and hopefully recovery). There are so many medical conditions I can think of as benefiting from the availability of insurance. But also surgical procedures are usually covered, as are the ever potentially present unplanned and emergency situations. But are there situations where pet insurance is not helpful? In this article below, we discuss if and when this may be the case.
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What have you got?
Something which is not always known or appreciated by owners is what exact pet health insurance policy they have taken out. Let’s be honest, reading the terms and conditions of any insurance policy is not something that many of us can honestly say that we do! Whenever you are purchasing a pet insurance product however, it is of vital importance that you comprehend the policy and the associated coverage and limitations. If you think you have comprehensive cover, yet only in reality, have an accident-based policy, where any one condition only has cover for 12 months, then this is not helpful if your pet develops a chronic medical condition such as diabetes mellitus, for example.
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When did you take it out?
Most pet health insurance policies will feature a 2 week initial exclusion period. That is to say that any illness or clinical symptoms seen within the first 14 days of inception of the policy, will not be covered. If you want any condition to be covered, it is therefore imperative that you have a formerly pre-existing policy in place; and do not merely instigate a policy once your pet becomes unwell.
You have a responsibility to act honestly. And, as part of the process when assessing your claim, the insurers will likely request access to the clinical records and history for your pet. Any former mention of symptoms of a disease, or even potentially an unrelated issue (but with not dissimilar presenting signs) will come under rigorous investigation and questioning. If the insurers have any concern that your pet has been seen for the condition before, or displayed symptoms ahead of taking out the policy, cover is highly likely to be denied.
What is the limit?
All insurance policies will have a limit set on them, determined by either time or financial amount. A 12 month policy, for example, will only cover a condition for 12 months before it is excluded. And so for the management of any chronic illness, this can be limiting and frustrating; particularly if the time limit of a policy has not been appreciated. The financial limit will also limit cover to some extent. Again, depending on the policy you have chosen; you may have veterinary fees covered for as little as £1,000 per condition, up to as much as £15,000.
What is the co-payment?
The majority of pet insurance policies will come with an excess; that is a fixed but nominal amount of money you will have to pay yourself, whenever making a new claim; and perhaps also, as you go into a new policy year too (chronic conditions in a covered for life type policy). Furthermore, most insurers will, as your pet ages, put a “co-payment” in place; whereby you, the policyholder, must contribute a certain percentage of the fees. This is typically seen once pets reach 8 years of age or older (perhaps 10 years old in cats). It often can be around 20% of the entire bill. It can therefore seem that insurance cover becomes potentially less helpful as a pet gets older. Yet this should be balanced against the probability that, unfortunately, your pet is likely to experience more diseases and ailments the older it gets.
In summary
The opinion of whether pet insurance is helpful or not depends on many factors. And also on the owner’s personal circumstances. The majority of pets are not insured in the UK. If you take out insurance for your beloved companion animal, as ever, I would strongly urge you to understand the type of policy you are purchasing. And also ensure that you take out a policy as soon as a pet enters your life. Better still, acquire a pet through a reputable source who may be able to ensure that temporary pet health insurance cover is already in place from the word go; allowing you to do your research and find a permanent policy that ticks all the right boxes for you.
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