Making the leap to purchase pet insurance can be a big step. This important investment helps to pay for a certain portion of eligible vet bills, helping you to protect your furry friend through accidents, injuries, and other health conditions.
But making that leap can come with many questions: What type of insurance policy do you need? How much should you spend? How can you ensure the best level of cover to suit your pooch?
To break it down, we’ve created a short list of items to consider when looking to compare dog insurance policy options.
Understanding the three main types of dog insurance
As a general rule of thumb, most pet insurance companies offer three levels of cover: basic, standard and comprehensive. Of course, these will fall under different names depending on the company, but it can help to think of these three options as a set of tiers ranging from the cheapest to the most expensive and extensive type of cover.
- Basic cover: herein, some veterinary costs are covered, namely specified accidents and illnesses. For illnesses, annual condition limits are put in place to cap the amount you can claim back each year when it comes to certain health conditions. This level of insurance is applicable to all dogs aged eight weeks to 16 years.
- Standard cover: additional conditions are included within the specific accidents and illnesses covered – for instance, cancer treatments or ligament conditions. Because you’re paying a higher fee than basic cover, standard cover provides a higher benefit rate, helping you to lower out-of-pocket expenses in the long run. In general, dog-owners must take out this level of policy before their beloved pooch turns nine.
- Comprehensive cover: essentially the ‘premium’ level of insurance policy for dogs, comprehensive cover looks after illnesses, accidents and routine care. Given this policy provides the highest level of cover for your pet, it’s understandable that it also comes with the highest price tag. Similar to standard cover, comprehensive cover should be taken out before your dog’s ninth birthday.
Wrapping your head around the finer details
In addition to the specific items covered by an insurance policy, it pays to read the fine print when it comes to hidden costs, exclusions and restrictions.
Consider things such as the excess payments required every time you make a claim – is it worth paying for a higher premium in order to lower or remove your excess payments on claims?
Another detail to note is the benefit percentage, which outlines the amount of vet fees covered by your insurance. Most reputable companies will cover 80% of eligible vet fees, although this may change as your dog ages.
On that note, it’s also worth investigating yearly increases in policy costs as your insurance is automatically renewed. This is an unavoidable part of pet insurance, given health conditions naturally increase as dogs age, yet it’s still important to gauge just how much extra you may be paying on a yearly basis.
Fitting it all into your budget
By getting a good grasp on the levels of insurance policy and making sure you clue in on the finer details involved, you should begin to get a good sense of how to compare dog insurance options, and how to work out your budget to cater for such. With this in mind, you can arrive at the right policy for you and your furry friend’s your needs.
