How much does pet insurance cost?

Pet insurance can provide a vital lifeline to cover the cost of vet treatment if your pet becomes ill or is injured. The average cost of pet insurance is around £27 per month, but many factors affect the price – including whether you’re insuring a dog, cat, or other pet, or how old your pet is.

Read on to find out what affects the cost of pet insurance and the most frequent questions our readers ask.

What is pet insurance?

Pet insurance protects you against unexpected vet costs and related medical expenses if your pet becomes ill or is injured. You pay a premium, either monthly or yearly, that entitles you to a certain amount of cover.

Depending on the insurance plan you take out, you may have to pay an excess before your insurer will pay for any treatment. Many plans also require you to pay for vet treatment, then reimburse you once they’ve seen the bill.

The average yearly cost of pet insurance is around £327.

What does pet insurance cover?

What your pet insurance covers will depend on the policy you take out, but pet insurance policies generally cover some or all of the following:

Vet treatment: The core cover provided by pet insurance companies, most pet insurance will cover the cost of diagnosing and treating illnesses and injuries. This may include consultations, scans, medication, surgery and stays in the hospital.

Loss: If your pet is lost or stolen, or dies as a result of illness or injury before a certain age, policies will often pay the purchase price or market value of your pet.

Advertising costs: Many policies will also pay advertising costs to help you find your pet if it’s lost or stolen, and may even cover the cost of a reward if someone finds your pet.

Boarding costs: If you have to go into hospital for emergency medical treatment, pet insurance policies will often cover the cost of putting your pet into boarding or kennels. You usually have to be hospitalised for a certain number of days before the cover kicks in.

Third party liability: If your pet damages someone’s property or injures someone and you’re found legally responsibly, some policies will cover any compensation you’re liable to pay.

Holiday cancellation: If your pet needs emergency vet treatment close to the start of a pre-planned holiday, some pet insurers will cover the cost if you have to cancel.

What affects the cost of pet insurance?

Many factors will affect the cost of pet insurance, but these are the key ones:

Type of pet: The type of pet you have will impact the cost. For example, dog insurance is usually more expensive than cat insurance as cats age slightly better

Breed: Some breeds of animal are more susceptible to health conditions as they get older, while pedigree breeds are at more risk of being stolen

Age: As your pet ages, the more at risk they are of becoming ill. To reduce your insurance premiums you should take out insurance as soon as possible – ideally as soon as you own your pet

Level of excess: The amount of excess, that is the amount you agree to pay towards any claim, affects the cost of your insurance. The more excess you agree to pay, the lower your insurance premium will be

What to look for when buying pet insurance

Not all pet insurance is equal. It’s important to read the terms and conditions of any insurance policy you’re thinking about taking out before you purchase it. There are a few things you should look for when you’re buying pet insurance to ensure you’re getting the right cover for you and your pet:

Pre-existing conditions

It’s highly unlikely that your pet insurance will cover any pre-existing conditions that your pet has. For example, if your dog already has diabetes or your cat has been hit by a car before and broke their leg, your insurer won’t pay out for any claims to do with these pre-existing illnesses or injuries. That’s why it’s best to insure your pet when they are young so they have fewer medical issues.

Type of policy

Different types of pet insurance will offer different levels of cover. You should make sure you understand each policy type to ensure you buy the best one for your needs:

Accident-only: Accident-only policies cover just that – accidents. If your pet is diagnosed with an illness, such as epilepsy, you will have to pay for all tests, treatment and medicine related to that illness.

Time-limited: Time-limited pet insurance only pays for a condition for 12 months after diagnosis, up to an agreed cover amount. After that, or after the agreed cover amount has been exceeded, you will have to pay for any treatment related to the condition. It also means that no other pet insurance will cover the condition, as it’s now ‘pre-existing’.

Maximum benefit: Maximum benefit insurance pays for a condition up to a set amount of money, which differs between policies. There’s no time limit, but once the limit has been reached, the condition will be excluded from the insurance policy, meaning that you will have to pay for any further treatment for the condition. Again, the condition will become a ‘pre-existing condition’, no won’t be covered by any other insurer.

Lifetime: Lifetime pet insurance policies pay a set amount for a condition every year. Different insurers set different limits. As long as you continue your policy with the same insurer, the condition will continue to be covered, and the limit will reset yearly. This is usually referred to as an ‘annual limit per condition’.

Age limits

Most insurers will have a maximum age limit, and if your pet is above this age then you won’t be able to take out a policy for them. But as long as you’ve insured your pet before they reach that age limit, most insurers will continue to renew your policy for the rest of their life.

Excesses

The excess is the amount you agree to pay towards a claim. Usually, it’s a fixed amount that will be deducted from your claims for each condition your pet suffers from.

Different insurers have different ways of managing excesses – you may have to pay an excess for a condition once in your pet’s lifetime, every year (if it’s a long-term condition) or every time you make a claim on the policy.

Waiting period

Insurers won’t pay out on claims as soon as you take out your pet insurance. All policies will have a number of days before you can make claims for illnesses, injuries or death. This is typically between 10-30 days, but it will differ between insurers. If your pet gets ill during the waiting period, you won’t be able to claim on the insurance.

Is it compulsory to have pet insurance?

It’s not compulsory to have pet insurance, but as a responsible pet owner, it’s a good idea to have it. Consider what would happen if your pet became seriously ill or injured. Vet treatment can very quickly run into the thousands of pounds, and while many veterinary practices offer payment plans, you will still need to find the money to pay for it. If you would struggle to find the money from your savings, it’s probably worth taking out a pet insurance policy to ensure you don’t have to make any difficult decisions should you not be able to afford vet treatment for your pet.

How much is the average pet insurance claim?

According to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), the average pet insurance claim is £848. However, it’s important to remember that since this is an average, any claims you make for your pet could be higher or lower than this figure.

For example, the most common high-value claim among dogs and cats is for spinal surgery, ranging between £8,000-£10,000. However, treating a small dog with gastroenteritis costs an average of £673.

It just shows how valuable pet insurance can be. With the average yearly premium sitting at £327, your insurance could pay for itself after just two claims in a year.

Is it worth getting lifetime pet insurance?

It’s your choice, but we certainly think it’s worth getting lifetime pet insurance. Unlike other types of pet insurance, lifetime pet insurance will continue to cover long-term conditions year after year.

For example, if your dog is diagnosed with diabetes and you only have a time-limited insurance policy, your insurer will only pay for your claims related to diabetes for 12 months after diagnosis, up to an agreed amount. With lifetime insurance, as long as you keep paying your premiums with the same insurer, your dog’s diabetes treatment will be covered for the rest of their life, up to an annual limit that’s set by your insurer.

It can cost thousands for treatment for long-term conditions. For example, treating a dog with diabetes can cost over £1,200, while treating a dog with epilepsy can reach over £3,300. Without lifetime insurance, you could be liable for paying for this treatment every year for the rest of your pet’s life.

What is a good annual limit for pet insurance?

An annual limit is usually set on lifetime insurance policies. These policies last the entire life of your pet, and mean that long-term conditions remain covered if they are diagnosed after you’ve taken out the insurance.

Annual limits refer to the amount of money you can claim in one year for your pet’s vet treatment, but often policies also have an annual limit per condition, which means that your insurer will only pay up to a certain amount for one illness or injury. The annual limit per condition tends to be between £3,000 and £10,000.

A good annual limit depends on the type of pet you’re insuring, but for a dog it would be sensible to have an annual limit per condition of at least £6,000.

How to get the cheapest pet insurance

There are a few things you can do to cut pet insurance costs and get the best policy for you:

1. Insure ASAP

If you want to keep your pet insurance as cheap as possible, you should insure your pet as soon as you buy or adopt them. The younger you insure them, the cheaper your premiums will be.

2. Keep your pet healthy

Make sure your pet gets the right amount of exercise and a good quality diet, and keep them up to date with their vaccinations. The healthier your pet is, the less chance there is of them needing to visit the vet, which means less chance of you having to make a claim that pushes up your premiums.

3. Play around with your excess

You can usually get cheaper pet insurance premiums if you agree to pay more excess – that is, the amount you agree to pay towards any claim. But make sure you get the balance right – you still need to make sure the excess is affordable should you need to make a claim.

4. Check multi-pet policies

If you’ve got more than one pet, check to see whether you could save by insuring all your pets on one policy. They don’t always work out cheaper, though, so it’s important to check both single and multi-pet policies.

5. Consider co-insurance

If you’ve got an older pet, co-insurance may help you to keep your insurance premiums down. With co-insurance, you pay a percentage of the vet treatment after the excess has been deducted towards the cost of each claim. It makes premiums more affordable, but you’ll still need to consider whether you could afford to pay the extra money towards a claim.

6. Pay annually

You’ll get the cheapest rate by paying your pet insurance annually. By paying monthly, you’re essentially taking out a loan, so you’ll pay interest on it. If you can, pay in one yearly lump sum to save money.

7. Compare quotes

The best thing you can do is shop around for pet insurance quotes to make sure you’re getting the best deal possible. We’ve partnered with Quotezone.co.uk to help you save money on your pet insurance – compare pet insurance quotes now and see how much you could save.

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