Does our pup need insurance
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QOur dog Alfie died a few months ago of old age and we are looking to get a new puppy. I had pet insurance for him for 10 years and never claimed on it. I am now wondering whether it is worth getting cover for our new dog, as it is effectively wasting a couple of hundred pounds a year. What would you advise?
AI am sorry to hear about the death of Alfie, losing a pet is hard. But it sounds like you were very lucky not to have to claim on your insurance for the 10 years he was alive.
Since there is no NHS for animals, you run the risk of racking up vet’s fees of hundreds if not thousands of pounds if they get ill or injured.
A survey by comparethemarket.com revealed the average vet bill paid by someone with an uninsured animal was £491, but one in 10 said the cost was more than £1,000. At the upper end of the scale another survey uncovered the cost of an MRI scan for a cat or dog was an average £2,500.
Pet insurance is designed to pay out if your animal is injured or becomes ill. The typical cost for a cat is £80 a year and for a dog £176, though this will obviously vary depending on the level of cover chosen and the type and breed of your pet.
If you do decide to go down the insurance route, there are key areas to look into when choosing a plan.
What type of cover do you want, lifetime plans which will pay out indefinitely to cover your pet’s treatment, typically subject to annual limits, or ones that either limit the amount of cover per condition or limit the amount of cover and the period of time they will pay out for? You can also buy accident only plans which exclude cover for illnesses.
What are the limits on the amount of vet’s fees you can claim per year? Are there any limits on the amount per condition or for diagnostic tools within this?
Do you want to pay a fixed excess - the first part of any claim you have to pay or co-insure whereby you pay a percentage of any claim up to a fixed amount?
How much third party liability cover do you need for your new dog - £1m or £2m - to cover any damage they do to other people or their property?
Are certain chronic conditions such as epilepsy or diabetes covered? How about dental treatment?
Insurance will also pay out the cost of your new puppy should something happen. The cost of new pets soared during the pandemic with the average pup costing £1,875 last year.
If you choose not to insure your puppy this time round and selfinsure, then get into the habit of putting the cost of cover into a savings account. You can then use this pot for any unexpected vet’s fees. Some charities such as the RSPCA, PDSA and Blue Cross offer free or low cost veterinary care for your pet, but this tends only to be available to those receiving benefits.