While pet insurance isn’t new (the first pet insurance in the US covered TV star Lacey in 1982), it’s starting to become more popular. Some companies are even starting to offer it as a benefit to attract and retain employees. However, less than 1% of the 179 million pets in America are covered by pet insurance.
So what exactly is pet insurance? How it works? Is it an incision or an opportunity to help you save your pet’s life without having to worry about the cost? Will this help you avoid having to opt for “economic euthanasia” because you can’t afford to treat your seriously injured or injured pet? Here’s everything you need to know about pet insurance.
What is pet insurance?
Pet insurance is similar to human health insurance. They help with medical expenses incurred by injuries, illnesses or genetic diseases (depending on the type of plan you purchase). The great thing about pet insurance is that you can go to any vet you want. There are no networks to worry about. One of the downsides to pet insurance is that they usually don’t work with your vet. Most of the time, you pay the vet bill yourself and are subsequently reimbursed by the insurance company. If you don’t have at least enough credit or savings to cover a vet bill of $2,000 or more, pet insurance may not help you in the event of an emergency.
How it works?
Just like human health insurance, you pay a monthly premium. Premiums vary based on whether you have a dog or cat, what type of animal you own, how old your pet is, your zip code (since veterinary expenses vary from location to location), and the type of coverage you buy. Some plans may only cover accidents. Many plans cover accidents and disease, and some plans also cover genetics and breed-specific diseases. On average, accident and sickness plans start around $22 a month for dogs and $16 a month for cats. Your premium will usually go up each year as you age the pet.
Pre-existing conditions are almost excluded, and a visit to a vet within the last year is usually required before registration. There is usually a waiting period before benefits start, so if your pet becomes sick or injured before the end of the waiting period, not only will it not be covered, but that illness or injury can now be considered a pre-existing condition and will not be covered once coverage begins.
After the waiting period, if a pet gets sick or injured, you’ll be liable for a deduction ranging from $100 to $2,500, depending on the type of plan you choose and the company you decide to go with. Then the insurance company will reimburse you for anywhere from 65-90% of the rest of the cost (note that some plans charge a flat fee, not a percentage of the copay).
What are the pros and cons?
Positives:
Comparing plans is easy. Pet insurance is much simpler to decrypt than human health insurance. The plans are fairly straightforward, and comparing coverage and costs between different companies is relatively easy. You can get a personalized quote from any company in a matter of minutes, which makes choosing an insurance plan for your pet much easier than choosing one for yourself.
Insurance premiums can be low. Healthy young pets on low levels of pet insurance can have very low premiums. $22 a month for the peace of mind you’ll have to pay off any major vet bills is invaluable, wouldn’t you say?
Reasonable discounts. With deductibles as low as $100, some of the pressure to make emergency financial decisions can be removed when your pet is sick or injured. Healthy Paws Pet Insurance issues an annual report on the most common reasons pets visit the vet and the most expensive payments they have had in the previous year. Last year, a German Shepherd who was hit by a car supplied $23,043 in vet bills. The pet insurance company reimbursed the owners $20,515. This is a stark example of how a $2,500 rebate can save you several thousand dollars.
You choose your vet. Because the pet insurance company reimburses you rather than working directly with the vet, you can take your pet to any vet you choose without having to worry about whether it is “in the net” or not. All you have to do is get your vet to fill out a section of the claim form and get a copy of the vet’s bill to present to the insurance company.
You can do more for your pet. People who have pet insurance coverage are more likely to take their pets to the vet than those who don’t. It’s also easier to determine how much you can spend to save your pet’s life when you know you can be compensated for a large portion of the expense. You’d probably tell people that you’d do anything to save your pet’s life – pet insurance helps you do that.
Negatives:
Premiums can be high. If your pet has a pre-existing condition, is larger, or has a breed with more common diseases than other breeds, or you choose a higher coverage level, monthly premiums can exceed $50 a month. $600 or more per year for insurance coverage that your pet may not need may not make the most sense in your exact situation.
You still have to pay up front. If you don’t have savings or credits to pay thousands of dollars in veterinary bills caused by your pet’s illness or injury, paying them off after the fact becomes a moot point. Consider using money you might be willing to spend on pet insurance and put it into a savings account to use in the event of a veterinary emergency
It does not cover everything. On average, pet parents still pay 20% of vet bills. All wellness checks, pre-existing conditions, and genetic or hereditary conditions may be excluded.
Coverage may be limited. Many plans have annual or lifetime limits on how much you pay, so if your pet has an expensive problem, you may still need to pay thousands of dollars after they have hit their pet insurance limit.
It may not be worth the cost. Since health checks are generally excluded, a pet that remains healthy their entire life will end up losing money for pet insurance rather than getting anything. Like any insurance, you bet on whether or not you’ll need it – but if you wait until after something happens, it’s too late.
So is it worth it?
It is impossible to know if you will save or lose money by getting pet insurance for your fur family. Pet insurance is all about peace of mind knowing that you won’t have to worry as much as expenses if something absolutely terrible and unexpected happens. Could you end up paying hundreds or thousands of dollars in pet insurance premiums and never finish filing a claim? Yes really. But knowing that you will be reimbursed for some of the costs may allow you to take that extra step or try another treatment in order to save your pet’s life. This could mean the difference between “do whatever it takes to save a pet’s life” and “please don’t spend more than $X trying to save a pet’s life.”
If you decide to enroll in pet insurance, you will get more bang for your buck for the smallest person you can enroll in your pet. Premiums will be lower and less likely to have pre-existing conditions that will be excluded from future coverage. Most pet insurance companies start coverage on puppies as young as 8 weeks old, with a few starting at 6 to 7 weeks. Choosing the highest deductible amount helps you reduce your monthly premiums.
You never want to tell your vet that you can’t save your pet’s life, and even with pet insurance, you still need to be able to take care of vet bills when they happen. No one is planning to get their dog out the door and hit a car or swallow something that can’t pass through their digestive system. In these cases, your pet can’t wait to beg, borrow, or steal enough money to cover your vet bills.
