Jim Hunter

Veterinary Pet Insurance

Veterinary pet insurance is a fast growing and effective way to manage the manage the costs of your pets healthcare.

There have been numerous advances in healthcare for our pets in recent years.  Unfortunately, these advances have led to an increase in the costs to care for our pets.  One potential way to manage the costs of caring for your pet is veterinary pet insurance.  Since 2002, the number of pets covered by veterinary pet insurance has more than doubled in America. 

There are two primary types of veterinary pet insurance.  Lifetime veterinary pet insurance is the first type, which covers conditions discovered while your pet is insured for as long as you maintain your pet’s veterinary pet insurance policy.  Non-lifetime is the second type of veterinary pet insurance, which only covers conditions discovered during the current policy period.  It is important to note that 30-40% of all pet insurance claims received are for chronic conditions that last beyond 12 months.  While lifetime would be a more comprehensive policy, it often comes at a higher price than a non-lifetime policy. 

Veterinary pet insurance policies have a few common characteristics.  Lifetime and non-lifetime veterinary pet insurance policies have limits on the amount of coverage.  Furthermore, both types of policies normally have co-pays and only cover 80-90% of the out of pocket cost of the healthcare service.  There is often a deductible which applies.  Some policies have a phase in period where some types of pet health costs are not covered immediately and others are covered the same or next day the policy is signed.  A few other common characteristics are provider networks, incidence caps and maximum yearly payouts. Be careful to analyze what pet health conditions and preexisting pet health ailments are not covered.   

A pet owner normally has to pay for the cost of the veterinarian visit and treatment up front and submit the veterinarian bill to the pet insurance company for reimbursement. Some veterinary pet insurance policies have a phase-in where costs are not covered on the day the policy is signed.  In addition, some policies will cover death, loss and/or theft, while other veterinary policies will not.  Due to these differentiators, it is important to review the policies in detail to make sure you are choosing the right veterinary pet insurance policy for both your pet and personal financial situation.

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