Something we get asked about from time to time.

From what we have seen and heard it's needed, as the treatment for your beloved pet is often more expensive than your own medical treatments.

We have access to assist with the PetCover range of products, and our clients have had a good experience with them so far. At the same time, we're not specialists in the area, and seeking additional information and experience with your vet is a good place to start.

PetCover is presently the only provider that covers your usual cats, dogs, and horses and, more recently, exotic pet coverage for birds, reptiles, and other small mammals. 

When we say talk to your vet, we're suggesting you ask which one has the least hassle for claims. Because your vet will be involved in your claim and assisting you. If they find a particular provider that pays them and gives them the least grief and hassle, they're likely to be the ones you go with for similar reasons.

OK, so what's the go?

Do you buy a basic policy and muddle along, or do you buy the top-of-the-line one and avoid the hassles? To be fair, based on your breed and your budget, you're likely to end up somewhere in between.

The issue is not so much the amount of cover per year, the fish hook in pet insurance is the lifetime cost claimable per condition.

Reading the various policies, there was one clear theme across the board. While the policy had $x per year of cover for your pet, that level of cover was limited to $ x for a particular condition treated for the animal's lifetime.

What this means is that a cover may have $10,000 per year of coverage. If your pup develops something, say cancer, then you're going to have a $10,000 maximum for cancer treatment for the life of your pup, be that $10,000 this year or $1,000 per year over ten years. Once you hit that limit per condition, there's no more cover.

And like your own medical insurance, moving or changing to a new plan at that point, is likely to have exclusions or increased costs.

If your dog has multiple unrelated issues in one year, then the annual limit may get hit in that year, but you will have the cover of the annual limit per condition for the lifetime of your pet, which may still be manageable and certainly useful.

Another fishhook that needs to be weighed is the policy's annual renewable nature. It's more like the approach to car insurance than your personal medical insurance. Based on the situation at renewal, the insurance company can modify the terms and conditions and also premiums. They can also choose not to renew cover, which is an obvious concern.

However, insurance companies typically don't enact these provisions as they create reputational risk for them, which is bad for business. 

My point is to draw your attention to the fact that the coverage can have some surprising limitations.

So what do you do?

I suggest you take the policy that gives you the highest annual cover for your budget.

If you have a breed that does tend to develop conditions, then bite the bullet and get the top policy. It'll likely save you money in the long term.

If you have a breed that's pretty healthy and doesn't develop 'breed' conditions then going for the top policy may not be needed, but you now understand the risks better to make an informed decision.

Do the research, check the different policies and prices out, talk to your vets about their experience and don't go with the first one because it's the easiest, though it may be the right one after checking around.

If you're confused and need some help, give us a call, we're happy to chat about what you're looking at and assist where we can.

So, on review, if you feel PetCover is the product for you, come back to us, and we can assist in getting this taken care of for you.!