In the United Kingdom 1 in 2 of every house has a pet, but less than 1 in 5 have taken out pet insurance to cover the vets costs.If you are one of the uninsured pet owners, If you own a guinea pig, chinchilla or rabbit you can purchase cover through Pet Protect. But if you own a somewhat more unusual pet, Exotic Direct offers individually-priced insurance for animals ranging from spiders, snakes to vultures and Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs. In fact even the most unusual!
When taking out insurance for your pet, the cost will determined by the type of pet, its age and pedigree, the level of cover, your address and the insurer. As a guide, pedigree breeds are usually more costly to insure than ordinary or heinz 57 variety animals. This is because predigrees are prone to illhealth and generally live shorter lives.
And if you live in a town or city you will probably pay more. Cover costs more in London and the south-east, where vets’ fees are above the national average Nevertheless. premiums can still be reasonable,realistic, starting a cost of 6 pounds a month for a dog and 4 pounds thirty five pence a month for a cat.
But be wary of ridiculously cheap premiums. The scale of cover vary extensively between policies and in the end you pay for what you get. So search around and carefully study the levels of cover offered before you splash out on a policy.
Veterinary costs are the most vital part of the cover. So really you should purchase a policy that covers you for severalquite a few thousand pounds worth of veterinary expenses each year. The policy should include hospitalisation, surgery and treatment following illness or accident.
The owners of dogs should also look for plans which offer third-party liability cover. Some policies give 1 million pounds cover and some can go as high as 2 million. This covers injury or damage or damage your dog may inflict onpeople or property. Keep in mind that,you are legally liable if, say, your dog nips the postman. As a cat owner you can rest easy, since you do not need third-party liability because you cannot be held responsible for your cats actions.
An insurance policy will not normally cover your pet during its first eight weeks of life, or when they get older. Most, but not all, polices refuse to accept dogs older than 8 or nine years and cats older than eleven. But if you are already covered when your pet gets to that age, your insurance company should continue to offer protection, although you can expect your premiums to increase significantly.
With most policies, you will have to pay an excess of about 50 pounds per claim. But with most plans this rises for elderley pets.
All pet plans will exclude any medical problem that already exists when you first take a policy out. But a few will also curb the payment of a continuing claim to 1 year. hence, if your pet requires lengthy treatment for diabetes, eczema or arthritis, for example, after the first year you will have to pay the bill fully yourself. There are many policies that will cover continuing claims, so keep an eye out for those but their premiums will be higher.
Do remember that it is important to keep your pets jabs up to date. Your insurance will not reimburse for an illness that could have been prevented by inoculation.
Well then is pet insurance worth it? We think so.We certainly think so. You may be one of the lucky ones and have a pet that stays fit and healthy up and till the end,end of its days but this is very unlikely. On a third of all plans the average is a claim each year. And the vets costs can run up thousands of pounds. You buy insurance to dodge the risk!|
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