Pet Insurance:  Protecting Your Pet and Your Wallet

Insurance makes a lot of sense for many things in our day to day lives. If a tree fell on your house, your homeowner’s insurance would help. If you ended up in an awful automobile accident, your car insurance would help. If you became seriously ill, your health insurance would kick in. What happens, though, if your pet has an accident or becomes very sick? Veterinary expenses can add up quickly, and pet health insurance can help you to better safeguard one of the most important things in your life.

Benefits of Pet Insurance

While not every pet or pet owner might choose pet insurance coverage, there are many reasons to consider it for your family. Some benefits that we see at MarketPlace Veterinary Hospital include:

• Less delay in owners bringing their pet in for a problem, letting us help sooner 
• Increased access to wellness care and screening tests and appropriate diagnostics for sick pets, allowing us to provide better and more tailored care
• Increased willingness and ability to see a specialist veterinarian when indicated
• Less emotional stress for pet owners and the veterinary team when we have to choose between what is right for an animal and what is right for your bank account

Pet insurance plans can help to create a safety net for your finances as many pet expenses are unplanned. And because pet insurance providers are all different, there is quite a bit of flexibility when it comes to pet insurance cost, coverage, and benefits, allowing you the freedom to choose a plan that best suits your needs and budget. 

Choosing Pet Insurance Coverage

At this time pet insurance is not regulated like human medical insurance. This creates a lot of benefits, but it can also make it hard to compare apples to apples. 

Each company and plan is likely to be different, so it is important to ask yourself how you will likely use your coverage and what you would like to get out of your investment. 

Things to consider include:

• How much your monthly premium will be
• What deductibles and copays there are
• What, if any, wellness or preventive care is covered
• How reimbursement works (with most veterinary coverage, you are still responsible for the initial invoice)
• If there are any restrictions for pre-existing or breed-related diagnoses
• Is there a waiting period
• How and when does my policy renew
• Are there maximum annual and/or lifetime limits

It can be overwhelming to determine the best policy, but taking your time to compare is important. Choosing on price alone can be tricky business because a cheap plan may not save any money if it’s not actually meeting your needs. 

We love using online platforms like Pawlicy Advisor and ComparePetInsurance to help ensure that you get the right coverage. With some good research pet insurance can definitely be a useful tool to help care for your pet and your finances at the same time. We are happy to help answer any questions you might have, let us know if you need help.