Dog Insurance… Petplexed?

It seems more and more Australian companies are offering a range of insurance products for your dog or cat. Whether or not you choose to insure your dog is a decision that can be based on a variety of factors, including whether it is financially practical.

There are many types of insurance providers including; companies set up for the sole purpose such as PetPlan, Petsure and Petcover; to regular (human) health insurance companies such as HCF and Medibank; and then there are organizations such as the RSPCA now with insurance available (which on closer inspection is actually administered by Petsure and underwritten by a separate company altogether).

You can even include your dog insurance on your household contents plan.

Amongst all these different plans there is a broad variety of coverage, and selecting a health plan for your dog, can now be as complicated as deciding on your own health insurance. There are many different aspects to consider when making a decision on purchasing insurance and comparing policies, so the following is a little information that will hopefully make this task somewhat easier.

Dog insurance premiums are highly variable amongst the providers, and some of the influencing factors include; the breed, the age of the dog, previous existing conditions, the level of annual coverage you want, and the excess.

Some companies either won’t insure older dogs, or charge more for doing so. Some require you to upkeep annual vaccinations. Other dogs may be excluded from being covered for a previous ailment, but this may extend to other ailments in the same physical area (such has having had conjunctivitis – may exclude your dog for being covered for future eye surgery). Bilateral exclusions are also common – for instance if your dog has hip problems on one side – it may be that s/he won’t be covered for the hip on the other side either. Some breeds simply have a higher premium to begin with.

Paying an excess is a common feature of pet insurance policies, just as it is for humans. So this needs to be taken into consideration if your dog needs frequent, less expensive vet visits. If your excess is $100, for instance, and your dog needs to go to the vet say, eight times a year at a cost of $150, then you will only get the $50 back for each visit so you need to weigh up whether the premiums are worth that small amount.

However, if you have a dog breed that is renowned for particular afflictions, especially later in life, that frequently require surgery or more expensive treatment, then it may be wise to consider the possible future cost implications in your equation.

Some companies pay back a fixed percentage (such as RSPCA), so you choose a plan, pay a premium, and have approximately 80% (depending on the plan) of every bill covered, without paying an excess.

Other aspects to consider are that some companies have a maximum annual or lifetime payment. There are sometimes location specific exclusions/extras – coverage for tick bites for instance (important to consider if you live in an area where ticks are prevalent).

Boarding costs may be capped or not covered. And some companies offer discounts for insuring a second or subsequent pets.

No-one wants to lose a much loved family pet and whilst there is no sure way of concluding the possible future medical costs of owning a dog, perhaps the peace of mind offered by a health insurance policy is worth the premiums involved. Only you can decide.

© Cerian Griffiths 2009

Please note:

The medical articles on this site have not been written by a veterinarian & should not be considered a replacement for a veterinarian visit. The articles are provided for informative purposes only.

Always seek immediate veterinary advice for any problems (health or behavioral) in your pets. 

While great care has been made in the creation of these articles, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or omissions on these pages. If in any doubt whatsoever, seek professional medical advice.