Principles of pet insurance

The principles of insurance generally are simple and have long been founded upon common
sense - it’s the risks of many covering the mishaps of a few. So, instead of everyone paying
out of their own pocket every time something goes wrong, everyone clubs together, spreads
the risk and pays a fraction of what they would otherwise have had to.
The principles of pet insurance are the same as any other general insurance.You pay your
premium and hope that your pet stays healthy for the rest of its life. However, if your pet
should unexpectedly fall ill, have an accident or even swallow something that it shouldn’t, your
insurance company will pay to put it right out of the collective money pot.
Although pet insurance will cover you against life’s unexpected emergencies, it won’t cover
you for routine or preventative treatment for your animals such as worming tablets or their
regular injections.This is no different from any other form of insurance though, for example,
you can’t claim for your car’s regular service on your motor insurance but you can claim for
repairs if you have an accident.
Pet insurance has been around since 1947 when breeders of pedigree dogs were offered
specialist cover. Now, there are over 80 providers all offering different pet insurance policies
which can be bought by post, telephone or on the Internet.
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Third Party Liability
Many pet policies offer third party liability cover for dogs for
whatever damage they cause to someone else or their property
which you are legally liable for. For example, if your dog was to get
hit by a car, not only would you have the cost of your pet’s injuries to
deal with but you may also be liable to cover the cost of damage to
the offending car and this can run into thousands of pounds.
A pet policy may also cover:
• Holiday cancellation or curtailment - cover in the event
that you need to cancel or cut short a holiday due to loss, illness
or injury of your pet
• Hospitalisation of the owner - the cost of boarding kennel
fees if you are hospitalised for a specified period of time
• Death from illness up to a certain age - cover for
purchase price should your pet die due to illness
• Cover abroad if travelling under the Pet Travel Scheme
- the cost of vets’fees abroad,quarantine kennelling in the event of the
pet’s microchip failing,financial help should the Pet Health Certificate
get lost while you’re away and third party liability cover abroad
• Retrieval costs - money towards advertising, reward and
repatriation if your pet is lost or stolen
• Alternative treatments - some policies provide cover for
your pet to receive alternative treatments or therapies such as
homeopathy and hydrotherapy

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