Cat Insurance?
This article is for information only and should not be taken as any form of legal or binding advice.
Which Cat Insurance Should I Use?
When you buy a kitten from us we provide 4 weeks of free Pet Plan insurance, registered and activated upon the day before departure. Pet Plan provides up to £4,000 Veterinary Fees cover to new owners during those important first few weeks of settling into their new homes.
If you wish to set up a policy with another organisation then look for one that covers ongoing illnesses; MRI scans can cost over £2,000 (that's the equivalent of saving £20 a month for 9 years) and some cover the loss of a cat.
The terms differ, for example, some you have to claim back after paying yourself while others pay directly to your vet. Some vets only offer their own insurance company and you pay directly to the insurance company.
So call your vet! They will deal with lots of insurance companies and may be able to guide you.
Terms differ by provider. For example, with some you have to pay upfront and then claim the fees back, while others pay directly to your vet. Some vets only offer their own insurance company and you pay directly to that insurance company.
Consider taking the time to read everything before signing up. You don't want a shock when you need to claim and they turn round and say you can't.
Below is a list of companies that seem to be good at paying out:
Pet Plan
Animal Friends
Liverpool Victoria (LV)
Direct Line
Owners tend to take out the insurance later in a cat’s life, which affects the future of their insurance cover and this is often not clearly outlined before the insurance is taken out.
We have read multiple insurance policies / Insurance Product Information documents and how the ‘excess’ works for each of the different level of insurance they provide. We would like to highlight the following on how insurance providers tend to structure their policies, drawing from our personal experience.
All animals can be insured and if there is a pre-existing condition then that condition will likely not be covered. However, increasingly, providers are associating anything that could be vaguely related to that "pre-existing condition" or "existing illnesses” and using this to deny treatment cover.
There is often confusion with what is an underlying condition / pre-existing illness.
If an animal responds to treatment, and what was treated is not an ongoing problem, then it is our vet’s view that there are no ongoing problem or pre-existing condition that affects insurance.
We have observed the following across different policies:
Your pet cover can only start once the animal is with you and in your care and not before.
Not even the most comprehensive policy covered a pre-existing condition.
Illnesses which you or your vet were aware of within the first 14 days of your policy first starting would not be covered, regardless of the Excess.
Any claims logged by your vet, within the first 14 days of your new policy will NOT be covered by your policy. (This term also applies to the 4 weeks free insurance we provide with PetPlan.) Any subsequent treatment associated with the initial claim logged will also NOT be covered by your policy.
The Excess value is set prior to the policy being taken out. If you take out a £100 excess then this means that you must pay the first £100 of any claim and thereafter the other costs are covered by the policy cover. Sometimes there is premium variation on the Excess after a claim has been submitted. There may also be a maximum amount the policy will pay, this could be a maximum for a single treatment or a lifetime maximum for a condition.
Most policies do not cover common conditions such as parasites, upper respiratory issues, viral illnesses or anything that might be associated with a specific breed.
Most policies do not cover minor treatments, like eye/ear infections.
There may be a difference between the company you purchase your insurance from (e.g. a supermarket) and the actual insurance company that underwrites the policy. Be sure to contact the correct organisation for advice (we have heard stories of people calling a supermarket’s general help line and receiving no help.)
We have noticed information provided in the Product Information documents can be misleading and confusing.
This article is not financial advice, you must make sure that any policy you purchase is suitable for your situation.