Dog Insurance

Choosing the Best Dog Insurance

With over 7 million dogs in the UK and vet treatment costs continuing to rise, dog health insurance is big business. Most big insurance companies now offer insurance for dogs to cover such things as vet costs, third party cover, lost/stolen dogs, quarantine and kennel costs.

Before you go off looking for dog insurance quotes or deciding on an insurer, there are a number of things to bear in mind regarding the various policies on offer:

Dog insurance policy options

Cheap Dog Insurance

The cheapest dog insurance policies usually give you the lowest protection for your dog and will typically have limits on both time and money payable if your dog is treated for injury or is diagnosed with an illness. Once your dog has exceeded this amount or time limit, your dogs condition will be excluded from the policy from then on.

If you only want to insure against one off illnesses, then this type of cover is fine but could be disastrous if the condition is a chronic one. Also once your dog has a chronic condition you will be unable to get cover for it in the future.

Medium Price Dog Insurance

As with the cheapest dog insurance above, there are limits to this type of cover, usually the amount payable per condition is for the life of that condition but with a maximum payout often 2 or 3 times higher than cheaper policies. As above, once these limits are reached you will not ba able to insure your dog again for that condition from the same or any other insurance company, as you will have to disclose it as an existing condition.

Lifetime Dog Insurance

Lifetime or lifelong dog insurance is the best dog insurance but also the most expensive. This type of cover protects you for the life of your dog. There will be a maximum payout per year, but as long as you renew your policy every year the policy will keep paying out for as long as any condition takes to treat. Lifetime dog insurance policies also cover your dog for its whole life and do not stop once it reaches a certain age.

Vet Costs

As we touched on above, the cost of vet fee vaccinations has grown substantially in the UK over the last decade and there are now more costly drugs and treatments available than ever before.

Lost Dog / Dog Theft

We are seeing more and more instances of dog theft and lost dogs in the UK than ever before, and while the majority of owners will search until they find what has happened to their pets, many often need assistance with the cost of advertising for a lost or stolen dog. More and more pet dog insurance policies are offering financial assistance in the search for pet dogs.

Dog Quarantine Costs

As more and more people choose to work overseas for differing lengths of time, dog pet passport and dog quarantine costs have become a very real issue for many. Dog ins will cover the cost of your dogs stay in quarantine, which in places such as the UK can be very expensive!

Dog Treatment Costs

As the number of dog operations continues to increase in the UK we are seeing more animals retained for over night hospital stays. These are specialist pet dog caring facilities and as such they can be very expensive, and are often out of the reach of many without a dog insurance policy.

Dog Accident Cover

The dog insurance market is very much starting to resemble that of the car market, with some of the best dog insurance companies offering cover against the initial cost of your dog in the event of a fatal accident.

Dog Emergency Related Costs

Such is the level of affection which many families have for their pet dog, more and more people are being forced into cancelling often expensive trips overseas to ensure care for pets comes first. While some of the cheap dog insurance policies may not offer this, the better dog insurance policies give you the opportunity to cover any costs incurred in these instances.

Lost Pet Passport

The UK government have brought in the need for a pet passport for any animal moving borders, and while it is proving a very useful way to track the movement of pet dogs overseas there are substantial costs associated. There are a number of insurance for dogs which cover the cost of replacing such items in the event of them being lost or stolen.

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