What is Standard Pet Insurance? by Pet Care 360

Choosing Levels of Cover for Standard Pet Insurance

Most pet owners do not need convincing to buy standard pet insurance policy. With vet fees increasing by over 20 per cent on an annual basis and with 1 in every 3 pets requiring unexpected veterinary treatment at least once a year, the benefits of insurance for pets are quite obvious. The question is what level of cover will be best for your pet and for you as an owner. Use this guide to find out all about the three main levels of cover and their benefits and drawbacks to make the right choice.

Standard Pet Insurance Basics

It is worth explaining what is considered standard insurance for pets. This is a policy which provides vet fees cover. Since this protection is the main and often the only item in the policy, it is usually referred to simply as “cover”. Hence, the level of cover is basically the level of vet fee protection.

Most standard pet insurance plans offer other types of cover as well. However, these are typically optional. The most popular ones include boarding fees, holiday cancellation, advertising and reward, theft and straying and death cover.

As a pet owner, it is important for you to focus on the vet fees cover as it is the most valuable of all. Besides, you are more likely to use it. It should be pointed out that all levels of cover usually have the same exclusions, even though the limitations are different. You can expect all policies to cover the veterinary treatments necessary for all sorts of illnesses and injuries apart from the ones that qualify as pre-existing. Dental treatments, complementary therapies and vet clinic stays are typically covered. Preventive treatments, cosmetic treatments and treatments related to breeding are not covered.

Lifetime Pet Insurance

This is the highest level of standard pet insurance. When your pet is covered for life, there is an annual amount of vet fees protection available. You can use this amount of cover as necessary without any restrictions. You can make any number of claims per year. More importantly, you can make any number of claims per condition. The total amount claimed must not exceed the annual limit. In general, you can raise the annual limit if the insurer provides such an option.

Lifetime pet insurance plans are designed to cover your pet for as long as it lives. However, as the policy holder, you decide whether to renew the policy annually. You can choose to opt out of it and, typically, there are not any restrictions or penalties.

This standard pet insurance offers the highest level of comprehensiveness and flexibility. It can be used effectively for paying for the treatment of chronic, recurrent and incurable conditions. You will be able to spend as much on any treatment as required as many times as you like. This means that your pet will receive the best medical care without you having to bear the related financial burden.

Per-Condition Pet Insurance

This level of cover is fairly comprehensive, but it has some restrictions and limitations that pet owners must be aware of. Per-condition policies come with a fixed amount of cover per condition, as the title suggests. This amount of cover is fixed for each and every illness or injury that your pet may suffer from. The insurer will pay for the treatment of the animal up to the set maximum amount of cover per condition. You will not be able to make another claim for a condition which you have already claimed for.

The standard pet insurance plans with this level of cover are perfectly well suited for paying for treatments necessary due to illnesses such as infections and minor injuries typically resulting from accidents. They are not designed to help you cover the cost of treatment of chronic and recurrent illnesses and injuries. Eventually, the amount of cover per condition will be used up and you will have to pay for your pet’s treatment out of your pocket.

Time-Limited Pet Insurance

The standard pet insurance policies with this level of cover are the least comprehensive and flexible. With these plans, there is a time limit as well as a limit per condition. The time limit is typically 12 months, but it may be longer or shorter.

If you make a claim, the insurer will pay for the animal’s treatment up to the limit per condition or up to the set time limit, depending on which one is reached first. You will not be able to make a second claim for a condition you have claimed for in the past. With this level of cover, you may not be able to pay the full cost of treatment of chronic, recurrent and incurable conditions using your policy.

Choose the level of cover on your standard pet insurance policy depending on the age, breed and health of your pet. Consider the average vet fees in the place where you live as well. Talk to your vet so that you can learn about any risks to the health of your pet and the cost of treatment of common conditions such as urinary tract infection in dogs, diabetes in cats and strains and sprains.

Many of my customers say; “all I need is standard pet insurance” but what is standard pet insurance? We know that everyone wants insurance to cover every eventuality for the cheapest price possible. This guild explains everything you need to know about a standard policy and what sort of benefits each type of policy has. We have all sorts of standard policies for all types of pet owners.