A Guide to Choosing Pet Insurance Policies

A Guide to Choosing Pet Insurance Policies

Pet insurance can be a useful tool to help protect your little companions from accidents, illnesses, and all manner of health risks.  But, given the many forms of insurance available, picking a pet protection policy isn’t always as clear-cut as it seems.

So, to help you narrow down your choices and select the right plan, we’ve prepared a step-by-step guide.  In addition, we’ve also included multiple resources relating to pet products, insurance, and finances.

How to Pick a Pet Insurance Policy

How to Pick a Pet Insurance Policy

Determine your pet’s medical needs

To find the right policy, you need to know the specific risks and health issues your pet may face during its lifetime.  This can be easier said than done, but it should go without saying that your pet is likely to require regular checkups? with a vet for general health monitoring purposes.

Beyond this, you should note that certain pets present a higher likelihood of developing certain illnesses such as hip dysplasia among dogs and urinary tract diseases among cats.  Your prospective policies should take these considerations into account to allow for proper protection.

Figure out the policy’s coverage 

Once you have a grasp of your pet’s basic medical needs and risks, it’s important to find policies that cover your pet against such things.  Many premium policies have the capability to cover your pet against everything from accidents to developed conditions.

Other policies will forgo such features to create more economical plans with lower annual premiums overall.  While we do agree that pets are truly priceless, it’s important to identify the right amount of coverage for your companion so you don’t end up overpaying.

Identify policy restrictions

Insurance restrictions are all too common among high-coverage policies as your insurance company also wishes to protect its interests.  To ensure that you don’t get the short end of the deal, it’s imperative that you be aware of your policy’s restrictions.

Many policies will carry age restrictions for your pet that can either limit or prohibit coverage beyond a certain age.  Other policies will avoid taking responsibility for pre-existing health conditions that your dog has developed prior to your purchase of a policy.

Know your premiums and deductibles

As previously mentioned, your level of coverage can have a direct effect on the size of your annual insurance premiums.  Because of this, it’s important to consider your financial capabilities and make sure that a policy is within your budget.

It’s worth noting that many policies often carry deductibles which can result in you having to pay a certain sum of money for medical services upfront.  After a deductible is paid, your insurance company will then go about reimbursing or paying off the remaining balance.  

You should be aware of these deductibles to avoid being put on the spot for vet treatments, pet prescriptions, products, and the like.

Much like other forms of insurance, many folks often do not have the time to sit and compare policies all day long.  So, to save yourself some time and effort, it’s perfectly reasonable to seek out the services of an insurance broker.  

Though there are many other steps you can take to narrow down your pet protection policy, we feel those listed above do a good job of helping you make a clear and relevant choice.  We sincerely hope this guide and the resources in it can be of some help to you.