Pet insurance why is it important

I do feel that having health insurance for your furry family members is as important as having it for humans.

Having a health insurance for your pets is also important just like for humans. Having health insurance for your furry friend will allow you to avoid unexpected veterinary expenses from accidents and unforeseen illnesses or medical conditions.

Insurance will give your pets the advanced veterinary treatments needed and the best care available at a controlled cost. Do note that pet insurance providers will exclude pre-existing conditions, because the insurance is meant to protect your pet against potential accidents and illnesses.

All pets have the risk of an accident or acquiring illness that is why they need to be covered beforehand.

Before you commit with an insurance company be sure to look and review your options, here are companies that offers pet insurance:

United Pet Care, PetFirst, Trupanion, Pet Assure, and 24PetWatch.

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Information on filing claims online check MyClaimSource.com

Nominees for most unusual pet insurance claim of the year

Veterinary Pet Insurance Company reviewed millions of pet insurance claims received by the company over the past year and they have come up with 11 worthy of nomination for the VPI Hambone Award honoring the “Most Unusual Claim of the Year.”

Here are the 11 Nominees:

1. Luke - the lucky labrador gets a mulligan after retrieving – and swallowing – a golf ball.
2. Pippa - refrigerator incident leaves Pippa the curious cat in stitches.
3. McQuire - a brave mixed-breed who survives a brawl with a buck.
4. Winnie - Facebook feedback saves the poor canine’s life after ingesting a bag of onion rings.
5. Mocha - cracked a car windshield that left her shaken and stirred but thankfully uninjured.
6. Macie - a cute Lab who breaks leg but bounces back from bicycle attack.
7. Natasha - Kitten gets stuck in washing machine, creating near ‘Cat’astrophe.
8. Dingo - a two year old pooch that dine on dough that nearly turns deadly.
9. Ryder - a lucky lab who survives an accidental antler ingestion.
10. Ariel - a frisky feline who was accidentally trapped underneath a garage door.
11. Chance - a labrador who was broadsided by a goat.

The winner will be determined by a public vote at www.VPIHamboneAward.com. Voting is open through Fri., Oct. 11 and will decide which perilous pet will take home the honor.

For a more detailed account of each claim, photos of the nominees, or to cast a vote, visit www.vpihamboneaward.com.

Pet insurance remains unpopular despite rising vet costs

The expense associated with companion animals health care is growing, but many owners don’t buy coverage.

It wasn’t very long ago that veterinary costs were quite affordable and pet insurance was relatively unnecessary, as the health care that was provided to animals was relatively limited and somewhat low-tech.
Times have rapidly been changing and the cost of providing health care to animals has been skyrocketing.

As a growing number of people consider their animal companions to be nothing less than furry family members and expect them to be able to receive the same type of medical treatments as humans, the price of providing that care has, over the last few years, gone through the roof. While this has provided a very good argument in favor of purchasing pet insurance, many owners have yet to catch up with this mindset and still see it as more of a luxury than a necessity.

Pet insurance trends are growing much more slowly than the cost of health care for animals.

The average amount paid to veterinarians in the United States is $575 per cat and $852 per dog, according to data released by the American Pet Products Association. Even as the economy has struggled, the vet costs for all types of animals increased by 14.3 percent from 2006 through 2011, while at the same time, there was an increase in the Consumer Price Index by 11.6 percent, said the American Animal Medical Association.

According to Seve Siadak, the owner of Healthy Paws Pet Insurance, the reason that veterinary costs are rising as quickly as they are is that newer procedures – such as teeth cleaning, cancer treatments, and knee surgery – have come available for these fuzzy family members, and these prices are combined with inflation.

Though this is the case, and it is widely known among American animal owners who are watching their vet care bills rise, less than 1 percent of the estimated 1.71 million cats and dogs in the country have pet insurance coverage. This is tremendously lower than in the United Kingdom, where 26 percent of cats and dogs are covered, and in the Netherlands, where 48 percent have a policy.

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Dog Owners Praise Pet Insurance After Close Call

A dog in Emerald Isle found himself in a life-threatening situation after doing what dogs are known for doing-eating something they shouldn't have. The owners are urging other dog owners to keep their pets safe, and insured, because they never suspected their dog Luke would be in such a serious situation.

One golf ball is all it took to put Luke, an 83-pound black lab, in a situation where he was fighting for his life.

"I didn't know if I was going to see him again so I said goodbye," said 12-year-old George Ricks.

"It was kinda scary because he's a really good dog and he's the best dog I could ask for," said George's twin brother Nelson.

Nelson and George Ricks are 12-year old identical twins. They live in Emerald Isle with their parents and their 7-year old dog Luke. The boys were hitting golf balls at their grandmother's place nearby. Luke fetched one and swallowed it.

After failed attempts to get him to throw up the ball at the house, and then at the vet. The family took Luke to Coastal Veterinary Emergency Clinic in Jacksonville.

"They decided to administer, or do exploratory emergency surgery," said Noelle Ricks.

An hour-long surgery into Luke's stomach followed. Noelle was out of town. All she could do was wait and hope.

"Luke is treated like one of our own children and just to, to get that call that everything's okay, just a huge sense of relief," said Noelle.

Luke pulled through and is at a hunting camp right now with a handler in Piney Grove.

Noelle says looking back, signing on with veterinary pet insurance when Luke was a puppy turned out to be a great decision. She says the surgery would have cost them $1,300 dollars. Instead, it cost them $50. The family says other dog owners in eastern carolina should think about insurance too because dogs are unpredictable.

Luke is up for the Veterinary Pet Insurance company's "Hambone" award. Each month the company picks the pet with the most unusual claim, and at the end of the year the 12 finalists are voted on for a winner. If Luke wins he gets a bag of toys. The vet who operated on him will get $10,000. You can find the nominees at the link below.

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How much will pet insurance cost?

The cost of pet insurance differ from each cases and it depends on a lot of different factors such as where you live, your pet's species, age, breed and most importantly, the product you choose. As pet insurance is so specific to each and every pet, there is no fixed cost to insure your best friend so it's important to make sure you do some research to find out which policy suits you best both in terms of cost and benefits.

There are tons of insurance providers in the market offering pet insurance, it can be difficult to decide which policy is right for you and your pet. Make sure you ask some of the following questions to be sure you get the best pet insurance you can.

Why do you need pet insurance?

Veterinary medicine are now employing advance techniques and modern drugs that can be expensive. Each year pets may require an unexpected visit to the vet that may surprise you and ruin your budget. This is why pet insurance is such an important part of responsible pet ownership and studies shows that more people claim against their pet insurance policy than on their household or car insurance.

History of Pet insurance

Claes Virgin wrote the first pet insurance policy in 1890, he was the founder of Länsförsäkrings Alliance, at that time he focused on horses and livestock. In 1947 the first pet insurance policy was sold in Britain. As of 2009, Britain has the second-highest level of pet insurance in the world (23%), behind only Sweden. In 1982, the first pet insurance policy was sold in the United States, and issued to television's Lassie by Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI).

When the pet insurance became recognised and sought after which resulted in an increase in the number of players within the pet insurace market.

Pet insurance

Pet insurance covers part or the total veterinary treatment of the injuries or illness of the insured pet. There are also policies that pay when the pet dies, lost, or have been stolen.

Due to increasing cost of veterinary medicine because of the advancement of their techniques and drugs, the market for pet insurance has increased.

Pet insurance is not an adaptation to human health insurance it is a form of property insurance. Pet insurance reimburses the owner after the pet has received care and the owner submits a claim to the insurance company.

In UK there are policies that pay 100% of vets fees, however it is still common for UK pet insurance companies to discount their policies by offering customers the chance to pay an "excess", just as with motor insurance. Excess fees can range from £50 to £100.

In the US and Canada, policies either pay off a benefit schedule or pay a percentage of the vet costs, after reaching a deductible, depending on the company and the policy. The owner usually pays the amount due to the veterinarian and then sends in the claim form and receives reimbursement, which some companies and policies limit according to their own schedules of necessary and usual charges. For very high bills, some veterinarians allow the owner to put off payment until the insurance claim is processed. Some insurers pay veterinarians directly on behalf of customers. Most American and Canadian policies require the pet owner to submit a request for fees incurred.

Previously, most pet insurance plans did not pay for preventative care (such as vaccinations) or elective procedures (such as neutering). Recently, however, some companies in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States are offering routine-care coverage, sometimes called comprehensive coverage. Dental care, prescription drugs and alternative treatments, such as physiotherapy and acupuncture, are also covered by some providers.

The two categories of insurance policies for pets:

  1. non-lifetime - it covers buyers for most conditions suffered by their pet during the course of a policy year but, on renewal in a following year, a condition that has been claimed for will be excluded. If that condition needs further treatment the pet owner will have to pay for that him/herself.

  2. lifetime - it covers a pet for ongoing conditions throughout the pet’s lifetime so that, if a condition is claimed for in the first year, it will not be excluded in subsequent years. However, lifetime policies also have limits: some have limits “per condition”, others have limits “per condition, per year”, and others have limits “per year”, all of which have different implications for a pet owner whose pet needs treatment year after year, so it is wise to be clear which type of lifetime policy you are considering.

In addition, companies often limit coverage for pre-existing conditions in order to eliminate fraudulent consumers, thus giving owners an incentive to insure even very young animals, who are not expected to incur high veterinary costs while they are still healthy. There is usually a short period after a pet insurance policy is bought when the holder will be unable to claim for sickness, often no more than 14 days from inception. This is to cover illnesses contracted before the pet was covered but whose symptoms appeared only after coverage has begun.

Some insurers offer options not directly related to pet health, including covering boarding costs for animals whose owners are hospitalized, or costs (such as rewards or posters) associated with retrieving lost animals. Some policies also include travel cancellation coverage if owners must remain with pets who need urgent treatment or are dying.

Some British policies for dogs also include third-party liability insurance. Thus, for example, if a dog causes a car accident that damages a vehicle, the insurer will pay to rectify the damage for which the owner is responsible under the Animals Act 1971.