Pet Insurance
As every pet-owner knows, the costs of caring for an animal of any size are on-going. However, in the event of injury or illness, large expenses can be incurred out of the blue to cover veterinary fees.
There are basically three types of Pet Insurance Policies available: Lifelong Cover, Individual Condition Cover and Annual Cover.
Lifelong Cover
Lifelong cover insures your pet for its whole life. It is the most expensive type of cover because it provides of ongoing cover. The policy needs to be renewed annually, but tends not to exclude cover for pre-existing conditions and / or for conditions which you have claimed for on the insurance before.
For example, if you made a claim for veterinary treatment for arthritis last year, you will still be able to claim for arthritis treatment in the future. Depending on your policy, the number of times you can claim may be unlimited. However, the total amount you can claim is usually capped on an annual basis.
Excess fees will apply to any claims made – and, depending on your policy, these fees can be quite steep.
Individual Condition Cover
Individual condition cover is a less comprehensive kind of cover. Your insurance provider will set a maximum amount you can claim for each new condition, which may be subject to a time limit (usually 12 months if stated), although most insurers do not place a time limit.
As a result, you can make as many claims as required, providing each claim is for treatment for a new condition not claimed for previously.
While your individual condition cover premiums are cheaper than lifelong cover, the cover for a particular condition included in our policy will terminate when you have claimed the maximum amount. Individual condition cover is therefore not suitable for the ongoing treatment of long-term illnesses.
Annual Cover
Annual cover is the cheapest but least flexible kind of cover. It is similar to per condition cover but with a restriction on the period of time a condition can be claimed for (usually 12 months from the first treatment date). It will therefore cover treatments for illnesses, injury and disease for up to 12 months or once the maximum limit per condition is reached. Some insurers may also restrict the maximum amount you can claim over the 12 months.
It is not suitable for insuring medium or long-term illnesses, but is the most economical way to cover off ad-hoc treatments such as surgery and therapy for short-term conditions.