Perhaps the two most disheartening things I saw in my 42 years of practicing small animal medicine and surgery were: pets suffering from something that was entirely preventable clients who were financially unprepared to pay for the care needed to treat their seriously ill pet and had to opt for less than ideal diagnostics and treatment - often leading to deterioration of the pet's condition, and sadly, sometimes even euthanasia. They hadn't planned ahead. Preventing costly accidents and illnesses is without a doubt the best way to save money on your pet's healthcare. The absolute best resource ..read more

"Pet insurance provides pet owners peace of mind when it comes to paying unexpected and expensive veterinary bills." It's an often quoted statement (or something similar) the pet pet insurance industry uses when promoting their product. Here is just one example of many I found from Avery Insurance's website: "Pet insurance is an easy way to protect your pet’s health and help mitigate the stress of expensive bills and allows those who haven’t had the time to ramp up their savings to get their pet on the road to recovery. And it provides you with peace of mind in the...      ..read more

Insuring multiple pets can be cost prohibitive for many households, but it need not be. Many pet insurance companies (not all) offer multi-pet discounts. However, it is usually around 5 - 10% which doesn't move the needle that much. Metlife (formerly Petfirst) offers a Family Plan, and as far as I know, it's the only company that offers such a plan. This is how it was explained to me by a company representative: You can insure up to 3 pets on a single policy. They all share the annual maximum, but only one pet has to meet the deductible. The...         ..read more

I recently published a podcast episode interview with a pet parent who over the past 20 years, has insured 4 dogs as puppies and 1 rescue at the age of 9 yrs. old. She’s been reimbursed over $70,000 in claims for all her dogs to date. She makes a compelling case for why pet insurance is worth it. She also offers some great advice for both those considering insuring their pet and those who already have pet insurance.       Related Stories Pet Insurance 2021 - 3 Takeaways From NAPHIA's State Of The Industry Report Pet Insurance Tip: Exam Fee Coverage Watch Out For ..read more

I recently received a summary of the North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA) 2021 State of the Industry Report. Below are some notable stats for the United States: The pet insurance industry has grown at an annual rate of 24.2% over the past 5 years. The average monthly premium is $49.92 ($599.03 annually) for dogs The average monthly premium is $28.44 ($341.35 annually) for cats 82.9% of insured pets are dogs 17.1% of insured pets are cats There were 76.3 million cats and 75.8 million dogs owned in the U.S. in 2020 There are 3.1 million insured pets in...    &n ..read more

When customizing a pet insurance policy, it's very important to know which variables have the biggest impact on your premium and which variables have the biggest impact on your out-of-pocket expenses (premium included). Pet insurance companies allow you to customize your policy primarily by allowing you to choose among several annual maximums, deductibles or reimbursement percentages. Some companies allow you to customize only one of these variables and some companies allow you customize all 3 of these variables. I’m using Embrace pet insurance company to illustrate this. Embrace allows you to ..read more

Some pet insurance companies include coverage for consultation/examination fees in their policy. Others make it optional coverage you can include when getting a quote. A few just don't cover exam fees. I've had pet owners ask me, "Why wouldn't this be covered because a vet has to exam my pet to find out what's wrong and treat it?" A subtle reason (I suspect) some companies don't cover this or make it optional is to deter you from taking your pet to the vet for relatively minor ailments to decrease the number of claims filed. There are several reason you might...       ..read more

Pawp is a veterinary telemedicine service that offers it's members 24/7 access to a team of veterinarians that will answer their pet healthcare questions. A $3000 emergency fund is also included that can be accessed once annually if a pet needs emergency treatment. Up to 6 pets in a household can have access to this emergency fund. You must consult with one of Pawp's veterinarians who will decide if a pet needs emergency attention. If they recommend you visit your vet or an emergency clinic, you must visit the vet within 4 hours of referral to get access to the...       ..read more

I get a lot of quotes as part of doing research for my blog, books, and podcast. I've noticed that companies don't always present all the options available on their quote page. Why wouldn't they want potential policyholders to know all they have to offer them? I'll explain what I think is going on, but first let's look at some examples of what I'm referring to. Nationwide: Here is a quote on a puppy: What they initially showed me was their Major Medical policies with and without wellness care benefits. These policies reimburse according to a defined benefit schedule rather...     ..read more

You've probably seen comparison tools or tables on company websites where they compare themselves with the competition. Have you ever wondered if you could rely on the information presented? Watch this brief video as I explain what information is potentially valuable and when you should use caution in interpreting the information provided. (Watch full screen if you can). Comparison tables on pet insurance company websites from Doug Kenney on Vimeo. Here's a link to the Trustedpals website and the Pet Insurance Toolkit.        Related Stories How Important Ar ..read more