Best Cheap Pet Insurance

What Is Pet Insurance?

Pet insurance is like a health insurance policy for your pet. Among other things, it can pay for the medical costs of your pet as well as reimburse you for additional expenses such as microchipping and euthanasia expenses.

Reimbursement-based pet insurance typically covers veterinary expenses before you submit a claim to your insurer. Embrace and Pets Best are a few insurers that offer direct payments to your veterinarian. This way you will be able to keep out-of-pocket costs low.

Pet insurance usually has a deductible before coverage starts. For example, you might pay the first $250 in veterinarian bills before the pet insurance starts to pay.

Your deductible will not cover 100 percent of your vet expenses even if the payment has been met. It's possible to select your reimbursement level. For example, typical payments are 70, 80, or 90 percent. A few policies offer a 100 percent reimbursement option, such as Figo and TrustedPals.

What Does Pet Insurance Cover?

What kinds of coverage are covered by pet insurance will vary depending on the insurance plan you buy. There are three main types of pet insurance plans:

• Accident and sickness plans (the most common). 
• Accident-only plans. 
• Wellness plans (typically available as an add-on) for routine care, including flea tick prevention and vaccinations.

An accident plan covers injuries and illness, such as broken bones, congenital conditions, cancer, and more. Accident-only plans cover only accident-related issues, such as a broken bone or twisted ligament.

Your pet insurance company may have the option to add a routine wellness plan to a policy. This can offset the cost of annual vet wellness visits, heartworm treatment, vaccinations and other routine care costs that help keep your pet healthy.

Pet insurance may not be intended to cover preexisting medical conditions (preexisting conditions, including waiting periods, that your pet had before your policy began). But pet insurance may not exclude these preexisting conditions. For example, Nationwide pet insurance may extend coverage if you have medical records that show your pet has been treated for a certain condition.

How to Find Cheap Pet Insurance

Review the pet insurance plan with your veterinarian

If you intend to make the most out of your plan, see your veterinarian. He can assist you in finding the greatest coverage. Contemplate the increased risk for certain breeds before you buy a policy.

It is essential to remember that some breeds of animals are more susceptible to particular hereditary conditions than others. This can allow a veterinarian to detect potential health problems your pet may develop before they occur, suggests Dr. Randy Aronson, a veterinarian adviser at betterpet.org.

Compare pet insurance plans

The cost of pet insurance can vary significantly from one company to another. That is why it's smart to compare pet insurance quotes from several companies before making any decisions.

Try to compare and contrast different plans using the same strategy, such as coverage levels, reimbursement levels and deductibles. Keep in mind that coverage features can differ while still remaining similar. For instance, some plans do not include access to an emergency veterinary line that is available 24 hours a day, which can prove valuable for late-night pet medical emergencies.

Regardless of your chosen goal, it's essential to not focus only on the price of insurance for your pet. Conversely, it's also crucial for you to think about other factors, such as the availability of 24-hour veterinary assistance and the ability to pay your vet directly.

Buy an accident-only policy

Accident and illness pet health insurance policies are typically the most expensive since they cover a massive number of maladies, like broken bones, damaged ligaments, hereditary conditions, cancer, emergency room visits, hospitalization, and prescription medicine.

If you're comfortable accepting more financial risks, you could save money by opting for a pet medical insurance plan that affords less coverage.

For example, some pet insurance companies will only offer accident-oriented policies that solely cover expenses arising from incidents such as animal bites or poisonings. Because accident-oriented plans are not as comprehensive, they cost less than an accident and illness plan, reducing your insurance cost.

Keep in mind that insurance won't cover the number of medical expenses accrued if you're buying only an accident policy.

Adjust your deductible, reimbursement and coverage levels

The cost of your health plan is affected by the details and terms of your policy. When you acquire a policy, you may typically pick the provisions and terms:

Deductible. The sum of your pet's veterinary charges covered by the policy must exceed $200 every year or exceed $500 every year. 

Reimbursement level. Your insurance provider will cover a portion of your veterinary bills following the completion of your deductible. For example, you might select a policy that reimburses 90% of your veterinary bills.

Coverage caps. Many pet insurance companies gives you the option of selecting an annual reimbursement limit. This means they will only be responsible for paying your vet bills up to this amount each year, such as $5,000. Some pet insurance companies like Spot and Pets Best provide unlimited annual reimbursement limits.

Here are some ways to cut your animal insurance costs:

• Choose a lower reimbursement percentage such as 70%. 
• Choose a higher deductible like $500. 
• Reduce your annual coverage cap like selecting $10,000 instead of unlimited coverage. 

While lowering your deductible, reimbursement and coverage can decrease your veterinary costs, you will have to pay out-of-pocket for more.

Ask for pet insurance discounts

Pet insurance reductions can save you money on your premiums. Here are to check out:

• Multipet discount. You can often receive savings if you insure more than one pet. 
• Spay/neuter discount.  If your pet is spayed or neutered, you may qualify for savings.
• Annual pay discount.  Some insurers offer discounts to customers who make a single lump-sum payment. 
• Employee discount. Some employers offer pet insurance as an incentive, which could vary between a 5- and a 10-percent discount. 
• Military discount. If you are a military member or veteran, you may be eligible for a discount.

Don’t wait to buy coverage

Buying pet insurance as soon as possible is preferable, as your situation may be considered a preexisting condition and excluded from coverage. That means you ll need to pay for any medical expenses related to the condition out-of-pocket.

How Are Pet Insurance Costs Determined?

Some companies utilize different factors for determining pet insurance prices, including insurers:

• Pet’s breed. Certain breeds are susceptible to chronic ailments, which results in greater veterinary expenses.
• Pet’s age. After your pet reaches a certain age, pet insurance prices are usually higher upon renewing the policy.
• Your location. Veterinary costs vary depending on place, so pet insurance costs reflect that.
• Annual maximum, reimbursement level and deductible. Once you've chosen a high yearly maximum, a high reimbursement level and a low enough deductible, your plan will cost more. In some cases, this means you may pay a higher premium every month, since your plan has the potential to pay out much more.

Is Pet Insurance Worth It?

If you’re considering pet insurance, you’re probably wondering if it’s worth it.

Let’s do some math: Suppose you’ve been paying for pet insurance for three years at $34 a month, or $408 a year. Over three years you’ve paid $1,224 in premiums.

Let's say a dog consumes a toy and veterinary services cost $4,000. If you have a pet insurance policy with a $500 deductible and 90 percent reimbursement level, you would incur $850 in expenses for your dog ($500 deductible + 10%  of $3500 = $850).

The result:

• In total, you've paid $2,074 for premiums and your share of the costs for surgery. 
• Without pet insurance, you would have paid $4,000 for the surgery. 
• Pet insurance saved you $1,926 in this case.

For the first time ever, thinking about whether or not to buy pet insurance is wise. Consider the pros and cons to owning and caring for pets before reaching a decision:

• How much do veterinarian expenses like an emergency surgery or treatment for an illness like cancer cost? 
• Would you be able to pay out-of-pocket for your pet's veterinarian bills, particularly for emergency cases?

How to Buy a Pet Insurance Plan

The best way to ensure you are not paying too much for pet health insurance is to comparison shop different companies.

Here's how you can obtain free pet policy quotes:

• Online: You can save time by utilizing a free pet insurance quote website that offers quotes from several pet insurers. You will likely answer a few details about your pet.
• Phone, E-mail or in-person: You can contact a representative from any pet insurance company or an independent agent.