Is pet insurance coverage worth it?

A recent question that was posed for my News Corp Gen Y column is whether pet insurance is worth it for most households.

Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the planet, with an estimated 63 % of households possessing at least 1 pet, according to the Animal Well being Alliance of Australia. Not surprisingly dogs are the most typical pet (yes, I am a dog person) numbering around 4.2 million. Both dogs and cats are an integral element of our life and for most households I’d recommend that they are worth insuring.

There are diverse types of pet insurance coverage accessible although and the product you choose will impact the price. In broad terms, pet owners can pick among accident-only cover (widespread accidents), accident and illness cover (accidents plus typical non-preventable illnesses) and extensive cover (same as ahead of plus some cover for routine therapies).  Other elements affecting the expense are the sort, age and size of your animal. As a rule of thumb even though, recent CANSTAR research calculated that for a 3 year-old dog, accident cover will set you back about $ 230 – $ 260 per year accident and illness cover is about $ 540 to $ 700 per year and complete cover is $ 620 – $ 870 per year. Cats are cheaper.

It’s essential to be conscious of benefit limitations on policies although. For example you could uncover that emergency surgery fees are covered, but only up to, say, $ 3,000. If the surgery bill ends up at $ 10,000, you will be in for a nasty shock. Also be conscious of exclusions. For instance, skipping a vaccination could void your cover for that situation.

So the bottom line is that yes, I think family members pets are worth the cost of the insurance – but read your policy carefully to make certain you have selected a great-good quality cover. CANSTAR’s annual Pet Insurance coverage Star Ratings are a fantastic place to start your search!

Is pet insurance coverage worth it?