Pet Insurance Companies and Claim Policy

In this series of introducing you to pet insurance we went over some of the aspects you need to go over in order to ensure that the policy offers from your desired pet insurance companies are in sync with your pet's needs and financial standing. Continuing with this series another important aspect is that of claims and what the pet insurance companies' policies are in that regard.

Claiming Policy Considerations of  Pet Insurance Companies

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Claims are more or less interlinked with pet insurance cover mainly because they represent  the fulfilment of your policy i.e why you signed up in the first place. From this point of view the policy of the pet insurance companies becomes very important and it will determine how much you will get in reimbursements as well as when and how. Here is a look at the aspects of claims:

Method: Well without even thinking about it, this is at the top of the list. How you are going to get paid will mean a whole lot to you as it represents an important aspect in choosing a policy. In terms of reimbursements there is a lot of processing that goes on. As such you will find that most if not all pet insurance companies will reimburse you based on the actual bill. This means your actual payout will be lower than what you claimed. As a precaution read the policy and carefully examine the language in the policy of the pet insurance companies. Things to look out for include Benefit Schedules !

Actual Payout: This aspect is closely linked to the method or policy of paying out claims found in the documentation. In most cases pet insurance companies will stipulate a what percentage of the vet bill they will be paying. So this means from the time you sign up you have an idea of how much you will get back on your shortfalls. Some pet insurance companies have low rates and some significantly high. This however may differ with the policy you choose. The range could generally be anything between 75% and 95%.

Deductibles: This refers to the amount you pay on your policy whether you have made claims or not. The company treatment of this aspect differs from company to company and as such there is need to find one that suits you. Some pet insurance companies charge you a deductible for every incident while in other companies it maybe per year. Per year is regardless of the number of claim you would have made in that year on your policy. Generally speaking deductibles don't go beyond $1000. Most companies will allow you to choose if they offer both options on deductibles.

Limits on Payouts: Everywhere were insurance is sold, there will always be some limit of some sort to how much the company can reimburse it's clients. Companies have different approaches to limits and some define it in several ways. The three quite common limits are reimbursement limits, annual limits, per incident limits and lifetime limits. A good insurance policy will have a limit of at least $5000 going on wards. Use this as a criteria when considering pet insurance companies to buy from.

Processing: As mentioned above you will find that claiming is not as easy as it may appear on the advert of pet insurance companies. As companies get more and more client the backlog of claims will pile up one way or the other. So in order to fight or avoid this you can opt to look for a policy that has: your medical files on record, works with your vet directly. More importantly also check how long it would take you to get reimbursed all things being equal. Processing therefore is a bridge between your cover and reimbursement.

Other aspects you might want to consider may include the customer service and the insurance ratings of the company compared to other pet insurance companies. In terms of evaluating customer service use third party independent websites in order to determine which company offers the best service . In terms of ratings make sure that the A.M. Rating(which is a measure of the financial stability) is a good grade. This will help you forecast whether the company is capable of giving you sufficient cover in the foreseeable future.

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Pet Insurance Policy and Evaluating Policy Coverage

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Pet insurance policy is something that is facing an ever growing market. This is mainly due to the increases in vet costs as well as the desire by pet owners for better living and health standards of their pets. As the info-graphic from Petpremium on the right shows, just a few pet insurance companies are offering pet insurance but there is still a need for the pet owner to review their options and make sure they choose a pet insurance policy and company that is suitable for their financial standing and the needs of the pet.

Evaluating a Pet Insurance Policy for Coverage

Coverage is important because it is the reason why you are getting the insurance in the first place and as such you find that you need be able to know what the policy does and doesn't cover. Some people just get a policy and then discover a few months later that the policy doesn't cover pre-conditions. This can be a major problem especially when you have been paying your policy!! Here are some key areas you need to focus on to ensure you know what you are covered for:

Waiting Period: This is an important factor in pet insurance policy as it determines when you will be able to claim anything on your policy. Most if not all pet insurance companies have a waiting period which actually begins from the day you enrol a pet  with them. On average the waiting period for accidents and any illness as mentioned in the Introduction is 2 weeks. This is a standard across all these pt insurance companies. However the waiting period factor plays an important role in cases of orthopedic issues. What is common in such a cases is a waiting period of about 12 months. It is important to know this waiting period as per your pet insurance policy so that you can forecast your expenses in anticipation of unforeseen circumstances.

Pet Congenital Conditions: These conditions include conditions like that of hip dysplasia, heart defects and so on. You will find that most pet insurance companies don't cover these so it is important to check your pet for such conditions and getting some cover that caters for the above. Finding a pet insurance policy that covers congenital conditions will go a long way in savings on your vet bills. The most common of these are hip dyplasia as well as some ligament tears. With respect to cover check whether they offer bilateral cover which may be a crucial part of the treatment of your pet.

Exclusions: Your desired pet insurance policy may have certain exclusions which may affect what your pet will or can claim on the insurance policy. The good thing about pet insurance companies is that they provide a list of all the exclusions in their policy documents. Make sure  that you read and  know what is not included in the policy and whether it affects what you might want your policy to cover.

Age limit: Age is actually a limiting factor in insurance terms. Age represents a risk and with old age comes a lot of uncertainties which my outweigh what your policy is covering. As a result pet insurance companies use age to limit who can enrol and what they qualify for on a pet insurance policy. Policies differ from pet insurance company to company but some limit the maximum age for enrolment while others reduce the options. Age limit is a crucial consideration if your pet is old.

Wellness Cover: This is an expensive addition to the pet insurance that aims to provide cover for common expenses you may incur, They range from vaccinations to over the counter drugs. This coverage is expensive due to the fact that you can make claims and benefit immediately.

Before you buy ensure you evaluate the coverage of the pet insurance policy being offered by the pet insurance company you wish to enrol with. 

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Animal Insurance, A Comprehensive Introduction

What is animal Insurance

Animal insurance is an extension of property insurance whereby a policy is subscribed to and will pay for the treatment of the animal to the extent specified or applicable as per animal insurance policy. Some policies pay partly and some in total which all depends on the policies and qualification criteria. The need for animal insurance is ever increasing as more and more vet services are advancing in treatment techniques and drugs. This has caused the bill for the vet services to ever increase year after year. Furthermore the animal care campaigns have been doing their work and more and more pet owner are keen to provide their pets with higher standards of living and health care.

How does Animal Insurance Work

While it is popular belief that animal insurance is an extension of human health insurance, it is actually more of a property insurance. In such a case you will find that you first have to incur the cost of the vet on your own and then submit a claim with your insurance company as opposed to filling a claim form before the pet is treated. Wikipedia gives an example of the UK policies stating that:

"UK policies may pay 100% of vets'  fees as part of animal insurance, but this is not always the case. It is 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 £40 to £100."

Comparing that information with statistics in America you will find that in the USA and in Canada policies often pay a percentage of the cost(usually upto 90%) after reaching the deductible which depends on the company which the individual is insured with and also the policy they signed up for. So as mentioned above the owner will have to pay for the vet costs then submit a claim form with the company they insured with. In me cases you find that there are certain policies here in America whereby the insurance company will pay the vet directly on behalf of customers however most cases usually require the customer to fill out a claim form for the fees they would have incurred.

Over the years animal insurance didn't cover preventative care and this includes treatment to prevent diseases like vaccinations and other related procedures for example neutering. Recent development have seen quite a number of companies in Canada and the United States as well as the UK offer what is termed comprehensive coverage. Things like dental care and alternative treatments( which includes special treatment like acupuncture) are actually covered by some policies provided by certain insurance companies.

Lifetime and Non-Lifetime

Non-Lifetime: This is one of the two categories you find in animal insurance. In this case the owner can insure their pet and claim on condition that the pet suffers in the year which the policy is valid, however if the policy is renewed it is not possible to claim the same condition again and hence the owner will have to bear the extra costs as a result.

Lifetime: On the other hand lifetime is a category of animal insurance whereby the condition can be claimed for subsequent years throughout the pet's lifetime. The major limitation with this kind of animal insurance is that it has some kind of limit imposed on it which my include limits like: per condition, per condition/year, and per year. So as a pet owner it is always advisable to do some extensive research on the kind of pet insurance which tallies with your financial standing as well as the needs of your pet.

In order to fight fraud some policies have a 'waiting period' in which the pet owner is not able to claim and usually the period is a fortnight, more or less. This policy is a way to avoid providing cover for a pet which got ill before coverage but whose symptoms only started showing after cover was bought.  Some extensions of animal insurance is third party liability insarance and this is animal insurance aimed at covering any potential damages a pet may cause e.g a dog causes a road accident.

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Advantages of Getting Pet Insurance

In most conversations whenever the issue of insurance is raised, it is quite rare to hear an in-depth conversation about pet insurance. It is almost by default that insurance in many people's minds is associated with home insurance, car, health or life insurance. However this is a different story all together and the issue of insurance is a cause for concern. There are quite a number of Advantages of getting pet insurance for your pet and here is a look at some of them in detail:

Exploring the advantages of getting pet insurance

The main reason why pet insurance is getting such hype and attention from pet owners is owing to it's affordability. Essentially affordability is one of the primary advantages of getting pet insurance. However it is worthwhile to note that prices tend to differ from company to company . The price is also determined by the length which the policy is take for , the cover benefits it includes as well as the required deductibles and relating policies of the insurance plan. In-spite of these factor it is relatively easy to get insurance from any of the top insurance companies in the USA . With some careful research and analysis you will find that it is quite easy to find one.

A common thing with any kind of insurance is that it seems like it is never enough or fails to provide sufficient cover.  It has always been hard to get full insurance and maintain it for other kinds of insurance like health.However wit pet insurance getting full coverage for your pet is relatively easy.  All inclusive cover seems to be very efficient with regards to claims and reimbursements as well as in emergencies.

The approval time for the pet insurance is usually easier than any other kind of insurance. So this means getting the insurance is hassle free and ensures that you enrol faster for your policy.

Here are some extracts from an Empower Network page:

The gist of having a pet insurance policy is to make sure that in terms of medical emergencies and accidents, your pets are well provided for. When unforeseen circumstances happen, it would be difficult for the pet owner to come up with a big amount immediately. How many pet owners were forced to touch their personal funds for the sake of their pets.

This brings out n important aspect of the advantages of getting pet insurance

Depending on the kind of insurance plan, coverage could also include vaccinations, spray, neuter and even flea medications. Veterinary costs are increasing fast. There are already sophisticated medications that could deal with your pet’s sickness. Having a pet insurance could actually save your beloved animal from euthanasia.

Aside from medical reasons, there are also insurances that could cover rewards, posters, advertising and financial assistance for pet owners whose pets have been stolen. In these cases, insurance companies could even provide assistance in acquiring a new pet.

Another kind of insurance will be for kennels and boarding, which will answer to the question when something bad happens to the owner and nobody could take the pets in. A pet insurance policy could help with the cost of kennels and boarding.

Here is a video from Embrace Pet Insurance which further drives home the point as to why a pet owner should get pet insuarance.

 

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