You might need to find some funds in a hurry for medical costs if your pet has an accident or serious illness.
Owning a pet is a privilege and providing health care is just one of the expenses you need to be prepared for, just like providing food.
Pet insurance is becoming more and more popular in Australia. It offers you peace of mind as it covers some or all of the treatment costs if your pet is ever involved in an accident or suffers a sudden illness. There is no equivalent of Medicare for pets, thus treatment costs often exceed what an equivalent problem would cost for a human patient.
Did you know that 24 hr emergency care for animals can cost over $1,000 per day? Some surgeries such as repair of fractured bones or exploratory surgery can also add up to thousands of dollars. Often that does not even include the recovery and aftercare treatment. It is a heartbreaking situation to have to choose between the health of your pet and financial constraints. So for peace of mind we strongly recommend that your pet is insured.
There are many different policies available
What are the benefits of taking out pet insurance?
- Peace of mind knowing you can provide your pet with costly life saving treatment in the case of emergencies
- Relieve some financial burden by being covered for ongoing health issues
- Allow your pet to receive gold standard medical treatment
- Covers the costs of looking after your pet if you have to go into hospital for emergency medical treatment
- Receive financial reimbursement when advertising and offering a reward for lost or stolen pets
- Covers the cost of emergency veterinary treatment for your pet if you take it abroad
What types of pet insurance policies are available?
The cover provided by different products can vary considerably. Policies range from accident-only to lifetime cover. You should choose the type of product and the level of cover to meet your needs. Take the time to compare policies and consider the differences. Pay particular attention to the claim excess amount, proportion of treatment costs covered, annual claim limit, age restrictions, pre-existing illness exclusions and policy costs.
Click here for a list of companies offering pet insurance. We don’t recommend any specific scheme, as all policies are different. Check the details of each option to see whether it meets your needs, or ask a qualified insurance advisor about what will suit you best.
What is not covered?
All policies will have some exclusions. The most common being pre-existing conditions (those your pet has already suffered from before the insurance is taken out). Anything related to pregnancy or birth and any routine, preventative or planned treatments (such as vaccinations, spaying and so on) will also be excluded. Most policies have illness waiting periods from the start of a policy which range from 10 to 30 days.
We highly recommend pet insurance and encourage you to discuss it with us at your next visit.
Submitting a claim
Please complete and print a relevant claim form from your policy provider. If you would like us to post directly to the insurance company please include an addressed and stamped envelope when dropping off your claim form. Alternatively we can contact you when your form is ready to be picked up.
PetPlan Claim Form
Medibank Claim Form
RSPCA Claim Form
Pet Insurance Australia Claim Form
Real Insurance Claim Form