Is pet insurance worth the cost? Yes.
Ok, you probably want a more detailed answer than that, but honestly, we think the answer is that simple. We want every pet in America to be insured because it not only saves money, it saves lives.
In fact, the question every pet parent should be asking is…
What’s the cost of not insuring my pet?
Nobody can predict their pet’s future health. Unfortunately, accidents and illness happen to animals and as pet parents, we’re 100% responsible for their wellbeing.
The worst thing that could happen – and it happens way too frequently – is that an uninsured pet gets hurt or sick and the treatment is more expensive than the pet parent can afford. They can no longer make the best choice for their pet, just the cheapest – and, tragically, this can mean unnecessarily euthanizing a beloved pet.
Pet insurance drastically reduces the cost of treatment, meaning this situation is more often than not avoided. This is why it’s such a great and vital investment for any pet parent.
Is pet insurance better than saving money?
This is a very common question and we get why it’s asked. If you put a few dollars a month into a designated pet savings account and your pet never gets sick or injured, you’ll end up with a big stack of cash to spend on something fun, right? Why give your hard-earned money to some insurance company?
That’s a very risky, and potentially devastating, gamble.
We don’t want to be the bearers of bad news, but the chances of your pet never needing medical treatment are slim at best. Vet bills are expensive and the alternative to paying them isn’t worth thinking about.
A simple X-ray can cost up $250, while hip or knee surgery usually exceeds $5,000 and cancer treatment regularly adds up to over $10,000. And between those, there’s everything from puppies eating the wrong thing and dogs landing awkwardly jumping for a ball, to senior dogs having cataracts.
Let’s imagine you save $50 a month (the average monthly pet insurance premium is around $40) and your pet needs treatment costing $3,000. At a savings interest rate of 2%, it would take you nearly five years to save enough for that bill alone. So what do you do if your pet is only three years old?
How much does pet insurance cost?
The average price of pet insurance is around $40 a month, but how much your pet insurance costs depends on a number of factors. Your dog’s breed, age and medical history may all have an effect, as will your address.
However, whether you have a Bulldog in Beverley Hills or a Rottweiler in Rochester, you can find a plan that will almost certainly save you money in the long term.
Do I have to pay towards vet bills even with insurance?
Yes, you do. When you sign up to any pet insurance plan, you choose an annual coverage limit, an annual deductible, and a reimbursement level (you might know this as copay). So you will have to pay a small percentage of your vet bills.
With just about every pet insurance policy, you’ll need to pay the full bill, then make a claim and wait to be reimbursed (minus any deductible and copay).