Pet insurance comes in all shapes and sizes

Types of pet insurance policy cover

Whether you’ve just got the one pet, or a whole pack, they’re part of the family. And we like you would do anything to help them if they were to fall ill or suffer an injury.

Our cats and dogs don’t know how lucky they are, they never have to spend time comparing insurance deals, like pet parents do. When seeing what’s out there on the market it’s important to do your research to help find a policy that works for you and your pet. Insurers offer different benefits and levels of cover so you could end up not being covered for certain treatments if you don’t read the fine print. The good news is you’ve come to the UK’s number one pet insurer to learn more about types of policies and what each one provides.

Different types of pet insurance

Lifetime

Covers your pet for their entire life providing you renew every year.

Time-limited

Allows you to make a claim for a medical condition up to a specified amount for a limited time.

Accident-only

Only covers vet fees for sudden, unexpected injuries.

Maximum benefit

Covers each new medical condition up to a certain amount for the length of the policy.


Lifetime pet insurance

You will hopefully have a long and happy relationship with your pet over many years. Our Covered For Life® plan provides ongoing help with vet bills to support you throughout your pet's lifetime.

The Vet Bills cover refreshes every year when you renew your policy enabling you to continue to claim for the same condition over and over again.

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Covered For Life® plan

Our Covered For Life® plan provides ongoing help with vet bills. There is a choice of either £4k, £7k or £12k for vet bills every year.

You can continue to claim year after year for the same condition up to your chosen yearly limit providing you renew with no break in cover. This provides ongoing help with vet bills to cover the cost of treating long term conditions such as eczema or diabetes.

We can pay your vet directly so you don't have to find the money first and our Claims Pricing Guarantee means you'll never pay more for claiming.

Time-limited pet insurance

If your pet is ill or injured it can be a very worrying time and having Petplan insurance can help you get your pet the care they need. Our Essential plan provides short-term help with vet bills.

Once you reach the monetary or time limit no further cover is provided for that condition but you can claim for any new conditions that arise.

Essential plan

Our Essential plan provides short-term help with vet bills. You can claim 12 months treatment up to £3,000 per illness/injury.

Once you reach either of these limits, no further cover will be provided for that condition so you will need to fund any further treatment yourself. You can still claim for new conditions.

We can pay your vet directly so you don't have to find the money first and our Claims Pricing Guarantee means you'll never pay more for claiming.

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Accident-only pet insurance

We don’t offer this type of policy because we don’t believe it provides the best care possible for your pet. Accident-only pet insurance is often the most affordable type of pet insurance policy as it provides a fixed sum of money for each new injury. Although this could be cheaper in the short term, it doesn’t cover for illness and there could be a financial cap on pay outs.

Pet illnesses are more common than you might think. 90% of the claims we see from our customers’ pets are for illness, so there is a risk that accident-only cover will result in you needing to pay veterinary bills yourself if your pet becomes ill. It’s important to get the right policy from the start, as it’s difficult to switch insurers once your pet has had an illness or injury as pre-existing conditions aren’t usually covered.

Maximum-benefit pet insurance

If you’re asking yourself ‘What is max benefit insurance?’ or wondering about the difference between this and lifetime cover, then you’ve come to the right place.

Maximum-benefit pet insurance gives you a pre-set amount to spend on each injury or illness with no time limit. If your pet develops a long-term health condition or needs ongoing treatment for an injury, for example, you can claim as many times as you need to until the maximum benefit has been reached. However, after this you’ll no longer be able to claim for that illness or injury even if your pet needs further treatment.

When it comes to determining which plan is right for you, consider what’s best for your pet and your circumstances. You may only be able to afford short-term cover, or you may just want to try it for a year and see if you want to continue. Your pet’s age and the common illnesses associated with the breed can both be factors – not to mention their propensity for getting into mischief! There are lots of policies available so it’s important to check what’s on the market and compare your options.

No matter which type of insurance you go for, it’s best to have it in place before you need it. That way you’ll be more able to deal with the bills if the unexpected happens and your pet can stay happy and healthy for as long as possible.

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We also offer a multi-pet discount if you have more than one furry friend



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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best type of pet insurance?

Different types of pet insurance provide different levels of cover. Which one is right for you and your pet depends on the level of vet-fee cover you require. Find out more about our Covered for Life® and Essential policies with a no-obligation quote.

Do pet insurance premiums go up after a claim?

Many other insurers restrict cover with hidden limits and caveats in an effort to create cheaper products, or pricing to attract new business and then rocketing up premiums when customers claim. We do things a little differently – offering the best breadth of veterinary fee cover by not increasing premiums based on individual claims.

We won’t penalise you for claiming. Your policy premium will increase as your pet grows older but we won’t suddenly hike your premium simply because you’ve claimed. We believe pet ownership is a long-term commitment, and we’re here with long-term support to help you give your pet the best care possible.

What is the most affordable pet insurance?

There is no straight answer to this but here at Petplan Our Covered for Life® policies make vet fees more affordable in the long term, as they include more comprehensive cover than what you might get with other insurers– including dental illness, injury, and behavioural conditions. Making your decision on price alone can really limit your pet’s care.

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