Questions to Ask When Choosing Pet Insurance
Choosing the right pet insurance can be overwhelming; it is as complicated as looking for human insurance and it makes my head spin! Luckily Tomer knows all things pet insurance and wrote out the following questions to ask when choosing pet insurance.
Even though your pet has been diagnosed with diabetes and insurance will not cover treatment for diabetes, insurance will cover wellness and many other medical issues. To read about the benefits of pet insurance, please click here.
The following list of questions to ask when choosing pet insurance is very thorough and can be printed.
Coverage questions:
- Are there exclusions or limitations by breed?
- Is there one simple plan (accidents and/or health) or multiple plans (accidents and/or health and wellness) with varying coverage limits? What are the policy limits for each plan offered? Are they per year? Per conditions, for the life of the pet?
- Are hereditary and congenital conditions covered? If so, are there limits to the coverage?
- What pre-existing conditions can be covered and if so, do I need to buy an add on for that? If so, are there any limitations to the coverage or conditions that must be satisfied to get this coverage?
- What pre-existing conditions will never be covered?
- Can a previously covered condition become a pre-existing condition upon renewal? What about if you change coverage limits and/or deductible?
- Does coverage change when visiting a specialist or an emergency room versus my primary vet?
- Does insurance restrict the choice of vets for coverage?
- Is dental coverage included? If so, is it only for accidents or also illness?
- Are all prescription drugs and supplements covered? How about prescription food?
- Is there coverage for holistic medicine?
- Is wellness care (vaccines, spay/neuter, flea, heartworm prevention, etc.) an option or mandatory coverage with the policy? Are there limits to this coverage?
Claims questions:
- Does the provider offer direct payments to the vet at checkout?
- If there are no direct payments, what is the average time to receive reimbursements?
- Does the provider offer pre-approval to ensure coverage?
- What is needed to send in a claim? How long does it take to process?
- If the condition is life threatening, is there a way to speak to a representative outside of usual business hours like during holidays or weekends?
General questions:
- What are the waiting periods (if exist) upon enrollment? Are they longer for orthopedic, hereditary or congenital conditions? Is there a way to waive them?
- How does the deductible work? Is it per year? Per condition? Per body part? Per Condition AND per year?
- How flexible are your deductible options? Are you given specific amounts? Or can you adjust to best fit your budget? Can you change the deductible without affecting coverage?
- Are there penalties for making changes to your policy?
- Are premium increases on a predetermined schedule? Are premiums fixed?
- Is there a minimum or maximum age of coverage?
- Is there coverage in all states? (if in the US)
- Can the policy be canceled for any reason other than non-payment?
I hope these questions help you when deciding which pet insurance is most suitable for you and your pet!
A big thank you to Tomer for providing the questions to ask!
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please start a conversation below.
For a printable version of this blog click here.
Until next week stay comfy, don’t stress and you got this!
Michelle Miller-Matlock
AAHA Certified Diabetes Educator
Founder/Administrator of DDO: Diabetic Dog Owners University
Administrator of Diabetic Dog Owners on Facebook
Want to learn all you can in a simple and easy to follow format? Please join DDO-U: Diabetic Dog Owners University , graciously sponsored by PetTest.
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Do you need a blood glucose meter kit for your diabetes arsenal? Click here to purchase one if you live in the USA. Click here to purchase a meter kit if you live in Canada.
PetTest USA link: https://shoppettest.com/
Link to PetTest Canada: https://pettest.ca/
If you live in Australia, Wantsa Medical offers PetTest products.
UK residents can purchase PetTest Supplies from Home Health UK.
New Zealand now has PetTest products through VetPost.
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