Daily Paws

Pet news, tips, entertainment and opinions from VetLocator.com

Archive for the ‘Pet Insurance’ Category

Pet Health Care Insurance, What You Need To Know

Tuesday, August 21st, 2012

by asterix611

How many times have you heard a pet owner wish he had bought pet health insurance?

Statistics show that people are willing to foot the growing medical bills for their beloved pets, making the need for pet health insurance a real concern. Advances in pet health care can leave owners with big veterinary bills. Pet health care insurance is now affordable and available for dogs, cats and exotics.

If you would not think of being without insurance for yourself and your family, that should include your pet companion as well. Pet insurance is not as expensive as human insurance and might come in handy.

Pet health care insurance is similar to human health insurance. Like all insurance, you hope you never use it. Pet health care insurance will pay or reimburse for veterinary services that are covered under the plan. Medical treatments and technologies used for humans are now being used for pets.

If your pet needs an emergency surgery, it would be nice to know that cost is not a factor, and you won’t have to pay for everything on your own. The insurance is just sensible.

Purchase insurance coverage ideally when your pet is still young before pre-existing conditions develop. You can enroll as young as eight weeks. Some plans only allow enrollment up to age 10 for cats and age 8 for dogs (age 6 for some breeds). Once enrolled, your pet may stay in the plan for the rest of its life.

Because of their natural adventurousness and high activity level, very young pets are famous for getting hurt and needing emergency care.

There are many pet insurance companies to choose from, and many different plans available. Read the fine print. Some companies have veterinarians that belong to their network. Under those particular policies, you pay a co-payment up front and the insurance company pays for the covered services. The downside is you have to find a veterinarian that is in the pet health care insurance “network.” Each policy is different and there is no one plan that fits everyone’s needs.

Services covered under many policies include spay surgery, neuter surgery, annual vaccinations, flea preventative, annual heartworm preventative, heartworm test, annual dental cleanings, accidents, illnesses, cancer, x-rays, and surgeries. In many cases, pet health care insurance will cover even more in maintaining the wellness of your loved pet. Your coverage may also include prescription foods, boarding, euthanasia, accidental death, recovery of lost pets, and micro-chip identification. Pet health insurance can prove to be invaluable.

Additional facts to consider when enrolling.

Are pre-existing conditions covered, and what constitutes a pre-existing condition? If a pre-existing condition is covered, what are the deductibles? Does the pet health insurance policy you are interested in cover prescription costs? Will my premium go up over time, as I file claims, or my pet gets older? Does the plan cover chronic or recurring conditions? What are the financial limits of coverage? How are they applied? Do you have more than one pet that could benefit from insurance coverage and are there multi-pet discounts available? Does your particular policy require monthly or annual payments? Talk to your veterinarian about your pet’s health and question the insurance companies about the limits of the pet health insurance coverage before purchasing a particular plan.

The right insurance plan requires some homework. We’ve brought you the best.

Pet Insurance in 4 Easy Steps

Saturday, May 12th, 2012

If you have not yet realized it, the cost for most veterinary care keeps getting more expensive. It may be wise to consider pet insurance as a smart choice to keep pet health-care bills in an affordable range.

Most pets are a significant part of our families and the cost for pet insurance to make sure their health costs are covered is something pet owners are considering more today than in the past.

Here are some steps that make it easier if you are one of those pet owners looking to see if pet insurance is a good match for you.

Here is Pet Insurance in 4 easy steps

 

1) Pet Insurance Online

Since many pet insurance providers have their own sites, one of the best places to start comparing pet insurance rates and features is by comparing them online.  We suggest you have a piece of paper or a spreadsheet open as you do your research.

There are a wide range of insurance policies to choose from and each has slightly different features and prices. You should also be alert for pet insurance discounts.  Some companies will offer a discount with a discount or online coupon code.  When you are ready, do a search for discount coupon “pet insurance company name”.

However the first thing you’ll want to do is get your list of pet insurance companies and your paper and begin comparing.

2) Pet Insurance Ratings

Since the web is really simple to access, there usually lots of articles and websites on the subject of  pet insurance. With thousands of pet insurance sites, there is another method to comparing pet insurance that may match your needs. That system is searching  pet insurance ratings and reviews.

By reading the pet insurance reviews you can tell the best pet insurance carriers are plus what insurance carriers to avoid.  Some companies deliver more that is expected and others fall short.

3) Pet Insurance Quotes

Pet insurance quotes are often available for comparison online. Today there are many pet insurance quotes for us to choose from.  Most of these will have a price range but will have certain restrictions and exclusions based on age, conditions that are never covered and prior health issues that the insurance company will not cover.  Other insurance companies rate on age alone, with young pets being less expensive than older pets.

One of the factors to get many pet insurance quotes from different firms is the fact that frequently congenital plus hereditary diseases or pre-existing conditions are not covered by pet insurance. Therefore it is actually best which we a thorough analysis plus consult the veterinarian.

After you’ve found reliable pet insurance providers which might meet our pet’s needs, narrow right down to minimum three of them. You’ll want to be able to compare them each feature by feature along with any other important notes you’ve made for each company.

4) Compare Pet Insurance Reviews

Finally it is time to choose.  However, before you start the comparison:

You need a general idea regarding what choices you want for your pets. For instance, standard plans are the cheapest because they mainly provide unforeseen health and accident problems your pet may have.

You should consider factors like deductibles, copays and life limits.

Find out out how a claim is filed and how the claim is paid. Does the company pay the health provider directly or do they expect you to pay for the care and get reimbursed later by the insurance company.  It’s good to find out what limits there might be for treating conditions and medications.

Find out if your pet can see your vet or do you need to use one of their veterinarians.

If you need to use one of their veterinarians, find out more about that office.  Include location, hours, pet owner reviews, specialties and what other services that office offers.

When you see the plan which you think may be right, contact the insurance company, and also contact your veterinarian and ask any final questions before enrolling.

To your pets continued health!!