If your pet isn’t eligible for The Wylie Veterinary Centre’s Total Care Plan, or you feel that this plan isn’t suitable for you and your pet, then we recommend you consider taking out pet insurance.
Should the unexpected happen and your pet require veterinary treatment , we at Wylie Vets feel that having a good quality pet insurance in place will provide you with valuable peace of mind.
It is important that you know which type of cover that your policy provides. Unfortunately many pet owners don’t realise the level of cover that they have in place until they need to make a claim.
Here is our rough guide to the types of policy available:
Lifetime / Cover for Life
Lifetime / Cover for Life policies provide cover throughout the pet’s lifetime whilst the policy remains active. There is usually an annual monetary limit for the cost of vet fees (for example £7,000) which can be either per policy year or per condition, within each policy year. When the policy renews each year, so does the annual claim limit for the cost of veterinary fees. There are no time limits to these policies, but if the monetary limit for the cost of vet fees has been reached, no further claims will be covered for the remainder of that policy year.
Example;
Diabetes- limit £7000
2015- Claimed £600 Policy renews £7000
2016- Claimed £1500 Policy renews £7000
2017- Claimed £700 Policy renews £7000
Maximum Benefit
Maximum Benefit policies provide cover for a maximum claim limit for the cost of vet fees per condition. There is no time limit applied to these policies, and cover for each condition is in place whilst the policy remains active, until the claim limit for the cost of vet fees has been reached. Once a condition has reached the maximum benefit, it will no longer be covered. This will not affect other conditions that are still within the maximum benefit.
Example;
Diabetes- limit £7000 Broken leg – limit £7000
2015- Claimed £600 (£6400 remaining) 2015- claimed £2500 (£5500 remaining)
2016- Claimed £1500 (£4900 remaining) 2016- claimed £0 (£5500 remaining)
2017- Claimed £700 (£4200 remaining)
Time Limited Cover
Time limited policies provide cover up to a claim limit for the cost of vet fees, either per condition or per policy year, over a set period (for example 12months). If a condition reaches the claim limit for the cost of vet fees or exceeds the time limit, it will no longer be covered. Usually the time limit starts from when the first clinical signs are noticed, even if no treatment was necessary at that point.
Example;
Diabetes- limit £7000 or 12months
2015- Claimed £600 (£6400 remaining)
2016- No longer covered for diabetes.
Accident Only Cover
Accident only policies cover accidents only and will not cover illnesses. Some policies will cover illnesses that are a direct result of an accident, but many won’t.
Inception Period
There is usually an inception period when a policy starts; this is generally 10 – 14 days, but it can be longer. During the inception period cover will not be in place for illnesses. Any conditions that are first noticed during or before this period will be classed as a pre- existing condition. Accidents may be covered immediately, depending on the policy.
Excess and Co – Insurance
Most policies have a fixed excess, which is the policyholder’s contribution to their claim. This is usually either per condition per each policy year, or just per condition.
Co – Insurance percentages are applied to some polices, (where the policyholder is expected to pay a percentage of vet fees). Co – Insurance tends to range from 10% to 35% depending on provider. This is also the owner’s contribution to their claim in addition to any excess which may be applicable. Co – Insurance is often introduced in policies for older pets.
Exclusions
Most pet insurance policies have exclusions. Common exclusions are:
Some polices have additional exclusions, for instance, all dental treatment may be excluded and not just routine dental hygiene. There may also be additional exclusions relevant to the individual pet’s circumstances.
We are here to help
We at The Wylie Vet Centre believe that our clients should make their own choice when it comes to pet insurance, therefore we cannot advise on pet insurance providers or their products.
We are however always here to help, if you have any questions about your existing policy or claims. Please send queries or claim forms to be completed to insurance.claims@wylievets.com and a member of our Insurance Claims team will get back to you, or process your claim at their earliest opportunity.
Making a Claim
The cost of veterinary treatment is to be met by the client and costs will be reimbursed to the client / policyholder by the insurer once a claim is settled.
We are happy to consider Direct Insurance Claims, (where the insurance company pays the practice directly) for procedures and unexpected illness or accidents. However this must be agreed by the practice first. If you wish to request a Direct Insurance Claim, please let the practice know at your earliest opportunity so that one of our insurance administrators can assess this for you as quickly as possible.
