In our day-to-day lives, we are told that we need insurance for a plethora of items – whether our personal health, our car, or our home. But did you ever think that it might also be necessary to get insurance for your pet? If you do not yet have pet insurance, this is something you should consider.
Statistics from a 2021 study indicate that while in excess of 70% of U.S. households have pets, only 26% of those households have purchased pet insurance.
While pet insurance might seem like an unnecessary cost, vet care can get quite expensive. According to the ASPCA, the annual cost of a routine visit to the vet for your pet ranges from $225 for dogs and $160 for cats.
This price can increase depending on your pet’s age. Emergency visits, however, can be even more expensive – that is, they can range from $800-$2,500, and sometimes more if your pet gets quite ill and you need a specialty treatment.
To avoid any kind of financial ruin, experts recommend investing in pet insurance to protect both your finances and prevent any serious illness on the part of your pet.
How Pet Insurance Helps Your Cat
As in the case of health insurance for a human being, getting pet insurance can really help alleviate the associated costs of keeping your pet healthy. Plans include different levels of coverage and premiums (whether monthly or annual payments). All of this depends on what exactly you are looking for in terms of coverage. While some plans might have basic coverages that only include scenarios like accidents and injuries, others cover accidents only, and others still might include both accidents and illnesses (which might also involve conditions that are hereditary).
In terms of prices, accident-only coverage is perhaps the most affordable, while coverage that includes accidents and illnesses costs the most. As a general rule, the more comprehensive your plan is, the more you can expect your premium to be.
Another element to consider is the deductible which you will need to pay upfront before your coverage activates. Depending on what deductible you select, it can cost anywhere between $0 to $2,500 each plan year. As a general rule, if you choose a higher deductible, it is often the case that your premium will be lower.
In addition to your deductible, other elements of pet insurance involve paying upfront. Unlike a lot of human insurance – which works on a copay basis – pet insurance is largely a reimbursement form of insurance where you pay the full amount first, then submit a claim and are reimbursed by your insurer later.
Costs of Cat Insurance
When thinking about insurance, it’s important to know that coverage costs depend upon your pet’s age, breed, overall health (and whether they have pre-existing conditions), and the type of coverage that you opt for.
Like all coverage, insurance for your cat will heavily depend upon what deductible you choose and how much coverage you are in the market for.
As you are planning for which plan to go with, we suggest picking an insurer that has the types of coverage you are looking for, reimburses their clients speedily, and has both a mobile app and website where you can easily find the information you need.
Benefits of Pet Insurance
When thinking about whether you should purchase pet insurance, here are our top three reasons to choose insurance:
- It’s Easy to Choose Which Option to Go With
While human health insurance feels like a labyrinth with a multiplicity of options, pet insurance is fairly straightforward in terms of the policy options, tiers, deductibles and getting a quote when you are ready to shop around.
- Premiums and Deductibles are Reasonable
If you are lucky enough to have a young or healthy pet, you pay a lower premium amount in coverage to ensure that your pet stays healthy and/or gets the help they need. And in terms of deductibles, they are incredibly affordable when compared to paying abrupt emergency costs for your pet.
- The Ability to Choose Your Vet
Thankfully, when you go with a plan, there aren’t any “out-of-network” provider requirements. Your insurer will likely only expect that your vet is licensed – especially since you, as the customer, will be paying the costs initially out of pocket to be paid back at a later date. Just be sure to get an invoice from your vet and ask them to fill out the section of the claim form allocated to your vet.
In Closing
While insurance can be pricey, there is no real way to predict their health profile in the future, so you may want to find the best (and least pricey) plan for you and your pet that will give you peace of mind. And since many plans do not tend to cover pre-existing conditions, it is smart to start coverage while your pet is young and healthy.
By implementing cat insurance as a part of your wellness plan for your favorite feline friend, you can offset routine medical expenses and have the freedom to make medical choices based on the quality of life instead of strictly because of finances.
