Is Pet Insurance A Good Idea?


KUSA - If you are considering purchasing pet insurance for your pet, the experts at Consumer Reports say it may not be the best idea.

9NEWS Consumer Reporter Mark Koebrich says Consumer Reports has studied hundreds of pet owners and policies and found, rarely do the policies deliver the protection they promise.

Owning a pet these days can be a costly proposition due to great leaps in veterinary medicine and rising vet costs.

Just 10 years ago euthanasia was considered the humane option for many owners. Now vets can take extreme measures to save a pet and it can be expensive.

Pet owner Stuart Cottingham says, You know in the wee hours of the night God forbid there was some emergency and you have to bring her somewhere, something awful is happening. That stuff can be in the thousands of dollars.

Even if your pet is perfectly healthy, there are routine test and shots that are part of an annual check-up. Those costs can add up too.

With pet insurance pet owners pay the premiums and the insurance companies cough up if Fido breaks his leg. Sound good right?

Consumer Reports Kim Kleman says not necessarily. The premiums seem small, anywhere from 11 to 30 dollars a month, but over your pets lifetime thats thousands of dollars.

Premiums are not the only thing pet owners will be paying. Deductibles and co-pays come out of the owners pocket as do any un-reimbursed costs and exclusions.

To assess the value of pet insurance, Consumer Reports made up Lucky the Labrador retriever.

Over 11 imaginary years Consumer Reports gave Lucky nine common ailments, including a broken leg, an ear infection, a cut and a torn knee ligament.

"We researched five plans, and in every case, it would end up costing the owner more with pet insurance, in some cases thousands of dollars more, than just paying the vet bill, said Kleman.
Consumer Reports then gave Lucky a major medical problem to see if that would make pet insurance a better deal.

Kleman added, "Even when we added the extreme expense of a double hip replacement, some of the plans still didnt save the owner money.

So Consumer Reports says youd be better off putting your money in a savings account to handle a pet health emergency.

That way, if you pet never needs expensive medical treatment, you can use the money to buy him all of the treats he can eat.

It is also important to note that like most insurance companies, the pet insurance industry, almost without exceptions, does not insure pets with pre-existing conditions.

com, 866-861-9092).

Going The Distance For Fluffy

Good idea.

UK's most pampered pet's live in south west Paradise for pets is to be found in the West Country, but a dog's life in the North of Scotland according to a new nationwide survey. Be as gentle with yourself as you know your pet would be with you. But if youre the type of person who would do anything to save your pet, including spend thousands of dollars on medical treatments, pet insurance might be a preferable alternative to going into debt.