Lifestyle

5 Tips To Consider Before Purchasing Cat Insurance

by Lisa Fimberg

We love our cats like our children and want them to stay healthy and live long lives. And, cats can live up to 17 years old if they are healthy and what can be better than that!

In order to keep our cats in the best physical shape possible, we take them to the vets each year for an annual physical.

If our cats get hurt or sick, we always want to have the ability to pay for the best care for them. And, that is when cat insurance can be an emotional and financial relief.

In fact, most pet insurance plans will cover up to 90% of your vet bill which can be incredibly helpful if your cat has a serious illness or injury.

Understanding the way pet insurance works can be confusing at times and there are so many companies that it’s hard to know where to start.

Below are five tips to help navigate and understand pet insurance:

1. Coverage

Cat insurance plans have various coverage options that can range from just minimal coverage to covering almost every illness and accident.

Comprehensive pet insurance is the most well-rounded coverage that covers almost everything from chronic allergies to surgery. This coverage is always the best one to purchase so that whatever happens to your cat, you know that your kitty will be covered.

Accident Coverage is also available, but that covers only accidents and not illnesses.

Wellness coverage, which is an add-on to an existing policy, only covers routine care. While this is a nice option, it really is not worth the extra money when most of these costs can be paid out of pocket.

2. Reimbursements

When you sign up for a new pet insurance plan, you can either be reimbursed on a percentage of your bill or on a set benefit schedule.

The plans that are reimbursed on the percentage method let you choose anywhere from 65% to a 90% reimbursement. These plans are generally preferable because they reimburse on the actual vet bill.

Benefit schedule plans dictate a set amount that you can be reimbursed for each illness or condition no matter how much your vet bill was. You can see how this can be very limiting and certainly not beneficial if you have a big vet bill.

3. Exclusions

Every pet insurance plan will outline in detail the treatments and conditions that are covered under their plan.

The companies will also include a list of exclusions of conditions and other items that might not be covered.

Pre-existing conditions are never covered under pet insurance plans. These are conditions that your cat might already have before enrolling in pet insurance.

Certain cat breeds are pre-disposed to some hereditary conditions. Make sure that the pet insurance covers these conditions that your cat might develop later in life.

4. Price of Plans

The price of each cat insurance plan can vary and depends on many factors including where you live, the policy that you purchase, the breed of your kitty and your cats’ age.

There are also deductibles that you have to pay and can apply one time per year or per condition.

Look for the deductible that you pay only once each year. You get to choose the deductible and you know exactly what you are paying each year.

Per-incident deductibles are paid for every illness or accident that occurs with your cat. You can see how this can become expensive if your cat has two illness or accidents in one year.

5. Customer Reviews

Before signing up with a new pet insurance company, look at the reviews from the policy holders.

Reviews are a great way to see if the companies actually pay their claims timely and if they cover everything that they say they will.

Another pointer is not just the reviews, but the customer service. If you are getting a quote from a company, the customer service should be able to answer all of your questions.

Final Thoughts on Cat Insurance

Cat insurance can be extremely valuable if your kitty is of a certain breed or gets hurt or sick.

The good news is that cat insurance is very inexpensive to purchase and even less than dog insurance.

Talk to your vet and see what type of conditions that could occur with your cat.

Write down a list of questions and make sure to get quotes from at least a few different companies.

To learn more about pet insurance, this guide will not only answer many of your questions, but will give you a list of the top 10 pet insurance companies of 2019!

Lisa Fimberg is a writer for Consumers Advocate.org which is a site that specializes in reviews for virtually everything from the best car insurance to the best pet insurance. When she is not researching or writing for work or playing with her cat, you can find her hiking, running or anywhere away from the computer!

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