Does anyone know a good pet insurance for a small breed dogs?
Hi.
I just got a Yorkie. He’s 9 weeks. I had to take him to the vet for check up and a vacacine and I ended spending $120!! I hear there are pet insurance, which would be a big help here. I’m looking for something to cover neuturing, vacacines, heart-worm preventions, meds and regular checks ups. I heard VPI is good, but the rates are pretty high. Does anyone else know a good pet insurance in New York area??
Thank you!
Hi Kris
First, a disclaimer: I work for Embrace Pet Insurance in Cleveland, Ohio.
Let me say that you are smart to be considering pet insurance for your young Yorkie. The best time to get pet insurance is when they’re young because they have few, if any, pre-existing conditions.
You mention that vaccinations, heartworm medicines, etc, ended up costing you $120. These are things you’re always going to need for your Yorkie and you can save yourself money by budgeting for these routine care procedures.
What do I mean by “save you money?” Well, although many pet insurance plans offer routine care as an add-on, do the math carefully to determine whether they make sense financially. For example, you can only ever neuter your Yorkie once so don’t count on this amount being available every time your benefits renew! Routine care coverage usually costs $10 to $20 per month yet your maximum reimbursement is always capped at a fairly low amount, usually just a couple hundred dollars. And some of the procedures that are considered routine care by some pet insurance plans are covered under normal conditions in other plans.
Veterinary care nowadays can be incredibly expensive. Our company just received a claim for $5,500 for a young Labrador puppy that ate string. Despite all the technology and everything available, the vet was unable to save this puppy’s life. But the pet parents did everything they could and they did not have to worry about how to pay for it. That is the essence of what pet insurance is about: responsible pet parents get pet insurance, it’s the right thing to do for your pet but you have to get the right type of insurance.
You specifically mentioned Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI). They have been around a long time and they are backed by a strong, reputable insurance company. But their pet insurance plans have a “gotcha”: VPI only pays claims to a benefit schedule. What this means is that, potentially, you could get back only a fraction of the actual vet bill.
For example, you could easily pay $1,500 or more to treat a broken limb but VPI may only pay back a few hundred dollars, depending on exactly how they classify the claim. Do you really want to wait until you have submitted the claim to figure out how much you might get back?
You also mention that you live in the New York area. Most likely you are not going to find cheap pet insurance of any kind. The pet insurance companies know that veterinary fees are very high in the NY metro area and many price their plans accordingly. You could look into Pet Assure which is just a discount plan for any veterinarian but bear in mind that only about 10% of the veterinary hospitals are currently enrolled in Pet Assure.
But if you are still considering pet insurance here are some questions you should ask:
1. Does the pet insurance company give you a choice of deductibles, maximums, and copays to design a plan to suit your budget?
2. Does the plan cover genetic conditions?
3. Does the plan cover chronic or recurring conditions? So if your pet gets sick in year 1, does it cover the same illness again in year 2?
4. Does the plan come loaded with coverages that you’ll pay for but probably never use, like “Lost & Found” or “Accidental Death”?
5. What is and is not covered? Is it clearly stated on their website or over the phone?
6. Does the plan pay claims based on a restrictive benefit schedule or the actual vet bill? You want to avoid benefit schedule plans because they will leave your pocket with a big hole.
7. Are there per-incident limits that effectively cap the amount you could receive back? For example, some plans have a $3,000 per-incident limit. If you had a claim for $5,000 with one of these plans then the most you would get back would be $3,000.
8. How long does the company take to pay claims?
9. What are the rules around pre-existing conditions? Are they excluded permanently or temporarily?
Make sure you get good service and don’t let anyone hard sell you. You want to feel comfortable with your decision, so take take your time and make the right choice for you and your Yorkie.
Alex
Embrace Pet Insurance
http://www.embracepetinsurance.com
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This post was written by admin on January 7, 2009
