Is Pet Insurance Worth It?

My parents adopted a puppy this summer and as part of their preparation for her arrival, we discussed whether they need to invest in pet insurance. In fact, many companies even offer discounted pet insurance for employees. But do you really need it? It depends. On one hand, it’s heart-breaking to have to make decisions about your beloved pet’s life solely for financial reasons, but on the other hand, it’s often not worth it. Here are the things to consider.

You’re more of a dog person

Reasons you may want to buy it

  • The policy covers things like annual dental cleanings and required vaccines and costs less than your vet charges for that stuff.
  • You have a big breed that may be prone to problems (although that risk could be factored in to the price of the policy).
  • You live in a busy area where it’s more likely for your dog to have an accident.
  • You’re adopting a younger dog with no known issues.
  • You’re conservative with your money and prefer to protect against all potential risks.

Reasons you might not buy it

  • You’re adopting an older dog — if you’re even able to get coverage, the cost may exceed any possible benefit.
  • Your dog has already been diagnosed with an issue — just like you probably won’t qualify for long-term care insurance once you’ve started showing signs of dementia, a pet insurance policy is unlikely to cover a pre-existing condition.
  • You have a robust emergency fund that could pay for any type of expensive procedure.
  • Paying the premium would require you to take on credit card debt or compromise other goals like saving for retirement.

If cats are more your bag

Reasons may want to buy it

  • If it covers dental and you have a breed that has teeth issues (like a flat-faced Persian), assuming the cost of the premiums is less than your vet would charge out-of-pocket.
  • Your cat goes outdoors.
  • You’re conservative with your money and prefer to protect against all potential risks.

Reasons you might not buy it

  • You have indoor cats who aren’t exposed to other pets.
  • If, like me, you don’t believe in subjecting cats to extreme treatments like chemotherapy — from what I understand, once we figure out a cat has cancer, it’s usually too late because they have such little bodies. Putting them through stressful treatments is unlikely to cure them, and really only prolongs the possibility of pain.
  • You have a robust emergency fund that could pay for any type of expensive procedure.
  • Paying the premium would require you to take on credit card debt or compromise other goals like saving for retirement.

Make sure you know what’s covered and more importantly, what’s not

A common complaint about pet insurance is that the things that it covers are limiting to the point of the policy being relatively useless when the big dollars are due. Before purchasing a policy, make sure you’re clear on what’s covered but also what instances it wouldn’t pay out. Nothing is more frustrating than keeping an insurance policy in place for years, only to find that it doesn’t pay for what you need.

My personal preference

I personally wouldn’t purchase pet insurance for anything besides a care plan that would provide me with discounted routine care, but I do set aside money to cover my cats in case of emergency. One suggestion I often make is to find out how much an insurance policy would cost per month, then just set up a separate account where you automatically save that amount each month toward future bills.

For example, according to this site, the average monthly cost is about $27 for cats and $43 for dogs. If I were to save that amount each month into a savings account from the day I adopted a kitten, I’d have over $4,500 saved by the time my cat turned 12, which is the age that a lot of health issues pop up for cats. Of course this doesn’t factor in the routine visits to the vet, but pet owners really should be factoring that into their ongoing spending plan.

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