Are you wondering how much of your vet bill you’ll be able to claim on your pet insurance? Find out how pet insurance works here with Savvy.
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Are you wondering how much you can claim on your pet insurance, and what are the limitations to how much you can claim? When it comes to safeguarding your pet’s health, pet insurance can be a great help with the cost of a variety of vet treatments. Understanding how much you can actually claim on your policy is vital when you’re comparing policies and making decisions about which one may suit your particular budget and pet health needs.
Pet insurance is designed to help with the cost of providing the best vet care for your furry family members. It functions much like human private health insurance. You pay regular premiums (typically monthly or annually) to a chosen provider in exchange for coverage for veterinary bills. However, most pet insurance policies won’t cover 100% of the cost of taking your pet to the vet.
Understanding excess amounts
When making a claim, you'll often encounter the term ‘excess.’ This is the portion of each claim that you're responsible for covering out of pocket. For example, if your excess is $100 and the vet bill is $500, you'll pay $100, and the insurer will cover the remaining $400. You’ll have to pay this $100 excess each time you make a claim on your insurance policy.
Annual policy limits
Every pet insurance policy comes with an annual policy limit, which is the maximum amount the insurer will reimburse you within a single policy year. This amount is often between $10,000 and $20,000, although you can choose a higher annual limit. A policy with a higher limit will cost you more in monthly premiums. It's important to choose a policy with an annual limit that aligns with your pet's potential healthcare needs.
Benefit percentages
Your policy's benefit percentage determines how much the insurer will reimburse for eligible expenses after you've paid the excess amount. For example, if your policy has an 80% benefit percentage and your eligible vet bill is $1,000, you'll receive $800 in reimbursement. It’s possible to get pet insurance policies which cover from 50% to 95% of the total cost of a claim, with the higher percentage policies costing more.
Annual condition limits
Certain policies may have condition-specific limits. These limits cap the amount you can claim for one specific health condition or treatment for that condition. For example, a policy may have an annual limit of $20,000 in total, but a condition limit of $2,000. It's essential to be aware of these limits, especially if your pet has an on-going condition that requires regular treatment.
Understanding these elements of a pet insurance policy will help you make an informed decision when comparing pet insurance policies.
This will depend on the pet insurance policy you choose to buy. With some policies, you will have to pay the whole vet bill, and then submit a claim to your insurer, who will reimburse you the eligible percentage of the bill.
However, there are some pet insurance policies that offer the GapOnly pay system, which is similar to the HICAPS system for private health insurance. Rather than paying the full vet bill and waiting for reimbursement, GapOnly calculates your claim while you’re still at the vet clinic, and if it’s approved, you only have to pay the gap upfront. The gap is the difference between the total vet’s invoice, and the claim benefit amount under your specific policy.
If your pet insurance and your vet are in the GapOnly scheme, you can also get treatment costs pre-approved, so you are aware of how much the treatment will cost in advance. It’s also possible to have your claim submitted and approved prior to you picking up your pet from the vet following treatment, to save you having to wait at the surgery while your claim is processed. On the spot approvals only take 10 minutes.
Several factors influence the cost of your pet insurance premiums. Understanding these elements can help you make an informed decision when selecting coverage for your furry friend. Here are the key factors that affect the cost of pet insurance:
By considering these factors and tailoring your pet insurance policy to your pet's specific needs, you can strike a balance between adequate coverage and manageable premiums. It's essential to compare policies from different providers to find the best fit for your pet and budget.
Looking into pet insurance for your beloved furry friend? Whether you have a playful pup or a curious cat, you can compare pet insurance options from a range of providers and find the perfect coverage that suits your pet's unique needs and your budget.
Fetch Care Plan |
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Pet insurance we think you’ll love. 24/7 vet support + dental, physio and behaviour cover added (see PDS) all in one app.More details |
Petsy Most Popular 80% Cover $150 Excess |
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Protect your furry friend with Petsy's pet insurance policy. Get a free quote.More details |
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Fetch Premium Plan |
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Pet insurance we think you’ll love. 24/7 vet support + dental, physio and behaviour cover added (see PDS) all in one app.More details |
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Multi-award winning pet insurance designed with the help of vets.More details |
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Petsy Value Cover 80% Cover $500 Excess |
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Protect your furry friend with Petsy's pet insurance policy. Get a free quote.More details |
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Petsy Top Cover |
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Protect your furry friend with Petsy's pet insurance policy. Get a free quote.More details |
Disclaimer: Savvy is not advising or recommending any particular product to you. We provide general information on products for the purposes of comparison, but your personal situation or goals are not considered here. Although we try to make our comparisons as thorough as possible, we do not have information on all products on the market on our site.
Savvy earns a commission each time a customer buys a pet insurance policy through our website. We don’t arrange for products to be purchased from these brands directly, as all purchases are conducted via the individual pet insurance companies.
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© Copyright 2024 Quantum Savvy Pty Ltd T/as Savvy. All Rights Reserved.
Quantum Savvy Pty Ltd (ABN 78 660 493 194) trades as Savvy and operates as an Authorised Credit Representative 541339 of Australian Credit Licence 414426 (AFAS Group Pty Ltd, ABN 12 134 138 686). We are one of Australia’s leading financial comparison sites and have been helping Australians make savvy decisions when it comes to their money for over a decade.
We’re partnered with lenders, insurers and other financial institutions who compensate us for business initiated through our website. We earn a commission each time a customer chooses or buys a product advertised on our site, which you can find out more about here, as well as in our credit guide for asset finance. It’s also crucial to read the terms and conditions, Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) or credit guide of our partners before signing up for your chosen product. However, the compensation we receive doesn’t impact the content written and published on our website, as our writing team exercises full editorial independence.
For more information about us and how we conduct our business, you can read our privacy policy and terms of use.
