| Monday, July 23, 2007 |
| How to Pick the Best Pet Insurance Policy For Your Pet |
With the cost of everything, including veterinary care, going through the roof, you and your pet may benefit from a pet insurance policy. Pet insurance is a relatively new concept in America. At first, only the English could get a pet insurance policy starting in 1976, when the first pet insurance company opened its doors. But, over thirty years later, there are ads for pet insurance practically everywhere you turn. How do you pick the pet insurance policy that’s right for you?
Shop ‘Till You Drop
Don’t think of selecting a pet insurance policy as a drag. Think of it as a new shopping experience. If you like shopping for anything, then take those skills and apply them to pet insurance. You need to see:
if you can choose your vet
if you can afford the pet insurance policy
if the policy will cover your pet only up until a certain age, or will the policy cover a senior pet
if the policy includes any extras that might be unique to your situation – such as a discount for multi-pet homes, for example.
Don’t sign up with the first pet insurance company you stumble across. Do comparison shopping. You can check out:
The Better Business Bureau to see if there has been a lot of complaints about particular pet insurance policies
See what pet insurance policies you vet and his or her staff recommend
Check our magazines like Consumer reports which compare pet insurance policies
Check our pet magazines and websites. Not only will they often do comparisons between pet insurance companies, but the readers or forum members are all too happy to voice an honest opinion.
Ask your breeder if they know of a pet insurance policy that they would recommend.
Other Extras
If you take your pet to shows, you need a different pet insurance policy than a family pet that rarely leaves the backyard. If you have a dog or a horse, you know how powerful these animals are and what damage they can do. Under law, you are responsible for any damage done to property or bodies caused by your pet. You should get pet liability insurance, as well. You might also consider getting a pet insurance policy that includes financial help in finding your pet should your pet ever wander off.
At the very least, for a practical pet insurance policy, put twenty dollars away every month as an emergency vet bill fund. |
posted by Sara @ 7:07 AM  |
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| Reading Up on a Pet Insurance Review |
If you have a pet that you love and are concerned about its health and well being, you are probably contemplating whether or not to take out a pet health insurance policy. If you are still debating it, that is understandable because such an insurance policy is still a relatively new form of pet protection that has grown in visibility in recent years thanks mainly to the internet raising awareness on the subject.
For those completely unfamiliar with what exactly pet health insurance is, it is a policy no different than a health insurance plan for a ‘regular’ human being. An owner takes out an insurance policy and pays a premium and the pet is now covered for medical treatment. While this is a somewhat simplified definition of pet health insurance, it covers the ‘basics’ of what it is that a pet health insurance plan offers. If you are still confused as to what kind of plan to take out or what particular company to select, you may wish to check out a pet insurance review so as to determine which policy would be best for you.
The Best Pet Insurance Review
If there was a pet insurance review that would prove the most helpful, it would be a review written by an individual who purchased the insurance for a pet and then used the insurance. In other words, you will be best served seeking the advice of someone who is a consumer of the policy and has intimate experience with it. It would be equally wise to avoid a pet insurance review that was provided by those that issue the policies as they have a tendency to be terse and exclusively supportive. That is not to say that a pet insurance review provided by the policy issuer is dishonest, but one should never look past the fact that such a review exists primarily for promotional purposes.
Look for Your Needs in the Pet Insurance Review
When reading the pet insurance review, look to see if the reviewer mentions items that might draw parallels between your needs and his. That is to say, if you own an old cat and the reviewer mentions he owns an old cat and has had a positive experience with a particular policy, then this review will be exceptionally helpful to you. General, generic endorsements or condemnations of an insurance provider are of little use and if the review is useless, what value could it possess? |
| posted by Sara @ 7:06 AM |
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| A Bite Of Common Sense: Pet Liability Insurance |
When insurance agencies and lawyers refer to “pet liability insurance”, what they really mean is “dog bite insurance”. You really don’t need pet liability insurance if you own a guinea pig. However, since the 1990’s, the increase in dog bites in America is rising due to:
People wanting security dogs but not wanting to train them
The rising populations of people and dogs
The increased status given to certain breeds, such as Rottweilers and American Staffordshire Terriers.
People Are Dumb
The main reason you should get pet liability insurance if your own a dog is that PEOPLE ARE DUMB. You can say, “Don’t tease my dog,” until you’re blue in the face, and your meat head neighbor is still going to tease your dog until your dog gets so frustrated, he bites. Accidents also happen. A panicked or injured dog will bite good Samaritans purely out of fear.
If you own property AND a dog, you definitely should get pet liability insurance. You are responsible for what mischief your dog gets up to, whether it was your dog’s fault or not. You can get pet liability insurance through your homeowner’s insurance company.
If you rent, you can still get pet liability insurance. You can check with pet health insurance companies. Some of their health policies include pet liability insurance. You can also check with your landlord for his or her recommendations on where to get pet liability insurance. Your landlord might even require that you get pet liability insurance before you are allowed to rent. This would cover not only dog bites, but any damage to the property that the dog might do, like damage to wooden floors or putting holes in the wall or even having the carpets replaced.
Sacred Dog Insurance
When Native Americans first saw horses, they called them “Big Dogs” or “Sacred Dogs”. Horses are like dogs in many ways – including doing damage to property and people. One of the most dangerous animals on the planet is a sacred horse. He will flatten you – literally and metaphorically – if he is scared enough. If you have a horse, you DEFINITELY need pet liability insurance. There is no other option, really.
There are many companies offering pet liability insurance just for horse owners. Some are from homeowner’s insurance; some from specialty equine sports insurance companies and others from pet health insurance companies. Be sure to do comparison shopping before you choose your policy. |
| posted by Sara @ 7:05 AM |
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