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Common questions
What type of pet insurance do you offer?
We offer lifetime pet insurance for cats and dogs at any age. You can tailor your policy to your pet and its health conditions.
This means that you could cover ongoing conditions as well as one-off mishaps. There’s no limit to the length of the treatment as long as you renew your policy and there’s no break in cover.
I have more than one pet to insure, can I cover them?
Yes at Petsure you can cover up to eight cats and dogs on a policy. You can choose different cover levels and benefits for each of your pets to tailor the cover to each pet.
What conditions do I need to declare as part of my pet insurance?
When you’re buying lifetime pet insurance from us, you’ll need to let us know about any of your pet’s pre-existing medical conditions.
This means you’ll need to declare any conditions that they have been diagnosed or treated for in the past 2 years – not including routine flea and worming treatments and vaccinations. Even if they said it wasn’t a big deal, it’s worth telling us about.
Pet insurance helps you to meet the cost of unexpected vets bills if your pet becomes unwell or has an accident and needs treatment.
Having pet insurance can also help with other costs such as paying for your pet to be looked after in an emergency or the cost of finding your pet if it goes missing or gets stolen.
There are four types of pet insurance:
- Accident only – just covers accidents and injuries
- Time limited – covers 12 months for a condition
- Maximum benefit– covers a condition up to a maximum vet fee limit (with no time limit)
- Lifetime – covers ongoing conditions up to a vet fee limit that starts again when you renew your policy.
You can buy lifetime pet insurance with us.
When you set up your policy, you can choose an excess from £0 to £500. If you choose a higher excess amount it will lower the cost of your cover.
You’ll be asked to cover the excess amount once per condition, per year. So if your pet has a recurring condition that’s covered in your policy, you’ll ony pay the excess once for the entire year.
You’ll also have the choice of a ‘bill share’, which is an amount you pay on top of your excess.
Bill share is often called a ‘co-payment’ by other insurers and may be compulsory once your dog is 8 or your cat is 10.
With us it’s optional, because we think it’s fairer to let you decide if you want to foot more of the bill or not. You can even choose your own level from 0% to 30%.
With bill share, you agree to pay a percentage of the claim, over and above your excess amount. We pay the rest up to the limit of your cover.
The higher your bill share percentage, the lower your premium will be.
Let’s break it down to see how that could look if you needed to claim….
| Your vet bill | £700 | |||
| Your chosen excess | £0 | £100 | £0 | £100 |
| Your Bill Share | 0% | 0%- | 10% | 10% |
| You pay | £0 | £100 | £70 | £160 |
| We pay | £700 | £600 | £630 | £540 |
Lifetime pet insurance can cover your pet for both one off and ongoing health conditions, as well as accidents or injury.
The amount of vet fee cover you chose starts again each year, as long as you renew your policy and there’s no break in cover. This means it can cover long term conditions for the life of your pet.
Only one person, over 18, can be the policyholder – even if your pets have more than one owner.
This is the person who’ll be named on the policy and can change policy details.
If you need to nominate someone to speak on your behalf for changes or claims, just let our customer service team know.
Continuous cover means that you won’t be left uncovered when switching from another pet insurance provider. Usually, you’ll have to wait 14 days before you can make a claim if you were starting a new policy.
Cover must be the same as your existing policy for it to be classed as continuous cover, for example, if your previous policy provided cover for vet fees at the time of your switch, but not for Trip Cancellation, you will have continuous cover for vet fees but not for Trip Cancellation.
We don’t normally cover routine or investigative tests. The only time we could cover these is when they’re used to diagnose a new condition or the worsening of an existing condition covered under your policy.
We also won’t cover any routine and preventative treatments, vaccinations, not limited to, cosmetic dentistry, cosmetic surgery, cleaning and descaling of teeth, spaying, castration, routine removal of dew claws, parasite control, grooming and nail clipping or any complications arising from these treatments.
Also, we can’t cover pregnant animals or pets used for breeding.
We can’t cover any treatment related to pregnancy, giving birth or breeding and any related complications.
No, we can’t cover any pets used for breeding.
The only working animals we can cover are Assistance Dogs for personal use.
The last thing you want to be worrying about when you’re hospitalised or seriously ill is whether your pet can be looked after.
If you’re hospitalised, you’ll be covered for the cost of your pet staying in a kennel or cattery or having a pet minder, up to your policy limits.
If you’re not able to walk your dog because you’re incapacitated, we’ll cover the cost for a professional dog-walker to walk your dog twice a day, up to your policy limits.
Nobody ever wants to think about what’s going to happen when their pet dies, but we can be with you every step of the way when the time comes. All you need to do is add our optional Farewell cover to your policy.
As long as the cause of death is covered by your policy, we’ll cover up to £250 towards the cost of a cremation or burial, including the cost of an urn/casket or box. We will also cover up to £5,000 for the cost of your pet.
If you buy the optional Travel and Holiday cover, you’ll be covered for vet fees abroad if you decide to travel with your pet worldwide for up to 183 days per year – as long as no trip is longer than 90 days.
With optional Travel and Holiday cover, you’re covered to cancel your trip if:
- Your pet is lost, stolen or strays
- Dies, or is put to sleep by a vet as a result of an accidental injury or illness
- Needs urgent life-saving treatment because of an accidental injury or illness within 7 days of the date you’re due to travel.
You’ll be covered to claim up to your policy limits for:
- Vet fees abroad
- Kennel/cattery fees
- Unused:
- Travel & accommodation
- Airport parking, car hire, airport lounge pass and excursions
- Visas/ travel documents
If you’re buying a new policy and your pet is currently undergoing tests for undiagnosed symptoms, we won’t be able to cover any pre-existing conditions or vet costs until they have a diagnosis. Once they have a diagnosis, you could add all of their conditions to their policy. This will affect the amount you pay, but it will mean that you can be covered for their conditions going forward.
Yes. It’s the law to get your dog microchipped. And it’s important to keep your information up to date so you can be contacted if they get lost. It’s also a condition of our cover that your dog is microchipped.
You can buy your cover today to start at any time in the next 30 days.
We can’t cover the following dogs – as listed by the Dangerous Dogs Act, nor any cross or mixed breeds on this list. The UK introduced the act in 1991, to try and stop illegal dog fighting. These dog breeds are not allowed to be kept in the UK and can’t be insured.
- Pit Bull Terrier
- Dogo Argentino
- Japanese Tosa
- Fila Brasileiro
Other dog breeds we can’t cover:
Akita, American Akita, Japanese Akita, American Bullweiler, Anatolian Karabash Dog, Blue Blood Cane Corso, British Timber dog, Bullboxer, American Bulldog, American Johnson Bulldog, Aylestone Old Tyme Bulldog, Dorset Old Tyme Bulldog, Olde English Bulldogge, Victorian Bulldog, Bull-Pei, Continental Landseer, Fox Hound, American Foxhound, Greek Harehound, Hellenic Hound, Hellinikos Ichnilatis, Istrian Coarse-haired Hound, Istrian Shorthaired Hound, Kangal dog, Karelian bear dog, Korean Jindo, Sabueso Espanol, Shar Pei, Greek Sheepdog, Anatolian Shepherd Dog, Bucovina Shepherd Dog, Romanian Mioritic Shepherd Dog, Greek Shepherd, Thai Ridgeback, Utonagan, Mastiff Bully, Kutta/Indian or Pakistani, Perro De Presa Canario, American Bully, American Staffordshire Terrier, Anglican Bulldogge, Australian Dingo, Chinese Red Dog, Czechoslovakian Wolfdog, Dogo Canario, Laizhou Hong, Saarloos Wolfhound/ Wolfdog, Shepherd Dog Caucasion.
We can’t cover the following cat breeds:
- Chausie
- Feral
- Savannah
Insurance providers take different views when it comes to covering breeds. We constantly review our list, so it’s still worth speaking to us if you have a breed we can’t currently cover.
The only breeds we’ll never be able to cover you for are dogs listed under the Dangerous Dogs Act and breeds that are crossed with these.
Yes. We can cover dental illnesses up to your chosen vet fee limit, or £5,000 – whichever is lower. But you’ll need to add dental cover as an optional extra to your policy.
When you complete a quote with us, we’ll ask you questions about your pet’s health and let you know if we can cover their pre-existing condition.
Some of the conditions that we could cover include but are not limited to:
Abscess
Acne
Amputation
Bite wound
Broken tooth
Bronchitis
Calicivirus
Cat flu
Cherry eye
Dislocated kneecap
Epilepsy
FIV (feline immunodeficiency virus)
Heart murmur
Heart murmur (feline)
Pneumonia
Skin allergy
Tooth decay
Urine infection
Vomiting
Yes, we can cover Behavioural Treatment and/or Complementary Therapy sessions for a pre-existing condition that has been declared and accepted by us, as shown on your pet’s policy.
These sessions must have been recommended by your vet and you can claim for up to 12 sessions in total per policy year.
We can certainly look to cover your adopted pet.
Head on over and get a quote for your rehomed canine or feline today.
As cool as this sounds, there’s no specialist indoor or outdoor cat insurance – it’s just cat insurance!
Some owners think their indoor kitty doesn’t need cover. But although they’re not exploring outdoors, your cat can still get ill and fall into scrapes.
Find out more about why you should think about getting insurance for your indoor cat.
Third party liability covers you if your dog causes death or injury to someone or their pet. It also covers you for loss or damage to another person’s property.
With a Petsure policy, you’ll be covered up to £2,000,000 for legal action made against you.
Third party liability cover is for dogs only as their actions are your legal responsibility.
Whereas cats are seen as free individuals, so you’re not responsible for what they do when they’re out and about.
Older cats and dogs are very welcome into the Petsure pack!
There’s no upper age limit, so go ahead and get a quote with us for your senior pet.
You can cover your puppy or kitten from four weeks of age.
But there’s no upper age limit for senior pets looking to get cover for adventures in their twilight years.
The excess is the amount you’ve chosen to pay towards the cost of a claim.
With us, you can choose whether you’d like to add an excess between £0 and £500 to your cover.
There is a maximum amount we’ll pay out each year for certain treatments and therapies, known as an ‘inner limit’.
This means that we’ll pay either the inner limit amount or your chosen vet fee amount, depending on which is lower.
- Cruciate ligaments – £2,000 limit
- MRI and CT scans – £2,000 limit
Always check your policy wording to see the maximum amounts we’ll pay for other areas of cover.
You can pay your premium either monthly or once a year, with a debit or credit card.
You can change your monthly payment date via your My Petsure account.
- Log into My Petsure and head to the ‘Payments’ tab.
- Choose which policy needs changing and click ‘Change payment date’.
- Pick your date from the drop-down menu and click confirm.
Need some help? Send us a chat message via the support button in the bottom right corner of your My Petsure account.
You can also call us on 033 3006 7992.
You can absolutely make your monthly payments via direct debit.
You can also switch to direct debit if you’re currently paying via debit or credit card (known as a recurring card payment).
Head to the ‘Payment’ section of your My Petsure account and click the ‘Swap to direct debit’ button.
If you’re not sure whether you need to call your vet for an appointment, all our customers have unlimited access to FirstVet. It’s a 24/7 vet video consultation service. Call them from the comfort of your home, without any additional fees.
If the vet you speak to on FirstVet thinks it’s a more serious issue, they’ll suggest what you need to do next.
You can claim for anything that’s covered under your policy.
It’s a good idea to check your Confirmation of Cover document and your policy wording before you need to make a claim, so you know what you can claim for.
It depends. When you make a claim, you might be asked to pay some of the bill.
The amount you’ll need to pay will depend on your cover limits, excess and bill share that you chose when you set up your policy.
When it comes to excesses for ongoing conditions, you’ll only be asked to contribute your excess once per policy year for that condition.
Once your policy starts, you can claim for illnesses and symptoms after 14 days and for accidents after 2 days.
But if you’re switching from another provider – known as continuous cover – you can make a claim immediately.
To be eligible for continuous cover you need to be switching:
- From another lifetime pet insurance product
- With the same benefits you had on your previous policy, e.g. missing pet cover, dental illness cover, travel and holiday cover, etc.
You don’t need to have the same vet fee limit, excess, or bill share (also known as co-payment) with us that you chose with your previous provider.
If your claim is likely to be more than £1,000, you’ll need to tell us as soon as possible. Otherwise, you can go straight to My Petsure portal to download our claims form and submit your claim online, or call 0333 009 0998. You might be able to submit your claim through your vet, so it’s worth checking with them.
Before you make a claim, have a look at your Confirmation of Cover document and policy wording, to see if you’re covered.
If you’re submitting a claim yourself, keep all your receipts, invoices, reports and documents. You’ll need original copies to support your claim.
Many vets use an online system to submit claims on your behalf. If your vet does this, they’ll send in the claim form for you and we’ll pay them direct. All you’d need to do is pay the vet your excess and/or bill share amount.
Your pet’s premium will increase as they get older.
Just like humans, as your pet gets older, there’s more risk of them developing new conditions and more of a chance that you’ll need to claim. After all, that’s why you’re paying for pet insurance.
Unlike some insurers, we’ll offer you a fair price by considering your pets health and conditions to give you a price that fits. You can update your cover at renewal, as your pet gets older, to suit their changing needs and your pocket.
After completing the payment details for your policy, you will be taken to a screen confirming that your cover is active and asked to create a password.
Enter your chosen password and click the ‘Create An Account’ button.
A verification email will be sent to you – if you don’t see this in your main inbox, please check any spam/junk/promotional folders.
Click the ‘Verify my email address’ link in the email and this will take you to a confirmation screen.
You can now log into the My Petsure portal.
You can view and download your policy documents on My Petsure.
Log in to your My Petsure account, accessible via the person icon in the top right-hand corner of the website.
Once signed in, the portal will automatically open on the ‘My Policy’ section.
Click the ‘Policy Documents’ button and this will take you to the area where you can view and download all of your policy documents.
You can also access My Petsure via the link in your ‘Welcome to Petsure’ email.
Your policy will automatically renew at the end of your cover year, using the existing payment details we have for you.
If you don’t want to automatically renew, you’ll need to opt-out by calling us on 03330063211.
We’re working hard to make this possible to do via your My Petsure account in the near future.
We’ll send you an invitation to renew your policy at least 21 days before your renewal date. Not quite as exciting as getting a birthday party invitation, but we hope you’ll enjoy being with us for another year.
In your renewal, we’ll include your premium for the next year. If you renew on a continuous payment method, we’ll automatically renew your policy each year using the payment details we have for you.
Please get in touch before your renewal date if you’d like to renew with a different payment method, update any details, or change your cover options. You can do this on My Petsure.
When you renew, it’s important to check the information is accurate, or we might not be able to cover you when you need us.
No. We keep things fair and won’t charge any admin fees if you need to make changes to your policy.
You can change your vet fee limits part way through your policy as long as you haven’t done either of these in your policy year:
– Made any claims or intend to make a claim.
– Already changed your vet fee limits. You will only be able to increase or decrease your vet fee limit once per policy year.
If you want to increase your vet fee limits, you’ll be asked to re-screen your pet’s conditions to see if we can accept any new conditions.
If we can’t increase your cover for newly declared conditions, you’ll still be able to stay on your current vet fee limit.
Please call our customer team on 033 3006 8100 if you’re looking to change your cover limits.
If you’re using the same registration details, you’ll just need to add your pet again.
- Log into your FirstVet account using your existing details
- Click ‘My Pets’
- Click ‘Add Pet’
- Choose Petsure as your insurance provider
If any of your details have changed, you can update these in the FirstVet account settings.
You can change the date of your recurring card payment in your My Petsure account.
Head to the ‘Payment’ section and click the ‘Change payment date’ button.
Great news – you’ll keep enjoying your Petsure treats when you renew your cover.
This includes free 24/7 access to vet video calls to help keep your four-legged friend happy and healthy.
Your vet fee limit also resets each year that you renew.
Unlike with some other providers, there’s no compulsory excess with Petsure pet insurance – even as your pet gets older.
So you can still choose if you’d like to add on an excess when you renew your cover with us.
There’s also no compulsory bill share (also known as co-payment), meaning you can decide if you want to add this on.
Cover for dental accidents is included as standard on your policy.
You may be able to add on Dental Illness cover during your policy.
Send us a chat via your My Petsure account or give us a call on 0333 006 3211 to find out more.
You can add on Farewell Cover within your cooling off period or when your cover is due to be renewed.
Just drop us a chat via your My Petsure account and we’ll help get this sorted for you.