Pet Insurance: The Definitive Guide

Compare pet insurance quotes in seconds and save hundreds of dollars EVERY YEAR on insurance for cats and dogs

Updated 12 March 2019

Review Summary of Pet Insurance

Pet insurance is becoming more popular in New Zealand, but there is still a choice of only four insurers.
Generally, you can only get insurance if your pet is under 7 or 8 years of age. However, your pet will continue be covered if you purchase a policy before he or she reaches that age.
Depending on your insurer, some policies may charge co-payments (commonly, 20%) or apply special terms to your cover for older pets or certain medical conditions.
Cat insurance is cheaper than dog insurance in all cases.

Pet insurance policies for cats and dogs

Pets are complicated creatures, and chunky vet bills can put pet owners in the horrible position of having to choose between operating or euthanising a furry family member. It’s impossible to control what random things your cat or dog does and/or eats - they love to try new things and don't take financial consequences into account. With a CT scan starting at $1,500 and surgery for internal injuries costing $2,000+, vet bills can be expensive, to say the least.

Our Guide to Pet Insurance
Our guide outlines the cheapest pet insurance, with a number of tips to bring the cost of insurance down and make sure you only pay for what you need. We look at:

Pet insurance: What You NEED to Know

Pets are loved in homes throughout New Zealand with more than half (58%) of Kiwis owning at least one cat and/or dog. The purpose of pet insurance is to cover the cost of treatment for an injured or sick pet, avoiding the unpleasant choice of putting down a pet or finding the money for the vet bill.

Pet insurance is relatively new for Kiwis, yet 1 in 10 cat owners and nearly 1 in 5 dog owners currently insure their pet. Before you buy a policy for your cat or dog, there are a few things to know to ensure you get the most suitable policy at the right price.

Pet insurance is about covering the unpredictable
Your dog or cat may be in perfect health, full of energy and careful of traffic. You may ask yourself if it is worth insuring your pet if it’s unlikely you’ll make a claim, but an illness or injury is never predictable. As is the case with all insurance, a policy protects you from the unpredictable. Unlikely but real-life instances of a chipped tooth or skin cancer can cost a lot to remedy; pet insurance would step in and cover the bulk of the bill.

So, Should I insure my pet?
Vets unfairly have a reputation in some instances of charging like dentists. It’s not true, but the fees can be expensive for standard procedures making the cost of owning a pet unexpectedly high. Most owners won’t be hit too hard with standard and non-standard treatments, but if you are less lucky (and your pet's situation is more complicated), you might end up paying a hefty fee. Here are some recent vet bill examples Kiwis have been faced with:

Sending a cat for a CT scan - $1,750
Cat hit by a car, broken femur - $1,800
Surgery to remove ingested material - $1,950
Chipped tooth on a cat - $2,200
Treating a small dog with a broken bone - $2,800
Cat run over by a car, emergency surgery - $4,000
Complicated kidney condition treatment - $5,500

To decide whether to get pet insurance, look at the above costs and be realistic about whether you could afford the bill if it was handed to you tomorrow. Would you be able to cover it? If not, pet insurance may be a good way to avoid an uncomfortable visit to the vet.

How does pet insurance work?

Like health insurance, you provide all the information about who is being covered (in this case the name and details of your pet), buy a policy and pay a monthly or annual premium. The policy covers one animal and is valid as long as you continue to pay the policy.
If and when your pet needs to visit the vet for treatment, you will have to pay the bill and make a claim to the insurer by filling out a form.
If the insurance covers the treatment(s) taken, the insurer will deduct an excess (a fee or percentage of the total claim) and transfer you the balance to your bank account.
If your claim is not successful (usually due to the treatment not being covered), you can appeal and complain. In the meantime, you won't receive any reimbursement from the insurer.

What does pet insurance cover?

In most cases, pet insurances will cover:

Costs for veterinary fees relating to the treatment of injuries, illnesses or accidents your pet requires. This includes surgery for broken bones, cataracts surgery, cancer treatment and unpredictable illnesses.
Ongoing conditions such as diabetes or epilepsy, and all relevant treatment and medication
Congenital and hereditary conditions if unknown at the time of taking out the policy
Some policies also cover losing your pet to theft or straying as well as reward money and advertising a lost pet.
It's important to know that policies either have an excess (meaning you pay the first $100+ of any treatment cost) or a co-payment arrangement, where you share 0-30% of the costs and the insurance covers 70-100%. You need to decide which payment option is best for you before you insure your pet, as it affects the premium you will pay.

What does pet insurance usually exclude?

Generally, pet insurance excludes a lot more than you might think, as we outline below:

Routine, preventative or elective care of your pets are all excluded – this includes routine vet visits for injections, check-ups, worming treatments and anti-flea medicine. However, Southern Cross offers optional extras that can cover day-to-day and dental treatments.

Secondly, you won’t be covered if your pet:

Has a pre-existing condition (known or not)
Has an injury due to maltreatment of your pet or failure to protect your pet
Experiences some infectious diseases (e.g. flu, distemper, calicivirus, herpes, feline leukaemia, etc.) also if your pet was not vaccinated or the vaccination is out of date.
Needs treatment related to breeding
Needs an organ transplant, joint replacement or suffers from pandemic diseases or failure to vaccinate

Lastly, if your pet has a congenital condition or developmental defect (i.e. a disease or physical abnormality from birth), these won’t be covered either. This includes cardiac, muscular, skin conditions and many more.

Some pet insurance policies are more flexible than others in what they exclude, so if your dog or cat has a long-standing illness or abnormality from birth, declaring this upfront will determine whether or not you can get the policy. It’s pointless to buy a policy if your pet has a pre-existing condition, as you won’t be able to claim successfully and this constitutes insurance fraud (we talk more about this below).

Is property damage caused by your pet covered?

Generally no – if your cat claws your furniture or dog chews an antique table leg or carpet, you won’t be covered on pet insurance. However, you may be covered on your home and contents insurance, so check with your insurer to see if you're covered.

Is self-insurance for pet care an option?

Self-insurance is an alternative to pet insurance, in that you make a habit of putting money into a pet fund so that if your cat or dog needs to go to the vet, there’s money to pay the bill. This works for some people, but there some risks:

Your pet might need treatment before you’ve built up much of a pet fund. For example, if you commit to $50 a month and after 3 months your cat develops a stomach issue, a vet bill of $1,600 will leave you with a big shortfall.
You dip into your pet fund to pay an unrelated bill, leaving less cash available for a vet. Disaster will strike if your pet then experiences a health problem.

If the risk is too great for your finances, pet insurance is the most certain way of protecting your budget from your pet’s misfortune.

Always disclose EVERYTHING

The younger, healthier and less complicated the medical history of your pet, the less you’ll pay for pet insurance. However, if you don’t declare health issues and past conditions, upon making a claim your insurer can use “non-disclosure” as a reason not to pay out. This means you’ll be stuck with the bill, unable to claim on it despite having paid the premium. Declaring everything will most likely cost more in the short term, but being covered for illnesses relating to those conditions will save you a lot of money later on if your pet needs treatment.

Some pets can’t get insurance

If your border collie doubles as a sheepdog, it may not be able to get pet insurance – check with the insurer first. Dogs used for racing, hunting or farming may not be covered. Pit Bulls are also excluded by most policies.

It is near impossible to switch pet insurers if your pet is over 7 years of age and/or has existing conditions

Of the five pet insurance providers, Countdown and Southern Cross insure new pets up to the age of 7 years of age on their comprehensive plans (accident and illness). Southern Cross has no age limit for its accident-only plan, AcciPet.

AA Insurance does not offer any policies for a cat or dog older than 8. This makes the option of switching for a better deal quite limited. Furthermore, if your pet is being treated for an existing condition, changing policies will mean you risk having such treatments excluded. For these reasons, in most instances we recommend staying with your current policy if your pet is 7+ years old.

But, switch if you are paying too much and your pet is young and healthy!

Our Best Buy Pet Insurance policies outlined below highlight a big difference in monthly costs, so if your pet is young and in good health, consider switching – you’ll save a lot if you’ve been overpaying.

Older pets may be refused coverage or be charged a co-payment fee

The older your pet, the more expensive it is to insure – an old dog can’t learn new tricks but it will go to the vet more than it wants to. For animals over 10 years of age, some policies only cover 65% of treatments which means you’ll have to foot the bill. Checking the small print is important. For example, Petplan requires owners to pay 20% of bills for pets between 8-10 years of age, and 35% of the bill for pets above 10 years of age.

The lower the excess, the higher the monthly cost

This is true for any insurance, and for pet insurance it means paying $100 of a vet bill or $500, for example. When deciding whether to go for low or high excess, ask yourself “how much am I prepared to spend on a vet bill before making a claim with my insurer?”. If you’re OK to spend $300, then having a $100 excess isn’t suitable as you’re overpaying on the premium. Weigh up what suits your budget, and pick a suitable excess level.

Be very careful of co-payment or percentage share insurance

This is pet insurance where you pay a percentage of the vet bill (say 25% or 35%), and the insurer covers the rest. Many of these policies are sold as “low cost” options but if your pet needs the vet, the costs to you quickly add up. 25% of a $3,000 is $750 and further complications will make it a very expensive ordeal. It's highly likely that your pet, after a certain age, is only covered by co-payment or percentage share, so check the fine print!

Multi-pet policies could increase the savings

Many pet insurance extends a percentage discount if you insure another pet - don't trust this as the best deal. It's worth getting quotes to look for a better deal.

Decision time - what pet insurance cover do I need?

Before you race into signing up for a policy, it’s essential that you decide what you want it to cover. Pet insurance is a sensitive area so it’s really important to check the small print, as it could make the difference between having no bill and getting a huge debt if you can’t afford the vet bill.

Selecting Your Pet Insurance Policy

Compare and find the cheapest policy, and avoid nasty surprises at the vet
What you'll pay as a premium will vary a lot, depending on your pet's breed and age. Once you've decided which cover level suits your finances and your pet, you're ready to compare policy prices.

What Levels of Pet Insurance are Currently Available?

Kiwis have a limited choice of pet insurance with only five players in the market - AA, Petplan, Southern Cross, Pet-n-Sur and Countdown.
Despite the small number of brands, there are many different terms for pet insurance policies, using policy names like “essentials”, “blue ribbon” and “gold” which make them hard to compare.
To make things clearer, we’ve split up the policies into five main types and named them co-payment, accident-only, basic, medium and premium.
Each policy insures for different things and pays out in its own unique way, all of which we explain in detail below.

Co-payment pet insurance

Covers: A specific percentage of a vet bill (i.e. 25%), up to a certain limit per year in total (i.e. $5,000)
An illustrative calculation based on a 20% co-payment option would be:

Eligible vet charges claimed: $4,000
Less: 20% co-payment: ($800)
Benefit payable to you: $3,200

Best for: minor surgeries, short-term illnesses and one-off accidents
What you need to know: Basic insurance is the cheapest for a full coverage policy, but it can be costly if you are faced with a lot of vet bills – 25% of $1,500 a couple of times a year can add up to $750+ and you’ll still have to keep paying for your policy alongside that.
A common co-payment policy usually limits the benefits to $3,000 - $7,000 in a 12 month period, meaning that any expenses over that will not be covered, even if it’s for a new medical condition.

Policies include: AA Pet Insurance (all policies), Countdown Pet Insurance (all policies), Pet-n-Sur (all plans except “Rhodium”), Petplan (all plans for cats and dogs aged 8 years and older; co-payment policies require a $150 excess on top on the co-payment) and Southern Cross (0% or 20% co-payment options).

Accident-only pet insurance

Covers: Accidents (broken bones), but not illnesses.

Pre-existing conditions, congenital conditions and certain other treatments are not covered.
And to be clear, “Accidental injury” means a “sudden, unforeseen and not gradual physical harm or injury”, so the injury must arise “directly from a single event occurring at a particular time”, and the injury can’t be related to a pre-existing condition.
What this means it that accident-only cover is going to cover your dog if it gets hit by a car (i.e. unforeseen), but probably not your cat if its existing arthritis causes it to fall out of a tree (relates to a pre-existing condition).

Best for: your pet getting into an accident
What you need to know: Accident-only is often the cheapest, as it only covers accidents. A common policy will limit annual cover to a fixed sum, i.e. $3,000 or $5,000. It’s great to have if you’re only willing to insure for accidents, but it won’t cover your pet if it develops and internal illness such as cancer or arthritis. You can claim as much as you want up to the limit, and after 12 months the fixed sum resets. Your policy may however increase if your pet is seen as high risk.

Policies include: Southern Cross Accipet, Pet-n-sur’s Surgery and Surgery Plus

Basic pet insurance

Covers: Accidental injury, Illness and Inherited conditions – known as “total cover” with total claims limited to a set amount (usually $2,500 to $6,000) every 12 months
Best for: one-off injuries, small surgery/treatment after an accident, ongoing medication or a short-term illness

What you need to know: This policy tends to be cheapest, with an excess often being charged on every claim (i.e. $150). A common basic policy typically covers everything a vet provides, limited to a cap in vet fees in a 12 month period (usually $2,500 to $6,000). You can claim as much as you want up to the limit, and after 12 months the fixed sum resets. Your policy may however increase if your pet is seen as high risk.

Policies include: Petplan’s 12 months Essential plan, Southern Cross (all “Ribbon” policies) and Pet-n-sur’s Rhodium plan

Medium pet insurance

Covers: Accidental injury, Illness and Inherited conditions – known as “total cover” with total claims limited to a set amount (usually $10,000 to $15,000) every 12 months
Best for: one-off injuries, small surgery after an accident, ongoing medication or a short-term illness

What you need to know: These policies are similar to the basic policy, with a higher cap on vet bills and similar excesses on a claim (i.e. $150). You can claim as much as you want up to the limit, and after 12 months the fixed sum resets. Your policy may however increase if your pet is seen as high risk.

Policies include: Petplan’s Covered for Life plans, Southern Cross (all “Ribbon” policies) and Pet-n-sur’s Platinum plan (a co-payment of 20% applies to each claim).

Premium pet insurance

Covers: Almost everything, with 'lifetime policies'

Best for: major accidents, long-term illnesses such as diabetes, arthritis, cataract surgery, cancers and long-term illnesses that require constant and regular treatment and/or medication.

What you need to know: These policies cost the most and they offer the most comprehensive cover with $15,000-$20,000 in annual cover, although you may still pay excesses on each claim (i.e. $150). You can claim as much as you want up to the limit, and after 12 months the fixed sum resets. Your policy may however increase if your pet is seen as high risk.

Policies include: Petplan’s Ultimate plan and Southern Cross’s Blue Ribbon policy

Pet Insurance Best Buys

To properly understand what you will pay for pet insurance, we’ve listed three pets and the policy costs for “accident only”, medium” and “premium” coverage.

Pet 1 - Buster, Jack Russell dog, 1 year old, male
How much does it cost to insure Buster?

BEST Accident Only Price: Southern Cross - $32.66/month with no excess.
BEST Medium Policy Price: Petplan - $29.62/month + $150 excess. Similar cover is provided by Southern Cross for $54.04 (0% co-payment, $5k limit) or $41.28 (20% co-payment, $10k limit)
BEST Premium Policy Price: Petplan Classic 1 - $38.92/month (similar cover with Southern Cross is $119.53 (no excess, $10k limit) or $54.62 (20% co-payment, $10k limit)

Monthly cost, 1 year old male Jack Russell terrier dog
	Accident,Only ($2,500 - $5,000)	Medium Policy ($6,000)	Premium,Policy ($9,000+)
AA	$17.54 ($5k limit, 20% co-payment)	$42.08 ($7k limit, 20% co-payment)	$50.10 ($11k limit, 20% co-payment)
Countdown	$36.69 ($3k limit, 25% co-payment, covers non-accidents)	$43.17 ($6k limit, 25% co-payment)	$49.64 ($9k limit, 25% co-payment)
Pet-n-sur	$30.82 + 10% co-payment	$54.46 + 25% co-payment	$76.28 + 20% co-payment
Petplan	$29.62 + $150 excess ($7k limit)	$29.62 + $150 excess ($7k limit)	$38.92 + $150 excess ($9k limit)
Southern Cross	$32.66 ($5k limit, no excess) or $16.54 (20% co-payment)	$54.04 (no excess - $5k limit)	$119.53 (no excess - $10k limit)

Pet 2 - Tiddles, King Charles Spaniel dog, 8 year old, male
How much does it cost to insure Tiddles?

BEST Accident Policy price: Southern Cross - $16.54 (20% co-payment) or $32.66/month (no excess)
BEST Medium Policy Price: Petplan - $29.62/month, claims require 20% co-payment + $150 excess
BEST Premium Policy Price: Petplan Classic 1 - $38.92/month, claims require 20% co-payment + $150 excess

Monthly cost, 8 year old male King Charles Spaniel dog
	Accident,Only ($2,500 - $3,000)	Medium Policy ($6,000)	Premium,Policy ($9,000+)
AA	Not offered due to age of pet	Not offered due to age of pet	Not offered due to age of pet
Countdown	$36.69 ($3k limit, 25% co-payment, covers non-accidents)	$43.17 ($6k limit, 25% co-payment)	$49.64 ($9k limit, 25% co-payment)
Pet-n-sur	$30.82 + 10% co-payment	$54.46 + 25% co-payment	$76.28 + 20% co-payment
Petplan	$29.62 + $150 excess + 20% co-payment ($7k limit)	$29.62 + $150 excess + 20% co-payment ($7k limit)	$38.92 + $150 excess + 20% co-payment ($9k limit)
Southern Cross	$32.66 ($5k limit, no excess) or $16.55 (20% co-payment)	Not offered for pets 7+ years old	Not offered for pets 7+ years old

Pet 3 - Monty, Tabby cat, 1 year old, male
How much does it cost to insure Monty?

BEST Accident Only Policy Price: Southern Cross - $21.27/month (similar cover with Petplan but avoids a $125 excess)
BEST Medium Policy Price: Southern Cross - $33.49/month (similar cover with Petplan but avoids $125 excess)
BEST Premium Policy Price: Petplan - $26.42/month with $125 excess (similar cover with Southern Cross is $35.05 with a 20% co-payment, or $60.12 with no excess)

Monthly cost, 1 year old male Tabby cat
	Accident,Only ($2,500 - $5,000)	Medium Policy ($6,000)	Premium,Policy ($9,000+)
AA	$14.44 ($5k limit, 20% co-payment)	$34.65 ($7k limit, 20% co-payment)	$41.25 ($11k limit, 20% co-payment)
Countdown	$22.77 ($3k limit, 25% co-payment, covers non-accidents)	$26.79 ($6k limit, 25% co-payment)	$30.84 ($9k limit, 25% co-payment)
Pet-n-sur	$19.91 (10% co-payment)	$39 (25% co-payment)	$66.28 (20% co-payment)
Petplan	$20.25 + $125 excess ($7k limit)	$26.42 + $125 excess ($9k limit)	$26.42 + $125 excess ($9k limit)
Southern Cross	$21.27 ($5k limit, no excess) or $10.44 (20% co-payment)	$33.49 ($5k limit, no excess) or $25.12 (20% co-payment)	$60.12 ($10k limit, no excess) or $35.05 (20% co-payment)

Need-to-knows
Few policies go beyond the stated limit of vet bills. However, Petplan extends its policies to cover for emergency vet bills and expenses relating to the treatment of Injury, Accident or Illness. Specifically, claims can be made for:

Up to $2,000 for Complementary Treatment & Alternative Therapy
Up to $1,500 for Death from Illness or Death from Injury
Up to $1,000 (Dogs) and $500 (Cats) for Boarding Fees
Up to $1,000 for Advertising & Reward
Up to $1,000 (Dogs) and $500 (Cats) for Holiday Cancellation
Up to $1,000 for Quarantine Expenses & Loss of Documents
Up to $500 for Emergency Repatriation

Maximising the Benefits on your Policy – 9 Things to Know:

Own more than one pet? You may get a discount if you insure them all

If you have two or more cats, dogs or a combination of both, you may qualify for a discount on each premium. For example, Petplan offers a 10% discount per pet if you insure 3 or more pets with them. To get the best deal, always get quotes individually for your pets, and contact the insurer to ask if they offer multiple pet discounts. If you’re paying $1,000 for two dogs, 10% off that bill is a decent saving. As always, shop around for the best quote.

Check to see if special deals are offered online

Check on each insurer’s website for details; Google the company name and “discount” for the latest promos. For example, Southern Cross offers a 2.5% discount if you’re one of their members already, and Petplan has previously offered 10% online discounts for new policies.

Negotiate directly with your insurer for a bigger discount

Once you've decided on a suitable policy for your pet, it’s worth a shot negotiating directly with the company. We believe, from our research into the companies selling pet insurance, that there are big margins so we recommend bringing down the monthly premium.

Some pet insurance covers cancelling a holiday

More expensive policies cover (up to a certain dollar limit) having to cancel travel plans if your pet gets sick or has an accident.

If your pet goes missing, you may be covered for replacement costs and reward money.

It’s traumatic for anyone to realise their pet is missing, but some pet insurance policies will cover replacement costs for missing animals, as well as reward money and advertising expenses (flyers, newspaper adverts, social media advertising). Check the coverage to see if this is included, as it may mean you have a better chance of reuniting with your pet if a cash reward is on offer.

If you get sick and go to hospital, boarding fees for your pet MAY be covered

Some pet insurance policies now include this, meaning the cost of sending your pet to a cattery or kennel will be covered. It usually needs to be a hospital stay of at least 4 days, so check your policy for specific terms if this is important.

Make sure you always have your pet up to date with injections

If you don’t, your pet insurance policy will probably become invalid. Make sure these are administered by a vet and you have all the certificates, and keep them handy if and when you need to make a claim.

You can reduce the cost of pet insurance – our easy wins and tips:

Keep your pet healthy - your pet will go to the vet less if it’s healthy. Make sure it’s never overweight, and gets regular exercise. Keep up to date on all vaccinations and provide a healthy diet. Pets that see less of the vet make happy owners as well with lower premiums.
Consider selecting a co-payment policy – your monthly premium will drop (see our quotes table), but make sure you can still pay the 10% or 20% of a vet bill of your annual cover limit (i.e. budget for having to pay 10% of $2,500 or 20% of $6,000.

What do I need to get a pet insurance quote and policy?

Generally, it’s fairly simple to get a quote and you’ll need to provide:

Your pet’s age
Breed or size of your pet

If you buy a policy, you’ll need to provide:

The general health of your pet (and if it has been de-sexed)
How much you bought your pet for
Any medical conditions and history
Behavioural history

Making a Claim - Your Rights

If you make a claim and it is rejected, appeal and complain

Facebook is full of complaints from pet insurance policyholders who have been rejected.
If you have been rejected and you think it's unfair, appeal it. Jump on the phone and explain why your claim meets the T&Cs of the policy you bought. If they don't agree, you can complain with the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme which resolves disagreements between customers and their insurers.
Their free-of-charge service will make the final decision about your claim and order the insurer to pay out if they find in your favour.