Insurance Money Share Tweet No insurance company is particularly going to want to provide insurance to someone who smokes and drinks heavily, and no home insurance company is going to be interested in insuring a property on a flood plain; these are the downsides of the insurance industry. The requirement to hit a certain level of base accomplishment means many people may avoid looking in to insurance, particularly if it is a relative unknown like pet insurance. After all, surely there’s thousands of hoops a pet insurance company may expect someone – and their well-trained pet – to jump through before providing even the basic level of coverage? Well, yes and no. Get Your Moneys Worth It’s In The Small Print Like all insurance companies, pet insurance companies will have a certain set of requirements they expect anyone taking out a policy to adhere to. Often, these policy are not even especially outlined; usually you’ll just have to tick a box saying you and your pet meet these basic requirements, so accepted as fact that are. However, if you do tick that box and for some reason you don’t meet one of the requirements, your insurance is invalid. Worse still, if you do succeed in making a claim and it is then found out you had lied on the form (and just “not realising” is the same as lying in this circumstance), then you could be prosecuted for insurance fraud. Base Expectations Thankfully, the base expectations are something that most pet owners will do automatically. Almost Always Required – Regular vaccinations. Your pet will be required to be vaccinated, and to have yearly boosters. If you haven’t had this done yet, do it now. If there are financial problems standing in your way, talk to your vet; often some kind of credit system can be set up to allow you to pay a little each month towards the cost of vaccinations. – Under the age of 15. If your pet is over the age of 15, you will probably need a very specialist policy (and it will probably be rather expensive also). Scrutinise the small print of any policy you are considering to see if it applies. – Your animal. You will only be allowed to insure an animal that is in your possession, and living in your home with you for at least 80% of the week. If you have doubts about this, discuss it with your potential insurer; you may find they can make suitable arrangements if, for example, you share the pet. However, the pet will only be covered when in your care. Sometimes Required – Regular flea, tick and worm treatment. It’s a good idea to keep your pet up to date with these treatments anyway, but some policies may stipulate this is done regularly. Keep receipts of any wormers and flea treatments you buy so you can prove the treatments have been done if your policy includes this caveat. – Neutering. If your pet is not neutered, expect to pay more for your policy or perhaps be denied insurance at all. Please note, this does not apply to professional breeders (though you would need a specialist policy regardless). Whatever it takes to make your pet eligible for insurance, it’s still well worth it in the long run.