You wouldn’t be alone if you were stuck contemplating how much pet insurance cost and whether it is worth it or not. With the cost of pet and vet care, you might be missing out on some major savings! Let's break down insurance and wellness plans, how much they cost, and if they would be a good fit for you.
How Much Is Pet Insurance & How Do The Payments Work?
Pet insurance coverage is similar to human insurance in many ways. However, human health insurance works on a copay basis (you pay a certain percentage and the insurance covers the rest), while pet insurance is usually paid by reimbursement.
At Wagmo, we offer a few different options for the type of care or plan that will be best for your animal. Wellness plans start at $20/month, and Pet Insurance plans start at $13/month. The cost is typically determined by your location, animal’s age, breed, and plan preference. You can mix and match to build your perfect package!
Let’s break down Wagmo’s pet insurance costs to better understand the terms:
- Deductible: If you choose the deductible plan, you will pay an initial payment of $250, $500, or $1000. A higher deductible means lower monthly payments.
- Co-Insurance: Unlike the other guys who leave you with 20% (or more) of the vet bill, after you pay the deductible, we cover 100%.
- Lifetime Limit: A lifetime limit is a maximum we will reimburse you over the lifetime of your pet. Wagmo will cover up to $100,000 in claims over a pet’s lifetime.
- Incident Limit: An incident limit is a maximum we will reimburse you for an individual accident or illness claim. Wagmo will cover up to $10,000 per incident.
- Waiting Periods: A waiting period is a time before your coverage is officially active. The waiting period allows us to make sure no one signs up, files a claim for their pet’s already present illness, and then cancels, leaving Wagmo with the bill.
What Does Pet Insurance Cover?
Most plans include preventative care, emergency costs, or routine care which is typical for most pet owners, including dogs and cats:
- Unexpected injuries/accidents (like foreign object ingestion, broken bones, and more)
- Unexpected illnesses (like cancer, glaucoma, hip dysplasia, parvovirus, and more)
- Surgery (like cruciate ligament tears, cataracts, and more)
- Medication
- Tests/diagnostics (like x-rays, blood tests, MRIs, and more)
- Emergency exam fees
Pet insurance plans will not usually cover pre-existing conditions. For example, if your pet breaks a leg before you get insurance, the care for their leg injury will not be covered. More expensive plans will also have provisions for hereditary conditions, congenital conditions, chronic conditions, and routine care.
Take some time to look through the healthcare market for pet policies, and you'll find the one that offers a good balance between costs, savings, and help for your pet.
What Does A Pet Wellness Plan Cover?
Our wellness plans cover what typical insurances won’t. We offer three different wellness plans so you can select exactly what is right for your pet, whether it’s value, classic, or deluxe. This coverage is for day-to-day pet care that many pet parents will usually be paying for out of pocket for anyway. This coverage includes:
- Office visits
- Vaccines
- Routine blood work
- Fecal test
- Urinalysis
- Flea / Tick / Heart-worm (Classic and deluxe)
- Dental care (Classic and deluxe)
- Grooming (Deluxe)
Is Pet Insurance Worth It?
67% of U.S. households, or about 85 million families, own a pet, but only 1% of those pets are insured. This means any pet that has an accident or gets sick is being paid for out of pocket by their humans, leading to debt or even economic euthanization.
Anyone who owns a pet should consider pet insurance for peace of mind. The monthly cost may turn some away while their pet is still young and healthy, but you can never anticipate what might happen as they grow older. Accidents happen, and health conditions can come out of nowhere.
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