Why It Pays to Get Pet Insurance Even if Your Current Costs Aren’t Covered

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Your policy might come in really handy at some point. 

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, health insurance companies generally have to cover enrollees for pre-existing conditions. But pet insurance works differently.

Most of the time, pet insurance policies will not pick up the tab if you’re filing a claim for treatment for an issue your pet had before it became insured. And so if you’re adopting a pet with known issues, or you have a pet with known issues, you may be inclined to skip the pet insurance and save your money.

But actually, it could still very much pay to get pet insurance, even if you know full well that your pet has certain conditions that won’t be covered. That’s because you never know what the future holds. And you don’t want to run into a situation where you’re maxing out your credit cards to pay for your pet’s care.

Protection from major health events

You never know when a pet of yours might get injured, requiring surgery costing thousands of dollars. Similarly, you never know when your pet might be diagnosed with a major illness that costs many thousands of dollars to treat.

That’s why it pays to get pet insurance even if you know full well that it won’t pick up the tab for treatments related to a pre-existing condition your pet has. Your policy might still more than pay for itself if your pet requires surgery or extensive medical treatment that you can’t afford.

Imagine you’re now stuck paying $100 a month for medication for your animal that your pet insurance company won’t pay for. That may be impeding your ability to add to your emergency fund. But what happens if your pet gets hurt and requires a $4,000 surgery? You may not have anywhere close to enough money in savings to cover that. With pet insurance, your policy might pick up the bulk of that tab.

What’s more, your pet might have a manageable condition for now. But what if they’re diagnosed with a disease that costs thousands of dollars to treat? You’d hate to be in the position where you’re forced to choose between your financial security and your pet’s life.

An expense worth working into your budget

The average cost of pet insurance is $44 per month for dogs and $30 a month for cats, based on Forbes Advisor’s analysis. Now, your pet may cost more or less to insure — it depends on the policy you put in place and the insurance company you go with.

But imagine you end up paying $44 a month for your dog’s policy over five years. That’s $2,640 in total. But if your dog ends up falling ill and needing treatment and surgery, your pet insurance company might end up paying out three times that much for your pet’s care.

It’s frustrating that pet insurance companies don’t cover pre-existing conditions the way human health insurers do. But even if that’s the boat you’re in, it could still make sense to buy a policy so you’re protected in more extreme situations.

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