What Is The Best Puppy Insurance?

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Alexandre Desoutter updated on February 26, 2021

Do you have a puppy and want to know if having pet insurance is worth it?

The simple answer is: yes, taking out a puppy insurance is always a good idea. You will have peace of mind, as the main expenses will be taken care of.

In this guide, we’ll detail all the different types of puppy insurance, the average cost of taking out a puppy insurance and and we’ll also give you an indicative quote to find the best pet insurance for your puppy.

What type of puppy insurance is best for you?

When researching the best insurance policy, there are different policy types to consider. From the least comprehensive to the most, these are:

These are:

Level of coverageDetails
Accidental only
  • Pet insurance basic level
  • Cover for vet bills in case of an accident
Time limited
  • This policy usually lasts 12 months
  • Covers accident and short-term illness
Maximal benefit cover
  • Also known as a ‘per condition’ policy
  • A sum of money is allocated for each illness covered
Lifetime
  • Most comprehensive policy
  • Covers vet fees up to a stated limit
Pet insurance – Level of coverage

What is the best puppy insurance?

InsurersVet feesNoteGet a quote
4paws logo
Excess: £90

Vet fees limit From £4,000 to £12,000
  • 4Paws pet insurance is a dedicated pet specialist.
  • 97% of claims are paid, excellent rate from Defaqto.
  • 4Paws proposes Lifetime contribution and Lifetime cover.
  • Lifetime contribution is cheaper, but when you're claiming, you will contribute to 30%. Nice feature because it is not sure that you will claim on your dog insurance policy.
  • Monthly premium from £12.82 to £44.19 for the most complete pet policy.
logo animal friends 1
Excess: £99

From £1,000 to £6000 annual condition limit
  • Animal Friends is a dedicated pet insurance specialist recognized for its very complete offers. Very well rated from Defaqto.
  • Animal Friends offers 4 level of protection for your dog from Lifetime Super to Lifetime prestige.
  • This pet insurance for dogs allows you to be covered as standard for vet fees, advertising fees, emergency vet treatment abroad.
  • Average monthly premium: from £5.27 to £12.02

petguard logo

Excess: £100 if under 8 years old

Vet fees limit from £3,000 to £12,000
  • Petguard is a well known pet insurance company that offers a comprhensive cat insurance
  • 20% discount off specialist cat insurance
  • PetGuard dog policy includes vet fees, advertising fees, accidental damages, holiday cancellations and excludes emergency expenses and third party liability.
  • Average monthly premium from £10.11
logo pet protect 1
Excess: £95
(15% more on each claim)

Vet fees limit from £3,000 to £6,000
  • Pet protect is known for its small prizes.
  • Petprotect offers 3 levels of lifetime protections: condition care, Lifetime Plus, Lifetime extra.
  • Petprotect condition care offers the most basic insurance policy to protect your cat, wheras Lifetime Plus and extra includes cattery fees, travel cover, death by accident.
  • Average monthly premium from £13.56 to £19.74

logo pet plan

Vet fees limit from £4,000 to £12,000
  • Petplan offers a a complete pet insurance
  • Petplan offers 3 level of protections: classic, classic +, ultimate
  • Includes advertising fees, emergency boarding fees, holiday cancellations
  • Average monthly premium from £12.99
logo agria pet insurance
Vet fees limit from £6,500 to £12,500
  • Agria is a high-end pet insurance company and has been elected Best claim services in 2019.
  • Agria proposes two protections levels for your cat: Lifetime and Lifetime Plus.
  • With Agria Lifetime Plus, all features are included such as boarding fees, advertising. With Agria Lifetime, your vet fees will be covered, as well as advertising fees and travel and accommodations.
  • Average monthly premium from £19.86 to £24.44
Dog lifetime cover

How much is puppy insurance?

It depends on which coverage you choose. You can pay more or less depending on the coverage you choose. Other factors must be considered:

  • Your puppy’s age, The older your puppy is, the more expensive it will be to insure your puppy.
  • Where you live in the UK. Vet fees are not the same all over the UK.
  • Whether your puppy is a pedigree or not. Often, you will be asked when taking out puppy insurance if your puppy is a pedigree. A pedigree can be more expensive to insure as as they are prone to having poorer health.
  • Your puppy’s breed. Some breeds are more more likely to have an illness than others. The less expensive breed is golden Retriever whereas one of the most expensive breed is bulldogs.

The average cost of puppy insurance in UK is about £30 and £40 per month.

What does puppy insurance cover?

Not all insurers offer the same features, so check before insuring your puppy. Here is a little table that shows what is usually covered by a puppy insurance:

Included or notDetails
Vet fees
  • Included in all type of policies
You can ask money back for vet fees if your dog received medical treatment
Advertising and rewards
  • Often included in Lifetime cover
  • Often not included in basics insurance
You can claim the money back for the cost of your reward and your advertising spend
Death by illness or accident
  • Often not included in basics insurance
  • Sometimes covered by Lifetime.
You can claim if your dog died because of an accident or because of an illness
Boarding fees
  • Often not included in basics insurance
Covers the cost of boarding your dog if you have an emergency
Overseas travel cover
  • Often not included in basics insurance
Your dog is covered in another country
Third party liability cover
  • Included in basics insurance
Covers legal liability if your dog causes damage or injury.
For cats, there is no such thing. The owner is not held responsible for damages caused, as cats are considered “free spirits” in the UK.
Puppy insurance cover

What is not included in your puppy insurance?

Often, these kind of features are not included in your puppy insurance:

Not includedDetails
Treatment for preexisting conditionsMost insurers won’t cover your puppy’s existing conditions.
Routine medical treatmentYour puppy insurance won’t cover your routine medical treatment such as vaccinations, for example.
Behaviour treatmentThis kind of feature is often not provided for puppy insurance.
International cost Some insurers won’t offer to cover your puppy abroad.
Dental treatmentOften excluded from puppy insurance.
puppy ageSometimes your puppy will not be covered if your pet is considered too old.
What is not covered by your puppy insurance

Can you get a discount when taking out puppy insurance?

Lot of providers propose a discount when insuring your puppy online:

ProviderDiscount
logo aviva temporary 110% discount via Aviva* if your buy online your puppy insurance
10% multi pet discount
logo pet plan10% discount if your buy online your puppy insurance
logo more than pet 125% discount if your buy online your puppy insurance
logo sainsburys pet 112 month cover for the price of 9 month
Pet insurance discounts
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Alexandre Desoutter
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Alexandre Desoutter has been working as editor-in-chief and head of press relations at HelloSafe since June 2020. A graduate of Sciences Po Grenoble, he worked as a journalist for several years in French media, and continues to collaborate as a as a contributor to several publications.

In this sense, his role leads him to carry out steering and support work with all HelloSafe editors and contributors so that the editorial line defined by the company is fully respected. and declined through the texts published daily on our platforms.

As such, Alexandre is responsible for implementing and maintaining the strictest journalistic standards within the HelloSafe editorial staff, in order to guarantee the most accurate, up-to-date information on our platforms. and expert as possible. Alexandre has in particular undertaken for two years now the implementation of a system of systematic double-checking of all the articles published within the HelloSafe ecosystem, able to guarantee the highest quality of information.