Petcover

The Shonky Award for a policy that’s all bark, no benefit.

Back in 2019, we gave the entire pet insurance industry in Australia a Shonky Award. Since then, most of the pet insurers have cleaned up their act… somewhat.

But this year we’ve found a product that is arguably even worse than the pet insurance policies of yesteryear.

This year we’ve found a product that is arguably even worse than the pet insurance policies of yesteryear

Our main gripe in 2019 was the way that pet insurers covered pre-existing conditions or, rather, the way they didn’t. In the past, if you wanted to switch insurers, you’d be hard-pressed to find a new insurer to cover any of the conditions your pet has experienced, essentially locking you into staying with the same insurer for the life of your pet.

One Petcover policy, however, takes this to a new level.

Covered, until your pet actually needs it

Every 12 months, Petcover customers with Economy cover are sold an entirely new policy, which classifies all conditions a pet has previously suffered as pre-existing and excludes them from cover. So those conditions lose their cover, even if you stay with Petcover Economy.

And this isn’t limited to diagnosed conditions; the policy’s definition of “pre-existing conditions” is one of the broadest we’ve seen. It includes any condition with the same “clinical signs” as another illness or injury, which could be as minor as a change in behaviour.

The policy’s definition of ‘pre-existing conditions’ is one of the broadest we’ve seen

This could mean that if your cat had pancreatitis, for example, and the clinical signs are vomiting and food refusal, you risk not being covered for a myriad of other conditions where the clinical signs are also vomiting and food refusal. As our pet insurance expert Daniel Graham puts it, “you can forget about pre-existing conditions, this barely covers new conditions”.

This applies to chronic conditions too. You only get 12 months of cover for any single condition. So if your pet sustains a complex injury or develops an illness that requires ongoing treatment, Petcover will pay for the first year, but after that, you’re on your own.

Basically, you’re covered until you have something that needs cover

CHOICE pet insurance expert Dan Graham

“Sorry, Fluffy had diabetes last year, we can’t cover him again this year” isn’t a sentence any pet owner should have to hear.

“Basically, you’re covered until you have something that needs cover,” says Graham.

Poor-value policy gets less valuable with time

That’s all pretty bad, right? But wait, there’s more. Benefits also reduce as your pet ages.

When your pet is young and less likely to face giant vet bills, Petcover’s Economy policy will cover up to 100% of vet costs. But once your pet reaches 10 years old and is more likely to develop illnesses or have an accident, Petcover will only fork out for 65%.

This isn’t unique to Petcover Economy, a handful of other insurers do it too, but it’s still dodgy.

And don’t get us wrong, other pet insurance policies aren’t perfect. Far from it. But they will continue to cover you for conditions that your pet develops while they’re insured. (That’s kind of the point of insurance!)

A new condition? This policy offers no reason to stay

These days, if you’re switching from another insurer, most will consider covering pre-existing conditions after a period of time, provided they’ve resolved.

But with the way pet insurance is designed, it’s still the safest move to insure your pet as a young, healthy animal before anything shows up on their record, and then never switch.

It’s a no-brainer to switch to a different policy immediately

And we’d like to see this fixed, because it lets insurers keep raising your premium, and there’s little you can do about it.

The good news is that Petcover’s Economy policy doesn’t trap you like other policies do. Since anything your pet developed in the previous 12 months becomes a pre-existing condition, there is absolutely no benefit to staying put. It’s a no-brainer to switch to a different policy immediately.