The ManyPets guide to pet insurance renewal costs

Have your pet insurance costs gone up at renewal? If they have and it’s more than you expected or budgeted for, you might be wondering why.

At ManyPets, we believe in honest and transparent pricing, so we’ll do our best to explain how dog insurance and cat insurance renewals are priced and help you find cover that works for your budget.

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How does the pet insurance renewal process work?

Pet insurance, like any insurance, is about spreading out risk over many customers. Just like with your car insurance or home insurance, the principal of pet insurance is that everybody pays a little, so that no one pays a lot.

For example, imagine a group of 1,000 pet insurance customers, each paying premiums of £350 per year. Out of this group, some will claim nothing. Some will claim a bit less than £350 in a year, some will claim a bit more. Some will have some sizeable claims – perhaps a double hip replacement surgery.

But, if the plans have been priced right, the £350,000 collectively paid will be enough to cover the cost of all the claims.

Of course, in real life we don’t all pay £350 a year for our dog insurance or cat insurance. Some of us pay more and some of us pay less. The individual price depends on your pet’s individual circumstances and how much of a risk the insurer deems them to be.

So how does that affect renewal? That individual cost changes over time as your pet ages and builds up a bit of a medical history. 

If you’ve got an older dog or older cat with a few previous illnesses, there’s more of a chance of you needing to claim in the coming year so you’ll be asked to contribute a bit more to that overall insurance ‘pot’.

Does the price of pet insurance in the UK usually rise each year?

There’s no escaping the fact that your pet insurance is likely to increase each year.

It’s not like car insurance where you build up a no-claims bonus – it’s more comparable to human health insurance where you become slightly more at risk each year as you age.

Price increases have been particularly marked because of some external factors playing a part, chiefly the rapid rise in the cost of living. 

You can get an idea of how much this has pushed up veterinary costs by looking at our research into the cost increases of vaccinations and cat and dog neutering.

What factors increase price when renewing pet insurance?

The main reasons your price can increase over time are:

• Inflation

• Vet costs

• Your pet’s age

• Health risks for your pet’s breed

• Previous claims

We’ve already looked at how inflation and increasing vet treatment costs push up pet insurance renewal prices, but the other three factors come down to your pet’s individual risk.

Age will inevitably push up pet insurance renewal prices. There’s no escaping the fact that older pets are more likely to need veterinary care. This is why your insurance costs rise as your pet gets older.

Prices are likely to increase more steeply when your pet reaches seven or eight years old. For some breeds with shorter average lifespans, prices can start to increase even younger.

Your pet’s breed also plays a part. Each breed of dog or cat is different, and they tend to be affected by different conditions. We regularly review how likely it is that a breed will develop a condition and that affects the premiums you pay. Often the risk of developing conditions increases with age as well, so that can have a more marked effect at each renewal.

Finally, if you’ve had to make a claim previously, it can mean that statistically you’re more likely to make a claim in the future (a bit like with car insurance). The way insurance pricing prediction works means that this can mean your premiums are a bit higher, especially if you’ve had a particularly high number of previous claims.

At the end of your plan, we’ll review the claims you’ve made to understand whether your pet is more or less likely to need treatment in the coming year and adjust your price based on this.

What can I do when my pet insurance is up for renewal?

You might come to the conclusion that the renewal price is fair, though higher, and you are happy to continue with your cover.

Otherwise, you could consider shopping around and switching your pet insurance provider.

We can’t emphasise this enough though if your pet needed treatment for an injury or illness in the past you’ll probably only still be covered for that particular condition if you renew with your existing provider.

It’s because most pet insurance plans do not provide cover for pre-existing conditions and a new insurer will most likely decline a claim if your pet already had the condition before the policy was taken out.

Unlike most other insurers, we can cover conditions that ended more than two years before your policy start date.

That means it’s definitely worth getting a quote with us if you’re currently with another provider that’s quoted you a high renewal price.

How is the ManyPets renewal process different?

If you’re happy with your renewal price, you won’t need to do anything. We’ll just renew it automatically.

If you’re worried it’s become more expensive, please get in touch. We’ll be happy to go through your plan details with you and talk about whether you might be better off choosing a different plan at a lower cost.

We have different levels of vet fee cover and you can also choose to pay a higher excess with certain plans to bring down the cost of your premiums.

And if you're a pet parent with healthy pets but feel like you're paying premiums year after year with no claims, take a look at our MoneyBack optional extra.

You could get 20% of your premium back if you haven't needed to make a claim in your policy year. MoneyBack gets paid 90 days after the end of your policy year, and it's available on most of our plans.

Key terms in pet insurance renewal

Before you have a conversation with your pet insurer, make sure you understand these pet insurance renewal terms.

Renewal premium

This is the amount you'll pay for the next year’s cover. It may differ from your previous premium due to changes in your pet’s age, health status, or adjustments in plan terms. It’s more likely to go up over time rather than down, we’re afraid.

Cover limits

These are the maximum amounts the insurer will pay out for each element of cover.

The main one will be your vet fee limit. At ManyPets we offer lifetime pet insurance which means you’ll have a vet fee limit that refreshes each year when you renew. There may also be limits on each condition.

You may have separate cover limits on different types of cover as well, for example the limit for behaviour treatment might be lower than your overall vet fee limit. There might be a limit on complementary therapies, a separate limit on lost and stolen cover and so on. 

You should also check if these limits refresh upon renewal.

Exclusions

Certain conditions or treatments might be not be covered by your plan.

Always review your handbook for exclusions at renewal to understand what isn’t covered. 

Pre-existing conditions

This is a really important one. Pre-existing conditions are health issues your pet had before the start of the plan and most pet insurers won’t cover them. 

Check how your insurer defines and handles these conditions at renewal. If you have a lifetime plan and the condition occurred while you had cover, the condition should still be covered after renewal.

But it’s a different story if you have a time-limited plan or the condition happened before you had a plan with that provider. It might not be covered, so renewal is a good time to check.

Unlike most other insurers, we can cover conditions that ended more than two years before your policy start date. We also have our Standard Care Pre-existing plan.

Our Standard Care Pre-existing plan can cover recent conditions.

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Excess

The excess is the amount you contribute towards the cost of a claim.

Sometimes your excess can change at renewal time, especially if your pet has reached a certain age where your insurer asks for a higher excess.

Most pet insurance plans have a co-payment clause for older pets. It’s an additional contribution to the claim, typically 20% of the claim value, that you’ll need to pay. It helps to keep the overall plan cost affordable for older dogs and cats.

For example, at ManyPets, our customers agree to a 20% co-payment when your pet is seven or over at renewal. You pay this per claim.

Like fixed excesses, co-payments help to make the insurance price more affordable.

Our excess and co-payment guide explains more.

Plan terms and conditions

Always read your renewal letter to understand any changes in the terms and conditions of your plan.

Your insurer should be stating any significant changes to your cover prominently in the renewal notice, so do make sure you read it carefully and don’t just look at the price.

Tips for straightforward renewal

1. Review your plan as soon as you get your renewal notice – don’t leave it until the last minute.

2. Update your information –check that all the details in your plan are up to date, including any new health conditions or your address if you’ve moved house.

3. Compare and contrast – look at other plans on the market to make sure you’re still getting the best deal for your needs. If you’re tempted to switch, just make sure you’ve thought about how that will affect cover for pre-existing conditions.

4. Consider changing plan types – if your pet’s needs have changed you might want to consider asking your insurer if you can switch to a different plan that better suits your needs. For example, one with a lower or higher vet fee limit.

5. Check for discounts – are you making the most of your insurer’s offers? For example, at ManyPets, we have a multi-pet discount if you have two or more pets with us, and our MoneyBack option could allow you to get 20% of your premium back if you haven't needed to make a claim in your policy year. MoneyBack is available on most of our plans.

6. Ask questions – if you’re confused or worried about your renewal terms, get in touch with your insurer and ask them to explain.

How to switch to us

Get a quote

You'll need to get a quote first and see if our cover is right for your pet.

Cancel your existing plan

You must tell your current insurer you want to cancel. Each insurer has their own plans for this, and some may ask you to pay any remaining premium, fees and cancel your existing Direct Debit.

Start your new plan (and remember you may not have a 14-day waiting period with us)

You'll then start your new plan, but almost all insurers have a 14-day waiting period between plans before you can claim.

We don't have a 14-day waiting period if you've been with your current insurer for 12 or more consecutive months.

Renewals at ManyPets

We hope you’ll be happy with your renewal letter and we always try to avoid jargon and make it as easy to understand as possible.

If you’d like to change your cover level, add optional extras or need to tell us about changes in details, just log into your online account, or get in touch.

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