Dog insurance

In the UK, the cost of insuring your dog can depend on:

• Your dog's breed

• Their age

• Where you live

• The policy you choose

The best way to find out exactly how much it’ll cost to insure your dog is to get a quote – it only takes a few moments.

Yes, the cost of vet treatment varies around the country, which means your home address can affect how much you pay for pet insurance.

Generally, the cost to insure a one or two year old dog is much less than the cost of insuring an older dog.

Your insurer may also ask you to pay around 20%-35% of the cost of any claims for dogs aged over nine years old. This is called a co-payment.

Most of our policies are available for dogs of any age and we ask owners of dogs over nine to cover 20% of any claims.

Many people see the cost of their dog insurance increasing over time, and feel that the insurance company is acting unfairly – but higher costs for older dogs reflect the fact that visits to the vet are more likely.

Some owners opt to 'self-insure' by paying a fixed amount into a savings account each month, so that there is a reserve to draw on if their dog gets sick, instead of continuing to pay the insurance premium. The risk is that you may need vet treatment before your savings have built up or the cost of treatment will be higher than what you've saved.

Smaller dogs usually cost less to insure than bigger dogs and cross breeds usually cost less than pedigrees.

The cost of pedigree dog insurance varies significantly between breeds and the cost of insuring cross-breed dogs (such as Cockapoos or Labradoodles) will reflect the cost of insurance for the dominant breed.

Dogs with a propensity to develop breed-specific medical conditions also tend to be more expensive to insure.

Find out more about the average costs to insure different breeds and all their other costs in our guide.

No, vaccinations aren’t covered by dog insurance because they are classed as routine procedures.

We have two limits related to death. All our dog insurance policies include £300 if your pet has to be put to sleep. It is your choice how you use it, it could be used to cover the cost of the procedure or for pet cremation or burial costs.

We have a separate limit that can pay out the value of your dog if they pass away because of an accident or illness. There is a £6,000 limit included in our Complete policy as standard and our other dog insurance policies, apart from Value, and we offer up to £1,500 as an add-on. Please check our policy documents as there’s an age limit for some death claims.

Dog insurance isn’t compulsory in the UK and you don’t legally have to have it. But it can give you peace of mind that you can pay expensive vet bills and get your dog back to health.

There are no life insurance policies for dogs, although our pet insurance policies can offer a payout if your dog passes away, similar to life insurance. Our Complete policies includes up to £6,000 cover for death as standard and our other policies offer lower limits as an add-on. Please read our policy documents because some death claims have an age limit.

We love dogs of all ages and therefore have no upper age limit! As long as your dog is over 4 weeks old, we can provide a policy for you. 

From puppies to older dogs, we've got you covered.

We can offer Lost or Stolen cover on most of our policies. The Lost or Stolen cover is included as standard on our Complete policy, or can be added as an optional extra on the others in our range.

If your dog hasn’t needed vet treatment for a medical condition within the last two years, they’ll likely be eligible for any of our Complete, Regular or Value policies.

Our Pre-existing policy can provide cover for a dog that’s had a more recent health issue.

Dog insurance is designed to cover unpredictable accidents and illnesses, so routine procedures like spaying and neutering aren't included in on dog insurance policies. 

Yes, we can transfer a dog insurance policy to a new owner via My Account. Just log in and click on ‘Cancel policy’ then ‘My pet has a new owner’ when asked to give a reason. You’ll be asked if you would like to transfer ownership, which will reveal a code to share with your pet’s new owner.

The new owner should then get in touch with our Customer team with the policy number and code – we’ll take it from there.