How To Buy Pet Insurance From Your Vet

When faced with an anxious pet owner, most vets would prefer to talk about medical issues rather than the cost of treatment. Knowing that a client has adequate financial cover makes the conversation easier in short, vets prefer insured clients. So it should come as no surprise that even when owners can pick out a pet insurance leaflet at their local supermarket checkout, around one in five new policies in the UK are still purchased following recommendation at a veterinary surgery.

Before January 2005 all veterinary surgeries could recommend, or sell policies of their choice. The position changed on the 14th January 2005, when the Financial Services Authority (FSA) took charge of regulation in this area. Pet insurance was caught up in an industry-wide push to reduce the miss-selling of financial services which hit the headlines in the 1990's. The FSA was anxious to ensure that advice to would-be purchasers should only come from a knowledgeable source.

Is your vet authorised to sell pet insurance?

Following this change in the regulatory environment, the position today is clear. All veterinary practices are still able to market pet insurance, they can provide information on the concept and offer marketing literature for as many pet insurance companies as they want to. What they cannot do is sell a particular policy unless they have been 'authorised' by the insurance company whose product they are selling.

An insurance company that chooses to 'authorise' vet practices to sell its products, is expected to ensure that the sales person thoroughly understands the product they are selling. The practice personnel should be able to offer knowledgeable advice. They can provide a proposal form to a client for the insurer's policy and even help complete an application from to help the client obtain cover.

While many veterinary practices decided to become 'authorised', others chose not to. After all, vets and nurses spend years training to treat animals, not to sell financial services products. Keeping up with the changes in this increasingly dynamic market can also take up valuable time. Some argued that becoming 'authorised' made them less impartial, it could also put them in a difficult position if the policy did not live up to the client's expectations.

You're in a stronger position

Where does all this leave you the consumer? Hopefully in a stronger position, now you know what to look for.

If your vet practice actively sells a policy, make sure they are 'authorised' to do so. Ask lots of questions; they should be trained to answer them. Even if they actively promote one particular policy this does not stop them offering literature about other products in the market.

If your practice has chosen not to be authorised, they should still be able to provide you with information on pet insurance. Shop around. This is an important purchase that could save you thousands of pounds, so choose carefully.