Owning a cat brings huge rewards, but also brings big responsibilities. One of these responsibilities is to be sure that you are able to provide the very best care for your pet should they become ill or injured. Another is to protect yourself and your family from unexpected and expensive veterinary bills.

Every year 1 in 3 cats fall ill or have an accident. Sometimes this involves an operation or a period of intensive treatment. Veterinary bills can be hugely expensive.  If your pet has an accident or gets a serious illness you could be looking at bills that run into thousands of pounds.  With the average cost of an emergency visit to a vet now at around £300 and the cost of fixing a broken leg ranging up to £1200 it’s a good idea to be prepared.

A cost effective alternative is a cat insurance policy that will give you real peace of mind and make sure that you are covered for the worst accident or illness. Insurance needn’t be expensive and it can provide your pet with the essential care it needs and therefore save a lot of money in the long run.

Surprisingly for a nation of animal lovers 80% of cats in the United Kingdom (about 7 million cats) are uninsured for even the most basic cat health insurance, putting them at serious risk of not receiving the attention they deserve should they have a road accident or suffer a long term illness.  Recent research has also revealed that more than half of vets have had to put down a pet because the owner did not have pet insurance and therefore couldn’t afford to pay for the treatments needed.

Cat insurance can be tailored to suit your needs and circumstances.  There are different levels of cover that can be chosen, from basic to comprehensive.  A basic policy for example would be an annual one that usually pays for up to 12 months following diagnosis of an individual condition.  A more comprehensive policy would not have the time limit of an annual policy and allow treatment costs to be claimed cumulatively.

It’s worth noting that pet insurance for pedigree cats is generally more expensive than insurance for moggies. This is partly because they are worth more and many policies offer to payout the cost of a pet if it dies or is stolen, and partly because non-pedigree cats are generally healthier and longer-lived than pedigrees.

Obviously there is no way of knowing if your pet will experience serious accidents or illnesses within its lifetime.  However, if you are a cat owner who considers your pet as a part of the family and you don’t want to go through the stress of worrying how you’re going to cope if the worst does happen, then insuring your pet will not only give you peace of mind but also ensure the best care is available to your cat should she ever need it.

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