Time-limited pet insurance

Time limited pet insurance is a type of pet insurance where, if you make a claim, it will only pay out for that illness or injury for 12 months. For this reason, it is often called short-term pet insurance.

It also provides a fixed sum that you can claim up to for each condition. Once the 12 months is up, or the money limit reached, whichever comes first, your pet will no longer be covered for that condition.

So, if your pet still needs treatment or medication, you’ll be responsible for the costs from then on. However, your insurance will continue and cover your pet for new conditions or injuries.

Time limited cover is the most basic level of illness-related pet insurance. It could be invaluable if you can’t afford the more expensive covers, such as maximum benefit or lifetime pet insurance.

Time limited pet insurance typically won’t cover:

• Pre-existing conditions

• Routine health visits

• Vaccinations

• Pregnancy-related treatments and procedures

• Worm and flea treatment.

Unfortunately, no. Once you’ve made a claim for a condition, it will be excluded from your cover, so you can’t claim again.

In fact, you’re unlikely to be covered even if the condition appears in another part of the body. For example, if your dog suffers elbow dysplasia in its front right leg one year, then the following year in the left, you probably won’t be able to claim for the second time.

It’s always best to check, though, as each insurance provider will deal with a claim differently. Read the terms, conditions, clauses and exclusions carefully before committing, so you know exactly what you’d be covered for.

As well as time limited, there are three other pet insurance options to choose from:

• Accident-only pet insurance – this covers your pet in the event of an accident, but not for long-term illnesses or conditions.

• Maximum benefit pet insurance – covers the cost of illnesses and accidents up to a maximum amount per condition, but there’s no time limit on how long you can claim for. This can be useful if your pet experiences a chronic or persistent illness.

• Lifetime pet insurance – covers you for vet fees for the whole of your pet’s life, assuming you renew the policy each year.

This is up to you, of course, based on your financial situation and your pet’s health.

Before deciding, make sure you understand the differences between the types of plans and the impact your choice could potentially have over the longer term.

Time limited pet insurance is a more affordable option. It can be useful for covering unforeseen illness and injuries. But it won’t work so well for long-term problems or recurring illnesses.

Once you have breached the time limit for a specific condition, you won’t receive further payouts and it will be up to you to pay the vet bills. Over time these can mount up.

Lifetime cover is more expensive, on the other hand, but offers longer-term security against high vet bills for ongoing chronic or returning conditions if you stick with the same provider.

Always read your policy documents to see what’s included and excluded and any other terms and conditions.

It’s simple to compare quotes for time limited pet insurance with Compare the Market. We’ll just need to know:

• Your pet’s age and breed

• How much you paid or donated for them

• Whether your pet has been neutered or spayed

• Whether they’re microchipped.