The answers to all your pet insurance questions.

Pet insurance cover veterinary treatments and surgeries for accidental injury and illnesses ranging from minor incidents such as ear infections and bee stings to major conditions such as broken bones, diabetes and cancer.

Most Pet Insurers have an added option of routine cover which is for preventative care treatment such as vaccinations, spaying, flea, tick and worm control, sterilisation and teeth cleaning. This is usually an added cost; however, there is a pet insurer who includes routine care cover in their comprehensive plans, under pet med savings benefit, this is Oneplan Pet Insurance.

Most pet insurers would like you to pay upfront and claim back. Once your vet has treated your pet, simply send in a claim form along with your vet's detailed account and proof of payment. The pet insurance company then calculates the benefit and pays you directly. It is as simple as that. Note: Benefits are paid according to the insurance company Benefit Schedule which is based on the South African Veterinary Council Guideline of Fees.

However, with Oneplan Pet Insurance your Pawsualty (casualty for pets) and Pet Med Savings are paid upfront using their unique Onecard and App to swipe after their consultation, making sure clients always have access to their insurance when they need it most.

Like most insurance policies there are some exclusions to keep your premiums low. If insurance had to cover absolutely everything you would be paying more than a medical aid. So depending on your policy and plan selected these exclusions could include pregnancy, elective procedures, foods/diets, grooming, behavioural problems, tick paralysis, hereditary and congenital defects, and pre-existing conditions that showed clinical signs before taking out the insurance.

Interestingly enough, Oneplan Pet Insurance cover pre-existing conditions after 12 months and offer clients up to 25% discount in the Onepet Store on their monthly food and preventative healthcare shopping.

Yes, you can use any Veterinarian who is licensed to practice in South Africa.

With most insurers there are no age limits for accident in-hospital ONLY cover but usually no pet under the age of 8 weeks or older than 9 years will be insured on a comprehensive plan. However, once a pet is enrolled, cover may be kept for life.

Oneplan believes no two pets are the same so they have tailored their age limits according to breed size. Which means you can sign your pet up with Oneplan if they are younger than 11 years for small dog breed or a cat, 10 years Medium Dog Breed and 9 years large dog breed.

Generally, a policy starts on the first day of the month after your application has been accepted and your first premium has been successfully debited. You can start claiming for conditions based on the waiting periods which are stipulated in your chosen pet insurance policy wording.

An accidental pet injury is something you can’t foresee happening. This includes a physical or body injury that happens accidentally to your pet as a result of external, violent and visible means for example: broken bones, snake bite, dog/cat fight.

An illness means an unexpected sickness or disease or any change to your pet's normal healthy state, which is not caused by injury to your pet. For example: upset stomach, skin conditions, ear infection.

Yes, they recommend and encourage responsible pet ownership. Most insurers offer routine care as an add on product to your to your policy for a small additional fee. Oneplan Pet Insurance includes pet med savings to use annually in their comprehensive plans. Routine treatment includes spaying your pet, annual vaccination, deworming, dental scaling and tick and flea treatment.

Oneplan allows their clients to double up their pet med savings for routine treatment if they feel their need a bigger limit per year from as little as R75pm per pet.

Most insurers consider this compulsory as this provides permanent identification and acts as your pet's Medical Aid Card, allowing you to utilise any vet countrywide. With Oneplan Pet Insurance microchipping your pet is not compulsory, and you can simply snap and upload a cute picture of your pet to your pets’ profile on their Oneplan App or they accept registered marks you provide which they can identify your pets by.

Because most pet insurance products fall under the short-term insurance act, excesses are applicable. The excess is the amount you have to pay in when it comes time to claim. With Oneplan Pet Insurance you can waive excesses on your policy by adding the excess buster from as little as R29pm per pet.