Insurance 101: Pet accident insurance

August 23, 4:13 PMInsurance Industry ExaminerDanny Workman

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Consumers can insure their pets against accidents ranging from hurricanes and tornadoes to getting hit by a car.

Often considered base-level insurance for cats and dogs, accident coverage specifically excludes health care for a pet’s medical condition, sickness or disease.

Perhaps the clearest plain language definition of an eligible accident is one based on a long-term disability contract that I wrote back in the 1980s for the now-defunct Crown Life Insurance Company:

An accident is a violent, sudden and unexpected action from an outside source that directly and solely results in injury to an insured pet.

Most pet accident insurance policies only cover a specific set of medical charges. Below is an example of eligible accident expenses.

• Anesthesia
• Bandages, casts and splints
• Euthanasia
• Extraction of broken teeth
• Hospitalization and nursing care
• Intravenous fluids and medications
• Laboratory tests
• Medical examinations
• Poison control consultation fees
• Prescription drugs
• Surgery
• X-rays.