Our Verdict
Animal Friends Pet Insurance received an overall rating of 3.2/5. In this article, we will reveal how we arrived at this score. The pet insurance company has donated a sizeable amount of money to animal charities, and that makes them an ideal service for people who genuinely care for animals. However, there are some drawbacks that made their overall score to drop to 3.2/5. These will all be analysed in this review.
Summary
| Policies | 3/4 |
| Benefits and Small Print | 1/3 |
| Renewal Premiums | 2.5/3 |
| Customer Satisfaction | 2/3 |
| Excess and Contribution | 1/2 |
| Total out of 15 | 9.5 |
| Star Rating out of 5 | 3.2 |
Policies
Animal Friends has a good range of pet insurance covers. Some of these policies have different limits, and that can confuse potential clients. In total, the company offers 12 insurance policies which are spread out over four different categories. The four categories are Accident-Only, Time-Limited, Max Benefit, and Lifetime insurance policies. With the Lifetime insurance policies, there are limits on each illness that is insured, but there is no limit to the total amount you can take in the insurance. The premiums for the policies are lower than average, and they will not rise with more claims. The fact that the company does not raise the premiums because of the frequency of the claims makes this company ideal for people who like consistent fees. Another advantage of the service is that there is no upper limit to the age of the insured pets, even with the Lifetime insurance policy.
Benefits and Small Print
There are a few things you need to note when taking insurance from Animal Friends. One of these is the fact that the euthanasia cover in this company does not include any payouts for prescription foods. Also, the Prestige policy will only pay for dental treatment if the problem originated from an accident. The other policies will not cover your pet’s dental costs, even if the problem occurred accidentally.
With the death or loss policies, your payout will be calculated based on the market value of your pet. This can be significantly lower than its purchase price. The company typically does not offer death and loss covers for pets that are 8 years or older.
If you have any claims, you have to submit them within 90 days of the first day of treatment. Beyond that period, you may not receive any settlements.
We didn’t find any other non-standard exclusions in the Animal Friends policies.
Renewal of Premiums
One thing which we appreciate about Animal Friends is that they offer some of the cheapest rates in the UK. They have a reputation for not increasing their renewal rates because of increases in claims. However, some people have reported that they have previously been charged higher premiums when their pets developed severe ongoing conditions. These cases are suspicious because their website clearly states that customers would not be penalised for making multiple claims.
Customer Service
Animal Friends customer service can be reached via telephone, live chat, and email. Typically, queries are resolved within a week. Generally, most of the customers are happy with the service at Animal Friends. On review sites, the main reason for the negative reviews was a misunderstanding in the small print. You should go through the small print thoroughly to make sure you understand what can be covered in certain policies and what they will not pay for.
Excess and Contributions
With Animal Friends, you will have to pay a fixed excess of £99 per year. This is quite high as the current average fixed excess is about £77. If your pet is under 8 years old, you will not need to pay a percentage of the vet charges.