This week I had the opportunity to chat withJustin Second Council of Lyons , National Sales Director atFIGO Pet Insurancefor dogs and cats .
Like most of you , I ’ve been keep an eye on the growing trend in favorite insurance and really want to figure out what it was all about . I ’ve also been read up on FIGO and , to me , it seems that they offer up a quite a little of extra services that set them apart from the rest of the pet insurance pack .
Before my talk with Justin I did n’t realize just how farsighted pet indemnity has been around . I ’ve only been hearing about it for the last 5 or 6 age , but it ’s really been an option for pet parent since 1980 . More than 35 eld ago , the first pet insurance was offer by BPI , which has now been buy out by Nationwide .
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Justin also informed me that less than 1 % of the pets in North America are insured . The pet indemnity manufacture has seen a growth of about 18 % a yr for the last twain of year , and still only 1 % of the pet in North America are secure . That ’s insane ! Pet insurance is already a $ 700 million dollar industry , so imagine the development possibilities !
Just so you know , my darling are not part of that 1 % . That ’s part of the grounds why I ’ve been so concerned in the favorite insurance industry latterly . As you know , we have had boxers for many years and they are not thehealthiest breed . We ’ve had our fair portion of vet visits , and with those visits have fare some astronomical vet bill .
Photo: FIGO Pet Insurance
Years ago , fellowship founder Rusty Sproat , who is also the CEO and president of the ship’s company , learned about favored insurance through a friend of his that had acquired it for his heel . After an in - depth conversation , Sproat did a little inquiry . He quickly actualize that all pet insurance company looked a lot likewise . by from a few slight policy variance , they offered the same alternative and even their website seem similar .
Sproat wanted to declare oneself consumers something different , and that ’s why FIGO Pet Insurance stands out from the crowd . FIGO is unparalleled in the sensory faculty that they are a engineering fellowship in add-on to a pet insurance caller . FIGO make its starting in Chicago ’s premier technology facility 1871 . The membership only facility was create to cultivate and spring up ideas for engineering found businesses .
At 1871 mentors from technology giants like Microsoft would come in and speak with penis . It was an amazing chance . Sproat already knew he wanted to offer a corking Cartesian product , website , nomadic experience , and anything else that he could to encounter his customer ’ pet insurance penury while also making the total experience user friendly . The opportunities at 1871 helped him reach that goal .
Photo: FIGO Pet Insurance
When I require Justin about FIGO , he discover the company as a lifestyle stigma . The site is easy to practice and consumer friendly . I checked it out myself , and although FIGO deary policy is n’t available in Maine just yet , I used some fake selective information to see how quickly I could get a quote . It only took me about 6 moment from the prison term I begin until I had a quote , and I am sure not the most technologically innovative person .
But what I really wanted to know from Justin waswhy pet parent should even deal buying pet insurance policy . I have in mind , I know all pet get sick at one sentence or another , but is it really worth spend the money on insurance plus paying copays and deductibles ?
He explain it really well , and I ca n’t reckon of a better way to explain it to you than to regurgitate what he enjoin to me . FIGO ’s modal indemnity insurance policy cost about $ 30 a calendar month . Even if you never file a call , is it worth it to you to drop $ 30 / calendar month for your dog ’s perfect wellness ? Absolutely ! I ’ve never had a dog that has never get sick or needed some kind of emergency guardianship , and all the dogs I have it away have eitherbeen sickor postulate some kind of emergency tending at some point . betting odds are that yours will too .
Photo: FIGO Pet Insurance
So now let me ask you this . If you were to spend $ 30 every month on pet wellness insurance policy and your firedog had a major aesculapian exigency , including a $ 200-$500 copay would it be deserving it to be able to give your dog the best care potential ? My answer ? Absolutely ! And not only does favourite insurance protect you from these ( sometimes astronomical ) emergency upkeep costs , but FIGO even lets you obtain services at any vet you require .
That ’s one of their biggest difference from other pet insurance companionship . They have no restrictions on the veterinary surgeon that you may use . You do n’t have to choose a vet that is in their web , and if you choose an alternative healing method , like holistic healing , they ’ll still brood it as long as your veterinary surgeon is licensed . They even cover specialists ! They appropriate favored parents tochoose any licensed veterinarianin Canada , Puerto Rico , or the United States .
I could n’t trust it . To me , that choice alone would make my decision . We ’ve dealt with Chloe ’s nub condition for almost a year now , and to have the piece of mind to know that we could give to bestow her to a cardiac specialist would have been awesome . We struggled to decide if we should take her or not , but the closest specialist to us is more than 3 hours away . Not only would we have had to pay for the exam fee and handling , but we would have also had to pay travel costs and stay in a hotel for at least one nighttime .
Photo: FIGO Pet Insurance
If we had coverage from FIGO back then , we would n’t have had to oppugn it at all . gratefully our awe-inspiring veterinarian was capable to hail up with a treatment plan for Chloe after confab with specializer over the phone , but not every pet parent is prosperous enough to have the prominent veterinary care that we do .
As you may have gathered from last week ’s column about raw food diet , I am also interested in substitute treatments for my pets , but they too are very expensive . It would certainly be courteous to have the choice of finding a holistic veterinary that our best-loved indemnity would pay for .
The main affair that I want to convey to you all after my conversation with Justin , is that pet insurance may not be particularly beneficial to pet parent who only take their creature to the vet for preventative care like shot and check - ups . Pet policy is for the hand brake that are bound to bug out up throughout the lifespan of your pet . It ’s for those unexpected ( and extremely expensive ) fortuity that fall out , or for when your pet is name with some type of disease or condition that is going to be expensive to handle .
Justin also made a large point in our conversation that I rarely think about because I am a veteran pet owner . He made me realize that often times new favorite parent do n’t realize the long terminus costs of owning a favorite . They do n’t think about what it will be to have porcupine quills pull out out of their frankfurter or how expensive it would be if their hombre got hit by a railroad car and broke his leg .
To be reliable , I ’ve had pets my entire life and I understand that they can be expensive , but I still do n’t have anymoney set asidefor best-loved pinch . As a affair of fact , most discussion options for major disease or conditions , like malignant neoplastic disease or cardiomyopathy , can cost thousands of dollar . I do n’t have intercourse any favourite owners who have thousands of dollars tuck aside in case their animal has an emergency .
With most pet insurance companies , you’re able to opt your deductible and amount of coverage . Obviously the more coverage you want , the high your premium every calendar month and the modest your deductible , the higher your premium will be as well . Another thing that impressed me about FIGO is that their deductible is collected annually , not per term .
That mean that if your deductible is $ 200 , as soon as you ’ve met that in a class , even if you come across it in the first month , you ’re done pay your deductible until the next year . A lot of favorite indemnity troupe excite a deductible for every experimental condition . Meaning that if you meet your $ 200 deductible when your dog gets a font full of porcupine flight feather , you would still have to pay another $ 200 deductible if he got strike by a car and broke his branch three week later . That ’s ridiculous to me , and I also feel like it ’s kind of shoddy on the insurance company part .
Other affair that really impressed me about FIGO that most other pet insurance company do n’t offer admit :
They wave the copay and deductible if your ex-serviceman considers the procedure to be “ life saving . ”
Congenital and hereditary condition are cover , as long as no sign have been present before reportage and the fauna has not been treated for the condition before coverage started .
If your pet had genus Cancer before , any form of cancer that is not directly associate to the former form is still covered . For example , if your andiron had been treated for stomach cancer before you receive insurance coverage from FIGO and then after you receive coverage he was name with Einstein genus Cancer , his treatment for brain Cancer the Crab would be covered because it is n’t directly related to the stomach cancer he had previously .
If your cad antecedently had a treatable circumstance , like an ear transmission , FIGO will still cover ear exit as long as your ducky has not suffered any ear infection in the last 12 month . This go for all treatable conditions . As long as they have n’t occur within 12 months , they will be covered for the lifespan of your insurance .
prescription are cut through 100 % .
With their preferred plan dearie owner get $ 500 to extend a reinforcement to assist determine a lost pet , emergency embarkment reporting , and if your darling is lost and not returned they even offer coverage to help you adopt a new companion ( a short grim , but still a dainty feature that most pet owners would value ) . All of this is offered with the ultimate architectural plan , plus you also get unexpected dying coverage , and holiday cancellation coverage if you necessitate to strike down due to your ducky needing life keep open treatment .
By far the best offering from FIGO is their pet cloud . Justin excuse to me that when thinking about pet insurance policy and what the company should extend , they started by focusing on the things that stress favorite parent the most – pets buzz off disturbed , organizing pet record , and pets getting suffer . They knew that by offer great favored insurance they were aid owners when their animals were sick , but what about the other two ?
They wanted to find a way to leverage engineering and reportage , and that ’s where their pet cloud hail in . The swarm allows users to upload and store all of their pet ’s important aesculapian documents . This room if they want to go to an emergency clinic or they visit a veterinary surgeon while out of town , they still have all the necessary documents so the new vet will know the animals history .
The cloud also reminds owners when shots and exam are due and shows them frump - well-disposed establishments , like bounder parkland andpet - favorable hotels , in their orbit . The swarm lets users upload a broadsheet and file a claim right-hand from their smart earphone . I do n’t recognize about you , but that is a HUGE benefit for me . The more thing I can do from my phone , the better .
ahead of time next year FIGO is even plan to direct depository money into their customers bank accounts instead of sending checks in the chain mail , so basically you could have pet indemnity and do everything paperless .
Justin also explained to me that FIGO truly cares about their customer and their pets . They know having an animal get lost is grievous and stressful for pet owners . That ’s why they supply every one of their customers with a unique ID tag ( shown in the picture at the beginning of this newspaper column ) . Each rag has its own ID number , and when someone finds your pet they can simple get into the ID online or through the app and an electronic mail and text will be send to every registered fellow member of the lost animal ’s family unit .
So by now you ’re credibly thinking that this column is all about trying to get you to go out and sign up for FIGO pet insurance , and that ’s not the typesetter’s case at all .
I just want to express to you the importance of pet insurance and what a great benefit it is if you could shape it into your budget . I ’ve expend the last few weeks researching insurance and FIGO just stood out to me as a company that went above and beyond a simple insurance provider .
I want to chat with Justin and con a petty chip more about the company , and once I realized all the benefits that they offer and all the small thing they do to make pet insurance policy easier for pet owners , I clear just how different they are . I had to share my research with you all .
If you ’re interested in favorite insurance please do your own enquiry ; do n’t just take my word for it . However , I wo n’t be surprised if you take in many of the same thing that I did . FIGO is a new party , so they are n’t nationwide quite yet , but I ask Justin to email me when they are available in Maine . There are many other companies out there , so it ’s authoritative that you see around to feel the best alternative for you and your pet .
Check outFIGO ’s websitefor more information and to receive a quotation for your pet . you could also reckon into other top best-loved insurance providers include :
… and you may also see with the policy company that you have for your auto , home , or health insurance . Some companies are now extend extra package for pets and they may give you a deal if you bundle up multiple insurance together .
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Now it’s your turn.
Do you have pet insurance policy ? Have you researched insurance companies?Any information , steer , trick , or experience that you ’ve had may benefit other pet proprietor and we ’d have it away to get word about them . countenance us bonk and let ’s talk !
