Video Transcription
If you’re considering, or already have pet insurance, you might be a little confused by what the term pre existing condition means. It’s important to understand this term when considering whether to take out pet insurance.
In the simplest terms, this means that if your pet is showing any signs or symptoms of the condition that you are seeking treatment for, or if that condition exists if any form prior to obtaining pet insurance, or during the applicable waiting period, it will be considered a pre existing condition, and unfortunately will not be covered. This is why you should ensure your pet is covered as early as possible with the right level of cover before any condition presents itself.
Lets take patella laxation as an example, this is a common orthopedic disease in dogs, particularly in toy and miniature breeds which occurs when the dogs kneecap, known as the patella, is dislocated from the grove of the thigh bone. You might first notice this condition if your dog starts holding up their leg for a few minutes at a time, or hops and holds it up when they are on walks or running.
We identify symptoms of this in an examination of the knee joint to feel if they are wobbly or unstable which is a sign of patella laxation. Whilst patella laxation may never cause your dog issues requiring treatment early in life, it can lead to osteoarthritis later in life, or the need to have corrective surgery if it is affecting their day to day life. So, as patellar laxation is covered on HIF’s medium and top level cover with the 30 day waiting period. If you had either level of pet insurance from when your dog was a puppy, and before any of these symptoms presented themselves, then treatment as a result of this condition would be covered. It’s important to note though, that this means the 30 day waiting period should also have passed prior to any symptoms occurring.
This is why taking out pet insurance as early as possible is so important to help ensure your pooch is covered for conditions like this, and other ligament tendon and joint injuries. Including; hip and elbow displacement, IVDD and more.
Always check your policies terms and conditions to find out what you are covered for. If you aren’t sure about a specific condition, and what may or may not be covered, you can get in touch with the HIF pet product expert to find out more.
HIF is a Major Sponsor of Pooches at Play. For information on HIF pet insurance visit hif.com.au/pet.