Many may not know about this but auto insured drivers can pay an extra coverage for their pets that gets killed or injured during an accident. The man’s best friends have earned their way to the insurance industry for being part of the family. This kind of insurance has certainly caught up with the time since many families have their own dogs and cats that they can bring with them during car rides.
Last year, only a few number of auto insurers offer this opportunity. It was a rare find to be an auto insured with pet insurance. But words spread quickly and the competition will soon be growing and many insurance agents would like to have their hands on such policies.
Progressive Car Insurance is offering pet insurance for family pets in case of car crashes or accidents. The policy would cover up to about $1000 if the pets due or dies during the accident.
In a report last year, it was stated that Progressive, being the third largest auto insurer of the country, was the first insurance company to offer pet insurance or pet accident coverage in 2007. This is according to Miriam Deitcher, Progressive’s director of Marketing. She added further that the service exists because they know that customers love their pets so much that these creatures are now considered family members. Initially they provide $500 worth of coverage but in March of 2009, they decided to increase the coverage amount to $1000 to cover more costs.
Pet Injury Coverage under Progressive Insurance is free of charge to all collision insurance plan holders. The coverage would also cover pet injuries caused by theft or fire. It should be noted that Per Injury Coverage is not the same with Pet Insurance. This means that the coverage is applied only when the pets are injured or died while they are inside the car. Further more if the pet dies or gets injured when hit by a car, the coverage is not applicable. The keyword was ‘collision’. Pet Insurance policy, on the other hand, covers for veterinary care costs related to injuries and illness caused by accidents not necessarily caused by cars.
Jean Salvatore, the senior vice president of the Insurance Information Institute, was not aware of the collision coverage for pets and was impressed about it. She states that with auto insurance being innovative in this very competitive market, it won’t be impossible that many other car owners with pets will demand this kind of policy.
According to Insurance Information Institute study, there are over 150 million pets in the United States and Americans spend over $40 billion on them annually. Surely, buying pet collision insurance coverage won’t be an exception to their spending. Though pet coverage is included in the auto insurance industry now, this doesn’t mean that customers must still be cautious about bringing their dogs during car rides. Safety precautions should still be practiced to avoid getting into accidents and losing their families, cars, pets or even their lives.
