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Petplan Pet Insurance Review: Worth the Premium Price?

Our honest Petplan review: what decides the price of a Covered For Life plan, why Petplan costs more, how its excess works, its three levels of cover, its claims record, and what we found in the full policy booklet.

Updated 26 October 2026

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Petplan is the name most UK owners think of first, with more than 45 years in the business and a claims record most rivals would envy. It ranks 2nd in our guide to the best pet insurance providers in the UK. The only real question is whether the premium price earns its keep, so this review spends more time than most on what you are paying for.

Our verdict

Petplan is the safe pair of hands. Its Covered For Life plans have no per-condition cap and no overall lifetime cap, although claims beyond £36,000 over your pet's life bring extra checks. It says it pays 97 percent of claims and 90 percent within five working days, and many vets bill Petplan directly so you never front the money. Its Claims Pricing Guarantee means premiums do not go up because you claimed. You pay for all this reliability, because Petplan sits at the pricier end of the market, and from the renewal after their 10th birthday (7th for some breeds) dogs pick up a 20 percent extra excess on claims. If your nightmare is a fight over a big claim, this is the insurer built to avoid it.

What you get

Petplan sells two kinds of dog cover:

Plan Vet fees Therapies
Covered For Life (lifetime) £4,000, £7,000 or £12,000 a year Up to £2,000 a year
Essential (time-limited) Up to £3,000 per condition, for 12 months Up to £500 per condition, for 12 months

On Covered For Life, both limits reinstate in full every renewal. The £7,000 and £12,000 plans are both Which? Best Buys, and Covered For Life holds a Defaqto 5 star rating. Hereditary and congenital conditions are covered as standard. Dental injury and illness are covered too, provided your dog has its teeth checked by a vet every 12 months, which is rarer than it should be. Every plan includes £2 million of third-party liability, free video calls with vets, behaviourists and nutritionists, and a 24-hour legal helpline. Petplan is underwritten by Allianz.

Covered For Life explained

Covered For Life is Petplan's lifetime policy. Pay your premium and renew without a gap, and Petplan keeps paying for a long-term condition such as arthritis or diabetes up to your yearly limit, for the rest of your dog's life. There is no separate limit per condition, so one illness can use the whole year's pot and then start again at renewal.

It is also unusually flexible about pre-existing conditions. Most insurers exclude them for good. Petplan reviews each one when you apply and either excludes it permanently, excludes it for now and removes the exclusion once your dog has been clear for long enough, or covers it if the vet history shows it is resolved. You can send updated vet records to ask for a temporary exclusion to be lifted.

The age rules are the main barrier. Most dogs must start Covered For Life by age 8, and some breeds by 5. Petplan's time-limited Essential plan has no upper age limit, but it only pays for each condition for 12 months.

How much does Petplan cost?

We do not publish quotes, because no single figure would be honest. These are the things that set your price:

  • Breed. Large breeds and breeds prone to expensive conditions cost more to insure.
  • Age. Older dogs cost more, and Petplan says your premium will increase every year as your dog gets older.
  • Where you live. Vet fees vary by area, so your postcode moves the price, and moving house can change it.
  • Level of cover. £12,000 a year costs more than £4,000, and lifetime cover costs more than the time-limited Essential plan because it keeps paying for a condition year after year.
  • The excess. Your fixed excess depends on your dog and plan, and Petplan can raise it at renewal.
  • Vet fee inflation. Petplan names rising vet costs as one reason premiums go up each year.

Two things do not raise the price. Claiming does not, under the Claims Pricing Guarantee. And if you insure more than one pet, Petplan takes £1 a month off each pet's premium.

For a sense of scale, the Association of British Insurers says the average UK pet premium was around £389 a year in 2023, and the average claim in 2024 was £685. Petplan is rarely the cheapest quote, and on an expensive breed the gap can be wide.

Why is Petplan so expensive?

In our view it comes down to three promises. There is no cap per condition, so Petplan carries the risk of a dog that needs £10,000 of treatment every year for life. Claims do not raise your own premium, so the cost of big claims is spread across every customer instead of falling on the people who claim. And it can pay your vet directly, so you rarely front the money. Whether that is worth it depends on how much a declined or capped claim would hurt you.

Petplan excess, explained

Your fixed excess is set by your dog and plan and shown on your Certificate of Insurance. There is a separate excess for therapies. From the renewal after your dog's 10th birthday, or 7th for breeds Petplan lists as select, a 20% excess is added to every vet and therapy claim on top of the fixed amount. Petplan says it will remind you at least a year before this starts. On a £3,000 bill, that is £600 plus your fixed excess.

Petplan claims experience

Petplan says it pays 97% of the claims it receives and settles 90% within five working days. Your vet can claim for you, or you can claim online, and Petplan can pay the vet directly. You have 12 months from treatment to claim, and for ongoing treatment you need to send claims at least once a year. Petplan scores 4.3 out of 5 on Trustpilot from more than 20,000 reviews. The praise is mostly about quick payouts, and the most common complaints are renewal price rises and claims declined as pre-existing.

The catches

Price is the obvious one, and it compounds as your dog ages. The 20 percent extra excess is common across the industry but stings more at Petplan's premiums. Age matters at the start too, so Covered For Life is not an option for most dogs over 8. Dental cover is conditional on yearly dental checks, and any treatment the vet recommends at the check must be done within six months. And as with nearly every insurer, routine costs like vaccinations and neutering are not covered.

The small print, in short

We read Petplan's full Covered For Life policy booklet (effective from 17 June 2024, still the current edition). These are the points that are easy to miss.

  • Big claimants get extra checks. Once you have claimed more than £36,000 over your pet's life, Petplan can ask for treatment to be approved first, for your pet to be examined by a specialist it chooses, or for future treatment to be done with a specialist it chooses.
  • Pre-existing means both sides. A condition counts as pre-existing in the same or a different part of the body, so a dog with one bad hip can have the other hip excluded too.
  • Death from illness cover ends at 8. Where it is included, it is removed at the renewal after your dog's 8th birthday, or 5th for some breeds.
  • Food, cremation and equipment are not covered, apart from 40% of the cost of a diet to dissolve bladder stones, for up to six months.
  • Hidden perks: the £2,000 therapies limit is separate from vet fees and resets every year, and physiotherapy and behaviour treatment come out of the main vet fee limit instead. You can cancel any time with a refund for the unused part, even after a claim. Boarding fees are paid if you are in hospital for 2 days or more, and theft cover pays out after 30 days.

Should you buy it?

If you want claims settled fast, your vet paid directly, and a 45-year track record behind the promise, Petplan justifies its price better than most premium products in any market. If cost is the deciding factor, our full guide to the best pet insurance providers in the UK compares nine alternatives, including budget lifetime options that cost much less.

Sources

Details and the full policy document checked on 26 October 2026. Insurers change their policies often, so always read the policy documents before you buy.

Common questions

How much is Petplan per month for a dog?

There is no single price, so we do not quote one. Your dog's breed and age, your postcode, the level of cover and the excess all change it a lot. Premiums go up every year as your dog gets older. Get a quote at two cover levels to see the difference for your dog.

Why is Petplan so expensive?

Mostly because of what it promises. Covered For Life has no cap per condition and no lifetime cap, your price does not go up because you claimed, and many vets can bill Petplan directly. That means the cost of big claims is spread across every customer instead of loaded onto the people who claim. You pay for that up front.

What is Petplan's excess?

A fixed amount set by your dog and plan, shown on your Certificate of Insurance. From the renewal after your dog's 10th birthday, or 7th for some breeds, Petplan adds a 20% excess on every claim on top of the fixed one. Petplan can change the fixed excess at renewal.

Is Petplan Covered For Life a lifetime policy?

Yes. Covered For Life is Petplan's lifetime cover. You choose £4,000, £7,000 or £12,000 of vet fees a year, plus up to £2,000 for therapies, and both reset in full each time you renew without a break in cover.

Is Petplan worth it?

If you want the strongest claims promise and can afford the premium, yes. It says it pays 97% of claims and settles 90% within five working days, and its Claims Pricing Guarantee means claiming does not push your price up. If price is your main concern, a budget lifetime insurer will cost less.

Who is Petplan Ltd?

Petplan is a trading name of Pet Plan Limited, which runs the policies, and Allianz Insurance plc, which underwrites them. Pet Plan Limited is a subsidiary of Allianz and is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.

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