Equine Veterinary Insurance covers three main areas, Vets Fees, Loss of Use and Mortality.
Mortality Insurance is provided to cover the amount insured should the horse die, unexpectedly. Unfortunately it does not cover every horse that has to be euthanased (put to sleep). If the horse is in such a severe state that it requires immeidate destruction on humane grounds or that the condition from which it is suffering has no effective treatment available, then following destruction of that horse, a claim against mortality insurance should still be successful. Most insurance companies use a set of criteria drawn up by the British Equine Veterinary Association, BEVA with regard to which horses fall into this catagory, the BEVA Guigelines can be seen in full here. Horses that are Euthanased for other reasons than absoulte immediate need, ie. long term diseases, illnesses etc, old age, and the like, will not result in a successful claim for mortality insurance unless the relevant insurance company concerned has been consulted in advance of the horse being Euthanased and that Insurance company has granted permission for the euthanasia under the terms of its Mortality insurance.
Loss of Use Insurance is provided to cover the amount insured should your horse no longer be able perform the function for which you bought the horse and for which you had it insured. Cliams against these policies will usually require the horse to be examined by a second opinion Veterinary Surgeon, usually appointed by the Insurance Company, in addition to any reports provided by the insured's own Veterinary Surgeon.
Vets' Fees Insurance is provided to cover the costs of treatment where that treatment results in a significant financial bill, which is quite often in the case of the horse. It does not cover the routine treatment of the horse, eg. vaccinations, routine teeth rasping, worming etc. Most insurance companies will cover claims limited to individual illnesses, or episodes of disease to a certain limit or time and money. eg a claim for a lameness, or a bout of colic or an infection etc. The terms and conditions of your policy should be read very carefully but most insurance companies will cover each claim to a certain financial limit and for a period of time ( usually one year) from the time when that illness/condition/disease started ( note NOT from the point at which you decide to claim from). Most policies will have an excess, ie, you pay the first £XX of the claim or a % of the entire claim ( check policy for details), and Insurance companies will vary as to exactly what is covered under the terms of the policy, eg. charges made for livery may not be covered, some companies will only pay a proportion of hospitalisation charges and some expensive and hiTech diagnostic imaging techniques such as MRI or CAT scanning etc. may only be covered in part.( check the exact terms and conditions of your policy for details). Most policies will not cover conditions that are congenital or inherited nor will they cover conditions that were pre-existing at the time of purchase in most cases ( check policy terms and conditions for precise details). Exclusions may have been placed on the policy for a number of reasons, by the Insurance company, eg. something identified at a Pre-Purchase examination, you will need to check the details of your policy to see if anything is excluded from cover.
We have information available for clients claiming on their Vets' Fees Insurance if their horse is being treated at home or if they admitted to the clinic
