Vets Choice – made by vets for pets

Born out of a commitment to Australian vets and the veterinary profession, Vets Choice insurance for pets is the product of more than 33 years of partnership between Guild Insurance and the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA).

Since the beginning, Vets Choice was developed with the AVA to ensure pet owners have access to pet insurance that’s created by vets for pets. Every aspect of our policy is informed and shaped by the input of hundreds of Australian vets like you, to make sure it covers the accidents and illnesses that real pets face.

We understand that your four-legged patients deserve to be protected for what happens to them, rather than what a business chooses to cover. That’s why Vets Choice offers no gap-payment, lifetime cover and the option for pre-approval.

How AVA members are making a difference

As many of you will know, the advancements in procedures and treatments continue to challenge vets in managing customers’ expectations regarding their pet’s health and well-being.

Many of our referring vet partners continually struggle with the age-old cost versus treatment dilemma and believe that there is much to be done still regarding educating pet owners in relation to the costs of veterinary treatments.

All too often, pet owners fail to comprehend the differences between the cost of human medical care to that of treating their pets, some even possibly being under the misconception that pet treatments should be less expensive.

There are several contributing factors, the principal ones being economies of scale. Most modern veterinary practices use similar equipment to that found in human health facilities, but the volumes of patients are significantly disparate. This is combined with the lack of understanding around there being no Medicare for pets.

When comparing the cost of a blood test, for example, pet owners often equate what they pay, which is the gap left over after the majority of costs are funded, to what they are charged by their vet for a similar procedure.

We asked one of our vet partners, Dr Amit from SAI Vet Hospital, Willetton, Perth how he positions pet insurance, and he was straightforward in his response. “Pets are family members, people view them as such and we simply ask if they are insured, if they have considered pet insurance and that we believe it is in the pets’ interest to be insured.

“We don’t recommend pet insurers as such, we would not do this, but when asked, as we invariably are after we raise the subject, we tell our customers that we have brochures available for them to take and that Vets Choice is the only pet insurer recommended by the Australian Veterinary Association.”

The team at SAI Vet Hospital very much see themselves as assisting their customers in firstly becoming aware of the benefits of pet insurance and then in empowering them to make their own informed decisions. “We treat all animals, insured or not, but invariably have less difficult conversations with the owners of insured pets.”

Help more Australian pets receive the care they deserve and become a Vets Choice insurance for pets partner by emailing vetschoice@guildinsurance.com.au or calling 1800 999 738 today.