Sainsburys Bank has conducted a study into the cost of pet ownership to tie in with the pet insurance they offer. Findings show that owning a dog can take up around GBP9,000.
The figure quoted is the lifetime cost of ownership which includes the initial purchase of the dog as well as food, accessories vet bills and pet insurance. Sainsburys Bank also looked at the cost of owning a cat, which came in slightly lower at just over GBP7,000.
The survey also showed that pet insurance can actually reduce the overall cost of keeping a pet, since the survey included those without it who had to pay all vet bills themselves. Sainsburys Bank want all pet owners to consider the cost aspect of keeping an animal before going ahead to ensure both pet and owner have a long and pleasant relationship.
Having looked at the situation for pet owners in the UK Sainsburys Bank has found that over a million owners do not have any insurance cover in place for their pets.
The answers provided by respondents to the Sainsburys Bank study shows that around half of pet owners do not think they need pet insurance. Of these most thought it was not necessary no matter what whilst a smaller percentage said they felt it unnecessary because their pet was in good health.
As a Sainsburys Bank spokesman explained, cats and dogs get ill just like people do, but there is no NHS for pets, hence the need for pet insurance.
Such is the love that the UK population has for its pets that they actually have more pet insurance policies than health cover for themselves according to a new Tesco Finance study.
23 percent of pets in the UK had pet insurance cover bought for them last year said Tesco Finance, compared with just over 12 percent of people buying health cover. This means that nearly twice as many pets are covered than people and puts the UK in at number two in the table for the best pet care.
To further appeal to pet owners Tesco Finance pet insurance is being discounted by 20 percent for online purchases, with another 5 percent discount if more than one animal is covered.
