To be competitive and give you more choices, each of the pet insurance companies offers slightly different plans. And that's the single biggest reason you should carefully compare the options to make an educated decision.

To help in your comparisons, we've prepared an easy-to-understand description of the most important things you'll need to consider.

1. Which deductible should you choose?

Choosing a higher deductible will lower your monthly premium, but it means your out-of-pocket will be higher each time your pet begins a new medical treatment. Choosing a lower deductible will increase your monthly premium, but will lower your out-of-pocket costs.

Pets Best Insurance offers you the flexibility to upgrade your plan at annual renewal, and you can downgrade your plan or increase your deductible once per year at the time of your choosing.

2. What are the policy limits?

The rising cost of modern veterinary medicine can sometimes make a low per-incident limit (or low lifetime limits) unrealistic. Choose a plan that covers the true costs of unexpected illness and accidents.

3. What does the policy cover? What are the available options?

Look for plans that cover accidents, illnesses and optional routine care.

• Illnesses - any illness and accident plan should automatically cover common ailments, but what about chronic diseases like cancer or diabetes? Are they covered as well? What are the coverage limits?
• Accidents - cuts and broken legs are common and should be covered. In an accident-only plan, look for surgical coverages that include removal of swallowed objects and treatment of hernias.
• Routine Care - these optional coverages may include such preventive measures as annual exams, vaccinations, teeth cleaning, and diagnostics such as blood panels and urine testing.

4. How is your reimbursement calculated when you file a claim?

This may be the most misunderstood and most important part of your pet insurance coverage.

Generally, reimbursement is calculated in one of two basic ways:

• As a fair and straightforward percentage of your veterinarian's bill, which is the method Pets Best Insurance chooses, or
• As a percentage of a benefit schedule which limits the amount the insurance company is willing to pay, as some of our competitors choose.

5. Can you choose any vet or are you restricted to a network?

Look for plans that allow you to visit:

• The veterinarian you choose – Don't buy a policy that requires you to select a doctor from a list. Be sure you're allowed to visit any licensed veterinarian.
• Emergency care – Illnesses and accidents sometimes happen after normal business hours. Does your policy cover emergency care at 2 am? What about follow-up care after the fact?
• Specialists – When your pet needs treatment by a veterinary ophthalmologist (eye care) or veterinary oncologists (cancer), you'll want to be sure your policy covers specialist care.

6. Who determines your pet's treatment?

Pets Best Insurance believes you and your veterinarian will determine the best course of treatment for your pet. Choose a plan that doesn't limit your choices with a confusing fee schedule or benefits schedule.

7. What is excluded?

Pre-existing conditions, meaning those that existed before the original policy effective date, whether or not they were previously diagnosed or treated, are usually not covered. These may include congenital conditions your pet is born with such as patellar luxation, entropion, ectropion and liver shunt. Make sure the policy you choose clearly states what is and is not covered in a way that is easy to understand.

8. Does the policy provide Lifetime Continuous Coverage?

In the event of a chronic problem such as diabetes or cancer, it is important to know that your pet insurance plan will continue to help treat the problem from one policy term to the next. An insurance plan that offers Lifetime Continuous Coverage will not automatically disqualify claims for chronic issues as pre-existing conditions after the policy is renewed.

9. Who does your veterinarian recommend?

Your vet's staff members have heard all the news, good and bad, from other policy holders. Ask which of the pet insurance companies they recommend.

10. What type of experience can I expect?

When you have a question or need help with a claim, having a pet insurance company that employs pet lovers who truly understand can make all the difference.

We hope that these ten suggestions leave you better prepared to make an educated choice in your pet insurance coverage and policy. If you have questions that aren't covered in this list, please contact us at sales@petsbest.com or call 1-877-738-7237.