Pet insurance complaints rise as owners question cover, costs and cancellations
A growing unease about pet insurance
Pet insurance is meant to provide reassurance when an animal becomes ill or is injured. But a rising number of owners say the reality can be more complicated: premiums that climb sharply at renewal, policy wording that feels difficult to interpret, and claims that are refused on conditions they did not fully understand. These concerns are being raised alongside broader pressure from the rising cost of veterinary care, which has been widely reported as increasing well above inflation.
In the UK, pet ownership is widespread—about 17.2 million households own a pet. Against that backdrop, the number of people taking disputes about pet insurance to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has increased, suggesting that dissatisfaction is not limited to isolated cases. At the same time, industry data shows both record payouts and significant premium movements, leaving many owners trying to decide what “good cover” really looks like.
An £8,000 bill after a policy cancellation
Kim Watts says she was left devastated after discovering her pet insurance policy had been cancelled, leaving her to pay £8,000 in treatment costs for her dog, Darcey. The injury followed what Watts described as a “savage” attack by two other dogs during a walk, which left Darcey with a crushed disc.
Watts says she took steps to confirm she was covered for the treatment. According to her account, the insurer confirmed on speaker phone in front of the vet that Darcey would be covered. But nine weeks later, while checking pending claims through her online account, she found the policy had been terminated. She says she was not given an email to review and instead saw a message on screen indicating the policy had been cancelled. She paid for the treatment using her own savings.
The insurer said the claim was not covered because Darcey was being used as a working dog. Watts disputes that description, saying dog agility was her hobby and she had never been paid for it. She took the case to the FOS, which can order insurers to pay compensation. Watts initially lost her claim but later won on appeal and recovered the £8,000 in full. She says she also paid £900 for specialist legal advice, with firm Cooper&Co describing the matter as a “clear-cut case.”
Purely Pets, the insurer involved, said it implemented the ombudsman’s recommendations in full and reinstated the policies for Darcey, her border collie.
Premiums rising—and confusion about what policies actually cover
Watts’ experience sits within a wider pattern of complaints that pet owners have been raising. People have reported concern about general premium increases, renewals that rise after claims are made, and costs that increase as pets get older. Others say they did not get the cover they expected when they needed it most.
New statistics from price comparison website MoneySuperMarket show that average pet insurance sales premiums rose by 15% from 2022/23 to 2024/25, before falling slightly in recent months. For owners already dealing with higher vet bills, even modest increases can change whether insurance feels affordable or worthwhile—especially if the policy includes exclusions or time limits that reduce the value of the cover in practice.
Insurance expert Kara Gammell, from MoneySuperMarket, has stressed the importance of reviewing policies regularly. She urges consumers to look closely at how claims can affect future costs, so they can make informed decisions about renewals and the level of cover they choose.
When a claim is refused: the impact of time limits and conditions
Ian Day, from Sheffield, contacted a consumer feedback channel after cancelling his policy for his 12-year-old dog, Alfie. Day says he filed a claim last year for the cost of removing a growth from Alfie’s nose, but the claim was refused because it was more than 12 months after the problem was first spotted. He says the condition caught him off guard and left him “completely knocked sideways.” In the end, he says he had to pay the £1,200 bill himself.
Reflecting on the policy, Day says: “Looking back, it was a very basic package that didn’t cover much at all.” Rather than continuing with insurance, he now puts about £25 a month—roughly the cost of his previous policy—into a separate bank account. His aim is to build a buffer for future vet bills, even if it does not cover the full cost of any major treatment.
Choosing to self-insure: a “rainy day fund” instead of a policy
Day is not alone in deciding to set money aside rather than pay premiums. Jackie Fawcett and Stephen Neild, from Manchester, also cancelled their policy and began putting money aside each month. They say their annual quote jumped after their 14-year-old cockapoo, Tilly, underwent tests and treatment following a tooth removal. Neild described the price rise as “exploitation,” adding that there were no surgical procedures involved.
Tesco Pet Insurance, which provided the cover, said “the cost of claims is one of a number of factors that can affect the price of a policy at renewal,” and noted that Tilly’s age was reflected in the quote. The insurer also said the couple had a more comprehensive policy, which typically costs more than basic levels of cover, and that alternative options were presented to them.
Self-insuring—building a personal fund to cover vet bills—can feel like a straightforward response to rising premiums. But consumer advice bodies have warned it can be risky, because even disciplined saving may not be enough to cover a large, unexpected bill. They also note that many insurance policies include public liability cover, which can be relevant if a pet causes an accident or becomes involved in a fight.
Which? has also warned that self-insuring requires “quite a lot of discipline” and is not the norm, even if more people are considering it.
Record payouts, more policies—and more disputes
Pet insurance remains widely used. A record-breaking 4.6 million pet owners took out insurance in 2024, and payouts by members of the Association of British Insurers (ABI) topped £1bn for the third consecutive year. The ABI has said record payouts have been “driven largely by the rising cost of veterinary care,” and reiterated the importance of choosing the right cover.
Yet rising payouts do not necessarily translate into a smoother experience for customers. The FOS says customers often feel claims “have been unfairly rejected,” and it has reiterated the importance of insurers making policy terms transparent. For owners who believe a claim has been handled incorrectly, the ombudsman urges them to raise an official complaint with the insurer first and, if there is still no resolution, to contact the FOS.
FOS data suggests this route is being used more often. In 2020-21, the ombudsman received 1,440 new complaints about pet insurance. By 2024-25, that figure had risen by 59% to 2,286. During that period, 42% of complaints dealt with were upheld. Those numbers indicate that a substantial minority of disputes result in a decision that supports the customer’s position.
Consumer advocates: policy wording and clarity under scrutiny
The consumer group Which? has expressed concern about what it describes as “shady stuff going on in the industry,” focusing in particular on clarity and communication. Lisa Webb, a lawyer for Which?, argues that companies are not being clear enough about what customers are buying and what it covers.
Webb also points to the way insurance documents are written and presented. She says insurers “love to use long documents, policies with wording that doesn’t make any sense,” which can leave consumers bogged down and less likely to fully understand the terms. For many owners, that complexity only becomes apparent when they attempt to claim, at which point exclusions, definitions, and time limits can determine whether a bill is covered.
Which? has linked the rise in complaints to greater scrutiny of the industry after a Competition and Markets Authority investigation into vet prices found prices have risen at nearly twice the rate of inflation.
Not just cats and dogs: the challenge of insuring small animals
While many discussions focus on dogs and cats, owners of other animals can face additional hurdles. Julian Gold says he has struggled to insure his guinea pigs because small mammals are classed as exotic pets and therefore have higher premiums.
Gold’s three-year-old guinea pig, Remington, required surgery for a bladder stone. Gold says the total bill for treatment came to more than £3,000, but Remington died the day after. He says he wishes he had insurance to cover the costs, but did not take out a policy because “it’s hard to get a sensible quote.”
He also highlights the cumulative cost of premiums for multiple animals, saying that if insurance were £20 a month and someone had five guinea pigs who live five years, that would amount to £6,000 in premiums over that period. Gold believes there should be “a group insurance policy” available for small animals like his.
What pet owners say they want from insurers
Across the cases and complaints, a few themes recur: predictability, clarity, and confidence that a policy will respond when needed. Owners describe frustration when renewal prices rise sharply after a claim, or when age becomes a major factor in cost. Others say they did not anticipate exclusions—such as time limits tied to when a condition was first noticed—or they disagree with how insurers classify an animal’s activities, as in Watts’ case.
At the same time, insurers and industry bodies point to the rising cost of veterinary care as a key driver of premiums and payouts. This creates a tension at the heart of the debate: owners want affordable, reliable cover, while insurers price policies based on claims costs in an environment where vet fees have been rising rapidly.
Practical steps raised by experts and consumer bodies
The experiences described by owners, insurers, and consumer advocates point to a set of practical actions that can help reduce unpleasant surprises. These are not guarantees, but they reflect the issues most commonly raised in disputes:
Review policies regularly, including at renewal, and check how making a claim could affect future premiums, as highlighted by MoneySuperMarket’s Kara Gammell.
Read key exclusions and conditions carefully, particularly definitions that may affect eligibility and time limits that may restrict claims.
Consider the trade-offs of self-insuring: saving monthly can help, but consumer advice bodies warn that savings may still fall short for major treatment and may not replace public liability cover included in many policies.
Use formal complaints routes when necessary: the FOS encourages customers who feel a claim has been unfairly rejected to complain to the insurer first and then escalate to the ombudsman if unresolved.
A sector under pressure from costs and expectations
Pet insurance sits at the intersection of emotional decisions and financial risk. Owners often buy policies hoping to avoid choosing between their savings and their animal’s treatment. But as premiums rise and disputes become more common, the focus is shifting to what policies actually deliver in practice—and how clearly that is communicated.
With more complaints reaching the ombudsman, and a significant proportion upheld, transparency and trust are becoming central issues. For some owners, the answer is switching policies or adjusting cover. For others, it is stepping away from insurance entirely and building a personal fund, despite the risks. Either way, the growing volume of disputes suggests that many households are reassessing what “peace of mind” should mean—and what it should cost—when it comes to protecting their pets.