Do pet insurance costs vary by region?
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Could you save with a multi-pet policy?
Probably – you could be saving as much as 54% per animal with multi-pet insurance policies.
We analysed 14,194 multi-pet quotes*, looking at how customers use multi-pet and how it affects their insurance premiums. Here’s everything that we learned.
Key points
- You could save over 54% with multi-pet policies versus individual policies*
- Dogs are more popular than cats in multi-pet policies
- Crossbreeds are more common than purebreds
- The South East of England is the most popular region for multi-pet cover
What is multi-pet insurance?
Multi-pet insurance covers several of your pets with a single policy. You’ll usually get a discount by having multiple animals under one policy (more on that below).
How does multi-pet insurance work?
It works in the same way as standard pet insurance. You choose what you wish to be covered for and for how long. The main difference is that you’ll have the same level of cover for all of your animals.
Some insurers let you add more pets to your policy without having to cancel your insurance and start again.
The more the merrier
Generally the more animals you add to a multi-pet policy, the more money you’ll save compared to taking out individual policies for each pet.
We found that customers with six animals saved over 50% compared to if they took out individual policies.
| No. of pets in the policy | Average Premium | Cost per pet | % difference | Money saved per pet with multi-pet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £241 | £241 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | £384 | £192 | 22% | £49 |
| 3 | £545 | £181 | 28% | £60 |
| 4 | £701 | £175.25 | 31% | £65.75 |
| 5 | £824 | £164.80 | 37% | £131 |
| 6 | £864 | £144 | 50% | £97 |
What type of multi-pet pet cover is cheaper?
You can choose from four different types of cover - Accident only, time limited, maximum benefit and lifetime.
Though you only get around a 20% discount with accident only multi-pet cover compared to individual policies for each pet, time limited offers much more of a discount, with lifetime cover having the highest.
Accident only
| Number of pets | Sum of avg premium | Per pet | % difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £70 | £70 | 0 |
| 2 | £136 | £68 | 2% |
| 3 | £199 | £64 | 8% |
| 4 | £238 | £61 | 13% |
| 5 | £282 | £60 | 15% |
| 6 | £303 | £56 | 22% |
Time limited
| Number of pets | Sum of avg premium | Per pet | % difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £163 | £163 | 0 |
| 2 | £273 | £136 | 17% |
| 3 | £392 | £130 | 22% |
| 4 | £505 | £126 | 25% |
| 5 | £596 | £119 | 31% |
| 6 | £627 | £104 | 43% |
Maximum benefit
| Number of pets | Sum of avg premium | Per pet | % difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £222 | £222 | 0 |
| 2 | £372 | £186 | 17% |
| 3 | £529 | £176 | 23% |
| 4 | £680 | £170 | 26% |
| 5 | £798 | £159 | 33% |
| 6 | £833 | £138 | 46% |
Lifetime
| Number of pets | Sum of avg premium | Per pet | % difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £276 | £276 | 0 |
| 2 | £443 | £221 | 21% |
| 3 | £626 | £208 | 27% |
| 4 | £805 | £201 | 31% |
| 5 | £943 | £188 | 37% |
| 6 | £980 | £157 | 54% |
How popular is multi-pet insurance?
Between 22 September 2022 and 23 February 2023, 15% of policies taken out were for multi-pet, while 84% were for single-pet policy.
Which pet is most commonly insured with multi-pet?
Between December 2022 and January 2023, 62% of animals on multi-pet policies are dogs, while the remaining 37% are cats.
The more animals, the higher the chance they’re cats
As the number of pets added to a multi-pet policy increases, the split between dog and cat breeds slightly moves in favour of cats.
| % of policies with 2 pets | % of policies with 3 pets | % of policies with 4 pets | % of policies with 5 pets | % of policies with 6 pets | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cat | 84% | 10% | 3% | 0.78% | 0.72% |
| Dog | 88% | 8% | 1.8% | 0.44% | 0.38% |
The divide between crossbreeds and purebreds in multi-pet policies isn’t huge. We found that 54% of animals in multi-pet policies were crossbreeds or mongrels, compared to 45% being purebreds.
Purebred pooches with health problems are the most popular
According to our data, dogs commonly known for their health complications, such as French Bulldogs and Labrador Retrievers, were found in the most multi-pet policies.
Some other high-ranking pedigrees include Cocker Spaniels, Dachshunds, Border Collies, Pugs and Bull Terriers.
| Dog breed | No. of quotes |
|---|---|
| Labrador Retriever | 863 |
| French Bulldog | 833 |
| Cocker Spaniel | 628 |
| Miniature short-haired Dachshund | 332 |
| Chihuahua (smooth coat) | 276 |
What about cats?
Ragdoll, British Shorthair, Maine Coon, and Bengal cats are the most popular pedigrees in multi-pet policies:
| Cat breed | No. of quotes |
|---|---|
| Ragdoll | 261 |
| British Shorthair | 163 |
| Maine Coon | 146 |
| Bengal | 138 |
| British Blue Shorthair | 88 |
Where are multi-pet policies most popular?
The South East of England is the most popular region for multi-pet insurance, making up 15% of policies.
| Region | Total % |
|---|---|
| South East of England | 15% |
| East of England | 11% |
| North West of England | 11% |
| South West of England | 10% |
| West Midlands | 8% |
Compare multi-pet policies now and see if you could save
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*Based on the average median of multi-pet quotes made through Go.Compare between December 2022 and January 2023, unless stated otherwise.