Member Panel Survey Brief. Pet Insurance & Road Safety Issues

Transcription

1 Member Panel Survey Brief Pet Insurance & Rad Safety Issues Overview The Pet Insurance survey was sent t the Member Panel in rder t gain insights int a ptential tailred service fr ur members and the brader cmmunity. The questinnaire als included questins regarding safety issues s that we can cntinue advcating fr safer rads. The survey received ver 750 respnses frm ur Member Panel wh kindly dedicated their time. The Data Belw are the main findings n this Member Panel survey. - Pet wnership Frm the respnses received, almst 6 ut f 10 respndents (r 446 persns) have a pet. Just ver half f them have nly ne pet, 2 have tw, and 25% three r mre pets. In relatin t the types f pets that peple wn, dgs are the big winners with 7 ut f 10 respndents having them as a pet. The next mst ppular pets are cats and birds accunting fr 41% and 16% f respnses respectively. The list f pets wned als includes ther animals like fish, reptiles, hrses, rabbits, guinea pigs and kangars. Frm respndents nt wning a pet, 2 are cnsidering t having ne in the future. In this case, dgs are again the uncntested winners: 89% f thse cnsidering t having a pet wuld chse a dg. This is fllwed by cats where 24% f respndents are cnsidering them. - Pet insurance, claims & willingness t pay When asked abut insurance cvering their pets, a significant number f respndents stated they d nt have a pet insurance. The main reasns given fr nt having a pet in rder f imprtance were: 1. Cst 2. Traditinal pet insurance is limited in what it des cver 3. Dn't believe in insuring pets health 4. Thse wh have pet insurance where asked if they have ever made a claim and hw satisfied they were with it. Apprximately 7 ut f 10 respndents have made a claim n their pet insurance, and 3 ut f 4 f them were happy with their claims including hw much it was paid. Members were als asked hw much they wuld be willing t pay fr the pet insurance they want. Almst half per cent f the respndents wh wn a pet wuld pay up t $20 per mnth fr their pet insurance while 28 per cent wuld pay mre than $31 per mnth. Fr thse wh d nt wn a pet, 8 ut f 10 respndents are willing t pay up t $20 a mnth fr their pet insurance, a significant higher prprtin f respndents cmpared t pet wners willing t pay up t $20.

2 - Vet visits, pets health and csts When peple were asked if they wuld be financially challenged t meet veterinarian csts shuld their pet suffered a serius injury r illness, respnses were relatively evenly spread. Abut ne in three peple stated they wuld be financially challenged t meet sme vet csts, arund 3 stated they wuld nt be financially challenged and abut the same percentage that they may be financially challenged (33%, 29%, 31% respectively), depending n the cst f treatment. Eight ut f ten respndents vaccinate their pet in accrdance with veterinary recmmendatins. Fr the vast majrity f respndents (85%) vaccinatin cst up t $200 annually. While 71% f respndents believe that vet csts are increasing, 63% f thse are cncerned r very cncerned with the medical csts assciated with their pets. - Travelling with pets and safety issues Respndents were als asked abut safety issues when travelling with their pets. Mre than 6 in 10 respndents stated that they travel with their pets. While mst f them d it lcally, t the vet and day care (38%), sme d it nly within SA (34%) and thers in SA and interstate (28%). While mst f the respndents mentined they were aware f laws arund securing a pet when travelling, 4 in 10 respndents are nt aware r need mre infrmatin. Members were als asked hw their pets were secured in vehicles. Mre than half f respndents (54%) stated that they clip their pets int seat-belt with a harness and abut 1 in 10 respndents pets travel in a crate. Alarmingly, fr 2 f respndents, pets are nt secured at all. - Verbatim Analysis At the end f the survey, respndents were able t prvide with any ther cmments n pet care and pet insurance shuld they had. This was a nn-cmpulsry pen questin which received mre than 340 respnses. While the cmments were spread ver a number f brad tpics arund pet insurance. Mst f the cmmentary was fcused n the five fllwing issues: Cst/t expensive. Respndents cmments referred regularly t this issue, making it the subject mst ften mentined. Peple were wrried abut insurance prices stating cmments such as: Fr tw dgs, I pay nearly as much per mnth as I d fr my wn health cver, and this is with the best premiums I can find. Fr the cver I have n the dgs, sme qutes have been $60-75 a mnth. It wuld be t expensive fr me. I am already thinking f stpping my health insurance and/r cntents insurance. It is simply t expensive fr mst. We used t have RSPCA insurance but we had t drp it because f the expense. If my dg needed an expensive medical treatment we wuld have t have her put dwn. I nly have accident Insurance n the yungest dg because I am n a pensin and can't affrd the cst.

3 Wuld cnsider it/it is imprtant. This tpic was the secnd mst ften ne brught up. The fllwing pints illustrate sme f the cmments received: It's imprtant t have access t pet health insurance. In my yunger days when I did have pets, we didn't have any ptin f purchasing pet insurance. We had a pet dg fr sme 15 years - died recently - very sad. We shuld have had insurance t help with illness csts. My daughter is a vet and I hear stries f wners unable t pay fr the necessary prcedures that their pets require. I wuld think pet insurance wuld be a part f pet wnership. As veterinary csts can be very high I think that it is imperative t insure an animal in yur care. Nt having the funds t visit a vet when needed wuld be a terrible situatin t find yurself in. N need. Oppsed t the previus tpic, the third mst ften mentined issue received cmments n the line f nt needing a pet insurance. Cmments that illustrate this view include: We have fund that by putting away the amunt we wuld pay every mnth n pet insurance that we can easily pay vet bills. When getting this dg I checked ut many pet insurance plicies and fund them all restrictive and cstly. We decided t create a bank accunt fr ur dg t cver medical issues. I grew up as a farm by, I lk after my animals (cat and chks), take them t the vet nce a year, get the family t feed them when I am away, and Mther Nature des the rest. I lve my dg and lk after her but she is an animal and wn't live frever. When there is n quality f life then I will have her put dwn. T many restrictins als received a number f cmments. These are illustrated in the fllwing nes: Due t exclusins n insurance, it is nt viable t insure Great idea as lng as it is nt t restrictive as t qualificatins f benefits Generally a rip-ff. Daughter had cver, ne f her dgs gt t her Easter eggs ne year, became vilently ill, and he wasn t cvered as it wasn t an emergency Pet care is becming increasingly expensive and when visiting a vet the expectatin is that yu pay there and then. Mst visits t the vet are unclaimable s I think there shuld be mre ptins available within the insurance plans n ffer. Vet high csts. Cmments n this tpic are illustrated with the fllwing pints: Having already been caught with very cstly emergency vet bills, it is essential t have pet insurance. There shuld nt be an age limit (f the pet) when taking ut the insurance. If vets are s cncerned abut animals and their welfare then they shuld lwer their fees. Vet csts are ridiculusly high and they knw that wners wh lve their pets will pay anything t keep them alive and well. Vets take advantage f pet wners heartache. Unfrtunately, veterinarians have becme increasingly entrepreneurial, t the pint they encurage yu t have yur pet n an nging care plan. Very expensive and a great little earner fr the vets fr very little risk r utlay. Vet fees are expensive but I have had pet insurance in the past and it wasn t wrth the mney.

4 In summary: Apprximately 6 ut f 10 respndents have a pet. Frm thse, 7 wn dgs, 41% cats and 16% birds. Fr nn-pet wners willing t have a pet, 89% wuld chse a dg and 24% a cat. Mst f respndents stated vet csts are increasing and are cncerned with the medical csts assciated with their pets. Mst pet-wners travel with their pets. They d it lcally, within Suth Australia and interstate. While mst f them are aware f laws arund securing a pet when travelling and secure their pets, an alarmingly 2 f respndents pets are nt secure at all. When analysing the verbatim cmments prvided in the pen questin the tpics that mst ften were mentined in decreasing rder are cst/t expensive, wuld cnsider it, n need, t many restrictins, and vet high csts. With the insights received we will cntinue t research n pet wnership and what this means fr ur prducts and services in the future.

5 Appendix Pet Insurance Charts D yu have a pet? In ttal hw many pets d yu have % 41% % 7% 2 5 N Yes mre than 5 1 Respndents' preferred pets Dg Cat Birds Reptile Hrse Rabbit Guinea Pig Kangar 6% 3% 3% 5% 16% 24% 41% 7 89% Type f pet/s yu have Type f pet/s yu are cnsidering D yu have a pet r insurance t cver yur pet/s? 15% What reasn have yu chsen nt t have pet insurance... 56% 35% 21% 18% 85% N Yes Cst Traditinal pet insurance is limited in what it des cver Dn't believe in insuring pets health

6 In the past 12 mnths hw many times have yu taken yur pet/s fr a nn-rutine visit t the Vet? (rutine wuld include vaccinatins r nging medical care) Have yu ever claimed n yur pet insurance... Nne % 24% 43% 71% 26% 3% 3 8% 4+ 8% N Unsure / Can't remember Yes Hw much wuld yu pay per mnth fr the pet insurance cver yu want? (tailred t yur needs) 26% % 28% N Yes Maybe If yur pet suffered a serius injury r illness wuld yu be financially challenged t meet the Veterinarian csts? 29% 31% 33% Up t $15 per $16 - $20 per $21 - $25 per $26 - $30 per mnth mnth mnth mnth Mre than $31 per mnth Unsure 1% 6% Are yu cncerned with the medical csts assciated with yur pet/s? D yu take yur pet n hlidays? 4 24% 21% 3 9% 4% 67% Nt cncerned at all Smewhat uncncerned Neither cncerned nr uncncerned Smewhat cncerned Very cncerned N Unsure Yes

7 Are yu aware f laws arund securing yur pet 54% Hw is yur pet secured in yur vehicle? 63% 19% 18% 2 1 3% 3% 1 N Unsure / need mre inf Yes Clipped int seatbelt with a harness Nt Travels in a secured at crate all On smene's lap (this includes the driver) Secured t tray in back f ute