Furry love! Bengalureans now getting insurance for their pets

BENGALURU: The grief of losing a rescued ailing pup due to insufficient funds changed the annual financial planning of pet parent Prashanth Unnikrishnan, 28. The pup couldn’t survive a condition — infectious canine hepatitis — despite the efforts of the freelance model to save her by shelling out Rs 15,000 for her three-day treatment.

“The surgery required an extra Rs 10,000. I was ready to arrange and pay but the pup passed away,” he says. The incident, however, got his brain ticking about the welfare of his three other pet dogs — two Pomeranians named Charlie, 9, and Chinnu, 7, and a stray pup Husky.

“If I have a medical insurance policy for my pets like we have for humans, I would be able to give them good medical attention in times of crisis. I could not save the pup, but I realised the need to get my other pets insured,” says Unnikrishnan, who has now bought three pet insurance policies. He pays a total annual premium of about Rs 1,500 for the three annual renewal policies that cover medical expenses due to accidents and high-profile vaccinations.

Unnikrishnan is one of the first pet parents in Bengaluru who have taken to the emerging trend of buying pet insurance policies, a segment in its nascent stage in India. While financial institutions have been providing insurance for livestock, policies for household pets (dogs and cats) are new.

The trend kick-started about six months ago. Insurance companies like New India Assurance and startups like Pawinsure and Vetina Healthcare LLP have started issuing pet insurance policies. Five-year-old insurance broking firm Myanmol in Jayanagar introduced an online vertical called Pawinsure four months ago. Covering pre- and posthospitalisation expenses and diseases like cancer and cardiology-related ailments, the policies are categorised according to the age of the pet. Cofounder and pet parent Karthikeyan S claims to have sold 19 pet insurance policies that ask for a premium of anywhere between Rs 120 and Rs 2,000 per year. “Most pet parents are buying policies for their dogs aged 0-1 and 4-5 as maintenance cost is much higher in these two age brackets. With adoption on the rise, most policies have been bought for stray dogs,” he says.

He notes pet insurance policy is being looked at more as an emotion than a product as the realisation of the responsibility and the attached monetary requirement a pet brings has dawned upon pet parents.

Nagraj Adiga of New India Assurance says awareness is catching on only now. “Only 0.5 % of Bengalureans, predominantly senior citizens, buy our pet insurance policy. It covers death due to accident and disease, and third-party liability that covers compensation and costs arising from accidental injury or damage caused by dog.”

Pawan Kumar, veterinarian, surgical emergency department at Cessna Lifeline Veterinary Hospital (Domlur), says pet parents claim reimbursement from insurance broking firms based on the hospitalisation bills. “Medical conditions of humans and dogs are the same and thus come at a similar cost. Pet insurance is a positive step as we have witnessed a 7-8% year-on-year growth in the number of people getting home a dog or a cat,” he says.

According to India Pet Food Market Forecast and Opportunities 2019 report, the Indian pet care market is pegged at $1.22 billion with an annual growth rate of 35%. The exponential rise of pet ownership in cities like Bengaluru, Delhi, Gurgaon and Mumbai has made India the fastest-growing pet care market globally. Mayank Sohar, marketing director at pet food startup Dogsee Chew, says, “The mindset and transition from being a pet owner to a pet parent has changed the dynamic of the pet care industry.” Sohar adds most of his clients talk about purchasing pet insurance. “Most of these pet parents are in their 40s. They are the salaried class and are primarily techies,” he says.