The Evolution of Pet Insurance

Insurance has long been a very viable financial choice to make to protect yourself and your family from possible ruins. Life, home, health and auto insurance have long been almost assumed certainties in monthly expenses as they are a way of life. The idea of pet insurance has just recently begun to gain a hold on the household finances as families begin to treat the pets more like another family member than a pet.

The first dog ever insured was in Sweden in 1924 and nothing else much happened until 1947 when the first policy was sold in the United Kingdom. This set off quite the rage in the UK as pet insurance was immediately accepted as being a worthwhile expense. Pet insurance has continued to be a sensible option in the UK and today they have the most pets insured of any country in the world with almost 20% of all pets insured.

The United States continued to stay out of the pet insurance industry until 35 years later in 1982 to protect a television icon. This first pet insurance policy was written to cover the beloved television hero, "Lassie". It still took another 15 years until The Hartville Group began partnering with ASPCA Pet Health Insurance to write active policies in the United States.

The early part of the first decade of the 2000s saw pet insurance finally start to gain a foothold in the United States as veterinary costs began rising rapidly. More and more pet owners (or pet parents as they are now requesting to be called) are beginning to see the benefits of pet insurance. Some financial experts are even starting to consider the idea of endorsing pet health insurance as a smart financial decision.

Pet insurance has evolved mainly because people are starting to understand how it impacts the family's bank account. Vet bills and costs have risen to the point where people can no longer manage to ignore the benefits of pet health insurance. It works much like health insurance for humans and it is regulated by the government to ensure that insurers act responsibly.

Pet insurance has gained legitimacy because people have evolved to the point to where we realize the benefit of pets to us and the world. The more healthy and happy pets there are in the world the more of them there will be to supply great therapy to those in need. So, in the end, pet health insurance has become popular because people want to be around pets for as long as possible.