Does pet insurance cover pre-existing conditions?

Unfortunately, we can’t cover pre-existing conditions 🙁.

We don’t cover any costs related to pre-existing conditions that were present before cover was active, including during any waiting periods ⏱️.

A pre-existing condition is any injury, illness, dental, or behavioural issue where their first signs or symptoms were noticed by you or your vet before your pet's cover started (including during waiting periods) whether or not a diagnosis was made at that time. Pre-existing conditions aren't covered.

Signs or symptoms include:

• Changes you noticed at home (e.g. behaviour, appetite, drinking, weight, mobility)

• Anything a vet diagnosed, treated, recorded, investigated, or recommended for investigation

• Test or scan results indicating an underlying issue, such as:

  • Results outside normal range (e.g. blood tests, urinalysis, biopsies)

  • Structural issues found during examinations (e.g. narrowed airway)

  • Findings on imaging (e.g. hip dysplasia on X-ray)

Pre-existing conditions also apply to:

• Conditions that started earlier and come back over time, even if symptoms settle for a while (e.g. seasonal allergies, intermittent limping)

• Congenital or hereditary conditions you or your vet knew about before cover started

• Bilateral conditions affecting paired body parts (e.g. knees, hips, eyes, ears) – if one side showed symptoms before cover started, both sides count as pre-existing

• Conditions linked to, caused by, or resulting from a pre-existing condition (e.g. arthritis after a joint injury, ear infections linked to underlying allergies)

Why can’t we cover pre-existing conditions? 🤷‍♀️

Like most pet insurers, we’re unable to cover pre-existing conditions because our cover and prices assume your pet has a normal chance of having any issues for their breed.

Where can I see my pet’s pre-existing conditions?

You’ll be able to view any confirmed pre-existing and linked conditions in the plan section of your app 📲.

To check your pet's pre-existing conditions:

• Request a pre-existing condition check or start a new claim in-app. When requesting a pre-existing check, you agree to give Fetch permission to collect vet records from any vet you've taken your pet to. This helps us to check your pet's health history quickly and efficiently.

• Our veterinary team will check your pet's records using clinical knowledge and the latest veterinary information on how conditions usually develop.

• We'll let you know of any pre-existing conditions and list them in-app

• If we later receive new information showing a condition started before cover started, we'll update your pet's pre-existing conditions

• We can recheck a condition if the treating vet provides updated clinical records with a clear explanation of what's changed

Examples of pre-existing conditions ⚕️

These are usually considered pre-existing:

• Seasonal allergies 🤧 – if your pet has recurring skin flare-ups each spring that need treatment every year, and these were noted before your pet's plan started, this is considered a pre-existing condition because it’s regular and ongoing.

• Cushing’s disease – if diagnosed before your pet's plan starts, it becomes an ongoing hormonal condition that needs lifelong medication and monitoring.

• Limping after a jump from the car 🚗 – if the limping was found to be from a ruptured cruciate ligament that occurred before cover began, that cruciate injury (and any related knee issues) would be pre-existing. Any condition (bilateral) affecting a paired structure within their body (such as the knees, eyes, ears, hips or elbows) we'll consider this as a single condition. This applies even though it may affect each side at different times.

• Elbow arthritis 🦴 – if arthritis in a specific joint was diagnosed or noted before your pet's plan began, it’s considered pre-existing because it’s progressive and will worsen over time.

• Hip dysplasia🦵 – if diagnosed before your pet's plan starts or during any waiting period, treatment for hip dysplasia and any related conditions (like hip arthritis) won’t be covered.

These are not usually considered pre-existing:

• Vomiting after eating something on a walk 🌳 – if your dog ate something inappropriate and became sick before you took out your pet's plan, and later vomits again after eating something else, these are separate incidents with different causes, so they’re not pre-existing.

• Diarrhoea due to overeating 🍗 – if your pet overate before joining Fetch and later had a one-off upset stomach again, it wouldn’t be considered pre-existing, as long as it didn’t cause any lasting organ damage (like to the liver or kidneys).