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Fetch Pet Insurance Review: Pros And Cons

Sophie Venz
Editor

Updated: Apr 18, 2024, 2:16pm

Johanna Leggatt
editor

Edited By

Editorial note: Forbes Advisor Australia may earn revenue from this story in the manner disclosed here. Read our advice disclaimer here.

While Fetch is new to the pet insurance space in Australia, it has been well received so far by its customers (scoring 5 stars on ProductReview) and 4 stars from Forbes Advisor Australia. It features an easy-to-navigate website that spells out clearly what is and isn’t covered in the single plan that is offered to pet owners: the Fetch Pet Plan.

Pros

  • Easy-to-navigate website and PDS
  • High annual limit
  • Claims paid directly to the vet

Cons

  • Only one plan offered
  • No routine care coverage
  • No discounts
Fetch Pet Insurance
Learn More
4.0
Our ratings take into account the card’s rewards, fees, rates along with the card’s category. All ratings are determined solely by our editorial team.
Maximum annual claim
$30,000
Choice of Excess?
$0, or $100 when choosing 100% reimbursement rate
GapOnly Payment
No, but Fetch pays vet directly

Table of Contents

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About Fetch Pet Insurance

Fetch Pet Insurance is a recent entrant to the increasingly competitive Australian market, launching late last year. While it’s still new, it was nevertheless ranked highly by Forbes Advisor Australia for its single policy offering, known as the Fetch Pet Plan.

So far, customer reviews have been overwhelmingly positive, scoring 5 stars on ProductReview by its Australian reviewers. However, this figure should be treated with caution, as it’s based on a small number of reviews—a total of 28 at the time of publication.

Despite its fledgling status in the local market, Fetch says that it has experience with “more than a million pets” before the company was founded, as each member of the Fetch team bring with them backgrounds as vets or vet nurses, or with leading pet insurers around the world.

Additionally, Fetch is the only pet insurer that’s a member of Pet Industry Australia (PIAA), which is dedicated to the welfare of pets in Australia.

What Type of Pets Does Fetch Pet Insurance Cover?

Fetch Pet Insurance covers both cats and dogs, including puppies and kittens from eight weeks. There is no cover for exotic pets, such as rabbits or turtles.

What’s Covered In the Fetch Pet Plan?

The Fetch Pet Plan is the only plan offered by Fetch pet insurance, with the choice of three different reimbursement rates: 80%, 90% or 100%. While there is the option to have reduce excess to zero, those that choose a 100% reimbursement rate on their plan will be required to pay a $100 excess.

Annually, pet owners can claim $30,000 worth of veterinary treatments with no sub-limits on any claims—a very generous feature.

Unfortunately, Fetch doesn’t cover the cost of your pet’s routine care, such as vaccinations, grooming, clipping and the like. It also does not cover any pre-existing conditions that you and your vet were aware of prior to taking out the Fetch Pet Plan.

Additionally, GapOnly service is not available, however, if customers set up Fast Claims, the vet can check cover with Fetch before treatment and the insurer can pay the vet directly—assuming the vet allows direct payments.

Is spaying and neutering covered?

No, Fetch’s Pet Plan does not cover the cost of desexing your pet (also known as spaying and neutering). Fetch says this not only includes the procedure, but also any problems directly caused by the procedure.

What about older pets?

Pets up to nine years can be covered by the Fetch Pet Plan, as is standard. Fetch does also offer end-of-life care, stating that should it be necessary to euthanise your pet due to an issue which is covered by your pet’s plan, it will cover the cost.

However, Fetch can’t cover the cost of cremating your pet or the cost of a post-mortem examination.

Is there a sub-limit for tick paralysis?

No, there is no sub-limit that applies for tick paralysis. In fact, there are no sub-limits in the Fetch Pet Plan whatsoever, which is one of its stand-out features.

Is dental covered?

Yes, dental is covered under the Fetch Pet Plan, depending on some conditions. For example, dental injury and illness is only when it develops after you take out your pet’s plan.

Then, it is also necessary that:

  • your pet has no history of dental or periodontal disease before joining Fetch
  • a vet has checked your pet’s teeth within the last 12 months of the claim
  • you have undertaken any treatment or routine care recommended by your vet

Fetch Pet Insurance Excess Options

Fetch offers its customers the choice of either a $0 excess or $100 excess to lower premiums. However, when customers choose the 100% coverage option of the Fetch Pet Plan, the $100 excess is obligatory.

Is there a waiting period with Fetch?

Yes, Fetch has a few different waiting periods for customers to keep in mind. These are:

  • 1 day for injury
  • 30 days for illness
  • 90 days for cruciate ligaments

Additionally, Fetch offers its customers the ability to remove waiting periods if necessary. To do so, customers must follow Fetch’s in-app instructions that allow them to see that their pet has no illnesses or injuries.

Discounts and Bonuses with Fetch Pet Insurance

At the time of writing, there were no discounts or bonuses available with Fetch Pet Insurance, such as multi-pet insurance discounts or the ability to earn FlyBuys points like some other pet insurance companies offer.

Can you add-on alternative therapies or behavioural cover?

With Fetch, you don’t have to add-on alternative therapies or behavioural cover: they are already included in the policy.

Fetch says it will cover the course of treatment for a diagnosed behavioural disorder, as long as:

  • Your pet has no history of behavioural issues, including aggression, before cover is active, including in any waiting periods; and
  • You fulfill your pet’s basic needs for training, socialisation, exercise, housing, nutrition and care, and the issue didn’t arise from leaving the pet alone for extended periods.

In terms of alternative therapies, Fetch will cover one course of acupuncture or cold laser therapy performed by your vet to treat a diagnosed condition.

However, it will not cover homeopathy, naturopathy, osteopathy, or chiropractic, massage and bowen therapies.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How much does Fetch Pet Insurance cost?

The cost of Fetch Pet Insurance will depend on your pet’s breed, their age, the reimbursement rate you select, whether or not they are de-sexed, and other conditions. Therefore, as all pets are individual, Forbes Advisor Australia cannot give a general estimate of how much Fetch Pet Insurance would cost for you.

Instead, interested customers can complete a Fetch Pet Insurance quote online in just two minutes by answering a few simple questions about your pet and their health.

Who underwrites Fetch Pet Insurance?

Fetch Pet Insurance is underwritten by Pacific International Insurance, an Australasian insurance underwriting company based in Newcastle, NSW.

What does Fetch Pet Insurance cover?

Fetch’s Pet Plan policy is relatively simple, but still covers a lot of your pet’s needs. As listed on the easy-to-read Fetch website, this includes:

  1. Vet consults
  2. Dental
  3. Illness
  4. Injury
  5. Medication
  6. Food
  7. Home visits and transport
  8. Behavioural cover
  9. Complementary therapy
  10. Emergency boarding
  11. End of life care
  12. Lost pet support
  13. Physio
  14. Protheses and devices
  15. Snake or tick bites
  16. Parasites
  17. Vaccinatable diseases
Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for educational purposes only. Your financial situation is unique and the products and services we review may not be right for your circumstances. We do not offer financial advice, advisory or brokerage services, nor do we recommend or advise individuals or to buy or sell particular stocks or securities. Performance information may have changed since the time of publication. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Forbes Advisor adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. To the best of our knowledge, all content is accurate as of the date posted, though offers contained herein may no longer be available. The opinions expressed are the author’s alone and have not been provided, approved, or otherwise endorsed by our partners.
Sophie Venz Editor

Sophie Venz is an experienced editor and features reporter, and has previously worked in the small business and start-up reporting space. Previously the Associate Editor of SmartCompany, Sophie has worked closely with finance experts and columnists around Australia and internationally.

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