Understanding excess and bill share

With insurance, a little jargon is unavoidable. And when you’re buying pet insurance, you’re likely to come across two such terms: excess and bill share.

Both affect how much you pay when you claim on your policy. Understanding the difference can help you choose the right cover for you and your pet.

What is excess?

The excess is the amount you agree to pay towards the cost of a claim. Think of it as your contribution before your insurer steps in.

With Petgevity, you can choose your excess anywhere from £0 to £500. The higher you set it, the lower your monthly premium tends to be. This is because you accept more of the risk.

It’s a useful lever if you want to reduce your day-to-day costs and are comfortable covering more yourself if you do need to claim.

And with Petgevity Lifetime Plus, there’s no compulsory excess or bill share (which we’re coming to), even as your pet ages.

Another thing worth knowing: with Petgevity, your excess applies once per condition, per policy year. So if your pet has a recurring issue that requires multiple vet visits, you only pay the excess once for that condition across the whole year – not every time you visit.

What is bill share (co-payment)?

Bill share – also known as co-payment – is an additional contribution you make towards a claim, on top of your excess. It works as a percentage of the remaining bill once your excess has been deducted.

Like excess, choosing a higher bill share generally means a lower premium. It’s entirely optional on our Lifetime Plus policy, where you can choose between 0% and 30%. On our Lifetime policy, bill share is also optional – but becomes compulsory once your dog turns 8 or your cat turns 10, at a fixed rate of 20%.

How do excess and bill share work together?

Here’s a simple example. Say your vet bill comes to £700:

• No excess, no bill share: You pay £0. We pay £700.
• £100 excess, no bill share: You pay £100. We pay £600.
• No excess, 10% bill share: You pay £70 (10% of £700). We pay £630.
• £100 excess, 10% bill share: You pay £100 excess + £60 (10% of the remaining £600) = £160. We pay £540.

As you can see, the combinations you choose have a real impact on both your premium and what you’d pay at claim time.

Which should I choose?

There’s no single right answer. It really depends on your budget and your approach to risk.

If you’d rather pay less each month and are happy to cover more if something does go wrong, a higher excess and/or bill share could make sense. If you’d prefer more predictable costs at claim time, keeping both low gives you more peace of mind – though your premium will be a little higher.

The good news is that with Petgevity, you can adjust your excess and bill share via your online account. This means if your circumstances change, your cover can flex with them.

Want to explore your options? Get a pet insurance quote today and see how different combinations of excess and bill share affect your premium.