In this independent review, we look at Animal Friends' pet insurance policies including the types of policy available, the level of cover on offer and how much it costs. We recommend that you read the review in full however you can jump to specific sections of the article using the following links:
- What is Animal Friends pet insurance?
- Animal Friends pet insurance features
- What does Animal Friends pet insurance cover?
- Animal Friends pet insurance exclusions
- Animal Friends policy types
- How much does Animal Friends pet insurance cost?
- Animal Friends pet insurance policy excess
- How to make a claim on Animal Friends pet insurance
- Is Animal Friends pet insurance regulated?
- Animal Friends pet insurance customer reviews
- Animal Friends alternatives
- Animal Friends pros and cons
- Summary
What is Animal Friends pet insurance?
Animal Friends* pet insurance was founded in 1998 by Elaine Fairfax. Elaine founded Animal Friends with the purpose of helping animals not only through pet insurance but by donating to multiple animal welfare charities at the same time. Animal Friends Insurance is underwritten by Red Sands Insurance Company (Europe) Ltd.
To date, Animal Friends pet insurance insures over 1 million UK pets and has donated over £7 million to over 700 charities worldwide. Animal Friends won the best pet insurance at the personal finance awards in 2017/18, 2018/19, 2019/20 and 2020/21, as well as the best pet insurance provider and best claims service at the MoneyFacts consumer awards in 2017.
Animal Friends pet insurance key features
Below is an overview of Animal Friends' policy features:
- Multiple policy types
- Policies for cats, dogs, horses and horse riders
- Free 24/7 vet video calls with Joii
- Animal welfare donations with every policy
- Online claims portal for vets
- Can pay your claim directly to your vet
- Keep track of your pet's microchip number on your account
- Refer a friend and you both get a £40 voucher (offer valid until 21st September 23)
What does Animal Friends pet insurance cover?
Animal Friends offers a variety of policies with different levels of cover depending on the pet you decide to insure. For more information on the different policy types, click here.
Lifetime cover
The most comprehensive policy type, lifetime pet insurance offers the best protection as it covers your pet for the duration of its life. Animal Friends offers two lifetime policy types with different levels of cover: Annual limit, with cover up to £18,000 per year or Annual condition limit, with cover up to £6,000 per condition per year. Its Annual limit lifetime policy provides cover up to the agreed amount each year and once that limit is reached the remaining treatment will need to be self-funded until the annual limit renews. Its Annual condition limit lifetime cover provides veterinary fee cover up to the agreed amount per condition per year, once the condition limit is reached the remaining treatment amount will need to be self-funded until the annual condition limit renews.
For more information on lifetime pet insurance, read our article 'Lifetime pet insurance explained'.
Maximum Benefit
This cover will insure your pet for a set amount with no time limit. However, once the veterinary fee limit is reached it does not renew and any additional claims for the same condition will need to be self-funded. Animal Friends offers 3 different types of Maximum Benefit policies with a maximum lifetime condition limit of £4,000.
For more information on maximum benefit pet insurance, read our article 'Maximum benefit pet insurance explained'.
Time-limited
Time-limited policies with Animal Friends provide cover for your pet for 12 months from the onset of the condition or until the policy limit is reached, whichever comes first. There are 3 different time-limited policies with Animal Friends with a maximum annual policy limit of £10,000 and subsequent condition limits.
Read our article 'Time-limited pet insurance explained' for more information on time-limited pet insurance.
Accident-only
This is the most basic level of cover and offers protection in case your pet needs veterinary care due to an accident. There is an annual accident claim limit of £2,500 per accident with a lifetime limit of £15,000.
For more information on accident-only pet insurance, read our article 'Accident-only pet insurance explained'.
Standard horse insurance
This time-limited policy provides cover for horses from 1 month to 20 years old. You can choose to cover each condition up to £6,000 for up to 12 months and there is an option to add extras such as public liability cover, cover for tack and loss by theft or straying.
Mature horse insurance
This time-limited policy offers injury cover for horses aged over 20 years old. You can choose to cover each injury up to £2,000 for up to 12 months and there is an option to add extras such as public liability cover, cover for tack and loss by theft or straying.
Rider insurance
Personal rider insurance provides cover for riders aged 5 and above. The plan provides personal accident, public liability and some emergency vet fee cover if the horse you are riding is injured in an accident.
Animal Friends pet insurance exclusions
In this section of the Animal Friends pet insurance review, we highlight some of the key exclusions in an Animal Friends pet insurance policy. It is important that you read each policy carefully to ensure you fully understand the terms and conditions before opening the policy and making a claim.
Animal Friends will not cover:
Pets less than 4 weeks old
Pets used for breeding purposes
Pre-existing conditions
Illnesses within 14 days or injuries within 2 days of the policy start date
Claims linked to your pet being neutered or spayed
Certain cat and dog breeds, a full list of which can be found here
Animal Friends policy types
Animal Friends has a variety of policies* to choose from. Below we compare the different policies available for cats and dogs and in each comparison table, we summarise the key points for each policy. For more information on Animal Friends' Horse and Rider policies visit the Animal Friends website.
Lifetime Policies
Animal Friends Lifetime Policies provide the most extensive cover among all of the policies on offer. There are two types of Animal friends' Lifetime policies:
- Annual Limit (Lifetime £1,000, £2,000, £3,000, £4,000, £5,000, £10,000 and £18,000) - You can claim as many times as you like in a year for an unlimited amount of conditions but you can only claim up until your maximum policy limit for the year. The limit will then renew each year when you renew your policy.
- Annual Condition Limit (Super, Superior, Superior Plus and Prestige) - You can claim as many times as you like in the year up to the limit for each condition. The condition limit will then renew each year when you renew your policy.
Animal Friends Annual Limit Lifetime policies
| Lifetime £1,000 | Lifetime £2,000 | Lifetime £3,000 (Assure) | Lifetime £4,000 | Lifetime £5,000 (Assure Plus) | Lifetime £10,000 | Lifetime £18,000 | |
| Cover Type | Annual limit | Annual limit | Annual limit | Annual limit | Annual limit | Annual limit | Annual limit |
| Excess | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 |
| % co-payment | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 |
| Annual Policy limit | £1,000 | £2,000 | £3,000 | £4,000 | £5,000 | £10,000 | £18,000 |
| Public liability | £2m | £2m | £2m | £2m | £2m | £2m | £2m |
| Loss & theft | £600 | £600 | £600 | £600 | £1,200 | £2,000 | £3,000 |
| Advertising and reward | £200 | £200 | £200 | £200 | £200 | £200 | £200 |
| Dental cover for accident/illness |  |
|
|
|
Accident only | |
|
| Death of pet cover | £600 | £600 | £600 | £600 | £1,200 | £2,000 | £3,000 |
| Hospitalisation cover | £600 | £600 | £600 | £600 | £1,200 | £1,500 | £1,500 |
| Emergency vet fees abroad | £2,000 | £2,000 | £2,000 | £2,000 | £2,000 | £2,500 | £2,500 |
*Animal Friends will pay for the removal of your pet's teeth or gum repair if damaged in an accident. It only pays if your pet has had a dental exam within a year of the injury and you followed the vet's advice.
Animal Friends Annual Condition Limit Lifetime policies
| Super | Superior | Superior Plus | Prestige | |
| Cover Type | Annual Condition limit | Annual Condition limit | Annual Condition limit | Annual Condition limit |
| Excess | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 |
| % co-payment | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 |
| Annual Condition limit | £1,000 | £2,000 | £4,000 | £6,000 |
| Lifetime condition limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Public liability | £2m | £2m | £2m | £2m |
| Loss & theft | £500 | £750 | £1,000 | £1,500 |
| Advertising and reward | £200 | £200 | £200 | £200 |
| Dental cover | |
|
|
Accident only* |
| Death of pet cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 | £1,500 |
| Hospital cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 | £1,500 |
| Emergency vet fees abroad | £1,500 | £2,000 | £2,000 | £2,000 |
| Personal accident |  |
|
|
£750 |
*Animal Friends will pay for the removal of your pet's teeth or gum repair if damaged in an accident. It only pays if your pet has had a dental exam within a year of the injury and you followed the vet's advice.
Maximum Benefit policies
Maximum benefit pet insurance policies insure your pet for a set amount for the duration of the policy. Animal Friends has three maximum benefit policies to choose from. For example, if your pet is insured for £1,000 you can only claim up to £1,000 in total for any condition or treatment your pet receives. Once the limit has been met you will have to fund the remaining treatment. There is no time limit on this policy, however, if you meet the condition limit in the first year of the policy the cover amount does not renew so you will no longer be covered for any veterinary fees for that particular condition.
Animal Friends Maximum Benefit policies
| Max Value | Max Plus | Max Extra | |
| Cover Type | Maximum benefit | Maximum benefit | Maximum benefit |
| Excess | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 |
| % co-payment | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 |
| Lifetime condition limit | £1,000 | £2,000 | £4,000 |
| Public liability | £2m | £2m | £2m |
| Loss & theft | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Accident/injury dental cover | |
|
|
| Death of pet cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Holiday cancellation | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,500 |
| Hospital cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Emergency vet fees abroad | £1,500 | £2,000 | £2,000 |
Time-Limited policies
Animal Friends Time-limited pet insurance covers your pet for veterinary treatment for 365 days from the onset of the condition until the limit is reached. You can claim for more than one condition in a policy year however the policy has an annual limit so you would need to check this for each individual policy. The annual limits do renew each year, however, you will no longer be covered for any conditions that you have previously claimed for.
Animal Friends Time-limited policies
| Basic Plus | Prime | Prime Plus | |
| Cover Type | Time-Limited | Time-Limited | Time-Limited |
| Excess | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 |
| % co-payment | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 |
| Annual Condition limit | £1,000 | £2,000 | £4,000 |
| Annual Policy limit | £4,000 | £7,000 | £10,000 |
| Public liability | £2m | £2m | £2m |
| Loss & theft | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Accident/injury dental cover | |
|
|
| Death of pet cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Holiday cancellation | |
£1,000 | £1,500 |
| Hospital cover | £500 | £750 | £1,000 |
| Emergency vet fees abroad | £750 | £1,000 | £1,500 |
Accident-only Policies
An Animal Friends Accident-only policy covers your pet for veterinary treatment for injuries and complications sustained as a result of an accident. With this policy you can claim for more than one accident a year up until the condition limit, this limit then renews annually, so long as you keep your policy. The policy has a lifetime limit which means you can continue to claim for accidents until the lifetime limit is reached, so long as you do not exceed the annual limit each year.
Animal Friends Accident-only policies
| Accident-only | |
| Cover Type | Accident-only |
| Excess | £69/£99/£159/£199/£249 |
| % co-payment | 20% for dogs over 8 and cats over 10 |
| Annual Condition limit | £2,500 |
| Lifetime condition limit | £15,000 |
| Public liability | |
| Loss & theft | |
| Accident/injury dental cover | |
| Death of pet cover | |
| Holiday cancellation | |
| Hospital cover | |
| Emergency vet fees abroad | |
How much does Animal Friends pet insurance cost?
In the below tables, we have included examples of the cost of pet insurance for each of the Animal Friends* pet insurance policies for both cats and dogs. The actual cost of your pet insurance will vary depending on the age, type and breed of your pet as well as where you are located. Animal Friends also adds a co-payment of at least 20% to any claims made when your dog turns 8 years old and your cat turns 10 years old.
The cost of Animal Friends pet insurance for a 1-year-old dog
The below quotes are based on a 1-year-old mixed breed dog that lives in the South East and has no underlying health conditions. The policy quotes are based on an excess of £99 but there is also the option to increase your excess to £249 or reduce your excess to £69.
| Policy Type | Policy Name | Monthly Cost |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Prestige | £24.92 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Superior Plus | £19.70 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Superior | £11.88 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Super | £7.47 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £18,000 | £47.68 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £10,000 | £33.84 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £5,000 (Assure Plus) | £22.01 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £4,000 (Assure) | £13.56 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £3,000 | £19.54 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £2,000 | £10.70 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £1,000 | £6.74 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Extra | £17.63 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Plus | £12.78 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Value | £6.85 |
| Time-Limited | Prime Plus | £11.41 |
| Time-Limited | Prime | £8.62 |
| Time-Limited | Basic Plus | £5.63 |
| Accident-only | Accident-only | £4.08 |
(Quotes correct as of 28/02/23 and based on an excess of £99 - other excess options are available)
The cost of Animal Friends pet insurance for a 1-year-old cat
The following quotes are based on a 1-year-old mixed breed cat that lives in the South East and has no underlying health conditions.
| Policy Type | Policy Name | Monthly Cost |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Prestige | £20.43 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Superior Plus | £13.97 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Superior | £10.73 |
| Lifetime Annual Condition Limit | Lifetime Super | £7.73 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £18,000 | £36.74 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £10,000 | £26.23 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £5,000 (Assure Plus) | £16.32 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £4,000 (Assure) | £12.26 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £3,000 | £13.54 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £2,000 | £10.36 |
| Lifetime Annual Policy Limit | Lifetime £1,000 | £6.41 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Extra | £13.01 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Plus | £8.56 |
| Maximum Benefit | Max Value | £6.84 |
| Time-Limited | Prime Plus | £10.63 |
| Time-Limited | Prime | £7.78 |
| Time-Limited | Basic Plus | £6.25 |
| Accident-only | Accident-only | £3.10 |
(Quotes correct as of 28/02/23 and based on an excess of £99 - other excess options are available)
Animal Friends policy excess
The excess is the amount that you are expected to pay in the event of a claim on your pet insurance. There is a choice of £69, £99,£159, £199 and £249 as your policy excess with Animal Friends. The policy excess is payable once per policy year for each condition or accident on the accident only, time-limited and lifetime condition limit policies. On its Maximum benefit policy, the excess is only payable once per condition and on Animal Friends' lifetime annual limit policy the excess is payable once per year regardless of how many claims you make.
You may also be required to make a co-payment of 20% in addition to the policy excess once your pet reaches a certain age. For dogs, this is 8 years old and for cats, this is from the age of 10. The co-payment is a percentage contribution to the cost of the claim in addition to the policy excess.
How to make a claim on Animal Friends pet insurance
With Animal Friends you can:
- Claim Veterinary fees - for treatment for an illness or injury
- Get a pre-authorisation - ask Animal Friends to confirm the claim or cost of any treatment before it goes ahead
- Repeat medication - claim for any repeat medication for any ongoing health conditions
Veterinary fee claims and pre-authorisation requests can be submitted online by your veterinary practice via the online claim system ‘Pawtal’. No paperwork is required for the online portal and as the vet makes the claim online it can make the process quicker. Animal Friends says it assesses claims submitted via the online Pawtal within 24 hours.
If you need to make a paper claim for veterinary fees you can download a paper claim form on the Animal Friends website. For claims other than vet fees, repeat medication and pre-authorisations you will need to download a paper claim form via the Animal Friends website.
By logging in to your online account you can check the status of your claim and submit claims for repeat medication.
Is Animal Friends pet insurance regulated?
Animal Friends is registered with the Financial Conduct Authority which means it has to comply with strict UK regulations.
If you have a complaint about Animal Friends pet insurance you can take it further with the Financial Ombudsman Service, however, you will need to contact Animal Friends with your complaint first.
Animal Friends pet insurance customer reviews
Animal Friends* pet insurance is rated as ‘Excellent’ on Trustpilot with a score of 4.4 out of 5 stars from over 31,000 reviews. 77% of customers rated the provider as ‘Excellent’ citing no delays in claims, great customer service and relatively cheap premiums. 9% of customers rated the provider as ‘Bad’ complaining of issues when paying out claims and discrepancies with some of the policy terms and conditions.
Alternatives to Animal Friends pet insurance
It is always best to shop around when purchasing pet insurance in order to understand the levels of cover available and to find the best cover for your pet. One easy way to shop around for pet insurance is via a comparison site such as MoneySuperMarket* or Compare the Market*. Comparison sites allow you to compare multiple providers at once to get the best rate for your pet. One thing to consider though is that not all comparison sites are whole of market and you may get a better deal elsewhere.
In the comparison table below we have compared the most comprehensive pet insurance policy for a 1-year-old mongrel with Animals Friends*, Petplan and ManyPets*. Read more about the policies in our reviews:
Animal Friends vs Petplan vs ManyPets
| Animal Friends* | Petplan | ManyPets* | |
| Policy Name | Prestige | Ultimate |
Complete
|
| Excess | £99 per policy year | £110 per illness/injury |
£99 per policy year
|
| Cost | £47.68 | £69.73 | £38.24 |
| Vet fee cover | £18,000 per year | £12,000 per year |
£15,000 per year
|
| Public liability | £2million | £3million | £3million |
| Loss & theft | £3,000 | £2,000 | £6,000 |
| Death of pet cover (if pet dies through illness or injury) | £3,000 | £2,000 | £6,000 |
| Vet video calls |  |
 |
|
| Trustpilot score | 4.4/5 | 4.7/5 | 3.8/5 |
(Quotes correct as of 28/02/23)
Animal Friends pet insurance pros and cons
Animal Friends Pros
- Vast range of policies to choose from
- Good veterinary fee cover
- Donates money to animal welfare charities
- Won ‘The Best Pet Insurance’ at the personal finance awards in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021
- Free 24/7 vet video calls
- Online portal for vets
Animal Friends Cons
- No multi-pet discount
- Co-payment payable on dogs over 8 and cats over 10
- Dental and gum treatment is not covered under most policies
- Does not cover pre-existing conditions
Summary
Animal Friends* has a vast choice of pet insurance policies meaning you are bound to find one that suits your needs. Animal Friends offers a good range of cover for a reasonable price and there is the added bonus of knowing that you are donating to Animal Welfare charities when you take out a policy.
The addition of the Joii 24/7 veterinary advice app means that you could save money on veterinary consultation fees as it enables you to see a vet in order to query minor problems with your pet. Overall, I think Animal Friends offers a good pet insurance product but as with all insurance policies, it is imperative you read the small print to fully understand what is covered in your policy.
If a link has an * beside it this means that it is an affiliated link. If you go via the link, Money to the Masses may receive a small fee which helps keep Money to the Masses free to use. The following link can be used if you do not wish to help Money to the Masses or take advantage of any exclusive offers - Animal Friends, ManyPets, MoneySuperMarket, Compare the Market
