In this independent review, we look at pet insurance provider Waggel, 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, but if you wish to jump to specific sections of the article you can do so with the following links:
- What is Waggel?
- Waggel pet insurance features
- What does Waggel pet insurance cover?
- Waggel pet insurance policy exclusions
- Waggel policy types
- What is Waggel's vet triage service?
- How much does Waggel pet insurance cost?
- Waggel policy excess
- How to make a claim with Waggel pet insurance
- Waggel customer reviews
- Waggel pros and cons
- Alternatives to Waggel pet insurance
- Summary
What is Waggel?
Waggel launched in 2018 and was founded by Andrew Leal and former Apprentice contestant Ross Fretten in a bid to improve pet insurance. Waggel describes itself as not just a pet insurance product but a 'Pet Members Club' with membership benefits and perks. Waggel say that every "member" is assigned a "Customer Champion" who is a qualified UK based veterinary nurse.
Waggel only offers lifetime pet insurance policies as it is the most comprehensive cover available for pets. Waggel's pet insurance policies are underwritten by Red Sands Insurance Company (Europe) Ltd and offers policies for cats and dogs.
Waggel pet insurance features
Below is an overview of some of Waggel's pet insurance features:
- Lifetime pet insurance cover for cats and dogs
- 24/7 video call service with Joii
- No excess option
- Free and unlimited behaviour and nutrition consultations for dog owners
- Membership perks and benefits such as discounts with certain brands
- Digital claims process
- Each policyholder is assigned a UK based veterinary nurse to help with the claims process
- Receive a £40 Amazon.co.uk Gift Card for every friend you refer, and your friend will receive 1 month free pet insurance
- Optional vet triage service to reduce premiums
- No upper age limit
What does Waggel pet insurance cover?
Waggel offers 9 lifetime pet insurance policies with different levels of veterinary cover. A lifetime policy offers the most comprehensive cover for your pet as it covers your pet for the duration of its life. Other popular types of cover that are not offered by Waggel (and are not as comprehensive) are time-limited pet insurance, maximum benefit pet insurance and accident-only pet insurance.
A Waggel policy covers you for the following:
Waggel pet insurance policy exclusions
A Waggel policy will not cover you for the following:
Waggel policy types
Waggel has 7 different cover options for its lifetime pet insurance. Each policy is the same except for the increase in veterinary fee cover. Waggel's lifetime policies are annual limit lifetime policies. This means that you can claim for vet fees up to the total limit each year until it resets. If you wish to cancel your Waggel pet insurance policy you can do so within 14 days of taking the policy out.
Waggel pet insurance policy comparison
| Policy 1 | Policy 2 | Policy 3 | Policy 4 | Policy 5 | Policy 6 | Policy 7 | Policy 8 | Policy 9 | |
| Veterinary fee Cover | £1,000 | £2,000 | £3,000 | £4,000 | £5,000 | £6,000 | £8,000 | £10,000 | £15,000 |
| Excess options | £0 £50 £100 £200 £250 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
£0 £50 £100 £200 £250 £350 or £500 |
| Complementary treatment cover | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Behavioural treatment cover | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Dental cover¹ | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Loss through theft/straying | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Death from accident/illness | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 | £1,000 |
| Third-party liability (dogs only) | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million |
¹Waggel covers dental treatment as a result of illness or injury. If a vet has recommended dental treatment then Waggel requires this to be completed within 3 months to be covered and your pet must have had a dental examination in the past 12 months prior to the dental claim.
What is Waggel's vet triage service?
Waggel have recently introduced an vet triage service as an add-on to their insurance policies. You can opt to have this included with your policy and your premiums will reduce as a result. If you choose to have the triage add-on you and your pet becomes ill or injured, you will be required to use Waggel's vet triage service to determine if your pet requires a visit to the vet. The service is provided by Joli and you must complete an online Symptom Checker or have a video call with a vet through Joli. If you fail to use the triage service you will receive a penalty fee of £50 for every condition you submit a claim for unless it was an emergency. Your vet will have to confirm that it was an emergency and the penalty fee is in addition to your excess.
How much does Waggel pet insurance cost?
In the below table, I have gathered quotes for a 1-year-old mixed breed cat and dog. The pets are located in the South East of England and have no underlying health conditions. The cost of your pet insurance premium will vary on the age, breed and type of pet you wish to insure. For more information on what affects the cost of pet insurance read our article '7 factors that affect the cost of pet insurance'.
The cost of Waggel pet insurance for a 1-year-old dog and cat
| Policy 1 | Policy 2 | Policy 3 | Policy 4 | Policy 5 | Policy 6 | Policy 7 | Policy 8 | Policy 9 | |
| Veterinary fee cover | £1,000 | £2,000 | £3,000 | £4,000 | £5,000 | £6,000 | £8,000 | £10,000 | £15,000 |
| Excess (claim contribution) | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 | £100 |
| Mixed breed cat (monthly cost) | £8.62 | £14.40 | £21.56 | £26.16 | £28.84 | £29.99 | £32.96 | £37.03 | £50.50 |
| Mixed breed cat with triage (monthly cost) | £8.15 | £13.18 | £19.51 | £23.41 | £25.67 | £26.54 | £28.84 | £32.03 | £43.68 |
| Mixed breed dog (monthly cost) | £7.75 | £13.79 | £18.30 | £21.37 | £23.65 | £25.42 | £28.01 | £33.81 | £46.11 |
| Mixed breed dog with triage (monthly cost) | £7.32 | £12.62 | £16.56 | £19.13 | £21.05 | £22.50 | £24.51 | £29.25 | £39.89 |
(Quotes correct as of 23/09/25)
Waggel policy excess
You get to choose how much excess you pay on your Waggel pet insurance policy. Waggel refers to the excess as a claim contribution, as you are contributing to the cost of the claim amount. With a Waggel pet insurance policy you can choose a 'Claim contribution' amount of £0, £50, £100, £200, £250, £350 or £500 for all their policies except their policy with £1,000 vet fee cover where the £0 excess is not an option. The Claim Contribution is payable once a year per condition and resets each time the policy renews. If you choose a higher contribution amount, you are likely to see a reduction in the cost of your monthly premium. You can change your annual limit and claim contribution (excess) within the first 7 days from the start of your new policy, and then 30 days before your policy is due to renew. You will be emailed with a reminder.
How to make a claim with Waggel pet insurance
Waggel has an online claims process and keeps you informed every step of the way via your personal Customer Champion, who are all UK-based vet nurses. Your personal Customer Champion is there to answer any questions you have, not just about the claims process but about the policy too. You can track the real-time progress of your claim by logging in to your Waggel account and you will be instantly notified once your claim has been paid. Waggel also provides an itemised breakdown of your claim and what you have been paid.
Waggel can pay your vet directly if your vet accepts payments directly from the insurer or alternatively, Waggel can pay the claim into your chosen bank account.
Steps to making a claim with Waggel
To make a claim with Waggel via its online claims process you need to do the following:
Step 1
Log in to your online account.
Step 2
Under ‘Your policies’, select ‘Make a claim’.
Step 3
Complete and submit the online form. Waggel will notify you via email with the outcome of your claim.
Waggel customer reviews
Waggel has a rating of 'Excellent' on Trustpilot with 4.6 out of 5 stars from over 11,000 reviews. 84% rated Waggel as 'Excellent' citing a quick and easy claims process, simple-to-understand website and sensitive customer service. 8% rated it as 'Bad' citing problems with claims being paid, discrepancies around claims and high premium increases at renewal.
Waggel pros and cons
Waggel pros
- Simple to use website with no jargon
- No upper age limit
- Optional triage service to reduce monthly premiums
- Option to pay no excess (except for policy with £1,000 vet fee cover)
Waggel cons
- Does not cover pre-existing conditions
- No difference between levels of cover except the amount of veterinary fee cover
- No cover for cremation, holiday cancellation or emergency boarding
Alternatives to Waggel pet insurance
In this section of the review we compare Waggel to Petplan and ManyPets*. We have compared the most comprehensive pet insurance policies from all three pet insurance providers. The quotes are based on a 1-year-old mixed breed dog and 1-year-old moggy cat with no underlying health conditions and living at an address in the South East. Waggel has the option to increase or decrease its excess however for the purpose of the quotes the excess was £100.
You can also compare pet insurance policies via comparison sites such as MoneySuperMarket*. Comparison sites allow you to compare multiple providers at once to find the best insurance policy for your pet. They are not always whole of market though, so you may not always be getting the best deal. You can also compare some of the best pet insurance providers in our article, 'Best pet insurance in the UK in 2025'.
Waggel vs Petplan vs ManyPets
| Waggel | PetPlan | ManyPets* | |
| Excess | £100 per condition | £110 (dogs) £95 (cats) per condition |
£99 per policy year
|
| Monthly cost for 1-year-old dog | £45.44 | £60.25¹ | £43.29 |
| Monthly cost for 1-year-old cat | £45.10 | £40.06¹ | £40.44 |
| Vet fee cover | £15,000 per year | £12,000 per year |
£20,000 per year
|
| Public liability (dogs only) | £2 million | £2 million | £2 million |
| Loss & theft | £1,000 | £3,000 | £6,000 |
| Death of pet cover (if pet dies through illness or injury) | £1,000 | £3,000^ (This is an optional extra but has been included in the quote for the purpose of comparison) | £6,000 |
|
Vet video calls
|
Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Trustpilot score | 4.6/5 | 4.6/5 | 4.4/5 |
| More information | Petplan pet insurance review | ManyPets pet insurance review |
(Quotes correct as of 23/09/25) ¹Includes introductory discount
Summary
Waggel pet insurance offers lifetime pet insurance cover for cats and dogs, which is the most comprehensive type of policy available. Waggel is positioned as a 'Pet Members Club' with membership benefits and perks, and every member is assigned a UK-based veterinary nurse as a 'Customer Champion'. Key advantages include a simple-to-use website with no jargon, no upper age limit for pets and a choice of excess options with the option to pay no excess on all but one of it's policies. The newly introduced vet triage service add-on is a way to reduce monthly premiums and could save you time and money by preventing unnecessary vet visits. Waggel provides a good choice of vet fee cover, although it is worth noting that the vet fee cover is the only difference between the policies. Waggel does not cover cremation, holiday cancellation, or emergency boarding which is often included in lifetime insurance policies by other providers and has a 14 day waiting period before you can claim on your new 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 - MoneySuperMarket, ManyPets
