Is my pandemic puppy covered? Pet insurance ticks higher on employees' voluntary benefit list
With more people working from home than ever before, pet insurance is on the rise as a highly requested voluntary benefit.
In these unprecedented times, it’s no secret that pets have been a comfort. Adoption centers across the country have reported their kennels are cleared and they now have waitlists of people looking to adopt dogs as soon as possible, and Animal Care Centers of NYC reported that 25% of pet fosters were permanently adopted during the pandemic, as opposed to their usual 10% rate.
For business leaders and HR managers, when it comes to the employee experience, workflow, and retention, this uncharted territory has brought up many questions. A recent Stanford study reported that around 42% of the United States labor force is now working from home full-time, and companies in nearly every industry are gearing up for the long haul.
Related: 10 best pet insurance plans of 2020
Now, with more people working from home than ever before, pet insurance is on the rise as a highly requested voluntary benefit. Employee priorities have shifted and providing the best care possible for their four-legged family members is at the top of their list. Since 2015, the total number of insured pets in the US has increased by nearly 62%, totaling over 2.5 million pets.
Are pets the new dependent?
A recent survey from Pets Best Insurance found that 83% of their customers considered themselves a pet parent. There’s no doubt we’ve always loved our pets, but in the wake of the pandemic and ongoing economic turmoil, the narrative is shifting. For better or for worse, pet parents have had to rethink how they feed their pets, provide medical care for their pets, and how they protect their pets.
With the exception of certain highly specific write-offs, the IRS doesn’t allow taxpayers to declare their pet as a dependent. That is, until Fido learns how to become a contributing, working, tax-paying member of society when he grows up. Until then, people will continue to turn to services like pet insurance, making it one of the fastest growing and highly requested employee benefits. In the age of work from home, the peace of mind pet insurance can provide during times of crisis greatly outweighs the draw of company-sponsored lunches and that yoga studio membership you probably won’t use this year.
In fact, Pets Best Pet Health Insurance recently expanded their relationship with Progressive insurance to meet the growing demand for a pet insurance benefit offering.
A health care budget for pets?
So, what does healthcare and insurance really look like for your pet? In the year 2020, it looks like peace of mind knowing that your pet will be able to receive the care they need and deserve at any moment. Depending on what your deductible and monthly premium are, pet insurance helps to provide a financial buffer in times of crisis. You can budget for food, recurring annual vet visits, but cannot budget for emergencies and accidents—something pet parents are accustomed to.
Among all the other changes 2020 has brought, employee priorities and needs have shifted, and benefit and HR managers have found themselves in a new normal. VP of Pets Best Business Development, Donna Cejalvo, agrees. “With a higher proportion of the workforce being pet parents, adding pet health insurance to your voluntary benefits strategy or offering is a great way to let employees know you recognize their pets are part of their family too,” Cejalvo says. The truth is, people have moved past the idea of pet insurance being a frivolous perk, and now more and more employees are looking for that added benefit on their offering list.
Chris Middleton is senior vice president and general manager at Pets Best Insurance Services. Pet insurance coverage is offered and administered by Pets Best Insurance Services, LLC and is underwritten by American Pet Insurance Company, a New York insurance company.
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