New Survey from Pumpkin Reveals Major Gaps Between Perception and Reality in Costs of Dog Ownership

NEW YORK, Sept. 20, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- To kick off National Pet Insurance Month, Pumpkin, a pet insurance and wellness provider, released a new survey examining misconceptions about the costs of dog ownership. Over a thousand dog owners nationally showed that pet parents have a hugely skewed perception of the veterinary care costs and are very unprepared for pricey pooch emergencies.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, a whopping 93% of respondents have taken their dog to the vet with nearly half (45%) of dogs experiencing a serious accident or illness that required a vet visit. Despite the high and necessary reliance on vet care, many owners struggle to meet the financial requirements of their pets' health needs. Some of the survey findings include:

• 82% of respondents underestimated the lifetime veterinary costs associated with having a dog.
• 44% would not be able to afford an unexpected bill of $1,000 but 15% of dog owners report having had a vet bill of over $1,000 in the last 18 months.
• 39% delayed visiting the vet out of fear of how much it would cost.
• For those who delayed a vet visit, 87% are without pet insurance and 60% would not be able to pay out of pocket for a vet bill over $1,000.
• Of those that had a serious accident or illness in the past 18 months, only 22% had pet insurance.
• Of those that would rather deal with unexpected emergency veterinary costs as they happen, 93% underestimated the cost of vet care.

Dogs are important members of the family, like children to many, and deserve the best care possible so they can live a happy and healthy life. The American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) Guidelines for responsible pet ownership, emphasizes the financial obligation owners have for their pets' care and that without a doubt, providing your pet with appropriate lifelong health care is a fundamental part of being a good pet parent.

Through the insights from this survey Pumpkin aims to help pet parents take the best care possible of their pups so that all dogs can live safe, happy, and healthy lives. For more insight on the results of the survey, visit pumpkin.care/blog/cost-of-dog-care/.

About Pumpkin^[1]
Pumpkin Insurance Services Inc. (Pumpkin) is a direct-to-consumer pet care company and insurance producer founded to help ensure pets live their longest and healthiest lives. Pumpkin insurance plans offer dog and cat owners advanced veterinary care coverage for accidents and illnesses, and their optional Preventive Essentials non-insurance add-on offers life-threatening disease prevention through reimbursing for vaccines and the related annual wellness exam and lab tests, helping enable consumers to make data-informed care decisions based upon their individual pet's health needs. All Pumpkin Plans provide reimbursement for covered care administered by any licensed veterinary clinic in the U.S. and Canada. Pumpkin insurance policies do not cover pre-existing conditions. Pumpkin insurance does not cover routine dental cleanings. Waiting periods, annual deductibles, co-insurance, benefits limits and other exclusions may apply. For all limitations and for information about Pumpkin's Pet Insurance, and/or to learn more about Pumpkin's optional add-on Preventive Essentials benefits, visitors can review Terms and Conditions at pumpkin.care/insurance policy and at pumpkin.care/customer agreement, respectively. Additional information may be found by visiting www.pumpkin.care.

^[1] Pumpkin Insurance Services Inc. (NPN#19084749) (Pumpkin) is a licensed insurance agency, not an insurer. Insurance is underwritten by United States Fire Insurance Company (NAIC #21113. Morristown, NJ), a Crum & Forster Company and produced by Pumpkin. Pumpkin receives compensation based on the premiums for the insurance policies it sells. Pumpkin Preventive Essentials is not an insurance policy. It is offered as an optional add-on non-insurance benefit. Pumpkin is responsible for the product and administration. Pumpkin Preventive Essentials is not available in all states.

Methodology
This survey was conducted by Pumpkin via SurveyMonkey with a sample of 1,356 dog owning respondents nationwide from August, 17 2021- August 21, 2021.

Media Contact:
Brittany Gbur
215-983-9075
[email protected]

SOURCE Pumpkin Pet Insurance