Understanding Insurance

Are Pets Covered in Car Accidents?

Posted by Allison Ruuska on 12/17/2007 at 1:00 PM

People often take their pets for car rides, whether it's a jaunt to the park or a trip to the vet, but what happens if you get into an accident and your pet is injured?

 

Pets

If the accident wasn't your fault, the other driver's insurance will most likely cover your pet with its property damage liability (PD) coverage. Under most insurance policies, your pet's injuries will only be covered if you were not at fault in the accident. Progressive takes pet injury coverage one step further and will cover your pet regardless of fault — more on that later.

It may seem insensitive to consider the four-legged members of your family as property, but insurance policies designate bodily injury coverage for humans only. All other damages in an accident — including your pet's injuries — are considered property damage.

The good news: Pets are indeed covered in accidents. However, specific restrictions apply with most insurance companies — namely that the at-fault person's insurance is liable for pet injuries. So, if you rear-end someone else and your pet is hurt in the process, your PD liability insurance will not cover harm to your pet.

The better news: Progressive offers Pet Injury coverage built into our Collision coverage, which means your pets are covered, even if an accident is your fault.

Pet Injury Coverage, Exclusively From Progressive

Progressive recognizes the importance of your pet, and we've taken extra measures to make sure injuries your dog or cat may sustain in an accident are covered —regardless of fault — with Pet Injury coverage.

If you have Collision coverage on your Progressive policy, up to $1,000 of our exclusive Pet Injury coverage is automatically included. No other insurance company offers this, and what makes this coverage unique is that it protects your pets in accidents, even if they're your fault.

If you can use your Collision coverage for your claim, you can use the built-in Pet Injury coverage for your pet, too.

There's no extra cost for this coverage, either. As long as you have Collision coverage on your Progressive policy, you have Pet Injury coverage. You can drive easier knowing that your pets are covered if they, too, are hurt in an accident.

To recap: With most companies, pets are covered under liability insurance. Keep in mind, though, that you cannot be at fault for the accident in these cases. Progressive takes an extra step to protect your pets — regardless of who's at fault — with our exclusive Pet Injury coverage, which is built into your Collision coverage at no extra cost. If you use Collision coverage for a covered accident, your pets are covered, too.

There are no trackbacks associated with this entry.

Comments

Do I carry, some type of paper work with policy about the 2 pets I have?
Posted on 10/29/2009 at 1:22 PM by Donna Shields
I don;t have a dog or cat but I do have an exotic (ferret)..... I'm assuming he wouldn;t be covered 'cause it (policy) only mentions dogs and cats??? Maybe Progressive could become even a little more progressive and include other pets soon?
Posted on 2/28/2010 at 11:43 PM by Margaret Bucelli
why are these different? "If you have Collision coverage on your Progressive policy, up to $500 of our exclusive Pet Injury coverage is automatically included." AND "That's why we offer up to $1,000 of coverage for your dog or cat if they're injured or worse when you're in a car accident, or during a fire or theft." Is it $500 or $1000?
Posted on 3/11/2010 at 4:38 PM by Tim
@Tim Thanks for your question. Progressive currently offers up to $1,000 of pet injury coverage. We increased the amount of coverage after this blog post was published in 2007, so that’s why there’s a discrepancy in the numbers. I've updated the figure in the blog post.
Posted on 3/15/2010 at 3:36 PM by Brittany R.

Post a Comment

  •  
  •  
  • Website Address:
  •  

About this Blog

This blog takes common vehicle insurance topics and explains them in detail. Provided exclusively by Progressive, one of the largest auto insurers in the U.S.

Find this article at: