From doggy dental care to ill and injured Toms, this National Pet Day, Tower is delving into the data around their
furriest customers to reveal the most common claims, breeds and names of Kiwi pets.
Kahu
Throughout 2022, the top four reasons for claims on behalf of Tower’s tail wagging policyholders were, to nurse pups
back from illness (43%), help hounds recover from injuries (28%), cover routine care appointments (24%), plus trips to
the doggy dentist (2%).
While cats are known for being curious, Tower’s data shows they’re more careful than their canine counterparts, racking
up 43% less claims. Of the cat claims 39% were for injured toms, 31% for illness, 25% for routine care and 3% for dental
claims to fix some feline fangs.
and Ron Mudaliar, Tower’s Chief Underwriting Officer says, to better understand Kiwi pet owners the insurer conducted
research[1] around what costs people are prepared and willing to pay for, outside of insurance.
“We found that 35% of pet owners are willing to spend up to $1,000 for veterinary care and another 44% are willing to
pay up to $5,000 but, it’s not uncommon for vet costs to exceed these amounts in an emergency. Since launching pet
insurance in late 2021, our largest claim has been for more than $7,000 and that was for specialist, life-saving care
for one of our customer’s dogs.
“The best thing you can do for your furry-family members this National Pet Day is make sure you have insurance, so
you’re not caught out by mounting vet bills if something goes wrong.”
When it comes to breeds, Kiwis have clear favourites, with domestic shorthairs (26%) and Labradors (6%) taking the
titles for Tower’s most insured cats and dogs.
Rounding out the leading five cat breeds, excluding mixed breeds are rag dolls (11%), followed by tabbies (9%), domestic
shorthair crosses (5.5%) and rag doll crosses (4%). While, also excluding mixed breeds, Staffordshire bull terriers
(4.5%), followed by border collies, labradoodles and jack russell terriers (each at 4%), make up the most commonly
insured dog breeds.
“Our job is to be there for people when they need us most. From Alsatians to Beagles, pet insurance offers peace of mind
that vet costs won’t stand in the way of getting your pets the help or care they need,” says Mudaliar.
‘Fighting like cats and dogs’ might be a fitting old adage for these sworn enemies but Tower’s pussycats and pooches
have more in common than they realise, with Luna, Bella and Max featuring in the top five most popular names for both
cats and dogs.
Tower’s leading moggy monikers; Luna followed by Charlie, Max, Bella and Bruce. Top doggy denominations; Luna followed
by Bella, Poppy, Max and Coco.
“More than half of Kiwis own a cat or a dog. No matter what name you call them, our pets truly are members of the
family,” says Mudaliar.
“At Tower, we treat every day like National Pet Day. We are so proud to help Kiwi families look after their four-legged
friends – happy National Pet Day Aotearoa.”
[1] Independent research conducted by Pureprofile, with a sample size representative of the New Zealand’s dog & cat owning population