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In this Swinton Pet Insurance review we examine the company more closely to see if they are the best UK pet insurance provider for you.

We’ve written quite a few pet insurance reviews on this blog, so I’m always intrigued to see what a company has to offer in this area. Today we’re looking at Swinton Pet Insurance. 

One thing that immediately struck me about the company is how quick Swinton were to add feeling to their policy offering. The first paragraph on the Swinton website is all about how dear our pets are to us and how devastating it would be if something were to happen to them. I know a lot of pet insurance companies will include thoughts like this, but to have it laid out so quickly before discussing anything monetary is nice to see.

Another thing which struck me right away was the simplicity of what Swinton have to offer. When reading the websites of some pet insurance providers it can be awfully confusing at times. This can be due to the array of policy options available. With Swinton the choice on offer has been made very simple indeed. 

Before we explain what’s on offer in more detail in our Swinton Pet Insurance review, though, let’s just quickly run through a little background info on the company.

Who Are Swinton Pet Insurance?

Swinton are certainly a well known insurance brand in the UK. Many of you will have seen their name pop up when searching for car or home insurance. Perhaps you’ve even visited one of their branches before. Swinton offer various other types of insurance including pet insurance. 

The company started life back in 1957 with its first branch opening in Salford in 1964. In 2018 Swinton were bought by the Ardonagh Group for £165m and the company have since invested millions improving their digital presence and capabilities. This is likely why you will now see Swinton appearing much more often when you are searching for insurance online.

Swinton Insurance is a trading name of Atlanta Insurance Intermediaries Limited. They are also authorised and regulated by the FCA. Swintons head office is still based in Salford where the company began their operations.

What Do Swinton Pet Insurance Offer? 

As we mentioned earlier Swinton have made their Pet Insurance policies very simple to understand. 

Swinton offer two different Lifetime Pet Insurance policies for you to choose from. These are…

• Essential
• Classic

These offer different levels of cover and are available for both cats and dogs. Once you decide which type of cover best fits your needs, you can then decide any limits on the policy. You can do this by selecting a total annual vet fee limit from the following options:

• £2000
• £4000
• £7000

Do keep in mind that this is the total annual vet fee limit available on each policy. There are many different limits set on different types of treatment, however. 

A good example of this would be with something like behavioural problems. Although the total vet fee limit on a policy (essential or classic) may be £2000, the limit on treatment for behavioural problems is set at £750. This would then leave £1250 available for other types of treatment in your total vet fee limit. 

A full list of cover limits for each type of treatment or condition can be found on the Swinton website.

When deciding which level of cover might be right for you it would be worth considering your specific breed of dog or cat and the problems that tend to arise with these. Even the size of your pet might play a role. And then, of course, there is your own budget to consider. 

Lifetime Cover But No Pre-Existing Conditions

Swinton makes it clear that both their Essential and Classic options are both Lifetime Policies.

Lifetime cover means that – as long as your policy is in place with Swinton – your pet will be covered. This is true even if you make a claim. This can be a good option if your pet is prone to a long-term illness like diabetes or arthritis.

Each year you renew your pet insurance, you receive a fixed maximum amount to cover veterinary treatment. This will cover both new and recurring illnesses and injuries, as long as they occurred since your policy started with Swinton.

It is worth mentioning that it is not possible to claim for any pre-existing medical conditions which occurred prior to the start date of a Swinton Pet Insurance policy.

If you would like cover for pre-existing conditions then do check out ManyPets or Scratch and Patch Pet Insurance.

Swinton Reviews

One very prominent feature displayed on the Swinton pet insurance landing page is their TrustPilot review score. When I clicked through to check the TrustPilot profile page, though, it seemed to take me to a different company.

With this in mind, I thought it was best to look at Swinton’s overall reviews as an insurance provider to see how customers rate them, rather than focussing just on the pet insurance reviews. 

Swinton Insurance have an overall rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot based on 17,040 reviews. 86% of reviews left rated Swinton as Good or Excellent. Just 8% of reviewers rated Swinton as bad. 

Getting a Quote

It was simple and straightforward to get a quote online and one thing I particularly liked was how easy it was to adjust the level of cover at the end of the process, without having to go back to the beginning. This meant that if the quote was much more affordable than I had imagined, I could easily increase the vet fee limit or even switch between the Essential and Classic options. The same would be true, of course, if the quote was more than you could afford. 

I also liked how the limits on certain treatments or conditions were laid out to with the final quote. This enabled me to analyse the levels of cover in each area again with the premium quote in front of me, to see if there were any areas where I might want extra or less cover. 

Conclusion

We hope you’ve found this Swinton Pet Insurance review useful in making a decision.

Swinton are a well established and trusted name when it comes to UK insurance. While they were taken over in 2018, this does seem to have given their online offering a great boost. The quote I received from Swinton was broadly in line with what I received elsewhere but wasn’t as competitive as my current insurer Waggel. The ability to quickly and easily adjust the level of cover once I’d received my quote was very helpful. One thing I would have liked to see more of would be customer reviews of Swinton Pet Insurance, rather than just Swinton. That being said, the overall reviews of Swinton Insurance were good at 4.4 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot.

This blog does not constitute financial advice. If you’re unsure, seek independent financial advice.