I have a dog who has a couple of chronic illnesses. He was healthy for the first couple of years I had him, and I bought pet insurance within a year of adopting him. People often ask me if it's worth the money. For me, it is, in that I get hit with some pretty substantial bills, and it does cover some. But if you're looking to buy peace of mind in the event that your best friend is hit with some kind of horrible expensive illness, you might want to keep looking. I pay $625 a year for the VPI Superior Plan. Below, you will see what I spent in medical charges and what was reimbursed. The bottom line is they cover an average of 29% of expenses, which is a FAR cry from you may think you're getting.
2005 Spent: $907.47, Reimbursed $294 (32%)
2006 Spent: $289, Reimbursed $72 (24%)
2007 Spent: $2720.11, Reimbursed $636.72 (23%)
2008 Spent: $1077.73, Reimbursed $181.24 (17%)
2009 Spent: 1076.41, Reimbursed $582.29 (54%)
2010 Spent: $4748.62, Reimbursed $1256.11 (26%)
I hope that's helpful to people curious about pet insurance.