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Cat Insurance

Pet insurance that cares for your cat and supports Australian animal welfare communities.

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Pet insurance for your cat

Whether you picked your cat or they found their way to you, it's hard to imagine life without them now that they've become such an important part of it! More than (52%) of Australians like you consider their pets to be family. Yet only 12% of cat households had pet insurance in 2022, often because they’re unaware of its benefits. However, at least 69% of cat owners take their feline family members to the vet once a year or more, paying out-of-pocket for vet bills.

Whether your cat is a curious kitten or old enough to know better, their nosy nature and sense of adventure never gets old! While their antics are entertaining, it can come with the cost of unexpected vet visits because of accidental injuries and illnesses. This is when cat insurance can come in handy. And with Buddy Pet Insurance, you can claim up to $35,000 every year, depending on your level of cover.

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Buddy cat insurance

Buddy Pet Insurance offers three different levels of cover to help cat lovers care for their pets, while helping to protect their wallet from unexpected eligible vet bills: 

  • Gold Accidental Injury & Illness is our highest level of cover that can take care of up to 90% of your cat’s eligible vet costs with a benefit limit of up to $35,000 per year. 
  • Silver Accidental Injury & Illness is the next level of cover, which can help you keep your cat feeling fit with a benefit limit of up to $20,000 per year that can take care of up to 80% of eligible vet bills. 
  • Bronze Accidental Injury & Illness cover can come in handy if you have to visit the vet occasionally. It can cover of up to 70% of eligible vet costs with a benefit limit of up to $11,000 per year.

Choose your cover level

Choose the level of cover that suits you and your best mate!3

Cover Option Icon

GOLD

Accidental Injury & Illness Cover 

  • Up to 90% of eligible vet bills reimbursed  
  • $35,000 benefit limit per year
  • Annual $0/$200/$500 excess – your choice  
  • Pay your premiums fortnightly, monthly or annually  
  • No sub-limits  
  • Optional Routine Care (non-insurance) benefit of $100 to contribute towards everyday items such as vaccinations or health checks
  • Optional Booster Care cover of $2,000 for specified dental conditions and specialised therapies including behavioural conditions, physiotherapy and acupuncture


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Cover Option Icon

SILVER

Accidental Injury & Illness Cover

  • Up to 80% of eligible vet bills reimbursed  
  • $20,000 benefit limit per year  
  • Annual $0/$200/$500 excess – your choice 
  • Pay your premiums fortnightly, monthly or annually
  • No sub-limits
  • Optional Routine Care (non-insurance benefit) of $100 to contribute towards everyday items such as vaccinations or health checks
  • Optional Booster Care cover of $2,000 for specified dental conditions and specialised therapies including behavioural conditions, physiotherapy and acupuncture
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Cover Option Icon

BRONZE

Accidental Injury & Illness Cover

  • Up to 70% of eligible vet bills reimbursed
  • $11,000 benefit limit per year
  • Annual $0/$200 excess – your choice
  • Pay your premiums fortnightly, monthly or annually 
  • No sub-limits
  • Optional Routine Care (non-insurance benefit) of $100 to contribute towards everyday items such as vaccinations or health checks
  • Optional Booster Care cover of $2,000 for specified dental conditions and specialised therapies including behavioural conditions, physiotherapy and acupuncture
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Protect your best friend

Discover how Buddy Pet Insurance helps you put your cat first.

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What does cat insurance cover?

What is covered in all plans?³

  • Accidental injuries and illnesses
  • Hereditary and congenital conditions
  • Emergency pet boarding with no waiting period
  • Essential euthanasia (required as a result of covered condition)
  • Pet overseas travel insurance (New Zealand and the Norfolk Islands only)
  • Skin conditions and allergies
  • Ear infections and eye conditions like conjunctivitis
  • Gastrointestinal conditions
  • Tick paralysis
  • Respiratory conditions like asthma
  • Endocrine diseases like diabetes
  • Lumps, masses and cancer treatment
  • Musculoskeletal conditions like arthritis
  • Infectious diseases like kennel cough
  • Injuries from heatstroke, frostbite, or near drowning
  • Injuries from rough play, stick injury or ingesting foreign objects

Exclusions

  • Pre-existing conditions
  • Elective treatments and procedures 
  • Behavioural conditions like anxiety disorders, phobias or chemical imbalances 
  • Dental care and procedures 
  • Food and diet, including supplements and vitamins
  • Pet grooming or medicated baths and shampoo4
  • Pet accessories like pill poppers, cage hire, crates, bedding and collars
  • Training and socialisation
  • Preventative or routine items like vaccination or microchipping
  • Flea, tick or worm treatment

For the full list of all exclusions and further information on what’s covered by Buddy Pet Insurance, please refer to your Product Disclosure Statement 

Buddy’s optional extras

Routine Care

Add optional Routine Care (non-insurance benefit) to your cover for a $100 annual contribution towards the following items to help keep your buddy feeling their best:

  • De-sexing 
  • FeLV/FIV test 
  • Flea, tick and worm control 
  • Heartworm control 
  • Health checks 
  • Micro chipping 
  • Nail clipping 
  • Prescription diets 
  • Obedience training 
  • Vaccinations
  • Wellness blood screening

Booster Care

Take advantage of a $2,000 yearly benefit limit with Booster Care and boost your cover for your buddy’s health and wellbeing3

  • Dental conditions
  • Eligible vet expenses incurred for scaling, polishing, dental x-rays and tooth removal for specified dental conditions only:  
    • gingivitis; abscesses;  
    • odontoclastic resorptive lesions;  
    • dental disease arising from infection; retained deciduous teeth;  
    • cavities; or  
    • fractured teeth due to dental disease. 
  • Specialised therapies 
  • Eligible vet expenses incurred for the following specialised therapies to treat a covered condition: Physiotherapy or physical therapy, chiropractic manipulation, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, prescribed medication and diagnostic tests for behavioural conditions, vet behavioural specialist consultations.

Cat insurance claims – it’s quick and easy!

With Buddy, claiming for your cat’s vet visit is as easy as taking a catnap. Whether you're using our convenient GapOnly® service for on-the-spot claims5, or opting to lodge online through our Pet Portal, we've got you sorted. Make quick and easy claims at any time, so you can focus on your furry friend.

Take your cat to the vet

Claim on the spot with GapOnly® at participating vets5, or claim online through our Pet Portal after paying your bill.

Fill out your paperwork

Submit a copy of your vet’s itemised invoice via our online Pet Portal.

Receive your payment

Eligible claims are assessed within five business days of receiving all documentation. Once approved you’ll receive your payment.

Examples of how we settle your claim

Your claim payment will be based on your level of cover and any applicable excess. Exclusions, excess, limits and waiting periods under your policy may affect your benefit amount. Here’s an example of how claims can be calculated, depending on your level of cover.

Michael has a 4-year-old Ragdoll, Leo, who loves zooming up and down the stairs inside their home and sun basking on their ‘catio’ enclosure. Michael noticed Leo having trouble using the cat litter, and after a vet visit, found out that he had a urinary obstruction that needed surgery costing $4,000.

Since Leo has Buddy’s Gold Accidental Injury & Illness cover with a $0 excess, he’ll be covered for up to 90% of eligible vet expenses, and Michael can claim $3,600 being only $400 out of pocket.

Use our table below to see how claim benefits are calculated for each of our levels of cover.

Claim
Gold Accidental Injury & Illness cover
Silver Accidental Injury & Illness cover
Bronze Accidental Injury & Illness cover
Total amount of eligible vet expenses incurred
$4,000 
$4,000
$4,000
Total claim benefit payment
$3,600
$3,200
$2,800
Out-of-pocket expense
$400
$800
$1,200

Cat insurance

  • You might think indoor cats are less prone to injuries than their outdoor counterparts, but pet insurance can be worth considering for all cats! If your feline friend is mostly indoors, their curiosity can lead to mishaps like falling from high places or ingesting toxic human food. Plus, they can develop health issues such as urinary tract infections, diabetes, or kidney disease, especially as they age.

  • You can get insurance for an older cat under 9 years of age with Buddy Pet Insurance. As cats get older, they can develop arthritis from joint wear and tear, and they also face a higher risk of urinary tract issues. So, you may want to consider getting insurance earlier, while they are still young.

  • While desexing isn’t covered by most cat insurance policies, you can still receive a contribution towards it with Buddy Pet Insurance by choosing our optional Routine Care (non-insurance) benefit. You’ll receive a contribution up to the Routine Care limit towards items including desexing, spaying, or neutering.

  • Dental care isn’t typically covered by cat insurance but with Buddy Pet Insurance, you can opt in for Booster care and receive a $2,000 annual benefit limit that can be used to cover specified dental conditions. Including scaling, polishing, dental x-rays and tooth removal for the following specified dental conditions: gingivitis, abscesses, odontoclastic resorptive lesions, dental diseases arising from infections, retained deciduous teeth, cavities, and fractured teeth due to dental disease.

  • It’s possible to get insurance for your cat, but pre-existing conditions are excluded, as they are considered a pre-existing risk and may require ongoing treatment. Pre-existing conditions can also include a related condition or bilateral condition of a pre-existing condition. Some temporary pre-existing conditions may be covered after review.

    If your cat has a temporary pre-existing condition, which is a health issue that usually resolves with treatment and they remain symptom-free for a specified period, that condition can be removed from your policy as an exclusion.

    If your cat has a chronic pre-existing condition, which is long-term or requires ongoing care, and it’s present before purchasing the policy or during the waiting period, then it won’t be covered under the policy.

    Check your Product Disclosure Statement to understand what your cat insurance covers.

  • Buddy Pet Insurance offers a multi-pet discount to pet-parents who have more than one cat (or even a dog!). Enjoy a 10% discount for a second policy and every additional pet policy with Buddy. See here for terms and conditions

More FAQs & help

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  1. Each new policy purchased on or after 21/06/2025 is entitled to one month free in your first year of cover (the first month). All quotes provided automatically include this offer. Terms and conditions apply.
  2. Based on our collective reviews generated through Greenstone Financial Services Pty Ltd over the last 14 years within the Pet Insurance category.
  3. Pre-existing conditions are excluded. Policy Terms and Conditions, exclusions, waiting periods, excesses and limits apply. Benefit limit amounts and benefit percentage vary by level of cover. Does not apply to the non-insurance Optional Routine Care benefit. The annual excess is the amount deducted from your claim benefit for each claim in the policy period, until fully paid and reset at renewal.
  4. Medicated baths and shampoos are excluded unless your vet says they are medically necessary to treat a condition covered by your policy. 
  5. The gap is defined as the difference between the eligible vet’s invoice and the claim benefit under your policy. Policy terms and conditions apply. GapOnly® is only available at participating vets. Please visit GapOnly® to search for participating vets. GapOnly® is a trademark owned by PetSure (Australia) Pty Ltd ABN 95 075 949 923, AFSL 420183. 

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