London, 11 July 2024
London, 11 July 2024
The UK has been confirmed as the leading nation of animal lovers, with Brits more likely to have insured their pets than other countries in Europe and the US.
The findings from CRIF, Europe’s leading provider of consumer and business credit information, found that a quarter (24%) of people in the UK currently have or have had pet insurance, well above the global average of 14%. The second highest country was Germany (19%), while the lowest of all countries surveyed was France (8%).
By contrast, Brits are the least likely across Europe and the US to have insured their own lives. Just under a third of people in the UK (31%) have or have held life insurance, lower than all other countries surveyed and well below the global average of 43%. People in Austria (52%) and France (50%) were the most likely to have life insurance.
Overall, according to UK pet population data, about 57% of UK households (16.2 million) housed 38 million pets in 2023, up 9% from 2022. Yet despite their devotion to their pets’ wellbeing, CRIF’s research found that the cost of living crisis is impacting people’s ability to maintain insurance payments for their pets.
Pet insurance premiums have risen by more than 20% compared to last year, with two-thirds (65%) of Brits saying that insurance premiums, in general, are currently too high. Evidence of the financial strain that rising costs - including insurance - are having on households is clear, with 46% of young and middle-aged adults in the UK (aged 18-54) now finding it harder to get by without relying on credit or borrowing than they did a year ago.
The knock-on effect is that many are now considering cancelling important insurance coverage due to the squeeze on their finances, with pet insurance among the first that people with pets admit they would need to cut. Nearly half (47%) of those in the UK with pet insurance say it would be the first type of cover they would need to cut if they could no longer afford their current cover, followed by travel (34%), life (13%) and health (10%).
Sara Costantini, CRIF’s Regional Director for the UK & Ireland, said:
“The UK is often thought of as a nation of animal lovers and our research is further proof of this claim. “More people in the UK have insured their pet than other major countries in Europe and the US, highlighting the number who put their pet’s health and wellbeing first, sometimes even above their own. “However, the squeeze on people’s finances and rise in premiums has meant many are facing tough decisions about their pet cover. Insurers need to do what they can to support owners during this difficult time, making sure they take into account as much financial information as possible to potentially drive down costs for low-risk customers.”
The findings form part of CRIF’s latest Banking on Banks Report, looking in detail at people’s growing reliance on credit and borrowing during these tough economic times, and what financial providers including insurers can do to better support their customers during this period.
The report found that nearly half (49%) of people in the UK would be willing to share more of their financial data with insurance companies, banks and other financial providers if it meant they could access products at a cheaper rate, while 41% would be willing to share their financial data if it meant they could get faster decisions on products like insurance.
