Pet sitting insurance is essential for
anyone wanting to open a pet sitting business not only because it helps
them avoid having to pay the expensive costs of possible accidents but
also because pet owners consider it a guarantee. Pet sitting insurance
is different from regular business insurance, as the business insurance
will not cover many of the incidents that your pet sitting job might
involve.
What Pet Sitting Insurance Covers
Pet sitting insurance policies are meant to give both the pet sitter
and the pet owner more security. For the owner, a pet sitter is a
stranger who will have their pet in his care. For the pet sitter, a new
client can come with any kinds of surprises: the pet may bite a
stranger, he may have unusual habits, or the sitter may accidentally
damage something in the client's house while trying to keep the pet
under control.
There are several aspects which make a pet sitter liable, so before
purchasing insurance, you as a pet sitter, should think about which of
these might apply in your case:
Some insurance policies only cover incidents happening at the pet
sitter's main place of business, if you are sitting the pets in their
owners' homes, do house sitting as well and walking, you will need to
look for an insurance policy that covers all of these.
Usually, pet sitting insurance policies do not cover all types of
pets (such as exotic pets, farm animals etc), so before deciding to also
sit these types of animals, make sure you are covered
If you are also house sitting, your pet sitting insurance plan should include coverage for incidents such as loss of keys.
Walking, feeding and grooming pets exposes you to negligence claims,
so if you are providing these services, it is best to have a CCC pet
sitting insurance (care, custody and control).
You will want your pet sitting insurance plan to cover you for pet transport.
Having theft insurance in your pet sitting insurance plan will cover
you for accidental breaking of things in the pet owner's house,
disappearance of objects or other damages to items belonging to the pet
owner. Recently, most pet sitting businesses prefer this option.
If you have more employees, make sure your insurance plan includes them.
Pet sitting insurance only covers incidents that happen due to the
pet sitter's negligence and do not include events that are not under the
control of the pet sitter, such as emergency veterinarian expenses. If
the pet needs emergency veterinarian care due to causes not under the
control of the pet sitter the pet owner should take care of these
expenses.
Pet Sitting Insurance Bonds
Dishonesty or fidelity bonds cover the situation when a pet sitter is
convicted by law for theft from a pet owner's home while pet sitting.
Should a criminal court find a pet sitter guilty of theft, the bond
instantly reimburses the pet owner for the loss.