Pet insurance terms, explained

What these terms mean when they appear on pet insurance. Each definition describes the term itself, not what to do about it.

Annual limit: The most your pet plan will reimburse in a policy year.
Claim: A request you make to your insurance company to pay for a covered loss.
Coverage: A part of your policy that pays for a specific kind of loss, up to a limit.
Deductible: The amount you pay out of your own pocket on a claim before your insurance starts paying.
Endorsement: An add-on or change to your policy that adds, removes, or adjusts coverage. Also called a rider.
Exclusion: Something your policy specifically does not cover.
In force: Active and providing coverage, because the policy is current and paid.
Insured: A person or thing your policy protects.
Liability: Coverage that pays for injury or damage you are responsible for causing to someone else.
Limit: The most your policy will pay for a covered loss.
Out-of-pocket: Money you pay yourself, that your insurance does not cover.
Policyholder: The person who owns the insurance policy.
Pre-existing condition: A health issue that showed signs before coverage began. These are typically not covered.
Premium: The amount you pay for your insurance, usually each month or once a year.
Reimbursement percentage: The share of covered vet bills the plan pays back after your deductible, such as 70%, 80%, or 90%.
Sub-limit: A smaller, separate cap inside a coverage that applies to certain items or losses.
Sublimit: A smaller, separate cap inside a coverage that applies to certain items or losses.
Underwriting: How an insurer decides whether to cover you and at what price, based on the risk.

Other policy types

These are general definitions. Your own policy is what governs your coverage, and the same term can be defined differently from one policy to the next. Read your own policy to see what these terms say in your document, cited to the page.