What is the waiting period? ⏳

A waiting period is the short time at the start of your policy before certain cover kicks in.

That means we can cover accidents that happen more than 2 days after your policy start date, and illnesses that first show signs more than 10 days after your policy start date.

Waiting periods apply when you first take out a policy — not when you renew.

If your puppy or kitten is no more than 120 days old at the start of the insurance and a health check carried out by your veterinarian no earlier than 5 days before the insurance starts and no later than 2 days after your insurance starts, it shows no indications of illness, the waiting periods for illness only are waived.

Your insurance will then be valid immediately from the start date stated on your policy.

Thinking about moving to Lassie?

If your pet is already insured with another UK insurer and you switch to us without a gap in cover, your policy can start straight away with no waiting period.
Your previous cover needs to be equivalent to your new Lassie cover.

We always want you to make the right choice for your pet 🐾

Some conditions have specific rules.

Tooth resorption disease 🦷

There’s a 12-month waiting period from your policy start date.

That means we can’t cover tooth resorption that begins during your first 12 months with us.

Joint & skeletal conditions (dogs only) 🦴

This includes:

Immediate cover applies if your dog:

This early-start exception applies to dogs only.

In all other situations — including when switching to Lassie from another insurer — there’s a 12-month waiting period for these conditions.