Chinese Pet Owners Dilemma: Underutilized Pet Insurance

Abstract

Nowadays, most Chinese pet owners perceive their pets as family members or friends, however, pet insurance, as a financial tool for transferring the risk of pet ownership, has not received much attention from Chinese pet owners. As a result, this study surveyed 202 pet owners using an online questionnaire to better understand the issue of underutilized pet insurance. In this way, the study described some basic features of pet owners and provided a thorough picture of why pet owners acquire or not acquire pet insurance in China. This study discovered that the majority of Chinese pet owners were women, born after 1980, resided in second-tier cities, owned one pet, had a bachelor's degree or higher, and obtained their pets primarily through purchase or as a gift from family members or friends. Aside from that, most pet owners preferred cats over dogs, and their pets were in pretty good health according to the survey. Furthermore, this study found that for insured pet owners, loving pets and worrying about affordability for pet medical expenses are the most common reasons to purchase pet insurance. The main reasons for not adopting pet insurance are that people around pet owners do not have pet insurance and their pets are in good health. In addition, this study determined the scenarios in which pet owners choose the sort of pet insurance plan. Aside from that, it was discovered that most insured pet owners were content with pet insurance, and some uninsured pet owners were prepared to pay a monthly payment of less than 100 RMB. Hopefully, the major conclusions of this research can provide a beginning ground for scholars and pet insurance providers and improvement of animal welfare in China.