A number of varying factors are taken into consideration when insurers calculate pet insurance premiums, one industry expert has revealed.

Clare Wheatley, risk and underwriting manager at Allianz's Petplan programme, says that individual circumstances are likely to impact on the price of your premiums. For example, if you keep a parrot in your kitchen, you will be hit by higher premiums as "the risk is greater because of their intolerance of Teflon used in cookware".

And even where you live in the country can have an effect on how much you pay.

"We also look at where a pet is located when insuring them," Ms Wheatley explains.

"The cost of setting up and running a vet practice can vary greatly across the UK which is something we need to take into account.

"A vet practice in Northumberland is going to cost less to run (considering overheads such as rent, staff costs, travel) than a practice in Chelsea in London."

A recent report from Datamonitor into the pet insurance industry claimed that it faced an uncertain future as increases in claims costs "continue to force premiums up by around ten per cent per annum".

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