Bought By Many has announced a partnership that will enable its pet insurance customers to access free video consultations with fully qualified vets via the FirstVet app.

Customers can video call UK-registered vets to check a pet’s symptoms, get advice on treatment they can carry out at home or find out if they need to be referred to a local vet.

To access the service, Bought By Many customers can download the free FirstVet app and select Bought By Many as their insurer when signing up. They will then be able to use the service as often as they like without incurring FirstVet’s standard consultation costs of £20 - £30 per call.

Many common pet health issues can be treated in the comfort of their own home, meaning owners only need to take their pet to the vet when absolutely necessary. Bought By Many customers can save time, money and potential stress to their pet by using the free FirstVet service. When a referral to a local vet is needed, FirstVet provides detailed notes of the initial consultation to both the owner and the vet.

This is the latest customer innovation from Bought By Many, who were named the UK’s most trusted pet insurance provider by Moneywise in June 2019. Bought By Many designs unique insurance products using search data and customer feedback. Pet owners can choose between policies that can cover pre-existing conditions, have fixed price premiums and a policy that offers money back if a customer doesn’t claim.

Bought By Many won the Gold Trusted Service Award in 2018 and 2019 award from Feefo, with more than 7,500 five-star reviews on the platform in the past year.

Launched in the UK earlier in 2019, FirstVet is a start-up whose service offers crucial intermediary advice for pet owners who are concerned about their pet’s health but aren’t sure if they need to visit a vet. FirstVet delivers over 11,000 consultations every month to 150,000 users across Scandinavia and the UK. They have an average customer rating of 4.9/5 from over 40,000 user reviews.

The partnership originates from Bought By Many’s research into the Swedish insurance market ahead of a planned launch there in 2019.

David Prien, FirstVet’s CEO & co-founder, comments:

“FirstVet couldn't be more excited to offer our veterinary video consultation service together with Bought By Many in the UK. From our first meeting with the Bought By Many team, we knew that our values were aligned. We both share a mission to bring the best that technology has to offer both to pet owners and to the veterinary care process. Offering pet owners the chance to speak face-to-face with an experienced veterinarian via a video call is a great way to make sure that all pets are getting the right treatment, as fast as possible, in the right location.”

Steven Mendel, CEO and Co-founder of Bought By Many commented:

“Our pet insurance is more than a financial service, we want our policies to improve the lives of pets and owners. We’re delighted that our partnership with FirstVet gives all our customers free access to a vet using a simple video call. The service is a great fit with our insurance and allows owners to get convenient, expert veterinary advice. Customers this year voted us the most trusted pet insurance provider in the UK and our partnership with FirstVet shows we’re always looking at how we can use technology to improve our service.”

For more information on Bought by Many, visit boughtbymany.com/pet-insurance