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Dental cover in UK pet insurance is often the difference between getting treatment your dog needs and facing bills that run into hundreds or thousands of pounds. While every insurer covers accidents—like a broken tooth from running into a fence—far fewer policies protect you when your dog develops gum disease, needs extractions, or suffers from tooth decay.
The reality is simple: dental problems are one of the most common health issues UK dogs face. Research shows that dental disease ranks alongside obesity and ear infections as the top three problems found in British dogs.[1] As your dog ages, the risk of dental issues climbs by roughly 10% every year, which means by the time they're seven or eight, there's a decent chance they'll need treatment.
Here's where insurance gets tricky. A basic policy might only cover accidents, leaving you to pay the full cost if your dog develops periodontal disease or needs teeth extracted due to decay. A single tooth extraction can cost £300 to £400, and full dental work with multiple extractions can run £700 to £1,200 or more.[2] Without the right cover, these bills land straight on you.
This guide breaks down exactly what different types of dental cover include, which UK insurers offer comprehensive protection, and what you need to know before buying. If you're comparing policies, understanding dental cover could save you from facing a bill you can't afford when your dog needs help. For broader context on choosing the right policy type, see our guide to lifetime vs time-limited insurance.
Important Disclaimer
This article provides general information and educational guidance only. It is not regulated financial advice, and we are not qualified to provide personalised recommendations about insurance products. Pet insurance policies vary significantly between providers in terms of cover levels, exclusions, pricing, and terms. Before making any decisions about your pet insurance, you should carefully read your policy documents, compare multiple providers, and consider seeking advice from a qualified, FCA-regulated insurance adviser who can assess your individual circumstances. Always verify current terms, conditions, and pricing directly with insurers.
Yes, most UK pet insurance policies cover dental treatment, but the level of cover varies significantly between providers and policy types. The key distinction is between accident-only cover—which nearly all policies include—and full dental illness cover, which fewer policies offer as standard.
Accident-only dental cover protects you when your dog breaks or chips a tooth through an injury, such as running into something or getting into a scuffle. This is standard across most policies, including budget options. However, it won't help when your dog develops gum disease, tooth decay, or periodontal disease—the dental problems that most dogs actually face as they age.
Full dental illness cover includes both accidents and illness-related dental problems. This means extractions due to decay, treatment for gum disease, and dental surgeries are all covered. Providers like Petplan and Agria include this as standard in their lifetime policies, while others restrict it to higher tiers or exclude it entirely. Routine cleaning and scale-and-polish procedures are typically excluded unless you pay extra for a wellness add-on, which rarely offers good value.
Not all dental cover is equal. When you're comparing policies, you'll encounter three distinct levels, and knowing the difference matters because it determines whether you're protected when your dog actually needs treatment.
This is the most basic level, and it only covers injuries from accidents. If your dog cracks a tooth chasing a ball, runs face-first into something solid, or breaks a tooth in a scuffle with another dog, you're covered. The treatment costs for fixing that broken or chipped tooth will be paid, up to your policy limit.
What accident-only dental cover won't do is help when your dog develops dental disease, gum problems, or tooth decay. These aren't accidents—they're illnesses that develop over time. So if your eight-year-old needs teeth extracted because of periodontal disease, you'll be paying the full bill yourself.
Many budget policies and some mid-tier options stick to accident-only dental cover. Insurers like ManyPets include this as standard on their Essential Care policies, with limits around £1,000 for accidental dental claims.[3]
This is the comprehensive option that protects you against both accidents and illness-related dental problems. It covers everything from broken teeth to gum disease, tooth decay, extractions, and treatments for periodontal disease. This is what you want if you're serious about avoiding surprise bills.
Full dental illness cover typically comes with a waiting period—usually 12 months from when you start the policy. This stops people from buying insurance only after they notice their dog has dental problems. Once that waiting period passes, you're protected against diagnosed diseases and the treatments they need.
The catch? Many insurers require annual dental checks as proof you're maintaining your dog's teeth. Miss that annual check, and they might refuse your claim. Always read the small print about what's required to keep your dental cover valid.
Petplan and Agria both include full dental illness cover as standard in their lifetime policies, with cover running up to the full vet fee limit of the policy—£7,000 to £20,000 depending on which tier you choose.[4]
Some insurers offer optional extras that cover routine dental maintenance like scale and polish treatments. This sounds useful, but here's the reality: these add-ons cost extra each month, and the benefits rarely exceed what you'd pay if you just budgeted for routine care yourself.
A typical wellness add-on might give you £100 to £150 towards routine dental cleaning once a year. You'll pay an extra £10 to £15 per month for that benefit, which works out to £120 to £180 annually. The sums don't add up—you're paying more in premiums than you get back in benefits.
Focus your money on comprehensive illness cover instead. Routine cleaning you can budget for. What you can't easily budget for is a £1,000 dental surgery bill when your dog's gum disease turns serious.
Understanding exactly what your dental cover includes—and more importantly, what it excludes—stops you from getting caught out when you need to claim. Here's the breakdown.
If you have full dental illness cover, your insurer will cover treatment costs for diagnosed dental problems. This includes:
The key phrase is "medically necessary treatment for illness or injury." If your vet diagnoses a problem and recommends treatment, you're covered up to your policy limits.
Even the most comprehensive policies exclude certain things, and these exclusions are pretty standard across the industry:
That waiting period trips people up more than anything else. If you buy a policy in January and your dog needs dental surgery in June, you'll likely have to wait until next January before your illness cover kicks in. Accident cover works immediately, but illness cover requires patience.
Some treatments fall into a grey area where cover depends on your specific policy wording. These often include:
The deciding factor is usually whether your vet classifies the procedure as necessary treatment for a diagnosed illness or as preventive maintenance. Always check your policy's Insurance Product Information Document (IPID) for the exact wording on what's excluded.
Many insurers now require annual veterinary dental checks to maintain your dental cover. This means your vet needs to examine your dog's teeth once a year and record the check in their notes. If you skip this and later make a dental claim, your insurer can—and often will—refuse to pay.
This requirement exists because insurers want proof you're taking reasonable care of your dog's teeth. It's not about preventing problems—it's about ensuring you're monitoring your dog's dental health so conditions don't go unchecked for years before you claim.
Check whether your policy has this requirement before you buy. If it does, make sure you book that annual check and keep the record. It's usually just part of your regular health check, so it doesn't need to be a separate appointment.
Not all insurers treat dental cover the same way. Some include comprehensive protection as standard, while others make you pay extra or stick to accident-only cover. Here's what the major UK providers actually offer.
Petplan includes dental treatment for both accidents and illness automatically in its Lifetime and Classic policies. There's no extra charge, no opt-in required—it's just built into the cover. Your dental claims are covered up to the overall vet fee limit of your chosen tier, which ranges from £7,000 to £12,000 per year depending on the plan.[5]
The catch? Petplan requires annual dental checks to keep your cover valid. If you don't have that annual examination recorded in your vet's notes, they can refuse your dental claim. As long as you maintain those checks, though, you're fully protected against both accidents and illness-related dental problems.
Agria Pet Insurance provides full dental illness cover under all its Lifetime plans, with no extra fees or add-ons required. Their policies cover teeth and gums affected by disease or decay, with vet fee limits reaching up to £20,000 per year on their Premium plan.[6]
Agria is particularly popular with vets because they have a veterinary-trained claims team and a reputation for paying claims without excessive back-and-forth. The downside is that Agria applies a 10% co-payment from day one, meaning you'll always pay 10% of every claim, including dental ones.
ManyPets includes accidental dental cover across all its policies, but illness cover is limited. Their Essential Care policies cover up to £1,000 for accidental dental injuries, but if you want illness-related dental protection, you need to upgrade to their Complete plan.[3] Routine preventive cleaning isn't covered on any tier.
ManyPets gets mentioned in customer reviews for handling large claims smoothly, but there are frequent complaints about steep premium increases at renewal. If you go with ManyPets for dental cover, make sure you understand which tier you need—don't assume the cheaper Essential plan protects you against gum disease or tooth decay.
Tesco Bank and Sainsbury's Bank primarily offer accident-only dental cover on their standard policies. Tesco may offer illness cover if you upgrade to a higher-tier plan, while Sainsbury's Bank offers dental limits up to £10,000 but typically restricts it to accidents unless you specifically pay for illness cover.[7]
Waggel covers dental treatment costs associated with accidents and illnesses up to £1,000.[8] This limit is on the lower end compared to providers like Petplan or Agria, so if your dog needs extensive dental work, you might hit that limit quickly.
When you're getting quotes, check these specific details:
Don't just look at the monthly premium. A cheap policy with accident-only dental cover won't help when your dog develops periodontal disease at age seven and needs £800 worth of extractions. For more on comparing policies effectively, see our guide to pet insurance in Folkestone.
Some breeds face much higher risks of dental problems, which means dental cover isn't just nice to have—it's essential protection against bills you're almost certain to face. If your dog falls into one of these categories, comprehensive dental illness cover should be non-negotiable.
Small breeds suffer the most dental problems in the UK. Yorkshire Terriers, Jack Russell Terriers, and Chihuahuas all face higher risks due to crowded teeth and a genetic predisposition to periodontal disease. Research shows Yorkshire Terriers specifically may be at the highest risk of any breed.[9]
The issue with small breeds is simple geometry. Their teeth are packed into smaller jaws, which creates more opportunities for food and bacteria to get trapped. This leads to faster plaque buildup, more tartar, and eventually gum disease that requires treatment.
Brachycephalic breeds—those flat-faced dogs like French Bulldogs, Pugs, and Bulldogs—face a different set of problems. Their skull shape often leads to malocclusions (misaligned teeth) and makes them prone to gum disease. These breeds typically face higher insurance premiums across the board, and dental problems are part of why.
Cocker Spaniels deserve special mention. Research shows they're over 2.5 times more likely to be recorded as having dental issues compared to mixed breeds, particularly as they age.[9] If you own a Cocker Spaniel, budget for dental problems and make sure your insurance includes comprehensive illness cover.
Large breeds like Labradors, Golden Retrievers, and German Shepherds typically have fewer inherited dental issues. Their larger jaws give teeth more space, and they're less prone to the crowding problems that plague smaller dogs. This doesn't mean they won't ever need dental treatment—just that it's less likely to be a recurring problem.
That said, any dog can develop dental problems, especially as they age. Even if your Labrador hasn't had issues for years, the risk climbs about 10% with every year of age. By the time they're eight or nine, dental problems become much more common.
Your dog's age is the single biggest predictor of dental problems, regardless of breed. Research shows the risk of dental issues increases by approximately 10% for every year of age, which means an eight-year-old is roughly 80% more likely to have dental problems than a one-year-old.[1]
This is why getting insurance when your dog is young makes sense. Once they hit six or seven and start showing dental problems, switching insurers will exclude those issues as pre-existing conditions. Get comprehensive cover early, keep it, and you're protected when problems inevitably develop.
Neutered dogs have slightly higher rates of dental problems compared to intact dogs, though the reasons aren't entirely clear. What is clear is that dogs with insurance are more likely to have dental issues recorded in their veterinary records—not because insurance causes problems, but because insured owners are more willing to pursue treatment and regular check-ups.[9]
Having dental cover isn't worth much if you accidentally void it by missing requirements your insurer expects. Here's what you need to do to keep your cover active and your claims paid.
Many insurers require annual veterinary dental checks to maintain dental cover. This needs to be performed and recorded in your vet's notes. If you make a dental claim and your insurer asks for your vet's records, they'll check whether you've kept up with these annual examinations. Miss one, and they can refuse the entire claim.
The good news is this doesn't usually require a separate appointment. Your annual health check typically includes a dental examination—your vet looks at your dog's teeth, notes their condition, and records it. Just make sure that examination happens every year and is documented.
If your policy requires this (check your policy documents), set a reminder. Don't wait for your dog to show symptoms. Book that annual check, get it done, and keep your cover valid.
Research shows that daily tooth brushing can prevent plaque formation by 37.4% and calculus (tartar) by 80.2%.[10] This isn't just about avoiding problems—it's about reducing the chance you'll need to use your insurance in the first place.
Start when your dog is young, use vet-approved toothpaste (never human toothpaste), and make it part of your routine. Even a few times a week makes a difference, though daily is ideal. The earlier you start, the easier it is to build the habit.
Here's something surprising: research shows that in over half of veterinary consultations where dental issues are observed, there's no recorded discussion about preventive care or treatment options.[9] Your vet might notice a problem but not always bring it up.
Don't wait for them to mention it. Ask about your dog's dental health at every check-up. If your vet sees early signs of problems, get advice on what to do before it turns into a claim. Regular professional grooming can also help, as groomers often spot issues early and recommend you see a vet.
Yes, most UK pet insurance policies cover dental treatment, but coverage varies significantly between accident-only and full dental illness cover. Nearly all policies cover accidental dental injuries like broken or chipped teeth from accidents. However, only comprehensive policies cover illness-related dental problems such as gum disease, tooth decay, and extractions due to periodontal disease.
Routine dental cleaning and preventive scale-and-polish treatments are typically excluded from standard policies unless you purchase an optional wellness add-on. The key is checking whether your policy includes full dental illness cover or only accident cover, as most dogs will eventually need treatment for dental disease rather than accidental injuries. Always read your policy documents carefully to understand exactly what dental treatments are covered, any waiting periods that apply, and whether annual dental checks are required to maintain your cover.
For most dogs over two years old, yes—dental cover provides essential protection against treatment costs that can easily reach £700 to £1,200 or more. Research shows dental disease is one of the three most common health problems UK dogs face, and the risk increases by about 10% every year as your dog ages. A single dental surgery with extractions can cost more than several years of insurance premiums.
If your dog is a high-risk breed (small breeds, brachycephalic breeds, or Cocker Spaniels), dental cover isn't just worth it—it's almost guaranteed to pay off at some point. Even lower-risk large breeds will likely need dental treatment as they get older, so comprehensive illness cover gives you protection when problems develop.
Accident-only dental cover pays for injuries like broken or chipped teeth from accidents, while full dental illness cover includes gum disease, tooth decay, extractions, and other illness-related problems. Accident cover is cheaper but leaves you paying out of pocket when your dog develops periodontal disease, which is far more common than accidental dental injuries.
Think of it this way: a broken tooth from running into something is an accident. Gum disease from plaque buildup over years is an illness. Most dental treatment dogs need falls into the illness category, which is why full dental illness cover is what you actually want if you're serious about protection.
A single tooth extraction costs £300 to £400, while full dental work with multiple extractions can run £700 to £1,200 or more. Professional cleaning (scale and polish) under anaesthesia ranges from £150 to £400, and dental X-rays add another £100 to £250. If your dog needs extensive work—multiple extractions, treatment for gum disease, and follow-up care—you could easily face bills over £1,000.
These costs vary depending on your location, the severity of the problem, and your vet's pricing structure. London and the South East typically sit at the higher end of these ranges. Without insurance, these bills land entirely on you.
Many insurers require annual veterinary dental examinations to maintain your dental cover, and missing these can void your claims. Petplan, Agria, and several other major providers include this requirement in their policy terms. Your vet needs to examine your dog's teeth at least once a year and record the check in their notes.
This doesn't usually require a separate appointment—it's typically part of your annual health check. The key is making sure it happens and is documented. If you make a dental claim and your insurer requests vet records, they'll check whether you've kept up with these examinations. Check your specific policy documents to see if this applies to you.
No—routine preventive dental cleaning (scale and polish) is excluded from standard pet insurance policies. Insurance is designed to cover treatment for illness and injury, not routine maintenance. If you want your annual dental cleaning covered, you'd need to pay extra for a wellness or preventive care add-on.
However, if your dog needs a scale and polish as part of treating gum disease or another diagnosed dental illness, that treatment would be covered under full dental illness cover. The deciding factor is whether it's preventive maintenance or necessary treatment for a diagnosed problem. For information on managing your overall insurance costs, see our guide to reducing pet insurance costs without cutting cover.
Dental cover in pet insurance isn't complicated once you understand what you're looking for. Focus on full dental illness cover from reputable providers like Petplan or Agria, make sure you meet any annual check requirements, and get your dog insured while they're young and healthy. The difference between accident-only and full illness cover could mean thousands of pounds when your dog develops problems later in life.
Don't be tempted by cheaper policies that only cover accidents. Dental disease is far more common than broken teeth, and it's the illness-related problems that rack up serious bills. Invest in comprehensive cover, maintain your dog's teeth with regular brushing, and keep up with annual checks. That combination gives you the best protection against dental costs and peace of mind that you can afford treatment when your dog needs it.
This guide is based on verified sources from UK insurers, veterinary research, and independent consumer organisations:
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