PD Celebrates Two-Year Anniversary with 20 Milestones

Since PD Pet Insurance launched in New Zealand two years ago, we’ve experienced many meaningful milestones. From welcoming our first customer and opening our first office to giving away free pet insurance to thousands of Kiwi puppies and kittens.

We’re pleased to be celebrating our two year anniversary with such special customers and wonderful partners around the country. We couldn’t have come this far without linking paws with each of you.

Each milestone we’ve celebrated marks the journey like lights along a path, guiding us on where to go in our future. Come and take a moment to walk this path with us as we celebrate 20 milestones in two years.

#1 🐶 3 August 2020, PD Pet Insurance launches in New Zealand!

Launching any business requires hard work, skill and dedication and PD launching in the middle of COVID made things extra interesting. As you can imagine building a team during intense lockdowns came with unique challenges.

Our Chief Operating Officer Michelle Le Long remembers the experience…

“Recruiting of staff [at a time like this] was such fun. 😉.”

Launching online pet insurance in New Zealand was a bonus for pet owners (and pets) stuck behind closed doors. Pets could get the safety net they needed with only a few clicks of a button from mum or dad.

#2 😺 3 August 2020, PD Pet Insurance New Zealand website goes live!

Given that PD is all about making pet insurance in New Zealand fast, simple and easy to access – launching our digital model meant launching a savvy new website.

We love innovation and our website provided the infrastructure needed to become the first pet insurance provider in New Zealand to do away with claim forms. Not only did this allow our pet parents a paperless experience but all our fellow competitors quickly followed suit.

Our website is more than simply a platform for promoting our awesome offering, it also gives each of our customers access to their very own personalised digital portal.

This is the cornerstone of making pet insurance accessible and efficient. It gives more power to the pet owner because they have 24/7 access to their pet insurance online. And this means they can manage their insurance policy and claims anytime it suits their schedule rather than the other way around.

#3 🐶 3 August 2020, welcoming our 1st New Zealand pet insurance customer

Launching our pet insurance office and website in New Zealand meant we were ready to welcome our first paw through the door. Our very first customer that signed up was a puppy (quite literally, see why below).

Le Long recollects the moment we welcomed them to the PD Insurance family…

“The phones went live on this date, and I actually sold the very first policy to a lovely lady from the far north who wanted to insure her new puppy she had just purchased. I was super excited and mistakenly put the policy in the dog’s name and got stick from the team on having to redo the policy before I sent it over the email system off to our new customer!”

#4 😺 August 2020, hiring our first Business Development Manager

You know the saying… behind every successful business is a highly valued team (or something like that anyways)! Hiring our first business development manager (BDM) the same month we launched was a momentous occasion.

BDMs have the crucial role of connecting and collaborating with our partners. They’re the glue that helps knit us to key pet care industry organisations, businesses and people.

Recruiting our first one was a big role to fill and as Le Long recalls:

“I was very fortunate to have a ex vet nurse already working for the Pacific International Insurance business [PD’s underwriting company] and we made good use of her skills to hit the road running. One of our very first events we attended was the Tauranga Pet Expo, which was the last pet show to be hosted post full COVID lockdown.” 

Meet the PD New Zealand BDMs (along with their pets).

#5 🐶 August 2020, paying our first claim

We paid our first claim in August 2020 to a domestic short hair cat with a fracture of the femoral head (aka a broken leg). The owner wasn’t sure how the fracture happened, but thankfully they had the accident plan to help cover the medical costs of recovery.

As it happens, they’d only had their insurance plan for five days and just in time too! PD made a total payout of $1850.90 to help ensure that kitty had the soft landing they deserved.

#6 😺 September 2020, welcoming our first partner-referral customer

We love our partners, because it’s through our shared ecosystem we’re able to truly give more Kiwi pets the care and attention they deserve. Le Long remembers the first customer that signed up via a partner:

“Lynfield Vets was the very first clinic where we had a new customer – a cat customer – take a policy from. Our BDM Kathryn went out and celebrated this with the team!” 

By joining hands with vets, breeders, trainers and more, we’re able to help inspire more pet owners to learn about and enjoy the value of having pet insurance. Of course, we’re also able to share great offers with our partners and their clients.

#7 🐶 21 September 2020, our first pet insurance TV ad airs in New Zealand

Our first television ad went live on free to air and subscription TV through Sky. Since then we’ve aired several ads with wonderful people and their pets. Here’s a more recent one with Erin and Vince:

#8 😺 September 2020, PD conducts research into NZ pet ownership

Just a month after launching pet insurance in New Zealand, PD conducted research into the needs of pet owners and their pets. Given COVID was gaining serious momentum, we included research into how this affected the rate of pet adoption and the reasons for pet ownership.

We collected data from 1000+ participants and shared the results with both the public and the media via our digital channels. Read about the research in our article on pet plan shopping in New Zealand and our media release on pets in pandemic.

#9 🐶 2 October 2020, first piece of media coverage received

2 October 2020 marks the moment PD Pet Insurance received its first piece of media coverage in New Zealand. The headline on Ponsonby News read: New survey reveals: Pets helping Kiwis deal with pandemic; increased pet adoption. You can read the full article here.

#10 😺 October 2020, PD sponsors TVNZ’s show Dog Almighty

Just two months after launching, PD sponsored TVNZ’s Dog Almighty dog agility competition show. We loved every minute of the show that brought many talented canines to the silver screen. Read our interview with Dog Almighty contestants, Rachel and her three-legged dog Maisy for more behind the scenes info.

And since it’s our two year anniversary, let’s celebrate by watching some of the amazing contestants in action:

#11 🐶 November 2020, moving to our Takapuna office

Our team of like-minded animal lovers had some great water cooler moments in our first little office at the B:hive. Growing from strength to strength, it wasn’t long before we needed a bigger space…

Le long revisits the moment:

“We moved into our forever home in the PD Insurance house in Takapuna on the beautiful North Shore of Auckland in Nov 2020! We had initially kicked off the business at the famous B:hive where we all were cramped into one office, and all sharing desks and having tons of fun. Everyone got on the phones to assist our customers to transact and set up their new policies. It was such a great time!” 

As interest and knowledge around pet insurance in New Zealand continues to grow, we continue to put our best paw forward. We’re all in this business because we love our pets and know the value pet insurance can provide others and their pets.

#12 😺3 December 2020, sending our first customer newsletter

Our first customer newsletter was distributed within six month of business lift off. It marked two cornerstones of the PD Pet Insurance personality: our dedication to building relationships and a strong commitment to educating people about responsible pet ownership.

Our #1 newsletter contained (and continues to do so to this day) articles from our pet parents blog, covering the latest information and tips on keeping pets healthy. This includes topics like ethical breeding and pet buying, pet health conditions, vaccination schedules and much more.

#13 🐶 June 2021 New research for ‘Take Your Dog to Work Day’

In mid 2021, PD conducted research with just under 800 Kiwi participants. Our research delved into data on how people feel about taking their dogs to work. The outcomes were incredible…

For example, a whopping 99% of respondents felt that allowing dogs in the workplace brings benefits. But that’s not as surprising as this: more than 50% of respondents wouldn’t take a better job offer if it meant no longer being able to take their dogs to work!

The research was conducted ahead of Take Your Dog to Work Day. Read more of the outcomes here.

#14 😺 September 2021, reaching 200 published consumer blog articles

Just a year after launching pet insurance in New Zealand, we’d published 200 pet care articles on our pet parents blog!

These articles are researched and written by a team of experts who really care about keeping pets at their optimum health and keeping pet parents happy. After all pet insurance is great for New Zealand pets in times of need – but preventing accidents and illnesses before they occur is important too.

#15 🐶 2 December 2021, PD partners with Healthy Pets NZ

This was the day we became the proud principal partner of Healthy Pets New Zealand (HPNZ), supporting their research into ‘big health and welfare issues of Kiwi pets’. There’s lots in the pipeline that will be coming out of this partnership in the months to come. To begin with, here’s our vlog on HPNZ:

#16 😺 February 2022, we release top medical claims from 2021

Educating pet owners on responsible pet ownership is one of our top priorities. In early February 2022 we released data and commentary on the top PD Insurance claim types from 2021. This information is so helpful in helping experienced and new pet owners know what to safeguard against. Read it here.

#17 🐶 1 July 2022, PD partners with the Department of Conservation

Marking our two year anniversary, we proudly partnered with the Department of Conservation (DOC) on Lead the Way Auckland in a bid to bring more pet care knowledge to Kiwi pet owners. As we well know, dogs didn’t evolve on these shores but arrived with settlers. This of course means native animals have evolved no defences against dogs’ natural behaviours.

Together, PD and the DOC are educating the public on ways to protect native wildlife along the coast and safeguard coast-loving dogs at the same time (dogs encounter coastal dangers too). The old saying may be to ‘kill two birds with one stone‘ but our take is to ‘protect all species at the same time‘.

#18 😺 August 2022, PD and DOC Lead the Way launch event

We launched the PD and DOC partnership with an education campaign and media event, held on the 25 August at Sustainable Coastlines in Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter. Taking place in our birthday month, the launch was another incredible celebration of our two year anniversary.

Watch the event video that showcases our speakers’ panel, presentations and more:

Once you’ve absorbed that, do the Lead the Way Wildlife Wise quiz to see just how wildlife wise you really are.

#19 🐶 August 2022, PD wins the 2022 Canstar Most Satisfied Customers Award for Pet Insurance

Another highlight of our two year anniversary is the announcement of Canstar’s 2022 Most Satisfied Customers – Pet Insurance Award. We came out top dog! This is one of the most special accolades we could have earned since launching pet insurance in New Zealand just two years ago. We thank everyone that chooses PD.

#20 😺 August 2022, launching our partner blog

In dedication to our partner network that spans vets, breeders, retailers, trainers, behaviourists and much more, we launched our partner blog on our two year anniversary!

This industry blog covers pet health industry news that’s of value to pet industry professionals. For example, we catch up with New Zealand welfare advocate Bob Kerridge to talk about his impact on companion animals and the way they’re treated. We also share news and events, and you can look forward to watching our vlogs with Dr Cath Watson of Healthy Pets NZ here soon too!

It’s been an honour to come this far together and we look forward to sharing our mutual successes in future.

Become a PD partner helping bring pet insurance to more New Zealand pets

In the two years since launching, a lot has happened. We’ve grown from strength to strength reaching new customers and protecting more pets.

But pet Insurance in New Zealand is still a young and developing concept. Not every pet parent has yet to know the benefits of having health insurance for pets. We strive to make pet insurance as accessible and beneficial as possible to reach more pets. And we’d love it if you partnered with us to educate pet owners about the value of pet health insurance.

Our partner rewards program benefits you, your clients and their furry family members. Click below to partner with PD or find out more.