Waggel Pet Insurance
Our mission.
We started Waggel to help dog owners get the most out of their relationship with their dog, and we believe that begins with peace of mind.

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Our Story

As pet owners ourselves, we’ve had experiences with pet insurance companies that range from infuriating on a bad day, to useless on a good day. We decided to create a membership based insurance platform that’s fully loaded and transparent at its core, with the added benefit of rewarding members through experiences, services and offers from hand-picked bespoke partners, giving value back to our customers even in the months they aren’t claiming.

Our Passion

Animals and our love for them is the driving force behind Waggel. It’s why we started Waggel and it’s what pushes us forward every day. It’s also why we have far too many office dogs - to remind everybody at Waggel why we’ve all been brought together in this space.

“My childhood summers spent running and playing in Welsh fields with my grandparent’s border collies, nuzzled dogs into my mind as forces of comfort, calm and benevolence. This impression lingered with me into adulthood and as soon as it was practical to do so, I got my first dog - a Golden Retriever, who I named Sailor.
“For me, Waggel is an expression of my love for and gratitude towards Sailor, the Welsh border collies (Sally and Meg) and all dogs.”
“My childhood summers spent running and playing in Welsh fields with my grandparent’s border collies, nuzzled dogs into my mind as forces of comfort, calm and benevolence. This impression lingered with me into adulthood and as soon as it was practical to do so, I got my first dog - a Golden Retriever, who I named Sailor.

Whilst preparing for Sailor, I stumbled across a serious problem with a lack of training and a resulting rise in problematic behaviours with UK dogs. In response, I designed my own dog training methodology using my expertise in behavioural and cognitive psychology, which I turned into an iPhone app with an accompanying dog fitness tracker. I was lucky enough to be chosen to appear on the BBC’s The Apprentice with my business plan for Kibble - and it was whilst fundraising during the airing of The Apprentice that I crossed paths with Andrew who was looking into the pet insurance space.

Together, we founded Waggel. For me, Waggel is an expression of my love for and gratitude towards Sailor, the Welsh border collies (Sally and Meg) and all dogs, because aren’t they just incredible?”

- Ross Fretten
“Growing up in South Africa, animals were part of everyday life. Despite the incredible wildlife all around and the numerous family pets it was my first dog Ruffie who took the biggest spot in my heart. Ruffie was the kind of dog that all people wished for, he was waiting for me at the door when I got home after school, we would explore our backyard together and he would lay by the side of the bed when I was sick.
“I want every pet owner with us to have the quality of experience I would expect for me and my cat.”
“Growing up in South Africa, animals were part of everyday life. Despite the incredible wildlife all around and the numerous family pets it was my first dog Ruffie who took the biggest spot in my heart. Ruffie was the kind of dog that all people wished for, he was waiting for me at the door when I got home after school, we would explore our backyard together and he would lay by the side of the bed when I was sick.

Having just finished an MBA in the UK and hearing a lot of my animal centric friends complaining about the state of pet insurance, I decided to do something about it.

Enter Ross Fretten, the crazy star of The Apprentice. He was showing off his dog training and wellness app when we crossed paths, and we immediately realised the synergies and hence came up with the novel idea of fusing pet insurance with a membership subscription service.

Behind every man is a great woman, the old adage goes, and the great woman behind me is Duchess-Belle, my elderly 12 year old cat I rescued from Battersea. My bond with Duchess-Belle is what drives me at Waggel to ensure that every pet owner with us has the quality of experience I would expect for me and my beloved Duchess.”

- Andrew Leal

Our Values

Joyful
Every decision we make is in the interest of creating joy for our members and for our staff. Whether that be the details in our pet insurance policy, the partners we choose to work with, or the people we choose to hire and work with every day.
Personal
Our office has three dogs. None of them are even remotely similar in personality, medical history, or smell even and we suspect the same is true of our members. Our membership is designed to celebrate and reward our differences.
Bold
Waggel launched in spite of an entire industry that doesn’t look fondly upon new players. Everyday we acknowledge and stoke this fire in our bellies as we strive to innovate, disrupt and move an entire industry forward by bringing pet ownership into the modern age.

Our Partners

The partners we choose to work with, we feel, reflect our values as a company. These are bespoke pet brands hand-picked by us because we believe their ethos and their products can help our customers have healthier, happier pets and more meaningful and joyful relationships with them as a result.

Our Customers

Possibly the only thing more diverse than our members are their pets; who better to hold us accountable than our members and their scantily clad companions? We regularly speak with our customers to ask for feedback that we can use to shape future decisions. Here’s some of our pack of Waggelers:

Our Team

Richard Willars
CTO
Arturo Abruzzini
Developer
Rachael Condon
Head of Marketing
James Brown
Developer
Emma Li
Partnership Manager
Koda Li
Cloud Boy
Sailor
Golden Boy
Tarren Arnold
Customer Champion
Marcus Chamberlain
Marketing Designer
Joe Weaver
Lead Designer

Get Your Quote

We’d love to welcome you and your pet to the Waggel community.
-Andrew & Ross
Co-Founders

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