AN Amesbury-based insurance company has now donated over £1.8 million to animal welfare charities around the world.

Each month Animal Friends Pet Insurance places a focus on a certain topic and throughout September the topic was animal welfare.

Founder and managing director Elaine Fairfax set up the business in 1998 with the sole aim of generating funds for animal welfare charities around the world. She had left school aged 15 without any qualifications.

Now her company has donated £1,813,509 to 305 charities.

Will Travers, president of the Born Free Foundation said: “Animal Friends Pet Insurance really are animal friends.

“Their support over many years has made a huge and lasting difference to Born Free’s work, making sure we can deliver help to wild animals in need all over the world. Their ongoing generosity is enormously important to us.”

Animal Friends has also recently launched its new Vote for a Charity competition, which sees four charities each provide a video that details the excellent work they carry out and how a donation would help them. The company and charities actively promote the competition encouraging animal lovers to vote for their favourite.

The charity that receives the most votes wins a £5,000 donation from Animal Friends Pet Insurance, with second receiving £2,500, third £1,500 and fourth £1,000, meaning that the insurance company donates £10,000 a month to animal welfare charities just from this initiative alone.

Azzedine Downes, president and CEO of the International Fund for Animal Welfare, said: “We are very grateful to Animal Friends Pet Insurance for the generous support they give us as we rescue animals in crisis, prevent animal cruelty and work to improve the welfare of animals around the world.”

Elaine said: “I’m absolutely delighted that we have been able to help so many animals in need over the years.

When I set up the company I would never have dreamed that we would have donated over £1.8 million to animal welfare charities. This is a very proud day for Animal Friends Pet Insurance and here’s to many more years helping where we can.”