Pet insurance advice

[nickyboy]

Have you considered 3rd party only. Or maybe get your mum and dad to insure it and build up your no claims that way

Hang on, I'm in the wrong thread aren't I

 

[Crackle]

Have you considered 3rd party only. Or maybe get your mum and dad to insure it and build up your no claims that way

Hang on, I'm in the wrong thread aren't I

Yes. He's only just mastered riding the bike. I'm not sure he'll get his own car.

 

[Wafer]

We went with the Kennel Club https://www.kcinsurance.co.uk following a couple of recommendations. Felt difficult comparing them all especially as we have a rare breed dog that most web sites didn't recognise.
Seemed decent enough, thankfully not had to use it yet but others who had we're positive. Pretty sure we're paying more than that Petplan quote though!

 

[vickster]

PetPlan for my cat, not had to claim in 4 years though (tbh I just renewed the policy when the initial 3 months provided by Battersea came to an end). Think I now pay about £20 a month (he's around 6 and a half and in rude health)

My brother has had a lot of cash from John Lewis for the dog, she's had both ACLs reconstructed. The premiums are now eye watering although everything pretty much was covered I believe (surgery, aftercare, hydrotherapy etc)

I stopped paying insurance for my last cat as he got older and the premiums were £50 a month with higher excess - then the poor soul got lung cancer...I was never brave enough to work out how much all of the diagnostics and treatments cost in the end...it would have been cheaper with insurance though as I reckon I spent £2k in under 6 months

 

[Levo-Lon]

Just stopped mine..10.9 yrs..started at 20quid ..direct line.
i was paying 36..they now want 47pcm..dogs 11 blind and fine otherwise..
every time i go to the vets its 100 quid...excess is 90..lol

if owt nasty happens its blue juice time im affraid..
the vets charge a lot less if you dont have insurance too..

changing pet insurance provider will sting you, but pet plan is the vets usual go too..

pay 50 quid a month into a savings plan would be my next plan after first yrs cover..

 

[swee'pea99]

When 'er indores told me how much the insurance would cost I said 'Nah, not worth it. New dogs aren't that expensive. If this one breaks down, it's cheaper to scrap it & get a new one.' She went all kind of....frosty on me. Weird...

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I'm just about to find out how good Tesco policy is for one of my dogs who has to go in for "epic" (the vet's words) surgery on his feet tomorrow - when we mentioned insurance she said they had never heard of any problems with Tesco, nor Petplan, nor M&S; she did mention a few that were less than helpful and singled out Animal Friends (who I had never heard of before) for particularly scathing comment, so when I spotted this thread and saw them mentioned decided I'd best share the comment.

Our Tesco policy is £3,000 12 month limit so hopefully will cover everything; I'm imagining he'll look a bit of a pillock with bandages on all four feet so I wonder if they'll cover him for counselling to take account of getting the píss ripped out of him by the other dogs in the village?

 

[Sara_H]

We had a bad experience with petplan when they refused to pay out on some dental work based on the fact that his boosters had been overdue. It was a blow as I'd been paying for two cats for ten years and it was the first time I tried to claim.

 

[NorthernDave]

Another vote for Petplan.
Our dog had several vists to our local vets who scanned him and did various tests, but still unable to make a definitive diagnosis referred us to the University of Liverpool campus on The Wirral (the one on Ben Fogles TV show).
A full day there led to a diagnosis of hypothyroidism. Total cost £3,000+.
We paid £75 excess.
His ongoing medication, tests, etc cost north of a grand a year - again we just pay the excess.
Just make sure you take out a 'cover for life' policy.

And Petplan have a massive advantage that most Vets will bill them direct - some insurers require you to settle the bill and then submit a claim for reimbursement, meaning you need to have the means to pay up front.

 

[Dave 123]

Having had dogs since 1983, we long since realised that insurance doesn't pay. Each of our dogs has needed one or two surgical interventions costing 2-3 hundred pounds, and this has cropped up about once every 5 years. Even allowing for regular checkups, jabs, etc. there is no way that insurance is worthwhile; a years insurance alone would cost about as much as we pay out every 5 years or so.

I wrote recently about our old dog Bruno the black lab in another thread a few weeks back. You could have stuck him in a room full of razor wire and land mines and he'd have been fine, his best mate Toby the chocolate lab could injure himself lying down in an empty room.
Bruno lived to 14 and in the last couple of years we footed a few vets bills for tablets etc. Toby was a constant and long list of injuries. We would have been out of pocket had we have had insurance. Our friends luckily did have insurance, and needed it!

 

[pubrunner]

We got our pet insurance from here :

https://m.healthy-pets.co.uk/index....m_medium=email&utm_campaign=competition_email

Our decision was based largely on the high number of positive reviews that they have.

 

[Levo-Lon]

As you say @User9609
if i carry on paying and the dog ,i do adore my border..lived to 16..so 120 in our years she would cost maybe 7k in premiums..

she had a very near cruciate fail as a pup and a blocked ear at 2..those cost 450 in xray and treatments
at 8 she had a heart murmur which cost 700 ..was told its Normal dont worry!!!! Why do it then?
Few 100 quid here and there trearments for minor infections etc..
usual 30,60 a year for health check and vacinations..
dental last year...

my mother has had lots of yorkies and all lived to a good age.
she has never paid insurance and never done the vacinations bar the puppy one..
she had some teeth removed from her little sammy last year and the vet charged 220..
my dog had one tooth removed with insurance...£450..its a fooking con..
im also of the opinion vets know we love our pets...and milk the insurance..

My daughter in law is a vet ,mico bioligist and a few more letters after her name,fantastically interlectual and a really tallented vet
i feel she earns her money and the choice is ours as to paying insurance or not..they can fix all sorts these days ..

 

[Renmurew]

We have our dogs insured with Tesco. We've shopped around over the years and they suit us. Never had an issue with a claim. Having Great Danes, when things go wrong, they go wrong big time! Had one dog needing 2 cruciate ligaments done which was just over £3500. Our last Great Dane had a heart condition and for the last 18 months needed a cocktail of drugs at a whopping £200 a month to control. No issues about claiming and all handled smoothly.

 

[Shadow]

pay 50 quid a month into a savings plan would be my next plan after first yrs cover..

This would be my preferred option.

Mrs S recently moved to an outfit named Pet Pals as previous insurer jacked premium to a level she considered unreasonable. Cannot endorse product or service one way or other.
All depends on your 'peace of mind' threshold.

 

[srw]

One caveat about "lifetime" cover - the price isn't guaranteed. On the other hand Petplan place great store by customer service and will try and avoid unnecessary messing about with prices.
Here's the explanation they give:

Our Covered For Life® policies are designed for pet owners concerned about their pet developing a long-term, chronic or recurring illness. We have cat insurance, dog insurance and rabbit insurance Covered For Life® policies. These cover conditions such as arthritis or eczema which require treatment from a vet over a long period of time, often for life. As long as the Covered For Life® policy is renewed each policy year without a break, we will continue to provide cover for new illnesses after the policy starts right into your dog, cat or rabbit's old age. Many other dog and cat insurance policies, including one of our own, Petplan Essential, will limit the amount and/or time you can claim for each illness of injury. It is definitely worth checking the small print before you buy so that you understand the terms, conditions and any excesses that apply. - See more at: http://www.petplan.co.uk/therightcover/anyquestions.asp#who-is-petplan

And here's what they say about price rises after a claim:

Each year, the premiums you pay are based on the cover you have chosen and the information you have provided about your pet's age, breed and address. Please rest assured, the amount you pay is in no way connected to any claim you need to make for your pet. - See more at: http://www.petplan.co.uk/therightcover/anyquestions.asp#existing-customer

Declaration of interest: I work for the company that owns the Petplan brand, and underwrites all the policies and handles all of the claims. I'm absolutely delighted to see so many positive recommendations - we know internally that the company is highly regarded by its customers (it's also profitable, incidentally!) but it's good to see that being reflected on a public forum without any prompting.