Insurance help?

[katii678]

Hello
I'm getting my little Yogi on 17th Feb. He's coming with KC month insurance/Petplan month insurance... But the problem is which one after that?! My head is ready to pop with the amount of insurance companies i've looked at lol!
Petplan works out at £48! Which is expensive, but i know it's the best one I'm swaying towards AXA - anyone got any feedback?
We've been told that most supermarkets aren't very good at paying up fast. My vets had a few problems with sainsburys. DirectLine mixed views - more towards slow paying.
Does anyone have any recommendations?
Thankyou!

[Jdcell100]

I was going crazy with the pet insurance to did not know wich one to get 2 different vetraninarins told me don't waste my mony on pet insurance they both told me the insurance companies don't pay they always find a pre existing condition. I'm still debating on weather to get it or not. But I also talked to a co worker whose dog had her stomach flip had to be rushed to emergencey vet clinc had to operate dog was ok but bill was omething like 1800 dollars she had VIP insurance and her claim was denied. They Sid per exsiting condition

[katii678]

I was going crazy with the pet insurance to did not know wich one to get 2 different vetraninarins told me don't waste my mony on pet insurance they both told me the insurance companies don't pay they always find a pre existing condition. I'm still debating on weather to get it or not. But I also talked to a co worker whose dog had her stomach flip had to be rushed to emergencey vet clinc had to operate dog was ok but bill was omething like 1800 dollars she had VIP insurance and her claim was denied. They Sid per exsiting condition

:O Thats whats worrying me, whether they'll pay up/ how long they'll take. Otherwise be stuck with a massive bill which you thought would be cleared It's a right minefield! Swings & Roundabouts! Think pet insurance is better than none though, as self insurance costs £000's extra than if you could claim. Just finding a good/decent one to trust.
Petplan is good, but sooo expensive! Just got to spend a long time searching for another reputable insurer
AXA sound decent though. Just hope someone can point me in the right direction with their experiences!

[Jdcell100]

Like I said my co worker whose dog suddenly got bloat the clinc made her come up with mony befor they would even do the surgery they weren't going to wait and see if insurance would cover it I think all vets want mony first it's up to the patient to get reimbursed from insurance

[sue]

I havent had insurance for 2 years the premiums are getting way overpriced.If you look at the supermarket insurance both sainsburys & argos only act as agents the actual insurer was axa when i had insurance.I had argos for 3 years then the quote went up with a bang.I went to sainsburys for 1 year it was then £370 to insure 2 male twin chow boys the following year the quote came through as £750 when i rung to query the quote i was told that was per chow i asked how they came to that figure i was told a lot of people had claimed on this breed.I found this answer odd as i had been told i was the only person to insure chows with them.Chows are rare in the uk I think they think of a number & double it.I did have axa for 1 year after that & again premium quote was ridiculous for the following year it was going up to £2000 so now i dont bother.My vet when we talked said to insure for between £5000 - £10,000 that would cover most things apart from major heart or brain surgery.I always paid the bill with the vet then claimed it back from the insurer which would take a couple of weeks.Check policys carefully some insurers will only pay out once for an injury ie a leg problem cruciate goes once & the following year may go again & they wont pay so check all these things before you sign with them.I would say insure with the one that meets your needs the best but be prepared that you might have to switch to another insurer the year after

[katii678]

I havent had insurance for 2 years the premiums are getting way overpriced.If you look at the supermarket insurance both sainsburys & argos only act as agents the actual insurer was axa when i had insurance.I had argos for 3 years then the quote went up with a bang.I went to sainsburys for 1 year it was then £370 to insure 2 male twin chow boys the following year the quote came through as £750 when i rung to query the quote i was told that was per chow i asked how they came to that figure i was told a lot of people had claimed on this breed.I found this answer odd as i had been told i was the only person to insure chows with them.Chows are rare in the uk I think they think of a number & double it.I did have axa for 1 year after that & again premium quote was ridiculous for the following year it was going up to £2000 so now i dont bother.My vet when we talked said to insure for between £5000 - £10,000 that would cover most things apart from major heart or brain surgery.I always paid the bill with the vet then claimed it back from the insurer which would take a couple of weeks.Check policys carefully some insurers will only pay out once for an injury ie a leg problem cruciate goes once & the following year may go again & they wont pay so check all these things before you sign with them.I would say insure with the one that meets your needs the best but be prepared that you might have to switch to another insurer the year after

Thankyou for your reply really helped!!

[Rory's Dad]

Just to jump in a bit here, i am not familiar with any of the brands mentioned, so unfortunately i cannot offer advice on who to select if any...but i do have a background in insurance (autos), so can give you a bit of insight.

Rates are based on risk. If the particular company you are dealing with has had bad 'luck' with a certain breed they will charge more. They all will generally rate on based on breed. Since Chows are susceptible to both bloat and ligament issues those are taken into account. Similar with other breeds...GSD's for hip dysplasia, Pugs for respiratory issues. Terriers might be more likely to develop lyme (not sure, just and example).

The more likely the breed is to develop any issue, the higher the insurance rate (list possible issues for the breed and add more $). Take into account the cost associated with treating the more common issues (entropion surgery say is a lot more expensive than say an inclination to get impacted glands) and you end up with the policy cost.

Many insurers will exclude genetic issues. This is where the terms become really important, as does the definition used by each company (can vary greatly). Since (for example), Chows are known to have entropion frequently, they may try to define that as genetic and decline any claim. Similar with joint issues in Chows since they have a different gait/stance that is prone to issues in their hinds. They may view that as a breed issue and not offer coverage.

Most insurance will define a covered claim as something arising out of an accident or unexpected event. If a Peke swallows a coin and can't move it, that is covered, but if a Chow eats chicken and gets bloat, it wont be.

In summary, you need to read very carefully what each policy will cover. Understand what you are or are not paying for. Ask lots of questions about how the company views your dog.

And yes, insurance usually on a reimbursement basis. You pay up front and if the claim is approved, they will pay you back.

Insurance companies are for-profit businesses. They count on enough people paying premiums to cover their claim and operation costs and still have a large balance in their pockets at the end of the day. As a consumer, their really is no upside. You hope to never have to file a claim, but pay in every month just in case.

[JasmineW]

Pet insurance may be great for some, but not for others. My experience is that they don't cover certain medical conditions, especially pre-existing ones. They also may not accept pets of all ages. I have found a great discount program that offers all of this! The name is Pet Assure. Your discount will be applied right at the time of service, so no hassles of filling insurance claims. What's great is that if you do decide to go with pet insurance, you can use your pet assure card for additional savings! Hope this helps!

[Judy Fox]

Pet insurance is a problem I think.
We had Milly and Mabel, our two chow chows now in The Happy Hunting Ground, insured but never actually claimed for them.
When we brought our Matilda home we did nothing about insurance immediately and when she was 5 months old, Maisie came to live with us - they are litter sistes - we thought we had better investigate.
We got quotes for them and they came to over £100 per month for the two of them. We thought about it and decided not to take the policies. They had and excess on them so we would have had to pay the first £100 of each treatment anyway so we decided to open a Building Society account for them at For the first year we put in £40 per month and then we upped it too £50 per month so the balance is increasing steadily and we have not had to use money from the account.
Like anything regarding insurance this is a gamble but we are prepared to take the chance. We make sure the money goes in every month and it is quite a joke at the branch of the Cheshire Building Society that the Chow Chows money is going in.
But we feel we have not been ripped off by the insurance companies. Lets face it, we would have paid £3,600 premiums by now and had nothing for it!
We now have over half that much tucked away for them and at three and a half, they are, at the moment, healthy dogs who have only cost us their vaccinations and a trip to the vet for Maisie for a UTI which we would have had to pay for anyway as it was under £100.
Anyway, this is what we have done.

[Hayley92]

Premiums look scary but myself personally having a year old puppy nearly slice her pad off AND get ear infections both in the same year which would of cost us our premium plus for 70 quid each claim you can't really complain. The insurance meant she could have all her bandage changes covered and her ears swabbed so we treated the infection with the right drugs
You need to investigate what insurance you want - some cap your claim at a certain amount per claim, some cap it per year etc so make sure you get the insurance you feel is best for you.
Insurance companies won't cover pre existing conditions if you're trying to start a new policy on a previously uninsured dog because thats not why are there as when you buy a dog you become responsible for its health and its your decision to how you go about it, Its not irresponsible not to have a dog insured but I dont think people should buy a dog, wait til it gets ill THEN try and get it insured because the bills abit pricey, sorry but thats what you signed up for, Dogs dont have the NHS.
I'm with direct line, very helplful and have never had any problems, you can do direct claims you just pay the vet your excess, fill in the insurance form and make sure it says you want the vet to be paid, the insurance will cover what they can according to your policy. With medications the best thing to do is pay up front then claim it from there.

I know alot of you think I might be being OTT but I've seen a lot of dogs PTS because of lack of money when we could treat the dog and it breaks my heart. Pyometras, RTAs etc are terrible things which although avoidable are not cheap to treat!

[katii678]

Thankyou everyone!! Really helpful to hear others suggestions/experiences!

[Laura]

I think Judys idea is great! I had pet insurance on my two for 4 years and never used it once, wish i had that money back! I cancelled it because they doubled the premiums when my two turned 5. A savings account makes a lot more sense.

[Judy Fox]

I think my ideas makes sense.
Fred and I talked it over as we had paid a lot of money on insurance for Milly and Mabel and had never used it. With the £100 excess the companies put on the times we had to take them to the vet, for example, Mabel went through a time when she had a whole series of UTI , fees came to under that so we paid.
Now, since opening their own Building Society account, the money is still in there. We have not had to take them to the vet where a fee was more than £100 so we would have had to pay.
I appreciate that something might happen that is very expensive and if there is not enough in their account, then we will have to pay the rest from the household account.
That is the gamble but at least we are aware of it and we have not paid out £3,600 insurance premiums and got nothing for it.