Pet Insurance - Who do you use?

[Dave O'Sullivan]

Renewal time for our dog so looking for advice.

I have been insured with Pet Plan since we got him. They were recommended them at the time as a decent company. I have no reason to doubt this but can’t comment as I’ve never had to claim!

He’s just turned 8 and this year’s renewal is £87 a month. It was £64 last year. So I’m assuming we’re on a pretty steep year by year climb now. We have to co-pay 20% from year 10.

For reference, he’s a small cross breed and is covered for upto £7K a year in vets bills, £2K for therapies and they cover lifelong conditions as long as you stay with them.

He’s in fine health with no issues.

I don’t begrudge spending the money on him but obviously would rather move to someone cheaper if possible.

Any pointers gratefully recieved.

Dave

[Bonzodog]

We’re with Tesco,dog is 11 years old ,one claim .£85.00 per month.

[Neil.C]

After paying for insurance for my previous two dogs I have never bothered with my BT's.

Once your dog gets to eight years old the price rockets and later on it's co-pay too and that is when you often get higher vets bills. My previous BT Deana broke her leg and it cost me £1200 but I'd have spent a lot more than that in premiums over time.

If you need to, just put the money away you would have paid in premiums after all most of my dog problems have been solved with one vets visit and there is always an excess to prevent you claiming for them anyway.

[wileeeeeey]

Sister in law is a vet and has her pets with pet plan

She thinks you need to pick a good insurer and stay with them as generally a rival company will offer a decent year 1 rate then milk you for eternity as no one typically wants to insure an older animal without all the profit from the younger years.

[Halitosis]

Similar to Neil, we self insure now and have so far saved a few thousand pounds. Ernie’s 12 and going strong

[JonRA]

We are with Pet Plan but IIRC it's up to £114 per month this year - she's a nine year old Staffy cross. We haven't had a claim for five or six years (she developed chronic pancreatitis when younger so had a few low level investigations but other than the occasional tummy upset is healthy). I was on the cusp of 'self insuring' this year but haven't pulled the insurance yet - though I have joined the Dogs Trust because that brings 3rd party insurance and only costs £25 pa. So when the renewal doc comes next year, I may be heading for self insurance.

[Dave O'Sullivan]

We are with Pet Plan but IIRC it's up to £114 per month this year - she's a nine year old Staffy cross. We haven't had a claim for five or six years (she developed chronic pancreatitis when younger so had a few low level investigations but other than the occasional tummy upset is healthy). I was on the cusp of 'self insuring' this year but haven't pulled the insurance yet - though I have joined the Dogs Trust because that brings 3rd party insurance and only costs £25 pa. So when the renewal doc comes next year, I may be heading for self insurance.

Just cancelled my policy (watch the little bastard break his leg now).
How do you join Dogs Trust? I looked on the website and there’s options to donate and sponsor but not ‘join’
Thanks

[andy tims]

We’re with Tesco. Our black lab bitch is 6 and the premium went up from £38/month last year to £56/month - £7,500 of cover. Pet Plan wanted £134/month for the same cover.
Will move to self insuring in the next year or so.

[Ruggertech]

We’re with Tesco. Our black lab bitch is 6 and the premium went up from £38/month last year to £56/month - £7,500 of cover. Pet Plan wanted £134/month for the same cover.
Will move to self insuring in the next year or so.

If you are planning to self insure in a year Andy why not now? You'd have several hundred quid in the pot by then assuming hopefully nothing happens to her. In other words, carry on paying for insurance for her lifetime or self insure now, both plans make sense. But I dont understand a mixture of the two.

[JonRA]

Just cancelled my policy (watch the little bastard break his leg now).
How do you join Dogs Trust? I looked on the website and there’s options to donate and sponsor but not ‘join’
Thanks

It looks like the membership scheme is changing but you can still get 3rd party insurance https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/support-us/membership

[Longblackcoat]

I've just taken on a 13 year old spaniel. She's deaf, has terrible teeth and a horrible (though thankfully benign) lump on her cheek. There's no insurance company on earth that would touch her, which one of the reasons we have her - the previous owner had to go into a care home, the charity who fostered her isn't made of money, and someone had to look after her. We're in for about £1500 already ....

We're lucky that we have a very good vet who is well aware that we're paying and will only recommend things that are genuinely in the best interest of the animal. Knowing I have a trusted vet means I'm a bit happier self-insuring.

[Dave O'Sullivan]

It looks like the membership scheme is changing but you can still get 3rd party insurance https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/support-us/membership

Thanks Jon, I’ve just joined. Good to have third party cover just in case.

[aa388]

It seems that when pet insurance came along vets fees went through the roof. My old vets used to charge very little till they merged with another practice and then sold out then it was a case of the bills went crazy.


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[A440]

I went with self-insurance for my cat. I pay £45 a month into a spare bank account. As others mention with pet insurance, the premiums increase every year and the excess means you pay for most visits anyway.

[oldoakknives]

Direct Line. Spaniel aged 9 and had 3 ops on one leg. Also has allergies and is on injections monthly. We've been paid out more than we paid in. But premiums going up now so will probably even out. It's worth it IMO. Don't have that decision do we pay or not.

[number2]

Again Pet Plan, £43.00pm I/we don't know if there's a right or wrong choice, at least the wee bugger didn't cost us £3000 to buy.

[oldoakknives]

I use insurance which covers up to £10k in a year on any one illness/accident. I know with the higher premiums as he gets older we might only break even or even be at a loss, but I still think it's worth it. Not having to find £3-5k for an unexpected op is what it's all about. I don't want to make that decision not to help him based on the money.

[Mj2k]

I went with self-insurance for my cat. I pay £45 a month into a spare bank account. As others mention with pet insurance, the premiums increase every year and the excess means you pay for most visits anyway.

That’s what we have done, our cat currently has enough to buy himself a nice 41mm OP.

[A440]

That’s what we have done, our cat currently has enough to buy himself a nice 41mm OP.

Sounds like he has good taste :)

[Mj2k]

Sounds like he has good taste :)

My wife has informed me that he’s not buying me one.

[Captaincook]

Personally I would be happy to self insure, however I didn’t want to make the decision of do or do not with our family Labrador, so Petplan for us.

[The Hack]

We used 'Many Pets' and are now with Napo. £12k of cover per year I think. £100 excess.

I think 'self-insuring' only works if you can easily afford a £5k vet fee if the worst happens.

Our Cavalier King Charles Puppy needed a double hernia operation at 6 mths old. £2.5k at a top pet hospital.

She's 18 mths old now and fortunately, no more health issues so far.

[philsimm]

Since your pooch is in tip-top shape with no health concerns, it might be worth shopping around to see if you can fetch a better deal elsewhere.

No need to stay with the same provider unless you really like them and you don't feel like they are cashing and milking you of your money

[Longblackcoat]

Since your pooch is in tip-top shape with no health concerns, it might be worth shopping around to see if you can fetch a better deal elsewhere.

No need to stay with the same provider unless you really like them and you don't feel like they are cashing and milking you of your money

Typically I insure a dog until about 7 years old, then when the premiums start to go up steeply and/or the co-pay element increases significantly I'd probably cease insurance. I know that the final few years of a dog's life are likely to be expensive, whether that's through severely hiked premiums or just paying directly. I got very frustrated not knowing if a claim would be approved/queried and seeing the insuring entity try to wriggle out of paying (yes, Animal Friends, I'm talking about you) hence relying on the Bank Of LBC.

[Tooks]

Typically I insure a dog until about 7 years old, then when the premiums start to go up steeply and/or the co-pay element increases significantly I'd probably cease insurance. I know that the final few years of a dog's life are likely to be expensive, whether that's through severely hiked premiums or just paying directly. I got very frustrated not knowing if a claim would be approved/queried and seeing the insuring entity try to wriggle out of paying (yes, Animal Friends, I'm talking about you) hence relying on the Bank Of LBC.

This is where PetPlan seem to be very good, and probably why their premiums are a bit higher, but they seem to not quibble about any legitimate claim.

The vets seem to like them too, you can imagine the hassle with owners where they thought they were covered and now they’re not.

We rescued a 2 year old dog when the owner could no longer look after her, we insured her via PetPlan and Epilepsy was excluded as I knew she already had it. When she had an episode and was hospitalised, I didn’t think I could claim due to the exclusion. The Practice noticed that the previous owner had insured her as a pup when she was diagnosed, and the insurer was PetPlan. Staying within privacy rules the vets spoke to PetPlan who agreed to cover it as they’d previously been the insurer when it was originally diagnosed and effectively transferred that inclusion to me as if I was the original owner and insurer. I was amazed, but grateful, given what I thought of insurers up to that point. She lived another 7 years or so, and they always paid up no problem.

[Longblackcoat]

This is where PetPlan seem to be very good, and probably why their premiums are a bit higher, but they seem to not quibble about any legitimate claim.

The vets seem to like them too, you can imagine the hassle with owners where they thought they were covered and now they’re not.

We rescued a 2 year old dog when the owner could no longer look after her, we insured her via PetPlan and Epilepsy was excluded as I knew she already had it. When she had an episode and was hospitalised, I didn’t think I could claim due to the exclusion. The Practice noticed that the previous owner had insured her as a pup when she was diagnosed, and the insurer was PetPlan. Staying within privacy rules the vets spoke to PetPlan who agreed to cover it as they’d previously been the insurer when it was originally diagnosed and effectively transferred that inclusion to me as if I was the original owner and insurer. I was amazed, but grateful, given what I thought of insurers up to that point. She lived another 7 years or so, and they always paid up no problem.

Cheers Tooks, I'll look into PP for the next dog. Good to have a positive review!

[Snoodles]

I’ve been with Frank for 12 months with a couple of claims in that period with no issues.