Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

Bromley86

MoreThan gives you £7k per condition. Not something I'd normally like the look of vs. renewing lifetime policies, but it might be suitable for an older dog and might work out cheaper for you. Like you I don't think the PP Value gives adequate cover.

Maybe give AXA & HSBC a go. Not sure if they do older dogs, but worth a try. Likewise, I'm pretty certain that NFU don't but there's no harm in asking.

I don't know everything about M&S, but as per sky's post they are good at paying claims. If you ignore the uproar over the increases in premiums last year and the increase in the excess, the only bad thing is the need to call a hotline before using an out-of-hours service. I know that in our case Halifax have been great at paying claims.

hethmar

Morethan dont have real lifetime cover - its £7k total for a condition and then you are dumped for that problem. Id think an older dog could develop something which may be chronic and require help for the rest of his life. If Halifax will take him on, or AXA/HSBC then they are probably the better bet for you. A lot of us jumped on the M and S bandwagon a couple of years back when they were offering really good cover but then found they almost doubled their premiums and took away the advantage of no excess.

mrsbez_2

Thanks, when i went back on to halifax to check my quote it came out at £49.00 per month and M & S was £47.99 per month. So i have decided to go with M & S.
Yes, it feels like highway robbery, but at least he is covered now!
Tried HSBC but they won't cover him, tried a few like RSPCA and PDSA but they all came out very expensive aswell.
Think we will have to cut back on our food bill now to pay for his insurance, nevermind he's worth it!!
And yes, we had his cover with M&S two years ago and i cancelled it as the premiums were too high. But then all the companies seem to have put up the prices now!!

chocolatepennyfarthing

Whats the lowest excess you can get on policies for dogs.

Bromley86

Probably £50.

Remember a low excess *will* mean you paying more over the course of your dog's life. Even if you rarely claim, others will be caning it so, assuming your premiums were low to start, they will go up over time.

SuiDreams

Has anyone ever heard of or used Pet guard? Thanks

andybodoyd

Having investigated pet insurance for the last few days for our 4 month old yellow lab I find myself more and more confused. The wording on many policies is often difficult to fathom. I know pet plan covers a certain amount each year for ongoing conditions but there payments are a little extortionate! Which others do true life time cover. Have various quotes from Petguard,Argos,Pet-insurance .co.uk,Halifax,M&S,Petprotect but all differ slightly in what they offer. Is £7000 per condition enough. Our 6 weeks free insurance finishes on the 7th of July so any advice gratefully received!

Bromley86

Sui. They look fine to me - proper lifetime, not underwritten by E&L.

andy. £7k per condition is better than no insurance, but especially with labs not the best as hip operations can cost £5k. Of course, £7k per condition per year (or even just £7k per year) would be excellent.

You've missed NFU, HSBC and AXA themselves. Possibly a few more, but with that lot you should be able to get a policy that works for you.

Out of interest, which are the cheapest policies for you?

andybodoyd

Thanks for the reply. Yes I do need some insurance of some sort as our pup devours everything in its path and is probably heading for some kind of bowel obstruction!! The better ones so far (cover against cost) have been Petguard £7500 vet fees a year/no time limit on conditions/£60 excess/£16-75 a month and M&S £7000 vet fees a year/no time limit/£70 excess/£14-39 a month. Wanted to go with Petplan but for £4000 cover it would cost over £20 a month!!

hethmar

Not checked all those you have listed but certainly argos does not include lifetime cover - you will be in the same situation as above with More Than - once the pot is used up that condition will be excluded.

Did you check Halifax, AXA and HSBC - all proper lifetime cover?

When you say Petguard is £6k per year, no limit on conditions - double check that one, it usually means quite the opposite, that they will pay for a condition until the £6k is met then dump it. Oh, beg your pardon, Bromley seems tohave already checked Petguard out. As long as you make sure you change the default on the policy quote from the 12 month limit!

Be careful though - they are terrible how that make things so unclear. When you say £7k per condition - you should look for a policy where the pot is topped up to that amount per condition every year. £7k per condition on its own would mean that say you did get a chronic illness then once the £7k is reached that illness would be excluded and you would be unable to insure the dog anywhere else.