Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

hethmar

jinty_dog wrote: »

Wish Martin& Co would hurry up with the update on Pet Insurance I am fed up with searching for the right insurance for my pup. Is AXA the best one to go with? I also have a quote from Saga as I am 'over 50!' then there's the RSPCA which is an AXA policy and I would be doing my bit for charity, HELP I'm drowning in a sea of 'small print'!

Jinty,. best to read backwards through this thread really.

The best insurer is probably Petplan (the full life one, not the economy one they recently brought out).

As far as Im aware, the RSPCA one is NOT a genuine for life policy - that is, once you reach the "pot" level you are on your own. A genuine for life policy tops up the pot every year no matter how much you have claimed the previous year.

AXA underwrites other policies like Halifax and HSBC, so in effect those companies can always change underwriters and charges/condtions, thats why people feel AXA will be stable in its premiums. M and S did that and left a lot of us in schtook, those of us who had had a claim couldnt move to another insurer once they virtually doubled their premiums.

NFU is another company who is respected and the longest standing insurers of animals but you have to ring them, you cant buy online. It may be worth doing though.

I looked at SAGA and wasnt over impressed with them.

lowis

i think it is definitely a toss-up between axa and petplan as the best providers...for me axa just nudge ahead though as they do not increase the excess to include a percentage of vets fees once a pet reaches 'old age' i.e. 8 or 10 years old.

nfu are another good one, but i don't have much personal experiene with them, or knowledge of their policies

x

Laz123

I thought I'd just let you all know I've finally been paid for my claim with E&L for our cat's dental treatment. This is the wording of my letter to them:

Without prejudice.



Dear Mr Dawson

Further to your letter, dated 03/07/09, acknowledging my claim for my cat’s dental treatment.

As such a long time has passed since your notification of assessment of liability I am writing to advise you it would be advantageous to yourselves if you could expedite your decision asap.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely,


So it shows that it pays to persist. I put 'without prejudice' at the top as a legal thing. I was intending to take them to the small claims court, and it only costs about £40 to do so online. But now I've got a cheque from them for £251.95. Nice.

500

Anyone tried Petguard? Just had a quote of £15.83 per month for my 3 month old German Shepherd.(£60 excess + Annual Vet fees covered upto £7500 + additional benefits + public liability £2m) - Have been doing alot of research & this seems to be a good policy. Let me know what you think.....

jenhug

hethmar wrote: »

Yes, Id heard about Mastiffs now being excluded. I recommended AXA to a friend with two mastiffs the year before last, I do hope they honour the policy in his case.

I've gone with more than now, their top cover. After I paid for it I also found Homebase pet insurance, their top cover looks excellent.

hethmar

jen, more than isnt a for life policy though. Once the pot runs out you are on your own, as long as you are aware of that.

twinklie

Do petplans premiums go down at any point if your insuring a pup initially?

I've been reading through this thread and I'm soooooooo confused. It's such an important decision and I just don't understand which is the best policy. I'm aware it's not the sort of insurance you can chop and change so I want to make sure I get it right when the time comes.

catlou

twinklie wrote: »

Do petplans premiums go down at any point if your insuring a pup initially?

I've been reading through this thread and I'm soooooooo confused. It's such an important decision and I just don't understand which is the best policy. I'm aware it's not the sort of insurance you can chop and change so I want to make sure I get it right when the time comes.

Hi Twinklie!

I was in the same situation as you REALLY confused!! :eek:
Unfortunately this thread is really long so could easily confuse someone more, although there it lots of good information in it.

Please read these few posts when someone explained it really well to me and then I found it it all made sense. The general consensus seems to be that Petplan, Axa and NFU are the best for genuine life cover I personally found petplan to be very expensive and went with NFU - you do have to ring them for a quote but their customer service was excellent.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=21958335&highlight=#post21958335

hope that helps you a bit? Good luck!

catlou

500

Great "article" in OCT 09 Which magazine all about Pet Insurance - giving you Best Buy Policies, excess`s, lifetime cover / per condition etc etc.

catlou

500 wrote: »

Great "article" in OCT 09 Which magazine all about Pet Insurance - giving you Best Buy Policies, excess`s, lifetime cover / per condition etc etc.

Curious......which companies did they pick as best buys?