Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

catlou

TomsMom wrote: »

Only once we had clarification from Axa themselves did we go ahead. For your own peace of mind I would ring them and ask the question, only they can give you the definitive answer. Oh, and get the name of the person you spoke to and make a note of when, just in case - I'm a terrible cynic :rotfl: .

Best way to be with Pet Insurance, as you said it is a Bloody minefield!!

Dhmellor

cathodetube wrote: »

Guess it depends on where you live. I got a quote from Greenbee and it was more expensive than AXA. Pet insurance is completely unpredictable.

Same here. We've gone for AXA, having got a number of quotes. Cheaper than Greenbee and much much cheaper than Petplan.

Mephista

Thanks everyone for your comments. I'm glad it has at least helped some people. Between us all, I think we've established that there are at least 3 to 4 main insurers to look at for Lifetime insurance. The difference for me between Greenbee and Axa was enough to make it add up over the year but they were the only 2 I had considered choosing between. I live in Northern Ireland by the way which perhaps might explain why I was getting a cheaper quote? Not sure but I must say I would never take the chance of not being insured. For me its just too expensive.

Just last week, while on hols, Roxy split her back leg open. Thank goodness we were still insured with Sainsburys while waiting for our insurance with Greenbee to kick in on 22 of this month (there is a 14 day cooling off period at the start where they will not pay out if something happens to your belioved pet). We nearly died when the vet asked if we had insurance and said we may as well get her blood tested as well since we would definitely go over the £75 excess. A minor op and 3 stitches later, the cost totalled £180!!! Gulp.

Yes I have found insurances increase with every year but then so does my car insurance. As long as its a reasonable increase and provides the cover I expect for my baby, I am prepared to pay the cost. Wouldn't you?

Happy to keep hearing anyones helpful comments.:)

cathodetube

Mephisto, Why did your vet say you may as well get your dog's blood tested? For what reason? I feel that a lot of vets use the fact that if a pet is insured then they will jack prices up because they know the insurance company will pay. You still had to pay £75 excess though. What would it have been without the blood test? My dog had a cut leg from glass and had stitches and a sedative and it wasn't anywhere near £180. And I am in London.

hethmar

mum26 wrote: »

Hi all, just had our pet insurance renewal letter through, does this sound ok (I can never figure out which policies are "for life" or what! website info is not very clear for many?):

Veterinary fees (per illness and injury) Max benefit £7500 (£75 excess)?

This is with Healthy pets (underwritten by AXA)

There was a thread on Healthy Pets elsewhere on this board. Basically, no, its not for life, it is limited to the pot of £7500. So if you say had an a chronic illness costing £3k in meds per year, after 2 and half years you would be on your own to pay for the meds. A proper "for life" policy fills the pot up every year and you start over again.

hethmar

"Only once we had clarification from Axa themselves did we go ahead. For your own peace of mind I would ring them and ask the question, only they can give you the definitive answer. Oh, and get the name of the person you spoke to and make a note of when, just in case "

Sadly, if you ring most not for life policy cos the agent will tell you it is for life because they dont understand either. Ive had this conversation a dozen times with More Than insurance who keep ringing me up to flog me pet insurance and it is NOT for life, but each time, the sales person will argue it covers "ongoing conditions" and when I give them a scenario of a chronic condition adding up to £7k in just a year and ask them how much would the dog be covered for the second year of this chronic condition there is always silence, you can hear them actually thinking it through and then they say, "Oh, I see what you mean, I will speak to my supervisor about that". But a few weeks later Ill get another More Than sale person ringing and assuring me its a for life policy

Sooz00

I believe M&S/More Than are both underwritten by RSA.

As with all policies, there are good & bad parts but I would advise anyone thinking of using M&S/More Than/Royal Sun Alliance or any other company underwritten by them to be really careful if wanting cover for complementary therapies or specifically hydrotherapy.

I changed policies a couple of years ago to M&S, having previously been with PetPlan, but concerned about increasing premiums.

When researching policies, I specifically asked about complementary therapy and hydrotherapy as having known dogs that have needed this, I wanted to make sure I was covered. "Yes...' I was told by M&S 'up to £1000 every year as long as you keep renewing....' I thought it was great, PetPlan was only £750 and about £8 a month more expensive at the time. M&S were coming up top with the price against level of cover and I thought I couldn't go wrong with the M&S brand. How wrong could I be?

Two years into the policy, my gorgeous 5 year old rescued cross breed started to limp and get stiff after exercise and so I took her to my vet. He x-rayed and sent them off to a specialist who diagnosed OCD and DJD in her hocks. We were then referred on for CT scan to see if surgically they could help.

It turned out that at this early stage, surgery is not appropriate and we are better to manage the condition with supplements and hydrotherapy to do our best to treat her symptoms and keep them under control and stop it getting worse. If it got worse we were told we would then need drastic surgical intervention.

I called M&S to inform them at which point I was told that I'm not covered. The reason I am not covered is because M&S and their underwriters have a completely different definition of hydrotherapy to the rest of the world, i.e. it is WRONG!!! Apparently hydrotherapy is not treatment of ailments using water therapy (as you'll find in any good dictionary, medical or otherwise), it is (according to M&S and co) 'swimming and water treadmill sessions immediately before and after surgery....'. It seems the ‘before or after surgery’ is all important. (By the way, they also do not cover hydrotherapy for osteoarthritis and do not deem a holiday anywhere other than Europe as a 'holiday' for the purpose of their holiday cancellation cover.)

I feel quite stupid but also ‘conned’. I took out the policy in good faith. Whilst I did read my summary T&Cs, I skim read the definitions and only read things I didn't already know. I KNOW what hydrotherapy means, we had dogs in the family that had it for hip dysplasia. Why would I read a definition if I know what it is already? I know the colour blue is blue, why would I need to look that up? I know a dog is a dog, why would I look that up?

When I spoke to their advisor and specifically asked about the cover, I wasn't told of any conditions applying to it or that they had a different definition to the rest of the world. Now I need them, they're all too quick to point to definitions, rules and regulations.

I am also bemused, having read through an awful lot of other insurer’s T&Cs and definitions following this, as to why M&S/More Than/RSA are the ONLY company that seem to feel the NEED to define hydrotherapy.

What is truly ridiculous is that if we didn't get her the hydrotherapy she needs, her condition will deteriorate and she will, at some point, need either joint fusion or full hock replacement in both back legs. The latter would be the most likely and give her the best mobility but that will mean her going off to a different specialist - The Bionic Vet (Fitzpatrick referrals) - and will cost them £1000s more (possibly at least £10-12,000) than the £40 a week for the hydro and be at the detriment to my dog's health. They are clearly bonkers!

I am speaking to M&S and have my vet and specialist's (a RCVS European Specialist) who both support me in challenging their definition. I just don't want other people to get caught out. My other dog is now safely back with PetPlan. Ok, it's now £10 a month more expensive but they have always been wonderful in the past with my cats and also actually ask how my pet is.

So, everyone chooses the best cover for them. Just please be very very careful if you are thinking if going with M&S/More Than or RSA. I personally will never trust the M&S brand again. They could not care less about my pet and have no common sense whatsoever. They look or every possible reason not to cover you, even if it will cost them more in the long run and you were ‘duped’ into originally taking the policy out.

Oh, and if anyone does have any advice about how I can go forward in my challenge, please post or PM me.

Thanks,

Suzy (rather upset right now) and Poppy (asleep in bed and none the wiser right now).

cathodetube

Suzy - you could contact Radio 4 Your and Yours consumer programme or Watchdog - BBC 1.

Mephista

cathodetube wrote: »

Mephisto, Why did your vet say you may as well get your dog's blood tested? For what reason? I feel that a lot of vets use the fact that if a pet is insured then they will jack prices up because they know the insurance company will pay. You still had to pay £75 excess though. What would it have been without the blood test? My dog had a cut leg from glass and had stitches and a sedative and it wasn't anywhere £180. And I am in London.

Hi my reason for needing these blood tests was probably pretty specific in our case. As you may have seen me mention before, Roxy sadly had to have her womb removed and during that it was discovered that she may have a slight heart murmer and some of her bloods were not entirely normal. While she was getting the stitches done it made sense to get this checked up while it was being paid for anyway because they wanted to be sure whether it was the infection elevating the readings or whether she actually had something else happening that they needed to keep an eye on.

Luckily for us, her bloods have come back normal so it was reassuring to know that she is now in perfect health once again.

I understand that this may not necessarily be the case for everyone but it does make sense to me that if any work or medication she needs goes above the excess and there is something else that may need looked at, may as well get it all done and covered at the same time.

Made sense to us on this occasion anyway. Does that help explain? It doesn't help explain the cost I know and our vets are in the middle of achieving hospital status (NI does not have many of these) so I would say the costs are not going to go down for me either._pale_

oggy1511_2

Hi We have a kitten and Im looking to insure him anyone know the best and cheapest company to get this done with ? Many thanks
Oggy