Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

hethmar

Ive just had a quick look at LVs website and Im afraid its not "for life" - it has two policies, one that runs out after 12 months pay out and another that pays out until the money has been used up. Neither are for life:

• Essential pet insurance - up to 12 months treatment for each condition
• Premier pet insurance - no time limit for treatment for each condition (this means the condition will be paid for until the money runs out)

Ziggy_Stardust

hethmar wrote: »

Ive just had a quick look at LVs website and Im afraid its not "for life" - it has two policies, one that runs out after 12 months pay out and another that pays out until the money has been used up. Neither are for life:

• Essential pet insurance - up to 12 months treatment for each condition
• Premier pet insurance - no time limit for treatment for each condition (this means the condition will be paid for until the money runs out)

Thank you so much. The whole process is so complicated, think I'll go to Petplan, it might be costing be a lot more but I guess I'll have peace of mind.

hethmar

Its an absolute minefield and whilst most non for life would be ok for a lot of people, if you are the one with an animal who has a chronic lifetime condition, you would be well in the poo when the pot was empty.

Lou_C

My head is in a right spin, have read through a few pages of this thread and don't feel any further forward. I have 2 cats both insured with Petplan, luckily I've never had to make a claim, and have been toying with the idea of either changing to a cheaper policy or else cancelling and putting money away each month....or maybe even getting a cheaper policy and putting the difference in price away. At the moment I'm paying £23/m for both cats, with AXA it would be £5.50 for the younger one, haven't got a quote for the older one yet.
We now also have a Labrador who's just turned 1........do I go with AXA at £12/m for £7000/yr for life, and take the chance of a price hike later???? The quotes from Petplan are £28/m for £4000/yr for life or £39 for £12000/yr for life. So even if AXA goes up a fair amount it's still likely to be cheaper.

Ziggy_Stardust

Lou_C wrote: »

We now also have a Labrador who's just turned 1........do I go with AXA at £12/m for £7000/yr for life, and take the chance of a price hike later???? The quotes from Petplan are £28/m for £4000/yr for life or £39 for £12000/yr for life. So even if AXA goes up a fair amount it's still likely to be cheaper.

I also have a lab just turned one, on renewal with Axa I was told it would be £19.62 per month, I asked why so much more than the on-line quote, first off I was told it was because of the 10% discount, I pointed out that the difference was a heck of a lot more than 10% and was then told it was a new customer incentive, sorry but to me this seems underhand. If someone was to join at this lower price and have to make a claim they would then have a pre-exsisting condition which is not likely to be covered with another insurer so might be pretty much stuck with Axa at their higher premiums. I think all insurers should be upfront if there is a special offer for new customers and not try to trap them.

Lou_C

Ziggy_Stardust wrote: »

I also have a lab just turned one, on renewal with Axa I was told it would be £19.62 per month, I asked why so much more than the on-line quote, first off I was told it was because of the 10% discount, I pointed out that the difference was a heck of a lot more than 10% and was then told it was a new customer incentive, sorry but to me this seems underhand. If someone was to join at this lower price and have to make a claim they would then have a pre-exsisting condition which is not likely to be covered with another insurer so might be pretty much stuck with Axa at their higher premiums. I think all insurers should be upfront if there is a special offer for new customers and not try to trap them.

Yes this is what's put me off AXA, however at £19.62 it's still nearly £10/m cheaper than the Petplan quote for £3000/yr less cover????

but the longer I hum and arr the more risk there is of her being ill with something that may be classed as pre existing!!!

Mephista

A slight update for all those who may be interested in the "for life" Greenbee insurance. I just got a letter over the weekend advising that they were now officially changing their name to John Lewis - just in case anyone was trying to look them up. I'm really not trying to sell this for them - although I must admit it looks like it! I've no idea how good they are when it comes to the crunch other than what other people who have taken it up have said but I do know that for my Weim at 61/2 years old, it worked out cheaper than the rest with much better sums involved than Petplan and its definitely lifetime so the amount renews every year. At this stage in her life, that works for me. If anyone else is on this insurance, I would love to hear your thoughts about it.:rotfl:

Ziggy_Stardust

Lou_C wrote: »

Yes this is what's put me off AXA, however at £19.62 it's still nearly £10/m cheaper than the Petplan quote for £3000/yr less cover????

but the longer I hum and arr the more risk there is of her being ill with something that may be classed as pre existing!!!

I'm thinking along the same lines but think I might just play safe and go for Petplan for peace of mind. I also noticed on my renewal form it said period of insurance 20 October 2009 - 19 October 2011, it says the payment is £7k per period of insurance so I'm not sure if this amount renews itself each year, its all just so confusing :undecided

cathodetube

Pet insurers appear to operating a cartel. A lot of them will soon be the same price. And many of them have AXA in common. If you don't have much money, or on benefits, there are always charities like Blue Cross and the PDSA to treat your animal. Pet insurance is not compulsory. And they do not cover every visit and most don't cover dental except Pet Plan which seems unusual to me. Don't forget the excess and percentage of excess that a lot seem to be levying. They are doing their utmost to not pay anything unless it is an emergency, accident or life threatening, cancer, diabetes etc. which fortunately most animals do not get especially if you are feeding them a good diet. I have owned many cats and none of them had any serious illnesses so after my one foray into insurance for my last cat I decided never again.

Meri

I have had many cats and dogs over the years and really let down by some pet insurers.

You never know when your cat or dog will need the vet, over the last three years two of my cats got cancer, one was still insured and was able to have chemo which is much easier on animals then humans, she did really well for another three years due to this treatment, then I let her go as soon it was clear drugs not working.

The other had Pet plan cover but due to having a cyst removed five years ago they refused to cover her for the cancer she developed so had to go to PDSA, They refused to do chemo and she died within six months it broke my heart.

I also have one cat who is now 17 years old and very arthritic, she needs steroids to reduce the soreness every month but my Pet plan will only cover this for a year.

So when I got two new kittens I thouroughly reserached all the insurances on offer and how they covered the animal.

I decided a Life Time plan was much better as it covers all illnesses again and again up to a certain amount each year rather then taking certain conditions off there cover after a year.

I went for the M&S lifetime cover which gives up to £7,000 per year for each condition, so if my cats gets an upset tummy or breaks a leg they will be fully covered for each illness up to the full £7,000.

I pay just over £8 for female cat and £12 for male cat per month and knowing I have this much better cover gives me great piece of mind.

There are so many new treaments now for animals but they are expensive so PDSA etc will not provide them so I reccomend insurance, good insurance for all pets as to know your animal could get better treatment if you had insured them can be so upsetting.:)