Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

circuit

I agree with those who say insurance is not worth it. I was a great advocate of pet insurance for the eight years since I got my cats (as kittens) who initially cost around £20 a month in total with M&S - no excess and amazing cover. I didn't claim more than £500 in those eight years, but I was happy enough with it.

Then I added a dog who we rescued last year and realised the total monthly premium was now £50 for the cats PLUS £25 for the dog PLUS a £50-£100 excess for each animal which I found totally unacceptable, especially since none of our animals spend much time outside (their choice!) - on top of this the quality of cover had gradually been eroded since I last checked the policy.

I had also been overcharged by M&S for a year after they put down my cat as a pedigree. They refused to alter the policy and made me over-pay due to their error for the full year. At the end of the year it took me six weeks to change it again, at which point they tried exactly the same trick.

We cancelled all the pet insurance last year and now put £75 a month into a savings account which we do not touch. It mounts up quickly. Public liabilty is covered on other policies, and our own self-insurance covers things like vaccinations which insurance obviously never pay for anyway. Keep a credit card on hand for the first year in case anything really bad happens before you have anything in savings. After a year you're earning interest on a fairly substantial amount of money. Yes, pet accidents and illnesses can be expensive but this is the risk you take when you get a pet (or a car, or a house, or a washing machine...)

mousehouse

Have a tesco renewal for £31.06. moggie £ 12.69, 8 years old. and £18.36 for a Cavilier king Charles who is 2 !
excess £100 on cat,£120 on dog. They have the extra cover. tesco said they would give me 5% discount or 1600 clubcard points if I stayed with them .

had a quote for £34.81 from pet Doctors.

cathodetube

Agree with circuit. I too was with M&S. Just put money away each month.

salsa-sam

HateBanks, yeah so many look cheap till you look at the small print ! is there no regulation on this it all seams to differ so much and horrid once you get tied in somewhere.

Im trying to decide between £32.99 at argos premium cover or VetsMediCover £18.
Argos include travel but to be honest we dont travel much an on the odd occation i we might go to France i think its cheeper to take out pet travel insurance just for the trip.
VetsMediCover includes dental treatment which sounds fab but because they are new i cant find any real reviews on them only saying they woundnt trust the undrwriter whitehorse, but i dont undersand what that really means whether to stay clear or not?

Any suggestions?

thanks,x

salsa-sam

If anyones interested VetsMediCover just posted this on their facebook page:-
"White Horse Insurance, owned by Thomas Cook, provide the financial security. However, they are not involved in handling claims as this has been outsourced to a specialist UK based claims bureau who are contracted to provide high levels of service and are not connected in any way with other claims from this underwriter"

Stillookinafterthepennies

Hi everyone,

Just wanted some advice please, I have been reading this thread from the beginning :eek: over the last few days and am so confused and in a total spin about getting my 14 yr old cat covered for life?

Ok long story as short as poss.. we adopted him just over a year ago from a neighbour and I did have a look and some quotes from various insurers but none seemed the right one.
I have read so many accounts of people with wrong policy not fully covered etc that I thought must get it right don't rush basically...

Anyway no excuses but after a stressful few months and illhealth of myself and family members I now find myself thinking omg STILL not insured him and godforbid what if?

So as I am currently off work with a frozen shoulder I am trying to find life cover for a male 14 yr old cat who has had a couple of ear infections/wax build up.
I am both angry with myself and worried as his annual booster and check up is due next week not on 31st march as I had thought. I pray nothing is wrong as he is older for his sake but as I am not yet covered any emergency would have to go on credit card.

Please can anyone suggest a life cover? After reading here I had throught ok prob axa or nfu as petplan won't cover older cat. Just googled axa and read awful reviews people saying they have changed their administrater?

I haven't read end of thread yet but has it all changed again?

Thanks for any help just want cover asap..

cathodetube

Stilllookinafterthepennies, if I were you I would not insure the cat you have adopted. Just put some money aside each month. It is highly unlikely you will find many places to insure him at his age, and if they do, you will pay a high premium and any ear problems would be excluded as they are a pre-existing condition. Also, if he has had any other treatment in the past for anything that/those would also be excluded. You will not have his check-up covered by insurance either, nor injections. The excesses on policies are constantly rising, plus a lot of policies require the owner to pay a percentage of any treatment. Also, if I were you, I would not let the cat have annual injections every year. It has been proven that immunity lasts at least three years minimum, and possibly for the lifetime of the animal. Most vets (except the money-grabbing ones) agree with this. An older animal can also react badly to injections. I had never heard of that before! It happened to a cat of mine. She died. She was 16. The vet told me afterwards that it was known for it to happen. Since then I have had quite a few conversations with vets and vet nurses who say they do not give annual boosters to their cats any more. I stopped with my last cat when he was about 8. By all means take the cat for a general check-up but don't have the booster.

Stillookinafterthepennies

Hia cathodetube,
Thanks for the reply, I am so sorry your cat died following a booster it is so terrifying to think something we do to protect them could do that..
Re the ins I am scared to not do it tbh... I don't think I can rest thinking about it, even putting money aside as I would not have enough if he developed something like diabetes or kidney probs or anything else longterm. One off minor (ish) treatment I could at a push pay via the plastic but although I do understand your point of view I don't think I can opt to just self insure. Bottom line is that I can't live with the risk, I'm just worried I haven't got it before his check up next week which I thought was due 31st march along with booster (although now that is a big ? mark) he does go out though and is very territorial so will fight other cats if they come into our garden.
Maybe I should ring vet monday and ask re the booster..
Its so hard isn't it to try and make all these decisions, I don't have children and he has become my baby..
Thanks again x

Forgot to mention, we have kept him with same vet and when I did ask about his history all he had was vaccinations and a single visit for a cleaning/dressing of a minor leg wound about 6yrs ago. I know the ear probs would be excluded and routine stuff like advocate spot-on etc. I will double check with them though as they have many branches of their practice.

cathodetube

Is he neutered? Has he had injuries from fighting? You don't have to have the checkup bang on 12 months you know. I would first have a ring round to see who would cover him. It is your decision about the booster, not the vet, but if he has been having them every year for 14 years then I certainly wouldn't do it this year. Remember the checkup will not be covered by any insurance, nor will any boosters.

Stillookinafterthepennies

He is neutered, he missed 2009 booster as previous owner could not get him to the vet, he hates going and has been sick with fear previously with her, and once when I took him for his ears.
I guess I could delay the checkup and have longer to think about the booster but I think his ears are playing him up again and would prefer to put him through only 1 visit if possible.