Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

Murielson

Not been on this thread for some time and makes for interesting reading. I was about to post about Halifax' terrible response to a recent claim and am reading that they no longer appear to do pet insurance - is this correct?

We have been awaiting payment for some time and are getting the typical customer services run around such as cheque will be with you in 5 days; cheque comes from different department we have done our bit etc. Considering this is a cheque for circa £570 it is extremely poor. At what stage do you go from waiting patiently to looking for the number for the insurance Ombudsman?

charlea

in the end i went with argos for our 3 douge de bordeaux and bullmastiffs its 100 a month for lifetime of 7000/platininum so 25 a month which isnt to bad considering pet plan wanted 56 for each dog and some like john lewis wont even cover douge de bordeauxs

BaileyB

Thinking of going with Argos, want a pet insurance company that if they get an illness still covers them for the life of the cat, without premiums going through the roof the following year. Got 3 cats to insure as Halifax is closing now.

laplandmad

Hi,
I have read through many of the posts on this board about pet insurance and which company to go with etc but I am still unsure of what I should be looking for in a policy. Can anyone point out the basics? Do the premiums reflect better cover?
We are having a Cavopoo (Cavalier Poodle X) in January - he will be 9 weeks old.

Many thanks.

Bromley86

First you need to ask why you're insuring. I'd suggest that it's to cover unexpected long term illnesses and operations rather than boo-boos.

Given that, IMO, you need to go for a £5-7k policy where that limit resets every year. Start with Pet Plan, just to scare yourself, and then try AXA. Then try anyone else that you want who offer a £5-7k policy (but do check exactly what they're offering - they can say "lifetime", but mean that once you hit £7k that's it).

Not much help, I know, but you really do just have to get test quotes online. You can put in dummy details to speed it up. Oh, and give NFU a call (IIRC they don't do an online quote). Finally, always remember that the insurer may withdraw from the market, leaving you with no policy. So I'd stick to someone less likely to do that (like AXA, NFU, etc.).

laplandmad

Thanks for that.
I have looked at a few policies and they don't include dental costs - is this normal? Is it worth paying a premium for if you can find one that will cover you?

Thanks

Bromley86

>Is it worth paying a premium for if you can find one that will cover you?

It's a tough one for me to call as I have zero experience of doggy dental issues. Gut feel is no. I base that on thinking about what'd happen if I wasn't insured and something was wrong with a single tooth (I'd pay it as I assume the cost wouldn't be all that much more than the excess) or if it affected a load of teeth (I'd not pay more than cheapest option as I assume the cost would be extensive - wet food time for the dog). Contrast that with the sort of thing I personally insure against (cancer or long term illnesses, congenital defects, broken limbs, etc.). As always, YMMV.

Mabinogion

Hi I am also looking for new Insurance and saw the 'Bubble' insurance which came out much cheaper.

I am devastated regarding Halifax Pet Xtra, I had a phone call last week from BDML and the chap saying it was his job to explain to me what was going to happen and that I wouldn't be able to renew my policy in January.

I have been paying £24.04 a month for Jess who is now 9 year old and is suffering with Primary Closed Angle Glaucoma in both eyes and is now totally blind and we have been taking her back and forth Leominster Eye Clinic for over 2 years now and the eye drops cost a fortune at the clinic so have been buying them from Boots after paying £9 for the prescription and each visit to the clinic costs £95.50.

He said he they were recommending 'Petwise' but couldn't confirm if they would honour pre existing conditions but have phoned Petwise and of course they won't.

I too have phoned the Financial Ombudsman and was told they would send me a pack of info' and to fill in the forms etc but like everyone else says it's probably a waste of time and of all the things to happen now Jess my dog has gone down hill a bit with something else and because my policy runs out next week I have had to take her to the vets with this new illness which looks like inflamation of the pancreas where they did blood tests on Friday which cost £118.00 and £36.00 today with a return visit and have to go back on Wednesday to see if the anti biotics are working that's without her eye problem ~ ofcourse I have been looking at other Insurances but don't know which one to rely on now as she is 9yrs old and with these two pre existing conditions now we are stuck too ~ it's really so wrong of them..
I was looking at More Than as it came out at £18.56 which was better than £24.24 and the 'Bubble' one came out really cheap so not sure if I did something wrong in filling out the boxes...

Mabinogion

Been looking and looking on the net and have come up with Marks and Spencers or More Than I couldn't get anything to work on the Pet Plan website as it only came up with the Essential Package I couldn't get into the Classic or the ?? forgot what it was called now anyway will phone them tomorrow any thoughts on these??

digitalphase

I took out my first cat insurance a few days ago, after my other cat's surprise visit to the vet.

Went with Sainsbury's, who seemed pretty good at £10.86 per month (7.5k vet fees, £50 excess). They also give £60 cashback, so the whole year's policy only costs me around £60.

I was looking at More Than, but didn't like the £75 excess PLUS 10% of vet's fees. Works out pretty expensive.

Hopefully I'll never need to claim, huh.