Pet Insurance Cost Cutting System/MoneySavingExpert.com Discussion

Hillbilly2

sarahlcpearce wrote: »

Any help greatful!
I took out insurance with animal friends for my terrier cross when he was a puppy (he's now 2 years 4 months) at the start of the summer he started limping, a trip to the vets confirmed my fears. He had snapped his cruciate ligament and had to go for specialist treatment in Newcastle to rebuild it. I paid the £100 excess and the operation was done. I received a phone call from the vet saying the insurance had only paid out £267 of the £2000 operation, leaving me to make up the£1800. I've arranged a standing order with he vet, I'm on such a low wage, it's going o take me the next 10 years but I'd do anything for my dog. I want to know if anyone has any advice for me? Can I get help in paying it back?
Worried!! Xxx

AF are awful, I imagine there are limits per condition per year of something like £500 - therefore £500 for the cruciate. I'd also check if it covers bilateral conditions, i.e. it no won't cover the other leg.

Hillbilly2

UKTigerlily wrote: »

Just wondering what others would do, I know my cat needs to be insured but don't want to go crazy. She is almost 15 1/2, i've had her for 13yrs & not once needed to claim. She does go out but nowhere near to any roads & isn't a fighter with other cats. My main concerns are kidney disease, diabetes & thyroid but how much would it cost per month (roughly) to treat these, do I just pay myself (could afford a few hundred) or shall I insure her? I'm tempted by the Pet Plan one but it's only 3k per condition for max 12 months & i'm not sure of how much really to get.

I've also been looking into this. 17yPersians insurance now £71.08 a month! We have claimed loads - as in they are still not making money from her!

However, as she is 17 theres a limit to what we'd put her through. Do we need £4k per year life cover?

Thyroid/heart/kidney meds can be bought online fro about £50 a month each. Bloods maybe £100 every 3-6 months.

We had her eye removed due to chronic ulcerations last year. Shes super arthritic so if she broke a leg (is 100% indoors) we wouldn't put her under the pressure of a repair.

Eye removal if issues with other eye £700, so less than premiums - and it would be classed as bilateral so not covered!

More than do decent older cat cover too - worth a look.

elsien

Anyone got any suggestions for this one?
Always used petplan in the past as although expensive they always paid up.
However the quote for a 2year old english bull terrier with no pre-existing conditions (they won't let me say cross breed as I don't know what he's crossed with ) is coming up as £65 pm for the classic £4000 and 71 for the classic £7000 cover. And there's a £90 excess. And that's with the 10% online discount.:eek:
Which seems to be to be silly money for that age perfectly healthy pooch in the midlands.

So firstly how do I persuade them to let me register him as a mutt not a pedigree, and secondly, how do I find out who the more reputable for life alternatives are. I've heard such horror stories about companies hoiking premiums etc I don't know where to start.

cathodetube

Can't you say terrier cross? There are loads of those about. That sounds a high premium for such a young dog. What part of the country are you in? Who are you insured with now?

TomsMom

elsien wrote: »

Anyone got any suggestions for this one?
Always used petplan in the past as although expensive they always paid up.
However the quote for a 2year old english bull terrier with no pre-existing conditions (they won't let me say cross breed as I don't know what he's crossed with ) is coming up as £65 pm for the classic £4000 and 71 for the classic £7000 cover. And there's a £90 excess. And that's with the 10% online discount.:eek:
Which seems to be to be silly money for that age perfectly healthy pooch in the midlands.

So firstly how do I persuade them to let me register him as a mutt not a pedigree, and secondly, how do I find out who the more reputable for life alternatives are. I've heard such horror stories about companies hoiking premiums etc I don't know where to start.

After recent discussions about insurance with my vet, the only ones she recommends are

PetPlan
John Lewis
M & S

and she said to avoid E & L and any company underwritten by them.

However, I had a 120% hike in premium following a claim for £302 with John Lewis. My son has his dog with JL too and he's just had a 60% hike in premium even though there have been no claims. It's the underwriters who set the premiums and it's RSA who underwrite JL and M & S so beware any company underwritten by RSA as I'm sure their premiums will rise also.

It really is a difficult one and it seems that RSA do underwrite a lot of policies so may not be easy to find one not underwritten by them.

My son had has previous dog (no longer with us) insured with MoreThan. He did have to pay the excess plus 10% of any claim but last year when the dog was ill investigations reached around £5,000 and MoreThan paid up with no problems.

Good luck with your search but remember, if you've had this dog since a puppy then whatever is on his vet records already that show any clinical signs or symptoms (whether or not claimed for) will be classed as a pre-existing condition if you change insurers. That information was given to me by one insurance company when I was looking into renewal earlier this year for my dog.

elsien

cathodetube wrote: »

Can't you say terrier cross? There are loads of those about. That sounds a high premium for such a young dog. What part of the country are you in? Who are you insured with now?

I asked them that on the phone and unless a vet or the rescue can say what he's crossed with they're saying I need to put english bull terrier down. I'm in the midlands and not currently insured as I've just had him from a rescue. He's a clean slate healthwise as far as insurance is concerned as he was picked up off the streets as a stray.

I was looking at John Lewis, but those premium increases have given me pause for thought.

cathodetube

What does he look like? Could you ask the rescue to come up with an educated guess? You could have one of those tests done that determine his ancestry, but I have no idea how much it costs. Those tests were done on the recent dog TV programmes presented by Kate Humble.

elsien

He looks like an ebt, but he's not purebred - I've had 2 before and I can see the difference. I need to get him microchipped so l'll have to see if the vet will hazard a guess. I'm thinking possibly staffie, and am now wondering if a bullie/staffie x sounds even worse in insurance terms - they'll probably load it for aggression, although he's the friendliest dog I've ever had.

cathodetube

Hmm, think you are probably right about saying ebt/staffy cross sounding worse. Lots of staffies aren't good with other dogs as you probably know. Does the ebt breed have a lot of known health problems. If so, might be why the premium is high.

elsien

Yes, my previous 2 had lots of ongoing ailments, which is why I'm not looking at self insuring.