Best Pet Insurance for dogs

devildog

Pet Plan is good and their premiums are ok to start with but I found the monthly premium did rise significantly over the years(despite no claims) and I dread to think what the price would of been with claims.
I know someone who has insured with (and had significant claims) with NFU and they found them very good.
After 8 odd years with Pet Plan I decided to go with Sainsbury's(don't live anywhere near them though ) The monthly payment was cheaper and in my opinion the cover was better, although tbh the next year their premiums went up quite a bit so I decided to insure no more (the insurance companies blame the high premiums on the vets charges) Not that I would recomend doing this but having had no claims ever and the dog now being well into old age it was the right choice for us.

Mutter_2

On the majority view I was about to pay AXA, when I saw this:

"You accept that previous, existing, ongoing and recurring medical conditions and symptoms will not be covered by your AXA Pet Insurance policy"

I understand the previous and existing, but ongoing and recurring, does that mean for instance if he developed a long term condition they could stop cover?

I also dropped the excess from £100 as I thought that high, to £75 but the premium didn't change. £17.98 pm for a Cocker Spaniel age 6yrs 6mths.

Nfu was a lot higher for less cover.

I_am_mad

Oh right thats worthe bearing in mind about AXA does anyone else know what this means? Is sainsburys life long?

cinderellacomplex

@ AXA

Section 1: Veterinary Fees: What we will not pay item 14: Continuation claims unless you have paid the premiums to keep the insurance in force

So it does cover continuing illnesses after the first year as long as you renew on time, same as with most insurers.

ETA: I think what the previous statement probably meant was that even if whatever your pet has had cleared up and then recurred after the policy start or even if it continued for past the 14 days exclusion it won't be covered. It doesn't cover illnesses that start after the 14 days unless you don't renew or pay the premiums.

Mutter_2

All done with AXA and upgraded Petlog to premium. Thanks all on the recommendations.:T Wouldn't it be great if we could pick and mix our requirements on the policy? I'd cross off the death by illness for a start.

hethmar

Mutter,
"You accept that previous, existing, ongoing and recurring medical conditions and symptoms will not be covered by your AXA Pet Insurance policy"

I understand the previous and existing, but ongoing and recurring, does that mean for instance if he developed a long term condition they could stop cover ?"

It means that if your dog has had a condition before you take their policy, that reoccurs again in his lifetime, then you will not be covered. Its the same with all policies. Once you have received treatment or advice on a condition, that and any others caused by it/related to it will be excluded. All insurers will do the same, not just AXA.

Petplans middle policy for £4k excludes death and holiday cover, if that is what you want.

Iam mad, why did you not like AXA? it should give you a better price than petplan.

Mupette, sorry but Sainsburys dont give the full life cover we all recommend. Its per condition. Once your pot has been used up, you will be on your own if you have a chronic condition. Hopefully that wont happen, but if say a dog developed a hip problem, £5k for op and some therapy plus ongoing medication and so on, when it reached £7k you would be on your own for any further treatment for that condition.

hethmar

I_am_mad wrote: »

Hi yes I did get a quote from AXA but there was a reason I didnt like them but now I cant remember

So if I go with petplan for it to be covered for life I would need to renew evey year and the price may go up which I cant then haggle for?

I am going to have a look at NFU now. The 4,000 seems a lot less than the ones that offer 7,000 but then I guess its cause its lifetime cover? .

You have to renew your policy every year with every insurer. Nope, they dont do haggling with insurance. The only way you may get some money off is to ring them up just before renewal and say you are going to have to change insurers because of the cost. They may then offer a small discount. But of course, if you have been to a vet with your dog, then whatever you saw the vet about will be excluded from another insurer's cover.

NFU is from what I remember £4k per condition per year. You cant buy it online, you have to ring them or go to their office as they tend to tailor make it for you.

Mupette

devildog wrote: »

Pet Plan is good and their premiums are ok to start with but I found the monthly premium did rise significantly over the years(despite no claims) and I dread to think what the price would of been with claims.
I know someone who has insured with (and had significant claims) with NFU and they found them very good.
After 8 odd years with Pet Plan I decided to go with Sainsbury's(don't live anywhere near them though ) The monthly payment was cheaper and in my opinion the cover was better, although tbh the next year their premiums went up quite a bit so I decided to insure no more (the insurance companies blame the high premiums on the vets charges) Not that I would recomend doing this but having had no claims ever and the dog now being well into old age it was the right choice for us.

interesting, i shall await next year and see what happens, if they bump mine up i too may have to shop around again, :T

hethmar

Mupette, do bear in mind Sainsburys is a limited pot of money, not the full life standard that we have been talking about.

The trouble with pet insurance is that you can get stuck with an insurer once your dog has been treated or even just seen a vet about a condition.

devildog

Why not try the defaqto site. It is easy to use , has just about all companies that do pet insurance and provides a really easy comparison table
If you cover with Axa it is per year
with sainsburys it is per condition but they have better alternative medication cover, better accidental death payout and better kennel fees.

It really is swings and roundabouts so you really do have to choose the policy that suits your budget, breed of dog and known possible conditions, as well as considering how much your dog costs etc etc, one policy doesn't suit another.