Pet Insurance advice

*Scarlett

Hi

I have been looking at pet insurance policies for my 5 month old Cairn Terrier.

I initially wasn't going to bother with this as I have never had it for any other pets but I am increasingly concerned that I may need it this one has a habit of eating everything in sight - he has had eyeshadow, bronzer, my good MAC make up brush, part of a gold & seed-pearl bracelet, plants, branches & stones from the garden, couple of packs of cigarettes and the last straw was last night when he gobbled an earring from my ear. (This is not to mention various other household & clothing items that have been chewed!) :mad:

So I have been looking online all morning and found a couple of policies that I can afford.

I had searched through Defaqto for 5 star policies as I want to have a good level of cover and came up with

Argos Platinum £10.08 per month = £120.89
Halifax Extra £11.38 per month = £136.54

Both have excess at £65 and similar features.

Both policies are underwritten by Agria International Försäkring AB.

Does anyone have any experience of this company?

I am drawn to the Argos policy as some of the limits seem to be slightly higher but I would be grateful if anyone had any experience or advice on this.

Many thanks.

stormCat99

I'm not familiar with with those policies, but I would say the most important thing is to make sure the one you go with, offers an annual cover limit per condition, not lifetime cover.

With lifetime cover, say for example your pet got an ongoing illness such as diabetes, then the amount you are allowed to claim is for the lifetime of the pet. Once the limit has been reached, you can claim no more.

Whereas with annual condition cover, you get an amount per condition PER YEAR. So if you use up the allowance for a given conidition, then as soon as the next policy year starts you'll get another claim allowance.

Edited to add: you would be better off posting in the Pets forum, there are lots of similar threads on there. HTH.

dacouch

boots_babe wrote: »

I'm not familiar with with those policies, but I would say the most important thing is to make sure the one you go with, offers an annual cover limit per condition, not lifetime cover.

With lifetime cover, say for example your pet got an ongoing illness such as diabetes, then the amount you are allowed to claim is for the lifetime of the pet. Once the limit has been reached, you can claim no more.

Whereas with annual condition cover, you get an amount per condition PER YEAR. So if you use up the allowance for a given conidition, then as soon as the next policy year starts you'll get another claim allowance.

Edited to add: you would be better off posting in the Pets forum, there are lots of similar threads on there. HTH.

The OP wants a "Lifetime" policy with the benefits being refreshed each year

stormCat99

Hmm I just reread the OP but can't see where they say that?

I think the key thing is to ensure you have cover per condition PER YEAR.

Not just per condition, otherwise your claim allowance will eventually run out if you have to keep claiming for an ongoing condition.

HTH.

dacouch

boots_babe wrote: »

Hmm I just reread the OP but can't see where they say that?

I think the key thing is to ensure you have cover per condition PER YEAR.

Not just per condition, otherwise your claim allowance will eventually run out if you have to keep claiming for an ongoing condition.

HTH.

I was clarifying your post as it could make the OP buy a non "For Life" policy if they miss understood your post

stormCat99

Ah ok sorry! Misunderstood your post.

RuthnJasper

Hey sweetie.

Cannot advise on either of these - but I insured my dog Jasper with Petplan. They insure for the lifetime of the dog (some policies cease when the dog is eight years-old) and also for the lifetime of any illness, no matter what its duration (most policies will only pay out for one year of, say, cancer or asthma treatment. This meant a lot to me, as Jasper's predecesor, Tess, lost her life to cancer aged 7 after a brave 2½-year fight. She wasn't insured, and that's what ultimately bankrupted me. No matter - I would do it again in a heartbeat).

I claimed three times for relatively trivial things for Jas and never had ANY hassles over payouts, claims, etc. Petplan were fab.

(N.B. When I went insolvent, I cancelled the insurance - and I do NOT work for Petplan).

But they were still really helpful and, in my view, money well-spent.

Hope this helps. Good luck to you and your new doggy-friend!!

from Ruth & Jasper (of www.jasper-thedogsblog.blogspot.com) xx

adamc260

Petplan are usually VERY expensive

dacouch

adamc260 wrote: »

Petplan are usually VERY expensive

But arguably the best

adamc260

dacouch wrote: »

But arguably the best

Depends really.. there's a lot of other policies out there that are comparable but charge less. Petplan is underwritten by Allianz who are nothing special

*Scarlett

Many thanks for all your replies.

Will check the annual / lifetime / per condition cover - think I've got my head round this now!

I did have a look at Petplan as I have heard they are very good but it was very expensive £25 per month mid-range cover to £35 top range and I just can't afford this at the minute.

I really appreciate all the advice and replies.

(RuthnJasper - had a look at your link - he's adorable)!