Confused with all the choices.

Justme29

I have a 11 year old shorthair cross called Barney who I need to insure.

I got him about a month ago from Battersea,and the price I paid for him included insurance(Petplan)which expired yesterday.

Petplan have quoted me 14 odd pounds per month(think it's for a 12 month policy rather than lifetime), but just so confused with all the insurance there is about.

I only work part time, so don't want to spend more than 20 pounds per month, but don't have a clue who to go with, and what each policy includes.

He is mainly an indoor cat, but does go out, and he is a very healthy cat.

Ilona

Have you thought about insuring him yourself. By that I mean putting money aside every month, direct debit into another account, to build up a pot for when, or if, it is needed. Ok you take the chance that Barney will not need to go to the vet sooner rather than later, but then Barney might never need to go to the vet.

I insured my cat seventeen years ago, and he has never needed any treatment so all that money is lost. My friend who has 12 cats has none of them insured, she puts money aside.

It's just another option.
Ilona

rising_from_the_ashes

I would try to get cover if you can - both my cats are insured but the dog isn't and I do as Ilona suggests for him - not by choice but because he was an older rescue when I got him and due to no medical history and no accurate age either it was going to be extortionate (they wanted £45/month + £100 excess per condition - 5 years ago)!

However, I've been lucky with him - few upset tums (less than the £100 excess each time) and now on arthritis treatment (costs £15/month online) - but I wouldn't recommend it.

You may be restricted in the insurers you can go with due to his age - but try to get a "for life" policy if you can.

Try PDSA - they have no upper age limit and you can pay interest free monthly - http://www.pdsa.org.uk/how-you-can-help/pdsa-pet-insurance and they have 3 policy limits so you can choose the one that suits the best.

There are others that insure older pets (Sainsbury's Finance, PetPlan etc) but please read the T&Cs fully.

I just had a quick look at PetPlan and noticed that their "for life" cover must be started before the cat is 10 - which is why they've probably done a quote for 12 month cover only and this may well apply to other insurers (in which case it wouldn't be worth paying the extra for life cover).