MSE News: Fury as Lloyds insurance cull puts pets' lives 'at risk'

Former_MSE_Guy

mystic_trev wrote: »

Fury as Lloyds insurance cull puts pets' lives 'at risk'

It's not Lloyds Insurance, they are the oldest established Insurers in the World!

www.lloyds.com/Lloyds/About-us/History

It's Lloyds Bank Insurance!

Hi Trev,
The piece is clearly about Lloyds Banking Group, and using Lloyds in its shortened form is common place in the media in headlines where space is limited, where there isn't the space to write Lloyds Banking Group.

In any case, if we were talking about the Lloyd's insurance market then, as I've written in this sentence, Lloyd's has an apostrophe so is written differently.

Hope that answers your concern.
Guy

Olokia

gadgetmind wrote: »

We've got five moggies, mainly rescue animals including one feral who's slowly coming around, and we've never bothered insuring any of them, or any of our previous pets.

Over the long term, and particularly if you have multiple pets, then you're better off keeping the money safe and using it as and when required.

I always get insurance for my animals and I think owners are irresponsible if they don't because anything can happen.

About 6 weeks after getting a cat, she ended up with a £1200 vet bill because she got a few lumps and had to have surgery and expensive blood tests which turned out to be allergies. She now has to have expensive steroids for her allergies and I would never have been able to afford all that without insurance. I am glad that I never went with Lloyds or Halifax for my pet insurance.

As it was only 6 weeks after getting her I wouldn't have been able to self insure either because there wouldn't have been enough in the bank account.

HELEN75_2

Hi this is a message for selbylass really i too had my westie insured with halifax and took out the xtra policy he was insured from 8 weeks of age back in october 2008 and they ceased the policy in october, he has got chronic skin problems with ear problems aswell that he has had roughly in £1500 of claims per year since i took the policy out, just wondered how long you have had your policy running and if you have been offered any compensation from halifax, i have made numerous phone calls and sent letters to bdml and halifax but had no luck in being offered anything like some people have, i have now put it in the hands of the financial ombudsman as had nothing from halifax but they have said not to hold out much hope on getting compensation so not sure where we stand here

gadgetmind

meher wrote: »

very sad, why is it that we don't have an nhs for animals

I mentioned this comment to someone I know and he thought it was an *excellent* idea. He has eight horses and would love the tax payer to cover their vets bills.

I assume you're OK with this?

gadgetmind

Olokia wrote: »

I always get insurance for my animals and I think owners are irresponsible if they don't because anything can happen.

On the other hand, as insurance can be pulled from under you at any point, perhaps it's irresponsible to get a pet if you can't pay for their upkeep from cashflow?.

davidgmmafan

I really wish people would pay attention as its so straight forward contracts are very VERY important unless the dominant party (who drafts the contract) decides they want it to mean something else. So you have to put up with banks saying about charges its in the T's 7 C's (even though all banks apart from Nationwide redrafted those same T's 7 C's to make them sound more like service charges and less like penalty charges), and then the government says it HAS to stick to the contractual arrangements for that stuff they're making abroad (trains was it?) whilst at the same time seeking to change the conditions agreed for certain people's pensions.

Well I hope I've cleared things up... Can't sum it up any better, lifetime doesn't mean lifetime, question is how low will we allow them to go???

selbylass

HELEN75
I started my dog's policy back in Feb 2006. I was notified on the 15th Jan by BDML not Halifax that the policy wouldn't be renewed (it was due for renewal on the 10th Feb). On the 23rd Jan I wrote to Halifax, BDML (the administrators) and Agria (the underwriters). Both BDML and Agria responded two days later and both made it very clear the complaints I'd raised were down only to the Halifax. I contacted Marc Gander (The Consumer Action Group) and he got the media involved. I still hadn't had any contact from Halifax. After my dog and I appeared on BBC Breakfast tv on Tues 7th Feb, I received a very short letter (dated 7th Feb) marked "PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL". Basically it states 'they are very sorry to hear we are unhappy with them and would assure us that they are looking into our complaints'. Like I'm going to be assured by anything they say? They go on to request we be patient as these things can take some time. I know they are aware that a Lawyer and Compliance expert, Adam Samuel, has dissected all my policies and T&Cs going back to 2006 and I suspect they are looking for a way out. I haven't been offered any compensation as I made it very clear I wasn't interested in a lump sum. I want my policy reinstating or a alternative with the same benefits organised. Because the Halifax have placed me in a position where I cannot get cover for my dog -due to him now being labelled as having a heart condition and as such anything systemic would be excluded -Legal experts I have spoken to, assure me, Halifax will have very little choice but to redress my situation. Stick to your guns and make as much public noise as you can!! They are hoping people will just wander quietly away. Halifax were dishonest and at the very least - they MIS-SOLD their 'life-long' policy. Keep on at Halifax and keep on at the ombudsman. Also write to the FSA who regulate the Banks. Halifax are most certainly in breach of ICOBS by what they have done. Good Luck!

Captain_Sensible

Sorry to say this but I find this story completely unsurprising and to be honest - inevitable.
Insurance companies were rubbing their hands together some years ago at the prospect of cashing in on the easily exploited customer (ANY animal owner like myself in other words) and what they did not anticipate was that veterinary practices up and down the land were rubbing their greedy hands together even more than they were.
Vets could now charge what they liked because there was often an insurance policy funding it. The real crime has been the evolution of the tariff of charges for even simple surgical procedures being blown out of all proportion from the perspective of non-insured clients.
Greed joined hands with greed and created a disaster in terms of affordable pet care.

davidgmmafan

"Insurance companies were rubbing their hands together some years ago at the prospect of cashing in on the easily exploited customer (ANY animal owner like myself in other words) and what they did not anticipate was that veterinary practices up and down the land were rubbing their greedy hands together even more than they were."

The same thing happens with garages inflating prices for repairs done through insurance. Are you saying the insurance industry is powerless to stop this?

HELEN75_2

Hi Selbylass

I am definitely not giving up as i too cannot get anybody else to cover my dog with his skin condition as they feel he is a high risk that will cost them thousands over the years and doesn't make sense for them to cover him, which you cannot blame other insurers but i solely blame the halifax for letting me and my dog down, i have written again this week to the halifax and its in the hands of the FOS but i cannot find the financial insurance servies address to write to so will appreciate if anybody can help me on this address, i still feel the big companies will win like they always do at the end of the day and still leave us pet owners liable for the expenses we will have to face in the future, but i must fight out of principal over something i strongly agree with