E&L (pet-insurance.co.uk) being mean?

fatbadger2

Hi - moved this from insurance section as not much response.

Any advice on how to deal with the dreaded E&L con-surance company would be very much appreciated.

My pet insurance company have refused to pay out on my vet bill. The reason is because when I renewed (been with them 3 yrs) I did not state that the vet had noted a 'fatty lump' on her tummy. [NB, he said it was harmless and common and just leave it].

Spin forward 9 months and the lump suddenly seemed to be getting bigger, so he (another vet) suggested we remove it, which cost £328.

E&L say that because it was an "existing condition" and I did not state this "new health problem" on the renewal the insurance is now void.

They may be technically correct??, but it seems a bit sneaky, as I did not withheld information with the intent to conceal. I did not tell them simply because this lump was NOT a health issue at the time and it never occurred to me to do so. But I guess this is shaky ground???

If you google E&L pet insurance review, you will see they get 1/5 star from 479 reviews at https://www.reviewcentre.com - this must be how they make their money

trudij

They are awful IMO. (and the O of many many others!) but yes - all insurance companies ask for you to tell them of anything that comes up on your animal, so that they know when you have seen it. This is why I always tell people to claim, regardless of the amount over the excess their bill goes - because the insurance company will ALWAYS ask the vet for the animals history - and if theres something on there that they dont know about, then they will quibble. You can ask the vet to write and say that the lump was noticed for the first time 9 months ago (with the date) but at the time was not considered anything that warrented further investigation and they might let you do it as a claim on the grounds that the year starts on the date back in November (?) that it was first noticed, but you would be quite lucky (bearing in mind its E&L)

good luck - and hope that she gets better soon

Hillbilly1

It depends on your policy wording. I f you have been insured on a for life policy for 3 years and this has happened in the last 3 years it should be covered.

Complain! Write to E&L, then their underwriter and then the insurance ombudsman if no joy.