How can you trust Pet Insurance Reviews !

sarahTT

> When she looked on trust pilot

I used to do a lot of reviews on TP but I have stopped and removed *all* my reviews because TP removed one of my negative reviews completely disregarding all the evidence I sent them including the complete email exchange (the company involved was/is well known to put a lot of direct pressure on negative reviewers and, if that does not work, on TP).

Additionally, I have seen for myself how easy trustpilot 5-star reviews can be manipulated. A well-known and once very good British bank of whom I am a customer had enormous problems with basically everything, especially customer service and answering the phone. Their once near perfect rating (around 4.5 stars) sank to below 2. I reviewed the company with a 2-star review and followed the incoming reviews for a good while... and all of a sudden the rating went up again to above 4 within two weeks... thanks to a torrent of 5-star reviews, almost all one-liners along the lines of "Best bank ever" or "Super customer service". Fishy? Well, you decide.

My rule of thumb (not just for trustpilot) is to completely disregard one-liner 5-star reviews and to concentrate on 1/2-star reviews, especially the more detailed ones and those which seemed to have been written by a reasonable person.

Annemos

That is a very sad story, sarahTT. 

Bill Gates said  “Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning. Let unhappy customers teach you where the holes in your service are.”


To be honest. I think after a few days, many negative reviews have slipped down the listings and nobody notices them any more. 

I think they have the most impact for the people submitting or reading reviews during quite a short time period. And somehow there is a validation if one finds that "one is not the only one to be suffering". 

The most useful type of review for a poster is for a retailer, for example, where you get a response from a manager and then a refund that should be paid out gets quickly actioned. (If you have been stuck in a call-centre up to that point). Then you can also thank them via an update. 

MalMonroe

smallzoo2 said:

Looking at first pet insurance for my daughters 1yr old dog

She went on the usual sites and came up with a few ones she was interested in but then finding coherent reviews is impossible

e.g. Two companies she liked Animal Friends  and Bought by Many

When she looked on trust pilot Animal Friends has very positive reviews so she thought great but then when she looked on review.com, and perform.com to quote just two they came out with 1 star

She's only 20 so how on earth does she choose a good company with so many conflicting reviews ,If she makes the wrong choice it could be very costly

Any advice ?

Your daughter is 20 (why 'only'?) - so she's an adult and I'm sure she can choose a good company if she looks at details of the policies she likes the look of online and gets some free quotes.

In spite of much bad press about insurance policies, they are very easy to follow. 

It's never a good idea to rely solely on reviews, no matter where, how or by whom they are posted. 

All your daughter has to do is to visit the sites you mention and get a no-obligation quote.

As with all insurance, the higher the premium, the better the cover. And watch the excess, too. 

Annemos

> In spite of much bad press about insurance policies, they are very easy to follow. 


You must have been reading my mind MalMonroe.


I was just googling this issue, because I find that Home ones can be very unclear. They can often be read in more than one way. The cross referencing of definitions is also sometimes confusing. 


I came across this  study......you can click into their actual report at the end.   (I am a graduate in Applied Maths, which is a bit worrying in my case!) 

https://www.brownejacobson.com/insurance/training-and-resources/legal-updates/2018/06/how-clear-are-your-policy-wordings



PS A small joke:   What I think I would really like is a Communist system for Insurance Policies.  Just one overal policy to be used by all. With very clear wording that is always exactly the same. Things can be ticked or unticked if they apply or not. Money limits can also be adjusted. 

I am sure that will remain a dream for me! 

Spies

We have been with Argos pet insurance since we got pets (2 cats and a dog) with lifetime cover for each, our second cat had to have long term hydrotherapy because of hip displaysia and eventually had a new hip (she's only 3!).

Had absolutely no issues claiming for hydro or the cost of the hip (about £5k)

Premium hasn't gone up drastically either. 

dunstonh

I used to do a lot of reviews on TP but I have stopped and removed *all* my reviews because TP removed one of my negative reviews completely disregarding all the evidence I sent them including the complete email exchange (the company involved was/is well known to put a lot of direct pressure on negative reviewers and, if that does not work, on TP).

A very common outcome.  There is a company I am aware of with a serious and widespread misselling history and it has gone out of its way to remove negative posts as much as it can. It has threatened others with legal action resulting in news articles being pulled and messages on bulletins etc.

If you look at their Trustpilot reviews, you don't see any reference to those issues. Just lots of positive reviews.

sarahTT

Annemos said:

To be honest. I think after a few days, many negative reviews have slipped down the listings and nobody notices them any more. 

Well, it depends. If someone just pops in, has a quick look and sees many 5-stars and goes away happy, then yes, negative reviews will have no great impact for them. OTOH, I for one (for Trustpilot but also Amazon etc etc) look specifically for the 1- and 2- star reviews (by clicking on the respective links) and try to get a feel for what peeps have to say about the company (or product). For me, sensible or informative negative reviews are a very important source of information... and reading negative reviews doesn't automatically mean that I won't buy the service or product in question: if much of the criticism is irrelevant then I may well go ahead regardless.