Pet Insurance - am i paying for too much?

morg007

We've got a family male dog, classed as a large dog who is around 11 (rescue so estimated when we got him).  Mixed breed - Lab, with something else that varies from person to person! 

I've had pet insurance ever since we got him and stuck to the lifetime option.

Now, we've been stung by an increase of £200.00 from last year with Purely Pets.  I'll that down to the general increase in insurance in recent months and his age.  Based on the same criteria, I haven't been able to better it elsewhere.

Now, I'll be honest, pet insurance is always something I've struggled to really understand so I tended to go with the most cover so as to not be left struggling if anything happens.  This was our first pet since I was a kid (our dog back then died naturally at 12 and he was probably a little smaller - and a pure lab).

In the 6 years we've had him we have never made a claim as the only issues we've had were under the excess and only minor (usually upset stomach brought on due to him being a "scavenger dog" as out vet once put it!) or just general check ups.  Below is a summary of the cover.

Cover Provided	Lifetime £6,000
Type of Cover	Lifetime
Veterinary Fees	£6,000
Accident Cover	Yes
Illness Cover	Yes
Complementary medicine*	£750
Cruciate ligament*	£2,000
Excess, per condition per year**	£160.00
Third Party liability (dogs only)#	£2,000,000

So, my question is, am I covering for too much?  meaning if I went with a lower cover I could lower my premium.  Or would I be best keeping at that level?

I assume due to his age I'd be best to have lifetime as this is an age longer term issues may develop so I'd want the safety net of having them covered for his "life"?

Due to his age and size, will there be a lot of procedures a vet won't even perform anyway due to the stress it may put on him?  Or do you still always have insurance regardless of the dogs age?

Many thanks - just trying to learn to understand as I get car insurance so know when something really isn't worth having as an "extra"!

sheramber

I review my pet insurance when he reaches 10.

At that age and older there may be a limit to what I would consider appropriate treatment. 

I had one dog who was an old 10 year old. I would not be putting him through any extensive treatment and was prepared to cover any treatment  myself. I put the premium money in a separate account to help towards any vet bills. He died age 11.

another was a young 10 year old. He was still  as mentally alert and still as  active as when he was younger. . I continued his insurance.until he  13  but changed to a cheaper policy with the same cover as my previous more expensive one.
 .From 13  I put money away for any vet bills. 

He lived until he was nearly 15 and remained active and alert until 2 days before dying due to kidney failure. 

It depends on how  comfortable you are with less or no cover. 

That is a personal decision. 

Look at how much you would pay in a year for your premiums plus any excess on  a vet  bill. 

How much is that compared to how much you would get back. 

What costs would mean you got back more  than you paid  out. 

35har1old

morg007 said:

We've got a family male dog, classed as a large dog who is around 11 (rescue so estimated when we got him).  Mixed breed - Lab, with something else that varies from person to person! 

I've had pet insurance ever since we got him and stuck to the lifetime option.

Now, we've been stung by an increase of £200.00 from last year with Purely Pets.  I'll that down to the general increase in insurance in recent months and his age.  Based on the same criteria, I haven't been able to better it elsewhere.

Now, I'll be honest, pet insurance is always something I've struggled to really understand so I tended to go with the most cover so as to not be left struggling if anything happens.  This was our first pet since I was a kid (our dog back then died naturally at 12 and he was probably a little smaller - and a pure lab).

In the 6 years we've had him we have never made a claim as the only issues we've had were under the excess and only minor (usually upset stomach brought on due to him being a "scavenger dog" as out vet once put it!) or just general check ups.  Below is a summary of the cover.

Cover Provided	Lifetime £6,000
Type of Cover	Lifetime
Veterinary Fees	£6,000
Accident Cover	Yes
Illness Cover	Yes
Complementary medicine*	£750
Cruciate ligament*	£2,000
Excess, per condition per year**	£160.00
Third Party liability (dogs only)#	£2,000,000

So, my question is, am I covering for too much?  meaning if I went with a lower cover I could lower my premium.  Or would I be best keeping at that level?

I assume due to his age I'd be best to have lifetime as this is an age longer term issues may develop so I'd want the safety net of having them covered for his "life"?

Due to his age and size, will there be a lot of procedures a vet won't even perform anyway due to the stress it may put on him?  Or do you still always have insurance regardless of the dogs age?

Many thanks - just trying to learn to understand as I get car insurance so know when something really isn't worth having as an "extra"!

Does the excess reset each year??