Argos Pet Insurance Premium hike

11Mike · 14 March 2015 at 12:54PM

Hi,

Is it right for pet insurers to increase premiums by rediculous amounts? Last year the insurance for our Westie was around £300 which had increased by £100 on the year before, this year i have just got the renewal and it is £540, this is with no claims made, ever, since we started insuring our dog. How can this be right?

My issue is they have you over a barrel imo, as we visited the vet the other year as our dog hurt her leg, nothing developed from it and all seems good still, no claim as it was just a standard vet fee so the excess wouldn't have covered it anyway, but as we have done this now we are scared that if we switch and she hurts her leg again it won't be covered in the future because the new insurers would look at her vet records and wriggle out of it. Even if it has nothing to do with the previous incident.

We put £50 away a month for her as it is and always have so we use it for anything like that but i shouldn't have too.

I just think it is a joke, i spoke to Arogs and they won't budge on the price, unlike motor insurance, i basically get 'deal with it' but we don't know what to do because of this with her leg.

Mike

KxMx · 14 March 2015 at 1:29PM

That is a steep increase. The only reason I could think of was the dogs age maybe? Older pets are more prone to problems and are more expensive to insure as a result.

I'm coming to the end of the first year with Argos (cat, no claims), up for renewal soon so will be interested to see my increase. She will be 10 soon so I expect it to go up a bit but not a lot.

11Mike · 14 March 2015 at 1:47PM

Hi, thanks for the reply. We are switching to Petplan as the premium comes in cheaper than them and they are a highly recommended insurer. I am not happy the fact they have increased it so much over the last few years. My dog is only 6. There was a woman on rip off britain who was with Argos who had a different dog but the increases were the same.

chris_n_tj · 14 March 2015 at 5:27PM

We use Pet Plan and yes the first year is always dearer than the rest, BUT year 2 they don't hike the premiums like most of the others do.
We have used PP for over 15 years with different pets and they have always been the best. x

11Mike · 14 March 2015 at 6:15PM

Thanks, they are considerably cheaper than Argos, which is what makes me laugh.

sallyj17 · 16 March 2015 at 3:13PM

Unfortunately this is becoming increasingly common. I have a pet insurance website and hear lots of reports of horrendous premium increases... but mostly from the insurers underwritten by RSA - Argos, John Lewis, More Than, Tesco, M&S.

gettingready · 17 March 2015 at 2:47AM

I had all 4 cats and dog insured with Argos but now moved all cats to PetPlan exactly because of the price hikes with Argos.

Dog still with Argos as few pre-existing and to be fair Argos has paid a LOT (we are talking around 20k) towards vet bills for my girl and they were good and fast with payments.

But their price hikes are massive and often unexpected. So if you can move - move fast before any troubles come up.

My girl will be 9 this year and from £29.00 per month the insurance with Argos jumped to £108in massive price hikes so moved to Argos. But then again, we had very large claims (£14 k over 2 years alone for hip replacement and Argos paid with no problems at all). If you had no claims - move and fast.

All the best

sallyj17 · 17 March 2015 at 12:10PM

It is worth noting that with most (but not all so be careful to check) pet insurance companies you can cancel at any time of the year and get a pro rata refund for the unexpired months. In which case if you are planning to move.. the sooner the better.. if you don't and your pet develops any illness or has an accident .. you might get stuck or lose cover for pre-existing conditions.

sheramber · 17 March 2015 at 12:31PM

sallyj17 wrote: »

It is worth noting that with most (but not all so be careful to check) pet insurance companies you can cancel at any time of the year and get a pro rata refund for the unexpired months. In which case if you are planning to move.. the sooner the better.. if you don't and your pet develops any illness or has an accident .. you might get stuck or lose cover for pre-existing conditions.

You will only get a pro rata refund if you have not made a claim in that year.

KxMx · 17 March 2015 at 1:25PM

I have taken advice on board and just took out a policy with Pet Plan (Classic 7k).

No previous claims but declared I am aware Cat will need teeth cleaning -Vet does not expect extractions and says teeth very good for her age- in the future.

I am not bothered if they exclude any and all dental on that basis because no other provider has covered it in the past, I have provision in savings.

Will cancel Argos in 14 days when PP becomes fully active. Obviously if something happens I will need to cancel PP and stick with Argos but fingers crossed. Been through this holding period a couple of times before- HSBC then AXA stopped offering pet insurance!

sheramber · 17 March 2015 at 6:02PM

Petplan will cover dental injury or illness as ling as the dog has had a dental check by a vet in the preceeding 12 months and any recommended treatment done.

As this check is normally done at the annual check and booster be aware that the check must be within 12 months exactly. If you delay the check
past the 12 month date you will not be covered.

Argos Pet Insurance Premium hike

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