# Pet insurance



## Ginger nutter (Sep 13, 2013)

Hi,

Can anyone help me with pet insurance - I am currently covered till this weekend by petplan it was a free month when we first took jasper to the vets.. I've rung them today for a quote and it comes out at £45 a month. This would give me £4k a year cover with a £100 excess to pay. I am shocked by this figure as friend pays loads less than this for two dogs.

Any suggestions ???


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## Huntsmansjoy (Oct 28, 2013)

Hi

Sounds like you're at a similar stage to us, assuming the insurance about to expire was provided courtesy of the breeder?

You may have read in my earlier post, we've had no choice but to continue with the Kennel club cover on place due to a murmur detected in our Viz. Works out similar to the figure you stated but prior to this we had been researching and Tesco offer ok cover for about £15/month. Other than that, if you want all encompassing cover £35-45/month appears standard. These policy's provide lifetime cover not annual. If your dog has an on-going issue or repeat problem you will have to claim under respective year on cheaper annual policy's.

Types this on my phone so hope it reads ok!!?


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## KB87 (Jan 30, 2012)

That seems a little high for a monthly premium. I would make sure it's 45 per month, not 45 per quarter.

We started insurance for our boy when he was 12 weeks and pay $75/quarter (about 55 euro/quarter) for $8,000 coverage and a $500 deductible but things can be different across the pond. Have you tried changing the configuration of the plan around to have a higher deductible? This will definitely help to reduce your monthly cost. Otherwise I would suggest shopping around.


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## CatK (May 29, 2013)

I think I pay around £35 per month which is high but in the UK at the moment loads of places are deciding not to do pet insurance any more, so rather than risk having pre-existing conditions when my company stops providing insurance you need to go with a top company (pet plan, kennel club, NFU).

I figure while he's an accident prone pup I'll pay it, then re-assess his needs when I get to a couple of years old.

I couldn't handle having to decide whether he was 'worth' the price of a big op or treatment. Because we wouldn't be able to afford it if we didn't have good insurance and I'd still insist we paid it and we'd then have no money for mortgage etc! 

So no choice for me - good insurance it was.


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## cottonpeonie (Sep 24, 2013)

We had a similar problem... Has kennel club 4 weeks cover from breeder... Which we claimed in during his first week as he swallowed a stone! The quote for keeping the kc cover was £47 per month. Whilst I was happy with how they handled the claim I thought the premium pretty steep. In the end we've gone for LV insurance - c£20 a month for reasonable cover & then I've started a regular saver for the difference between this & the kc quote. Requires a bit of discipline, but I then know there's money there if the insurance doesn't cover something, like swallowing another stone! And if I don't need it then I've saved money rather than handing it over to an insurer


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## Kevin (Dec 29, 2012)

We just renewed our insurance with Hastings.

It was £29.50 full life time cover £4,000 limit per condition and £75 excess.

We have had 1 claim of £150 for minor skin conditions and it's went up to £31, with all the same limits and excess.

We decided just to keep it going as the claim was smooth and its a small increase, when u take into account the 5% intro they took off.

As said, If you go with Hastings they also give you a 5% intro disscount on the 1st year.

Hope this helps.

Kevin


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## Darcy1311 (May 27, 2012)

I pay over 40 pounds a month for Darcy, Pet Plan premier...costs me more than insuring our 2 cars, but she is worth every penny..


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## emilycn (Jul 30, 2013)

I'm in North Carolina and I have a PetPlan "silver" plan. My policy costs $36.37 a month ($407 annual) and my benefits include:
$14,000 max payout per year
$100 deductible per illness or injury
100% reimbursement (80% at e-vet or specialist)
$250 in ads and reward should Lua get lost (and be returned)
$250 in boarding fees should I be admitted to the hospital
$250 if Lua should be lost due to theft or straying

I haven't made any claims yet, as the vaccine companies agreed to completely reimburse my vet costs due to vaccine reaction. But if they hadn't agreed to repay me, I would have been awful glad I had the insurance.


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## Ginger nutter (Sep 13, 2013)

Thanks to all that replied. I've opted for pet plan - yes, seems a lot each month but the cover is really good and I've got peace of mind knowing that if anything ever does happen we are more than covered, but let's hope I never need it. 

Cheers xxx


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## [email protected] jenkinson (Mar 31, 2012)

Were with Tesco and they have been fantastic with our male vizsla Bertie,our bill so for is almost three thousand pound and they are paying direct to our vets. Read small print and check how much cover you get for each treatment. We never thought Bertie would have a tumor but thank goodness we have great pet insurance!!!


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## Mitch (Apr 12, 2015)

Have been toying with the idea of getting insurance for our new puppy... Never had it for our past dogs but for some reason I am being a touch more precious with regards to Freddie.. Possibly the result of watching 'The Supervet' on TV and what he charges... :-\

Massive cost differences between companies 

Tesco what £15.50 per month for their top plan whilst Petplan want £60 per month for their 'Ultimate' plan...

Any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated.


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## tknafox2 (Apr 2, 2013)

Beware of the insurance that charges a deductible each occurrence. Pet Plan is one of those... I had PP Fergy's first year and moved to Embrace.
It is a one time $200. deductible. 
The other fall back for insurance co.'s is "Pre existing conditions" I had to fight to get reimbursement for two completely separate incidents of nasal ingestion. The insurance co. (PP) said it was a pre existing condition and the doctor had to write a big long letter. Which she said she is doing more and more often, and will being to charge a fee for. I am just filing my first claim with "Embrace" and will let you know what happens.


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

I don't have either of mine insured, as soon as "working dogs" get mentioned the premiums sky rocket


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

If spending a few thousand on a vet bill is out of the question, then insurance could be a good alternative. You don't want to have to make medical decisions based on what you can, or can not pay. 
If money is not a real problem, you can start a dog bank account.
You open the account with the same amount of the puppy's purchase price, and then add to it each month. Whatever you spend (food, vets, toy, training)on the puppy each month, you match the same amount to the account. You would only take money from the account to keep from taking monies from your own savings, if a very large vet bill should ever happen.

I've had years where the dogs only needed checkups, and immunizations.
Then there's been years where they saw orthopedic specialist, dermatologists, and had surgeries to have lumps removed.


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