Pet insurance experiences

Jimbeam3678

Jimbeam3678

Jimbeam3678

Soldato
Joined
8 Dec 2002
Posts
20,825
Location
North Yorkshire
So we are due to pick up our new puppy on Saturday and I have just started looking at the minefield which seems to be pet insurance.

Her parents are both a cross between West highland terrier and a Scottish Terrier. On the insurance quot forms I am putting down cross breed and Scoland Terrier if its listed if not I am putting Scottish Terrier as that seems to be the most prominent trait. Is this right ?

Secondly can anyone recommend a pet insurer where they have had a good experience on payouts with lifetime cover? Not after the cheapest or most expensive, just one that actually pays out:)

Tesco seems to tick the boxes on cover, price and reviews. Anyone have any first hand experience when claiming with them?
 
Used Petplan and Morethan, had no trouble with payouts from both.

Last dog got lymphoma, Petplan paid out the full 8k maximum in each year for treatment without any issues. I would
certainly use Petplan again.
 
I currently have 9 dogs, sometimes I have had up to 13. I insure for the first 12 months, then cancel. I use Petplan. Usually if you have a demmick it shows in the first year, and you can continue to keep it on cover. I then have a slush fund for surprises at the vets. HOWEVER, one of the senior partners at the practice I use is a car nut, so often he fixes a dog up and in return I fix one of his cars up, so it's not the average situation. Generally speaking Petplan seem fairly well regarded, but hey, we all should have a healthy respect for the small print few read, and their means to wriggle if Fido looks like he's going north of a few grand. Toss up really, if you are disciplined enough to keep a cash reserve you might not spend it, even if Fido is 100% fit all his life until he dies of old age in his sleep, the insurance premiom will drip away every month. Your call...
 
Heard horror stories about Petplan but I guess that might be down to how big they are? Not looked into boughtbymany I’ll have a google.

Any thoughts on my assumptions regarding what breed to be put down?
 
Boughtbymany. Best pet insurance I have used. Paid out twice for 2 big claims. They pay directly to the vets as well.
 
No idea about horror stories, can only tell you about my experience which was great.

Sorry, can’t help with breed. I take rescues and just go with whatever the breed i’m told it is.
 
Only ever used PetPlan never had to actually speak to them.

Vets deal with them direct and they pay directly to the Vet.

One of ours Cats has had over £15k worth of treatment over 2 years. And as it is life long cover the premiums don't go up each year (slightly with inflation) and any existing condition when covered is covered each year.

I do not know of any other pet insurance that will not increase their premiums after your claim.

Would not use anybody else and always recommend them.
 
Sounds like Petplan is the way forward. I guess you can only do so much research and ask for opinions then go with what they direct you to.

Thanks all.
 
I had petplan in the past, never had a problem with claims, but they are pricey.
I just have cheap accidental cover now, never claimed off this company though.
 
Jimbeam3678 said:
Heard horror stories about Petplan but I guess that might be down to how big they are? Not looked into boughtbymany I’ll have a google.

Any thoughts on my assumptions regarding what breed to be put down?
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Well, as it's a mongrel, like some of my dogs which are Giant Schnauzer cross Standard Poodles, put down mongrel. Mongrels tend to be healthier anyway as they are less likely to be crossed with their cousin, so insurance companies probably see them as lower risk than say a French Bulldog, which they likely shudder over covering.
 
We use Tesco. They’ve paid out three times for our cat with no issues. (Broken tooth, abscess on neck and foot injury).
 
Used Petplan through Pets At Home. Wasn’t the cheapest, but worked well for us.

Certainly much cheaper than €60-€70 every time we need the vet here and no-one will insure a 10 year old cat out here.
 
cant recommend animal friends enough... had 2 english bull mastiffs with them from pups until both finally passed in the last 18 months. They've always been helpful and there have been a few claims over the years.
 
Karateyid said:
cant recommend animal friends enough... had 2 english bull mastiffs with them from pups until both finally passed in the last 18 months. They've always been helpful and there have been a few claims over the years.
Click to expand...

I would be interested in first hand experiences of health issues with that breed if you wouldn't mind sharing any personal experiences? Thanks,
 
Petplan paid out easily enough for our cat with a bladder issue (£700~), didnt have to do anything as the vet dealt direct. Left them however due to increased premiums year after year.

Bought By Many are cheap enough, have to pay out initially and then claim back. Took some time to pay out but didn't quibble on our dog having to be taken to OOH vets and a blood test (£400~).
 
I can't recommend pet plan enough. Our old dog had a multitude of problems and pet plan never once questioned our claims or paid out any less than what we expected. His medication cost alone cost almost as much as our monthly premium and we maxed out the claim allowance two years in a row. Because it was a lifetime policy our premiums only ever went up marginally each year.
 
Even with insurance I would still put a few quid away each month in case you ever need to make a small claim, no point in claiming for them as they just increase your premiums over the years and if your dog makes it to 10+ years they start to hammer you.
 
Another vote for Pet Plan here. Used them for 3 cats and 3 dogs so far with no issues. They'll deal directly with vets and no issue with any of our claims
 
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