DON'T FORGET THE DOG! (Pet insurance)

Member Name: David A. Brett

Product:	Pet insurance
Date:	13/04/05 (4118 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Life long cover, Save worries of vets bills

Disadvantages: More money out each month, Some policies only pay for 12 months

We had Bea our cat before we got Fudge the dog in 2002, Bea had never shown any illnesses and indeed the only reason we needed the vets were her immunisations each year. But then in 2002 one of the local taxi drivers bitches had puppies and we requested one.

Luckily we got one and she already came with a name – Fudge, but it was when she was having her first jabs that we decided to look into pet insurance (we had heard very little about it until then).

First thing we realised was that Bea was too old to get insurance, though Fudge was OK. We had read she may be prone to hip problems in late life, and eventually chose E & L insurance which we felt offered a decent standard of cover for an average price.

It wasn’t until a few weeks ago that our opinion changed, you see Bea (now 14) developed diabetes. And in just a few weeks the costs began to mount with blood tests and needles and insulin and hypo-stop etc. it got us thinking about Fudge and the ability to pay for any ongoing treatment if she got ill in later life.

I vetted our terms of the policy and found we would only be covered for a period of twelve months, rather than for life. And let’s face it, something like diabetes doesn’t stop upon demand (I know I have the condition) and by the end of twelve months you’re probably only just feeling comfortable with the illness. So what good is twelve months cover for a life time problem?

I began to search the internet for reputable companies that offered life long cover at affordable prices, here are my results (My examples are per crossbreed dog):

PET PLAN is the insurance that most vets used to recommend, it is a fairly comprehensive cover but it also the most expensive of the three short runners. A crossbreed dog monthly payment scheme can range from £11.80 to £24.35 depending on your postcode; mine worked out to be £12.90. For this monthly premium your animal will be covered against accidents, and illnesses (not pre-existing), vet bills are paid up to £4,000 per year of cover: Third party cover stands at £1 million: Kennel fees (if you are hospitalised for 4 days or more) up to £250 per year and Advertising and reward (if you dog is lost or stolen) up to £250.

Pet plan also offer a years free membership to pet safe (an animal monitoring scheme that reunites pets with owners) this freebie is worth £15.00. The scheme has also won awards from YOUR MONEY.


NORWICH UNION’S policy was cheaper than Pet plan coming in at £11.84 a month, this includes vets fees up to £4,000 per year (as pet plan): £1 million worth of third party cover (as pet plan): if you animal dies as a result of an illness or injury they will pay up to £500: Kennel fees come in at £500 if you are in hospital for 4 days or more.

MARKS AND SPENCERS was the final one I found that offered life long insurance it comes in at £8.36 a month and offers up to £7,000 of vets cover per year (£3,000 more than the other two): up to £1,000 if you pet dies by illness (£500 more): Up to £1,500 if she is stolen or lost (£1,250 more than Pet plan, £1000 more than Norwich Union): Free pet travel cover: The products from M & S are offered through AXA.

What happens now: Call me funny but when I am after insurance or anything similar I always send emails to the customer services department to check out how long they take to reply. Pet Plan sent me a package through the post with a pre-filled form within a day: Norwich Union replied by email within four days (Norwich Union being quicker than M&S)

So overall on the surface Marks and Spencer’s offering looks by far the best in terms of cover and price. If I take this policy out it will save me about £42 a year! In addition it also offers far better cover for less money.

But why bother with pet insurance when there is enough to pay out for each month anyway? Well I have learnt to cost you never know what is around the corner! For example in 1996 I was perfectly healthy and fully able, nine years on I am disabled with a string of health problems. Similarly Bea our cat was healthy without need of medical care until a few weeks ago…And the trouble is Pet insurance is only available for pets up to a certain age.

In my eyes Pet insurance is now as important as own life cover, and I am now pondering over my choices (though I have a good mind as to which is my choice).

Insurance is a necessary evil; you pay in for years and may never make a claim making your premiums pointless. However, there is also a good chance that you may need to claim and your premiums worth every penny. You have the choice, make the right one.

Other cheaper policies are available but these usually only cover illnesses up to twelve months, or up to a certain amount of money. These are great for covering accidents, and short terms health problems, but things like diabetes are life long and dogs and cats can get them.

Thanks for reading - Dave

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