Do you Have pet insurance?

Oh yes one thing I forgot - my pet insurance also covers the cost of a holiday/flight/hotels etc. if I had to cancel a trip due to a pet needing emergency treatment!

I have been led to believe that pet insurance is fantastic here in the UK compared to that available in other countries. Also vet treatment here is a LOT more expensive than most vets in the US, it's the equivalent of $80 just for me to bring a cat in to see the vet, any treatment, drugs, or tests, are charged on top of that. Diabetes treatment can cost upwards of £3,000 ($6,000) per year which is a good chunk of my salary, and there's no way I could ever save enough to cover something like that.

My parents once spent over £1,500 ($3,000) in vet bills getting their budgie tested and treated for avian chlamydiosis - that was for an avian specialist, tests, and 10 weekly injections.

Originally Posted by Epona

Oh yes one thing I forgot - my pet insurance also covers the cost of a holiday/flight/hotels etc. if I had to cancel a trip due to a pet needing emergency treatment!

I have been led to believe that pet insurance is fantastic here in the UK compared to that available in other countries. Also vet treatment here is a LOT more expensive than most vets in the US, it's the equivalent of $80 just for me to bring a cat in to see the vet, any treatment, drugs, or tests, are charged on top of that. Diabetes treatment can cost upwards of £3,000 ($6,000) per year which is a good chunk of my salary, and there's no way I could ever save enough to cover something like that.

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My insurance covers that too!!!

Wow, here in the South West it's around £22 for a consultation which is about $40. For spay/neuter its about £42 which is about $80. Microchipping - £15 $28 First two Vaccinations as a kitten, both for £48 which is about $90. How do these prices compare to yours in the US? Our insurance is obviously cheaper judging by some of your posts!!!

Originally Posted by sadieandziggy

My insurance covers that too!!!

Wow, here in the South West it's around £22 for a consultation which is about $40. For spay/neuter its about £42 which is about $80. Microchipping - £15 $28 First two Vaccinations as a kitten, both for £48 which is about $90. How do these prices compare to yours in the US? Our insurance is obviously cheaper judging by some of your posts!!!

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I'm in London - so paying for the higher costs of running the surgery - mostly rent/lease of the building and business rates.

I put money aside regularly, monthly, that stays in a seperate account for emergencies. I would do the same for myself if I wasn't covered through work.
By and large insurance is expensive and doesn't always come through.
I pay myself the money I would spend on insurance and then the money is there if anything comes up.
Recently Bea had an abcess and had to have minor surgery, it cost about $800 and happened right around the time I was on vacation. The money wasn't an extra stress because I knew we were prepared.

My insurance covers:

• Appointment costs (not general health checkup)
• On-going treatment (not flea or worm treatment or routine vaccinations)
• Prescriptions (not flea or worm treatment)
• Operations (not spaying/neutering)
• Putting to sleep fees

For example: Dental treatment-tooth extraction etc/broken limbs /UTI /CRF /Diabetes /eye infection and most others

It also includes:

• Boarding for my pet if I were to be hospitalised
• Advertising costs if she were to go missing and a reward
• Replacement of posessions due to damage by the pet
• Purchase price incase of death

I haven't yet made a claim, however UK insurance is MUCH CHEAPER over here. Mine costs me a little under £6 per month, which is what most start from, which is only $10!!

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I think more people would insure their pets in the states if it were this cheap... insurance is very expensive here and doesn't cover much, also there are usually ridiculously high deductibles and co-pays... silly too cuz the co-pay is usually the same price as the visit would be. 'Course, I live in California and insurance for ANYTHING is outrageous here.

Originally Posted by urbantigers

Yes. Both of mine are insured and were insured as kittens before any health problems emerged and anything could be counted as a pre-existing condition. I can receive up to £6000 per year, every year and they have cover for life (so I can renew their policies for the rest of their lives regardless of any conditions they develop or the number of claims). I've made 2 claims so far - one for my bridge baby Magpie when he died from a thrombosis in his neck (for £2000) and one for Jaffa's dental (£400). I got the money back (minus an excess) on both occasions. I currently have a claim in for Mosi's operation a few weeks ago after he swallowed some string. It doesn't cover routine care, but it covers pretty much everything else.

It also covers complementary treatments and referral to a behaviourist if necessary, as well as loss /theft, boarding if I need to go into hospital and stuff like that.

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I actually looked into a few after Jake died. I've been thinking about getting coverge for Peaches. I found plans that go from basic emergency care to plans that cover well visits, preventative medicine and prescriptions. Now I just have to figure out if it would really be a savings to me.

Any kind of insurance is a gamble (unless it's compulsory) as you hope you won't have to make a claim, and if that's the case then you lose out financially. But I don't have many savings and couldn't live with the stress of knowing that I would struggle financially if my cats needed vet treatment. I don't want to find myself in the position of having to tell my vet not to do something because I can't afford it. So I'm really buying peace of mind. Rushing a cat to the emergency vet is a horrible thing to have to do at the best of times. It's a lot worse if you're worried about the expense too.

I pay more than Epona. Jaffa's is about £10 a month, but that's because he's 10 and it does cost more for older cats, and the excess is higher. But they'd still pay a substantial amount towards any treatment so it's worth it. I could probably get a cheaper policy but I'm wary of changing it because there are a few minor things that could be counted as pre-existing conditions and be excluded by a new policy. It also includes dentals, which a lot don't, and they paid up about £300 for a dental he had last year. Mosi's has gone up this year - it was about £9 and has gone up to £12 - always costs more for pedigrees. Again, I considered changing him but he was diagnosed with mild gingivitis earlier in the year so a new company would probably exclude anything to do with that. They both do have cover for life though, and the maximum pay out is per year not per condition (so is renewable each year) which is good if they develop chronic illnesses.

i came across this and am thinking about it
www.petassure.com
it's not an insurance and you can't be turned down. you can get monthly, yearly coverage. 1 cat is $59 or you can get a family plan. it's 25% discount every time at participating vets

Originally Posted by urbantigers

I pay more than Epona. Jaffa's is about £10 a month, but that's because he's 10 and it does cost more for older cats, and the excess is higher.

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I think you meant me, Epona didn't mention a price. Ziggy is only a year old which is why hers is cheaper. But have you seen the prices the non-UKers are coming out with OMG! I don't think I woul get it if that was the case!!

Originally Posted by lunacy95

I don't have and don't plan on getting any pet insurance. Why? first off I only have one pet. I basically did some simple math and figured that my odds of paying more for the insurance over Jack's lifespan is likely to be more than the total I would pay out of pocket. I would rather take the same basic amount of money and place it in a savings account get a tiny bit of interest and have it to use for more than Jacks medical needs if necessary.

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I only have one cat, and if she gets sick I am prepared to pay whatever bills come forth. I would rather deal with it when it comes, then buy the insurance in case it happens.

no, because the cost of the plans around here are not worth it, especially not if your animal has a pre-existing condition or other issues. i do not have pet insurance for any of mine. i do however have an emergency fund set aside just for them in case they should need any kind of medical work.

My vet charges ~ $45 for a visit/ consultation, with shots being ~$100 for a whole years worth (standard adult 3-way and rabies). Bloodwork tends to be the most expensive thing that I've run into so far at ~$150 for a basic panel.

The pet insurance that I use it "pet care" and the plan I use is $14.95 a month. It is the next-to-lowest option they offer and is very restrictive in terms of what it will cover. But, it will pay $2,000 per incident in the areas it covers and allows for 2 "first-time illnesses" with payment up to $1,000 for those per year.

Below is a link to the plan they are offering now that is closest to what I have on my cat Toby:
http://www.petcareinsurance.com/us/c...nce-qcplus.asp

It does not cover regular vet visits, vaccinations, spay/neuter, worming, flea and tick meds, etc. It also does not cover "pre-existing conditions". It also has restrictions in terms of specific breed-associated illnesses. i.e. it will not cover eye or breathing issues in persions. There are other restrictions that I can't think of at the moment.

It does have a $100 allowance for lost/stolen and death/cremation.

The deductable is low, $50 for some things and $100 for others.

The really negative thing about it (but this is true for all US policies that I know of) is that you still have to pay the costs out-of-pocket and then the company refunds you. It would be much better IMO, if they could bill the insurance directly.

Art

Originally Posted by artgecko

The really negative thing about it (but this is true for all US policies that I know of) is that you still have to pay the costs out-of-pocket and then the company refunds you. It would be much better IMO, if they could bill the insurance directly.

Art

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This is the case with most policies over here. The insurance companies are mostly willing to pay the vet direct but it's totally up to individual vets whether they will accept that. Some do, especially for large amounts, but many do not. My vets don't. I think they used to but ended up either not getting paid or waiting ages for payment so changed their policy on that. It is a bit of a pain, but it's easier to get a short term loan or borrow from friends/family when you know you are getting the money back. I try to keep a credit card free for paying the bill initially and hope the payment from the insurance company comes through before I have to pay any interest (and it has done so far).

Originally Posted by urbantigers

That's a good idea if you can get a good amount put away fairly quickly and you know you won't be tempted to spend it on something else. It's always a gamble, and of course it does depend on how good the policy is, but for me it gives peace of mind. It doesnt' sound like policies in the US are as good as over here.

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I still live at home and will start looking for a house about August of next year. That will give me at least a year or more to put money aside. I have two other accounts for myself so this third account will not be touched except for the cat. They even named it cat so I remember which account is which. I'm very disciplined about how I spend my money so it won't be hard for me to leave it be.
The pet insurance over here is not that great from what I have heard. The UK sounds like it has some wonderful policies and I wish we had some over here like you do.