Pet Insurance in the UK

michelle325

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I moved here about a year ago from the States. I was always told there that pet insurance was pretty useless because it didn't cover a lot of major things. But, I never looked into it myself so I don't know if that's true.

Anyway, here in the UK I see so many ads for pet insurance and here people mentioning it. I'd like to get insurance for my cats if it means it will cover any big expenses that might come up if they're ever injured or really sick. Is the pet insurance pretty good to have here?

Can anyone let me know if there are certain things to look for in coverage or are they all pretty much the same? Are there any companies you've had a bad experience with or any you would recommend?

Thanks.
 

rosiemac

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The one that is popular and that my vet reccomends is Pet Plan

http://www.petplan.co.uk/

A girl at work has a labrador who had a cruciate leg operation when he was just over a year old that cost nearly £400. Months later his leg went again so another £250 had to be paid out.

She then decided to look for insurance but no one would take him on because this problem he had is known for happening again. But then i told her about Pet Plan and they took him on no problem.

Direct Line is another company who advertise a lot.
 

booktigger

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The main thing to look out for is lifetime coverage, not just for the one year. I am with Sainsbury's (one of a few that insure older cat), and have just put in a claim today, so will let you know how they are. A lot of vets recommend Pet Plan, but they seem to offer insurance training to vet practices, so not sure if they recommend due to those reasons.
 

madpiano

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One of the things is, to go direct to the insurance companies. If you have Sky and watch Animal Planet, there are several adverts for pet-insurance. Sainsbury and Tesco re-sell Direct Line and the one from Abbey National, withe their own profit marked in.

In the UK vaccinations aren't covered by the insurance, just medical bills, and some insurance companies don't cover cats/dogs unless they have regular vet-checks and vaccinations. There also seems to be a clause that some of them only cover them up to a certain age, which seems a bit silly.

Just shop around. I still am, as I now have 2 cats and they are both indoor/outdoor, and I don't think I could afford expensive vet-bills for 2 cats. I found Pet-Plan quite expensive, but a lot of Vets have contracts with them, so you don't have to pay anything yourself and the Vet will settle with the insurance company himself, which sounds better than reclaiming it after having to pay for it....I haven't found out yet if my Vet will accept other insurance companies on the same basis....
 
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michelle325

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Originally Posted by madpiano

I found Pet-Plan quite expensive, but a lot of Vets have contracts with them, so you don't have to pay anything yourself and the Vet will settle with the insurance company himself, which sounds better than reclaiming it after having to pay for it....I haven't found out yet if my Vet will accept other insurance companies on the same basis....
Thanks for the info. That last bit is definitely something I should look into because if I had a £2,000 bill that I had to pay to get reimbursed, I wouldn't be able to afford it.

Also, I didn't realize places like Tesco were just reselling other plans. Thanks.
 

lucyloo

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I use Petplan lifetime cover, It obviously covers for whole of life, it is called the " supercat plan" it has unlimited cover for vets fees incl. illness,injury, hospitalisation and complimentary medicines.
In the unforatunate cas of death then petplan refund the price you paid for your cat.
£500.00 boarding kennels fees per year.
advertising and reward in the event of loss £500.00 per year
loss by theft or starying purchase price of cat refunded.
Holiday cancellation cost £1,000.00 per year.
All of the above costs me £12.90 per month and is worth every penny
 
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