I read many stories how difficult it is to claim from pet insurance and how often the claim gets denied. Many new puppies come with a 7 week trial insurance. Mine will come with CKC health insurance. What are your experiences and recommendations. CKC can be expensive so I read is and I am not sure about them. In Canada pet insurance is becoming more popular. I would like to thank you in advance for providing me your thinking on this and experience.
I believe that pet insurance is almost a necessity . Some companies are better than others with regards to their speed of paying out but speaking from experience , I would seriously have been in financial dire straights a few times over the past few years, had I not had my dogs insured . I cant really offer any advice re which companies are the best as I`m in the UK , but maybe have a look online at comparison websites , read all the reviews and then pick what you feel is the best .
I would second Kate's comments, we've been unlucky to have a diagnosis of ongoing health issues from a young age with our dog, and I thank goodness we insured Monty. In 3 years we've probably claimed about £6000 back, that's without any surgery. Definitely go for life cover even though it will be more expensive. My company has always paid out, (occasionally checking info with the vet which is fair enough) but pays into our account within 7 to 10 working days.
I’m with John Lewis, lifetime cover. I find it excellent. I made a claim a couple of weeks ago for Tatze’s op with no problems at all. One phone call and it was sorted, they paid the Vet direct. I pay £140 excess. The reason I have only one pet dog is the cost insurance would be for another. As they get older it becomes more expensive. Tatze is four now and we pay £36 a month. I see it as an absolute necessity since my Callum had a sudden eye ulcer and the insurance cost was £7,000. Thank goodness he was insured, there’s no way I could have saved/borrowed that amount. .
It might be useful to talk to your vet for recommendations. My two are insured with Vetsure (UK, but there may be an equivalent). Any claims are paid direct to the vet, if the practice has an agreement with Vetsure - except, of course, for any agreed excess. The premium goes up each year, but there's a discount for multiple pets and it's possible to negotiate to pay more excess to lower the monthly payment. I only paid the excess to my vet when Wispa swallowed a curtain tie-back ring (when she was about 4 months old) and when Tuppence cut her leg badly. However, when she was two Wispa was treated for gastro-enteritis while we were in Scotland. It involved an overnight stay by special arrangement, as the practice didn't normally do that, but I couldn't face a solo night-time drive with a very sick dog into Glasgow, where I'd never driven before. She was also on a drip for a week, returning daily after the initial overnight stay. The final bill was less than I would have paid in England (especially with the 5* treatment, when a young vet kindly stayed with her overnight) and I paid the practice directly, as it wasn't in the Vetsure scheme, but my claim was settled very quickly.
