Are Many Pets going under?

[TalkingInTheKitchen]

I've had pet insurance with Many Pets for the past 5 years and they've always been quick at handling claims. I put in a claim a month ago and its not even been looked at by their claims handling team. Emails are going unanswered and I've been promised over the phone multiple times that it'll be dealt with the same day yet nothing. I've looked at recent reviews and apparently they suffered a big financial loss and there are many people in a similar position to myself. I'm still paying my (not so small) direct debit and the vets fees, I can't afford both! It's infuriating especially when I need the money I'm owed to pay bills and I'm getting in debt as a result!

Its not a technicality though is it. If your policy states 14 days and the problem occurred outside of that then it's not covered.

Unless because it's only 2days you feel they should wave it, what if it was 2 weeks? 2 years?

The point is that it was a reoccurrence of the illness within a recent time frame. If you think that's reasonable then fine, but I didn't and these policies are deliberately designed to avoid payment, which is apparent because of all the people who are having difficulties with these policies. Petplan might be better than most, but I didn't have that experience so changed provider.

My vet (a small chain) has stopped direct claims with Many Pets, afaik Many Pets are the only insurers that they won't make direct claims with. According to them:

'Over the last few months, Many Pets have consistently failed to meet their own internal processing guidelines and have now removed all insurance processing timescales and communication channels other than email, resulting in months of chasing correspondence from Many Pets.

Many Pets are refusing to enter any type of dialogue with us directly. In comparison, the most efficient pet insurance companies process claims with 24 hours of submission.'

Oh crap

DDog has an orthopaedic condition that will make it very hard for us to reinsure without exclusion

So I really hope they get through this (especially as they absolutely hiked our premium this year)

We've claimed 3 times on the (lifetime, high ceiling) policy. First two came through really promptly. Third one, now you come to mention it, took some chasing, but was paid in full after chaser email.

Oh well, fingers crossed and hope for the best

I've cancelled the Animal Friends policy. I've cancelled the direct debit for Many Pets. I'm going to save up £100 a month for emergencies and reconsider getting insurance. My cats only go into the garden and I maintain their health very carefully. If they develop some catastrophic problem I'll just have to euthanise. I'm not paying money out if I'm not going to get cover when I need it as I'll be doubly out of pocket then. I have savings and dh agrees that we can cover reasonable vets bills.

aharddaysnight can you recommend alternatives please?

I've been recommended NAPO

I've just made a big claim for 4k with MoreThan and they paid it right away. They always do.

That’s reassuring to hear (hoping you don’t work for Manypets and are trying to put a positive spin on things!)

I would definitely avoid Many Pets. Check out the Facebook page "Many Pets Many Problems". Many Pets owe me £190 and they have told me I have to wait three months before they will pay me 'due to circumstances beyond their control'. It could be they are going bust but anyway most times they do not respond to emails or telephone calls and do not pay out claims. AVOID!!!!

I have an dog with long term health issues and am insured with ManyPets. I just checked my records and have made 45 claims. All were paid within 4 hours with the exception of one that sat there for 3 months before I cancelled and resubmitted it - the new claim was then paid in 4 hours. So far they have paid out £13,800 over my dog's seven year lifetime.

They never answer calls or emails - that is absolutely true. Hence my resorting to cancelling and resubmitting the 'stuck' claim. But it's not true (ime) that they do not pay out claims 'most times'. My personal experience is that they pay quickly almost all the time but, when they don't, it then faces a long wait. I suspect they randomly select some claims for closer auditing and it's this that can take a long time.

I have only made one claim but it was paid within weeks. I did chase them once and as soon as I did they paid it within 2 days.

They've finally paid all of my claim (about £1.5k) which is great. Took a couple of months and then they only paid half, although this could have been the fault of my vet. They paid the rest quickly, once I pointed it out. However, my renewal quote has come through this week and it has almost doubled to £88 for a 3 year old dog. So think I'll be changing anyway.....

I've made multiple claims, big and small, in the last year. Those below 300 were paid same day. Over that takes 2-3 months and payments only happened when I posted repeatedly on their FB page and put in formal complaints, which went unanswered for months and the response was a sorry-not-sorry type thing.

They don't answer emails or the phone. They won't do direct billing to vets any more either. They're a nightmare. I'll leave as soon as I need to renew even though I'll lose lifetime coverage.

These companies need better regulations.

Are you saying that your premium has not gone up? Loads of people who haven't made a single claim have had their premiums go up by 30% or more so are you saying that not only did they pay your claims - when they haven't paid many others - but they haven't put your premium up? Mine went up massively and I've never made a single claim nor has a single thing changed!

I had to use a vet in the last couple of days and put a claim in. The money from Manypets got paid before the money went out of my account to the vets! Can’t complain at that, although not looking forward to my renewal quote later this year…

The whole issue of pet price insurance is going to be looked at.

https://www.insurancetimes.co.uk/news/pet-insurance-premiums-spike-in-last-six-months-of-2023/1451097.article

https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/veterinary-services-market-for-pets-review

Call for information closes in April.

I was with petplan for 13 years and had lifetime cover and dog did have health problems all her lifetime and they paid every single claim we put in,not the cheapest insurance by any means but claims paid within 5 days

My tip is to look at reviews and read the ones based on claims experience and not the ones based on price being great or the person who answered the phone being nice. I had my dog insured with Now Pet (sister company of Perfect Pet) and the stress and delay of dealing with my claim as well as them discounting things eg consultant vet charged £250 for a consultation - not the most expensive by all means but my policy capped these at a much lower rate (how would an owner know?) and pretty much everything was capped too low. So out of a £4500 claim, only £3700 was received and this was a fight - constantly requests for information not just one comprehensive request and asking for medical history when he was a rescue it was honestly very distressing at a time when my dog was quite unwell.
So many positive reviews are not based on experience of claims which is really the critical part.
I found Tesco Pet good but not been with them for a few years. Not keen on LV.

First claim to Many Pets a few years ago (cat illness and hospitalisation) was settled but took 10 weeks, and I had to chase it up a lot, far too long. They also insisted on processing it as two claims due to having to go to a second emergency vet at night when the usual one was closed, but for the same illness. They said this would not affect future premiums but I wasn’t convinced.
This time, for a dental accident, after six weeks they haven’t even allocated anyone to handle the claim and aren’t answering the phone. Great Meanwhile an email arrived stating our premium renewal will be 71% increased. Seriously. Our cat has no ongoing or underlying illnesses or conditions and is checked and inoculated annually. She is 9 not 19. Will def be looking elsewhere.

Watchdog featured Many pets yesterday and are inviting people to contact them with their experiences,

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001ykzh

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3y4lhT8vS2297bWq9LK6vTF/many-pets-april-2024

<a class="break-all" href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/send/u23123288?ptrt=www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mg74" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.bbc.co.uk/send/u23123288?ptrt=www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006mg74

Thank you.

My last claim took weeks to sort out, and only got paid after I posted on Trustpilot. My payments are through the roof.