to insist we have pet insurance?

[Springersrock]

We have a dog and a cat. DD has a pony. All 3 are fully insured.

I’ve always insisted on having insurance as I never want to make a decision based on what we can afford, rather than what’s best for them (plus DD has rider insurance, liability insurance, her tack is insured, if pony dies stuff like removal, etc are all covered as well as injury and illness).

Both vet practices deal directly with the insurance company so other than paying the excess, we don’t have to worry about anything.

Most people I talk to seem to think it’s a huge waste of money - we’d be better off getting an emergency credit card, or putting the monthly premiums away in a bank account and DH is coming round to this idea too

For me, putting the money away each month is ok once you’re a few years in, but if pony got colic tomorrow we wouldn’t have enough money put away yet, and I don’t want to be paying off a massive credit card bill for years to come

So, AIBU to think the insurance is non-negotiable?

My much loved moggie Troy developed hypertropic cardiomyopathy a the age of 5. From diagnoses in January 2016 to his death on 10 May 2016 he cost nearly £4,000 in vet's bills. Luckily he was insured. You never know what's around the corner.

When our rescue dog bust both her cruciate ligaments, and needed two knee surgeries, followed by a third one then she dislocated one kneecap, and an admission for a gastric ulcer caused by the pain meds for the dislocated kneecap, the total bill came to over £10,000!!

If an owner can afford that sort of bill, to ensure their pet has the care they need, then it is fair enough for them to go without pet insurance - but I don’t think I know anyone who could find that sort of money, and that is why I would always have pet insurance and recommend it to anyone else who has a pet too.

To me the public liability aspect is probably worth it for large animals. I’ve had several cats live up to near 20. I’ve never had huge bills, although the bills might increase a little as they got older. They have all been moggies which probably means they are more robust than expensive breeds. I can afford to pay if they are ill and I must have saved ££££s not paying insurance. If they needed treatment I would be happy to pay it without thinking that I had to put them down to avoid paying. I don’t see the point of insurance for them as I can pay for treatment when they need it - they aren’t high maintenance. Surely if I was paying insurance, I would just be subsidising treatment for people who have chosen pets with medical conditions due to inbreeding?

Surely if I was paying insurance, I would just be subsidising treatment for people who have chosen pets with medical conditions due to inbreeding?

Medical bills can be high due to other things. My dog recently had to undergo emergency surgery after falling ill and scans revealing a foreign body (stupid dog had eaten a rag which had got stuck in his stomach and intestine).

If your cat or dog was hit by a car I would also imagine the bills would be high.

As someone who has claimed around £3500 from pet insurance in one year, you are not only reasonable but responsible for having pet insurance. Yes, it can seem like a waste of money if you don't claim but if you do need it and you don't have it then it is too late to do anything about it.

I think it depends on your approach to your animals treatment. I did work experience in a vets and it made me think that just because a condition can be treated doesn't mean it should be. Animals aren't people. You can't explain to them that what they're going through is only for a bit. Veterinary treatment has improved and that is partly why treatment is expensive. Not convinced it's always right.

It also depends on your view of the costs. I own two dogs and a cat. Insurance for all three would be lots. I will always have dogs probably for another 30 years. In that time I may be unlucky and have one or two of them need expensive treatment. I'm currently in my 15th year of dog ownership and most expensive treatment to date is under £500 and I've probably paid that 3 times. Mine are covered third party so I'm happy to save up for the inevitable expense when one of them does need treatment.

Horses I think are different. Only because their value/usefulness is related to their health in a way a dogs or cats isn't. Also treatment on such big animals is likely to be more expensive anyway just down to the facilities needed. A £5k operation on my sisters horse changed it from expensive pet to a decent eventer.

BiteyShark
Yes, any animal could have an accident or need expensive treatment. And if you would be unable to pay it, you should consider insurance. I’ve saved up enough not paying insurance to cover myself now.
Not sure that anyone would consider taking on my current mature cat (19 years) on a new insurance policy anyway.😏 But I would be happy to pay out if she needed treatment.

We put money away (and didn't touch it) when we adopted two rescue cats who were said to be 7yo. This was 20 years ago and although we looked into insurance there weren't many who'd insure (7 seemed to be a key age) and none that we thought were reasonable. We were lucky and didn't have to spend much of it even though one developed a long term condition. I would consider doing this again for any future pet cats however now I know someone who is at the vets almost every month with their cat because it's a PITA scrapper (yes he's been done) I'm not 100%!
We now have a medium size rescue dog and insured her as vet bills have gone up, dogs are usually more expensive and get themselves into more trouble! Also we wanted the public liability / legal part of the insurance. If I wasn't getting pet insurance I'd get PL (if you can get this separately) because you just don't know. A car accident, medical etc could be extremely expensive.
The pet insurance system does concern me but I would certainly have insurance for a horse, I imagine the bills are enormous.

woollyheart yes for a very old pet I can't imagine you would get insurance now.

But starting out, when they are young I just wouldn't risk it given that accidents can happen to the healthiest of animals. And animals are only healthy until they aren't and then it's too late. A lot of people without insurance are lucky and don't end up with high vets bills.

However, it is just pure luck and insurance covers you for the unlucky times.

If we have another cat we'd get insurance. We didn't for our current lot, and it was fine until we moved and found the new vet was considerably more expensive than our old vet - like at least 50% more, and some things must be approaching double the cost. The most we spent at the old vet was £300 to have some of the oldest cats teeth out. Same thing cost over £500 for other cat at new vet, and then he needed more out a couple of months later.

It's too late now, they're both elderly so the monthly payment would be high, the excess would be high plus we'd have to pay a percentage of the bill and on top of that prexisting conditions wouldn't be covered. At this point we probably are better off saving the money we'd spend on the premiums.

@troysmammy that's what my four year old cat died of a few years ago. We ended up spending £800 in two weeks trying to save him but they couldn't save him & I don't regret a single penny I spent. We did have insurance until we couldn't get any of our cats in their cat box to take to the vets for check ups or injections so the insurance was invalid anyway.
After our cat died we started putting £60 a month into a separate bank account, we have £1400 now & will keep adding to it though it is tempting to use it for an holiday!

There are really two reasons why I haven’t bothered with animal medical insurance.
Firstly, it is only necessary if you can’t afford or don’t want to have to afford bills when they turn up. If you are happy and able to pay medical costs, there is no need for insurance.
Secondly, I really hate arguing with insurance companies. I don’t want to have to argue whether this is covered or not. I would rather just pay the bill. For me, insurance wouldn’t provide peace of mind.
However, I wouldn’t think someone else is stupid just because they prefer to have insurance. If you really prefer to avoid large bills, and aren’t worried about arguing with the insurance company, then it is suitable for you.

Depends on individual financial circumstances IMO.
We have sufficient capital savings to cover any vet bills so don't have insurance on our dog (but do have Public Liability Insurance via Dogs Trust membership which is £25 pa).
Have had Ddog 8 years and so far one treatment needed to remove grass seed from ear, cost £220 as he had to be sedated. If we had insurance we would have spent a lot more than that on premiums.
Its a bit of a gamble, but I'd recommend insurance if you don't have a decent savings pot.

For one of our cats, his veterinary bills ran into five figures within 18 months. I hope when people say they can afford the bills, they realise just how expensive they can get.

It's non negotiable for us.
We couldn't afford a big vet bill which would leave our dog looking potentially at being put down. Not fair on her, not fair on us to lose her, especially the kids.
She has the highest level of insurance.
Not negotiable.

but I'd recommend insurance if you don't have a decent savings pot.

I would extend that a bit futher. 'If you have a decent savings pot for the entire life time of the pet'. A savings pot would be very empty right now for us and there would be so many preexisting conditions that we would be mostly uninsured if we tried to take a policy out now. Fortunately I got a life cover so I know I won't have to worry as he gets older.

Yes, we do know how expensive bills can get. The advantage of having some savings is that you know that you can prioritise your animal’s welfare. Don’t assume that people who don’t take insurance out don’t consider their animal’s health a top priority. I know that I would pay. I don’t trust an insurance company to do so without trying to get out of it.

woollyheart you must have had bad experiences with pet insurers . I have made many claims and had to argue none of them and all except one that went missing was paid within 2 weeks.

I’ve had a few claims with my dog and never had to argue with the insurance company.

Once he ate a pair of tights out of the dirty washing basket and had to have them removed and a few injuries from silly accidents (he’s a springer, silly is his middle name!).

The insurance company have never argued, they’ve paid (direct to the vet) quickly and without quibbling.

I’m quite risk averse so prefer to have that safety net should anything happen. If, for example, DD’s pony was to develop colic tomorrow, we wouldn’t have had time to save anywhere near what we’d need to cover the bills in the year we’ve had her and would have to have her PTS

Both our cars are moggies, one Battersea cat and one from Dubai. The battersea cat has been to the vet two or three times in her life for relatively minor things (she’s 17 now and remarkably healthy). But three months after the Dubai cat arrived in the UK he was hit by a car - it cost nearly 6K to patch him back together, he’s also developed asthma and has a weird condition which means that periodically his teeth dissolve away which means hefty bills every now and then for dental work. They’re both moggies - one’s had virtually no problems, the other has been hideously expensive - it’s just the luck of the draw. I wouldn’t want to have to make choices about their treatment based primarily on cost.

Our dog is currently undergoing treatment for a bacterial infection on his spine which has so far cost >£3K which was mostly the cost of diagnosis

And the other thing is, I don’t think I’m disciplined enough not to dip into the savings pot if the car breaks down or something

I can see the logic that if you save and don’t need it, you get all that money back where you don’t with insurance, but then I’ve never claimed on my house or car insurance either so see it as just one of those things you have

We live on a 30mph road and have lost two cats after they were hit by a car. Both died instantaneously. The damage when a cat gets hit is catastrophic and I'd put it out of its misery but then my views generally are pretty much the same as CaptainHarville's.

@Biteyshark
No, I haven’t had any bad experiences with pet insurance myself! But I’ve only had ‘free’ insurance after chipping etc. And I’ve never had to claim.
I’ve had friends who were let down when taking out lifetime pet insurance only to be told that the particular condition their pet had would no longer be covered. I’m sure that they had their monies worth, but they weren’t expecting this.
I don’t like dealing with insurance companies generally (my fault probably). In several cases, I could have dealt with a crisis more promptly and better without their ‘help’. They can introduce long delays. And they often remove the possibility of improving the situation for the better.

I've got horses and always insure them. Twice my horse has had surgery costing over £7,000 each time. The insurance company have never made a profit from me! I consider the £100 a month premium money well spent. I would hate to have to consider if the well being if my horse was worth the money or I could not afford it.

My mum's cat lived to 20 up until the age of about 13 it was a certain price and then it doubled in price - yet she had never made a claim. By the time he was 15 -I said if he got run over or cancer would it be fair to put an elderly animal through such treatment. She stopped the policy.
Waste of money for her.

We have three cats age 12 - none of them ibsured, doubt we would get it as they are pedigree with pre existing conditions due to breeding (unbeknown to us at the time) Last year one of them got an abcess, it cost 600 quid in all but still cheaper than 12 years of payments and premiums though. You takes your chance I guess.