To think vet fees are taking advantage?

[Catlady332]

There is making a financial commitment to a pet, and then there is paying extortionate fees.
I pay monthly for a vet healthcare plan for my cat who is older, and this is supposed to cover certain things and include discounts.
They suspect he has a thyroid issue and needs a blood test, and I've been quoted £250 for the blood test.
I think these fees are extortionate and taking advantage. This is in the north West, as I said I know pet ownership is a financial commitment but I'm worried about having to pay these sorts of costs regularly.

I have insurance, could I claim on this for a blood test? Not totally sure

Yes, you could claim on your insurance for the blood test and any subsequent treatment.

The bit I'd be querying is the monthly plan, which is probably charging you every month for things you don't need so regularly and could buy cheaper elsewhere.

It's pet health club if anyone is familiar with that? I'm on the plus plan

Good to know I can claim, thank you

If it's a thyroid issue he'll probably be on medication for life (my cat adored it and used to come and ask for it!)

May also need to change diet if he's skinny

You could claim for the blood test. There will be an excess but that would most likely have been covered by your first consultation when you presented your pet with whatever problem led the vet to suggest a blood test. You can also claim for any medication/treatment once you have the results.

This can't have been going on before you took out insurance though.

You probably can claim for the blood test as pp states.

YANBU in vet bills- many are owned by hedge fund companies, unless they own it they don’t control prices. Greedy hedge fund managers do.

Once vets know ‘it’s an insurance job’ they seem hell bent on maxing out. Mine repeated a £300 blood test twice - because insurance paid. That was 7 years ago.

Certainly it's a similar price at our practice. H took one of our cats the other week and it was nearly £400 for bloods, injection, and two not very expensive meds.

The health club isn't insurance. It covers vaccines, preventatives, nail clips and a nurse health check. It usually means you get 10% off treatments etc.

I agree, I took my 16 year old cat to the vet on Monday for the first time in years, blood tests, antibiotics and a pain relief injection cost me £457!!!

Only to be told she has the bloods of a 2 year old cat, but bad teeth, and now I'll have to fork out a fortune on dental work, as that isn't covered by the insurance that I've been paying for years and never claimed a penny.

Gutted, but I love my cat so much, and will beg, borrow and steal to keep her around longer 😊

Just wish he'd decided it was her teeth before ordering the bloods.

a trip to the vets always makes me thankful for the nhs!
I’ve spoken to multiple vets about this, general consensus is insurance helps push prices up. More people have more things carried out which has led to more being possible, and more being possible at your local vets (e.g it’s worth the extra equipment).
I hope it’s good news for your kitty

You could (for future reference) ask for written prescriptions from the vet to purchase the medicines elsewhere or online. Saves you ££££

Thanks everyone. I do have separate insurance but apparently it only pays £21 towards blood tests 🤔 i need to find a new one before the appointment

Costs vary so much between vets and where you live. The independent vets tend to be better in regards to costs. And a decent vet wont have £ signs in their eyes once you mention insurance.

Remember that we have the NHS, so can lose sight of what procedures actually cost.
It is not like the money for the blood test is going in the vet's pockets. It has to go towards the cost off all the staff and overheads too.

My dog has a long term condition that costs an arm and a leg when it flares up. One time we had to use the emergency vets over the Christmas holidays and it was in excess of £1k (fair enough because some poor vet had to come out during his holidays but still!) its not that much cheaper at normal times either though tbh and the insurance won’t cover it. Agree with pp that it makes me very thankful for the NHS and the free treatment of my family, especially as one of my DC also had a life long condition for which he receives regular appointments and treatment.

The vet club covers wormers, booster jabs, a once-over by the vet every six months, and specified discounts (usually on the stuff vets sell, not consultations or prescriptions).

I found that the cost is similar to the cost of jabs/wormers anyhow, and the. It’s like a loyalty scheme for the other stuff - you get the discount if you shop there, but as vets don’t get the prices that manufacturers offer large volume retailers, they tend to be at full RRP and for many things you can get more cheaply if you shop around.

Vet med prices seem high because we’re not used to seeing the costs of human medical procedures or actual costs of prescription medicines. And of course some bills come in high because you need to sedate/anaesthetise the patient to carry it out at all

Our vet is still an independent, something I’m really glad of

If you changes insurance companies now, this will probably be classed as a preexisting condition and not covered.

Being insured does not push up prices, there is no two tier system as that would be fraudulent. If a pet is insured then there is often the financial freedom to offer the ideal approach. If finances are limited then clients should speak to their vets and vets should discuss other approaches given the contexts.

Sorry I'm not totally sure how all the insurance stuff works, could I not buy an insurance now which covers pre existing conditions and then be covered in time for my blood test next week?

Unfortunately not. At present there is only one company, Manypets, that take animals with pre existing conditions but the animal can't have had treatment for the condition for 2 years.
Insurance is needed but also a rip off!

There is also normally a 2 week wait before you can claim.

It's essentially private healthcare though, isn't it?

A 15 minute private GP appt costs me £80. The same appt with my vet for the dogs is £39.

I save money by buying wormers and flea treatments online wherever possible.

I can buy the thyroid medication for the cat myself online. Maybe I should just do this instead?

Don’t cancel your insurance OP! Any insurance you take out now will not pay out anything towards this because it’s pre-existing, nor will it then cover any meds/long term treatment if issues are found in the test.

You would probably need a prescription from your vet (and you need to know it is the right meds and dose anyway). Plenty of people buy their pet's meds online.

This is in the T&C for my policy (Napo)

Exactly this. We are shielded from what this stuff actually costs because we have the NHS. My husband gets a private health care plan through his work and when he had a blood test awhile ago that was over £250 on the bill as we see the bills that get sent. It’s just that because most people don’t see those costs (NHS) when it comes to animals it does seem extortionate.