Pet insurance, yay or nay?

[MegBusset]

We are thinking of getting another cat in a couple of months, as our lovely old mog died at Easter. Money is tight at the moment and I'm wondering if pet insurance might be a good idea so that we can budget for it properly and not face any huge unexpected bills.

Is it just a swizz though? Will we have problems insuring a rescue cat with unknown background? (Will be a young cat.) Do they take your money then refuse to pay out? If it is a good idea, then where's best to get it from?

Hunt about for a policy and YES really worth having. If money is tight then you can not afford to be without it if you have a pet. It is devastating to make treatment (or not choices based upon money for a pet, but if you have a decent insurance this should not be the immediate concern.

When you look for a policy make sure you have a minimum of £2000 a year cover. It is not impossible for bills from specialists to go over that, but thankfully not that many cases will go to that. I would also recommend you get a "cover for life policy" - that means that if your pet gets a condition that can be managed but not cured, eg insulin dependant diabetes, your insurance should continue to pay out each yes all except for an excess each year. There are sadly too many policies that are time or money limited and will stop paying out for such situations after that is reached and then no-one else will take them on to insure and you are left paying out yourself. Petplan are just one of many companies that offer a good cover for life type of policy in my opinion.

excuse the typos, think that still makes sense though!

the more than insurance is good though it is more pricey as it also covers usual vets fees like yearly boosters and also if your pet has a lifelong illness like thyroid or kidney problems which is common in older cats then you will be covered for their whole life unlike my insurance Tescos that will only cover a year or something like that! i have not got my cats insured and keep meaning to as they are almost 8 which is the cut off period for insurance and my female one was diagnosed with a heart murmer last year which means it will not be covered.
if your rescue cat has already got existing problems it will not be covered by any insurance company.

My cat is a rescue cat, we got her when she was 5 months old (she's only 3 now), and we have insured her with Direct Line. So far, Direct Line have paid out over £500 for 2 vet consultations (not including normal vaccinations). One when our cat started limping and we had x-rays done (just a pulled muscle) and another time when she was very unwell, high temperature, off her food and wouldn't let us touch her (without hissing/scratching us), and she had to stay at the vets for 2 nights. Would definitely recommend insurance, simply for peace of mind, though check for excess charges - ours is £50 so not worth claiming for anything below that.

We have a staffie rescue dog and (thank god) we insured him.
It turned out he has severe stomach/digestion problems and vet's bills over the 6 years we've had him are probably in excess of £4,000 ! Having insurance has literally been a life-saver.
Check the details before you take a policy out though - we discovered our insurer doesn't help with food so we have to pay ourselves for very expensive prescription food.
Good luck

Yay.

Cat has cot the insurers a fortune so far.

It really is for peace of mind. If anything seems to be wrong you can just pop to the vet without having to worry about paying - or being asked if pet should be put to sleep because fixing it is too expensive.

Example. Cat in excruciating pain. Overnight at vets with various scans and x rays on liver/ribs/other cat bits. Cost £350. Next morning cat was fine and vet reckoned he had winded himself falling out of a tree. Thank god we didn't haven't to pay for that!!

Yay ++++++
We have rescue dogs and over the years they have cost us thousands,I know...... They are rather accident prone, but a £3.5k bill for a spinal injury and accompanying MRI wasn't even quibbled. I know nothing about cats etc but I can vouch for Petplan, an absolute essential when a petowner. Oh and various stomach disorders, random staffie attacks, arguments with patio doors, shredded cruciate ligament, gashes in paws and thighs etc have all been covered no probs.

wow.. ..I've had 3 cats that have all reached 20+ without any bills apart from food, occasional jabs (which appears to be a fairly recent thing...) and anti-flea stuff (but keep an eye on weather..

Have also had a cat that buggered off (or was run over/kid(cat)napped/abducted by aliens), and two that were run over and killed outright..

It's a weird thing insurance for cats.. ..not paid a penny for the current cat who lives mostly outdoors and supplements her diet with mice/birds/rats/who-knows-what-else...

My dog, however, has cost me money which the insurance company will soon be paying.. ;-)

It depends on your attitude to the animal. Pet insurance is quite expensive but reputable companies pay out reliably. I've been told Petplan is best.

Big bills are rare for cats, but if something goes wrong and you don't have insurance, how easy would it be to say 'I can't afford it - put it down'?

I know people who have picked up bills of nearly £1000 for cats - more for dogs. A friend of mine has a dog that twisted its gut and the bill was £2500.

nay.

We have 2 cats, both almost 11, who have never needed any tratment that would have been covered by insurance.

I lie, one did have an absess squeezed, but it would in no way justify insurance.

I have just taken my darling cat to the emergency Vets. He has been hit by a car. He needs to have X-rays, a drip and a catheter. I have been quoted £300 just for what they do tonight. If he does need surgery I expect all in all it will cost anything upto £1000.

If you haven't got the money to cover that sort of bill then yes, get insurance. We didn't and I wish I had now.

most people seem to have it nowadays like dentists really
i think morethan are good payers

My dog had a mystery illness a few months ago and had to spend a couple of nights at the vets and lots of blood tests etc. i had putting off insurance till I had a bit more money, it cost me about £400 I think.

I now have insurance from Tesco and I have the for life policy. Managed to get it half price for a year as they had an offer on at the time, think they often have extra points offers as well. Not needed it yet though so can't comment on them paying out or not.

My friend has insurance for her dog and dog stopped eating properly and insurance paid for her dog to see a therapist behaviouralist!

Have to say that the cat is not insured at all but the dog is up to her eyeballs! Cats seem to survive a great many years without any problems, dogs definitely seem like a completely different kettle of fish.

I think it's essential to insure a dog to include public liability.

We have insurance. Has been well worth it, but mainly because it's a bit rough for cats where we live and ours has been in some pretty bad fights.

Insurance companies are a pain in the arse though. Last time he got injured they finally paid up after weeks of phone calls, and we then got a letter in the post asking for the name and address of the cat that had bitten him .

iorek

sorry but thats made me and laugh at the same time, my god, name and address!!

I have been thinking about getting ins for my moggy.

Yes, definitely. Our cat was hit by a car - vet ambulance to hospital, weeks in intensive care, operations, drips, physio visits for ages. Came to around £6,000 I think. Same cat recently disolocated his leg, had to have an operation again, several nights at vets etc. This time it was $3,500 (now in Australia).