Golden Retriever pup: insurance?

[NicInBetween]

Cassie is 4 months old and her free Kennel Club and Pet Plan insurance is up. I have got lots of quotes - directly and through GoCompare and the choice is too big! Advice appreciated.

Eg Do i really need lifetime cover? Do i need up to £4k or £8k annual vet fees cover? Are the insurers pretty much the same despite the disparity in insurance costs? Thanks in advance...

Yes you do need lifetime cover and nowadays I would go for at least 8K and understand that in some circumstances it may not be enough.

Definitely lifetime and the highest vet cover you can. Whilst £4,000 sounds a lot, it can be used up very quickly, if something happens.

I always say Pet Plan is the only company I'd ever go with. I know people who've made massive claims and the premium has barely increased, unlike with other firms. I also know of a dog whose monthly medication costs exceed the premium the owner is paying petplan even after a few years of dog being on these medications (and pet plan pays for them). Dog has also required some very expensive surgeries, which again didn't really increase premiums.

Yes get lifetime cover.
We had Pet Plan for our golden retriever. We had lifetime cover. He was very healthy (two claims in the first ten years of his life) and we often questioned why we bothered with the insurance. Then he developed osteoarthritis and dementia. The medication bills were very expensive, sometimes running into hundreds per month. Pet Plan paid out with no quibbles and it meant we were able to keep him comfortable and happy for longer.
Also remember that insurance is not just for vet bills. I have third party liability cover £2,000,000 per incident.

I'm still in two minds about insurance. But I had a conversation with our vet the other day about insurance for our new puppy and she also recommended pet plan. Same as reasons above - they don't put premiums up after claims and pay promptly without quibble.

We had a real tussle with direct line recently to recover the cost of a tooth extraction for one of our dogs (trauma, not decay which wouldn't be covered). after lots of phone calls from us and the vet, they reluctantly paid half. But they refused to cover the cost of cleaning the surrounding teeth even though the vet said it was essential to avoid infection.

Thanks all. I've heard PetPlan is good but it's also the priciest (£50 +).... I think i've settled on Kennel Club which seems really good and for Lifetime cover (and up to £7,500 a year vet fees) it's £40 a month. Anyone had any experience of KC insurance?

just as an example...very healthy GSD, 4 weeks ago

fidgety one evening, scuffing his foot next day, so vets for xrays and sedation which revealed a likely disc rupture, vet advised MRI (£300++ for xrays and sedation)

Emergency referral to expert vet, MRI, same day surgery and 1week recuperating £4.5k later! We have paid £200 to specialist vet and will sort any difference once insurance have sorted final amount/percentage/excess.

We still have hydrotherapy'physio looming, but he is making an amazing recovery so far!

AND to be totally brutal we would not have gone down that route other than for insurance.

We're with Morethan.