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If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Many pets insurance

44 replies

maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 01:14

Bern with many pets for 2 years for my dog Winnie . She's a staffie x Jack Russell bought from a dogs home 6 years ago when she was 3 months old .
She has thyroid medication and we claim on the insurance and I currently pay £41 a month . Back in sept she had cruciate ligament surgery £3500 . A claim went into many pets who started sending emails asking if she is s cross breed or a mongrel . I said I wasn't aware of the difference . They said xbreed is 2 breeds a mongrel can be 3/4/5 breeds . I advised as far as we know she's a crossbreed staffie and jack . Next email I had asked which breed is dominant ? I advised she's more like a staffie .
This evening I've received another email saying my oremijms gone up from £41 to £72 a month as I've been underpaying . I've never been asked any questions before until this large claim . My premiums renew in august but they want this increase straight away . I feel the only reason this has now come up is due to the large claim . They say if I cancel they will still pay the amount to the vet but I will still owe them 6 months at £31 from august to Jan .
I object to this as at no point has this been mentioned for previous claims for thyroid treatment and I have escalated . I also intend going to the ombudsman next week for advice .
Has anyone else come across anything similar ?

OP posts:
Barleysugar86 · 07/01/2023 01:46

I have worked in insurance for my whole career, although not an Underwriter and not for this company. I have heard of it though and generally it has a good reputation, I know of many in my industry for whom this is the preferred insurer for their pets.

I realise increases in premium come as a shock to many and feel unfair but i can assure you it's not personal and there isn't someone in a room thinking 'how can we get rid of this customer'.

The premium calculations are all based on statistics from past claims history. Staffie's and Staffie dominant crossbreeds must have been a higher risk than what you were on previously, either for health issues or injury such as from fighting. However it would be odd to make this adjustment mid term unless your original application was made incorrectly.

There is no point going to the ombudsman first as they are there as the final point of escalation for a complaint and they'd just refer you back to your insurer- you'd need to first raise it as a complaint with your insurer and go through that process. They will likely give you a better break down of how the new premium is calculated.

I think it might be worth a complaint if you mention you took out the insurance in good faith at the premium you were on originally and say that you answered the questions at the time honestly and truthfully (if you did). The complaints team will have the power to look at what you have said in your original application and roll back the decision if there investigation shows it to be unfair. If their questions did not ask for the correct information you have a strong case, however if you did not answer the questions carefully or honestly then they do have the right to charge you what you would have been charged if the mistake hadn't been made.

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 01:54

Your issue will be that if you leave the thyroid and ligaments will be existing problems and you won’t get cover for them . It seems very unfair and unprofessional though .

purpleme12 · 07/01/2023 02:04

You need to basically look back at any questions when you took the policy out. You have to be 100 per cent sure that they didn't ask these questions if you dispute this.
Or 100 per cent sure that you answered it right.

ArcticSkewer · 07/01/2023 02:13

On the first page when you apply online you have 3 choices - pedigree, mixed, cross - and an explanation of the difference (I hadn't realised either!).
You must have at some point filled that in.
My pedigree is £££ to insure - it varies a lot by breed.

Are you sure yours really is just two dog breeds though, if from dogs trust? Perhaps you could say you were confused and now think your dog is 3+ types. You can even dna test for £70

BiteyShark · 07/01/2023 07:39

I wonder if the information you gave originally didn't match that of your recent claim either from you or the vet. They then asked for clarification and your last answers affected the premium (and actually I would be relieved they still wanted to insure you rather than cancel if your last answer conflicted your original).

I am with petplan rather than many pets and each claim I fill out a bit of information (I think that might also be the breed) so I can understand if that doesn't match why it might flag up such questions.

Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 09:33

When I filled in the application apparently I put crossbreed they tell me . It's the vets I believe who have said mongrel .
I still cannot believe and feel its extremely petty as the people I've asked all say aren't they both the same and tbh what does it matter . A cruciate operation is a cruciate operation wether on a dog a mongrel a crossbreed or whatever . The vets bill is the same irrespective of breed .
Also why now ?? At no point previously have these questions been flagged up . As someone said a dog from the dogs home basically has no history so I cannot say for certain what mix she is .
To me it's a classic insurance way of trying to either not pay out or to nitpick to find something to justify increasing my payments

OP posts:
BiteyShark · 07/01/2023 09:37

I am not disputing it's frustrating or right but this isn't the issue.

A cruciate operation is a cruciate operation wether on a dog a mongrel a crossbreed or whatever. The vets bill is the same irrespective of breed

The operation cost is the same but the risk of needing it will increase depending on the breed/dominant breed which would have affected your premiums cost. Mine is a WCS and thus is susceptible to certain conditions and his policy price reflects that (and is expensive).

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 10:04

It is a strange one though as I put my dog down everywhere as a patterdale x , that’s because I can tell he’s mainly patterdale but I’ve absolutely no idea what else is in there . I think it would have been fairer to just hike your premiums when you renew .

Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 10:18

They also say if I cancel my policy they will pay the vets fees but I will still be liable for the £31 per month difference in price for the last 6 months as I've been underpaying .
How in gods name is this my fault ????

OP posts:
Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 10:20

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 10:04

It is a strange one though as I put my dog down everywhere as a patterdale x , that’s because I can tell he’s mainly patterdale but I’ve absolutely no idea what else is in there . I think it would have been fairer to just hike your premiums when you renew .

Agreed ... my dog could have 6 breeds in her ... how do I know 🤷🏽‍♀️
To actually increase it 6 months in I feel is extremely unfair

OP posts:
Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 10:22

BiteyShark · 07/01/2023 09:37

I am not disputing it's frustrating or right but this isn't the issue.

A cruciate operation is a cruciate operation wether on a dog a mongrel a crossbreed or whatever. The vets bill is the same irrespective of breed

The operation cost is the same but the risk of needing it will increase depending on the breed/dominant breed which would have affected your premiums cost. Mine is a WCS and thus is susceptible to certain conditions and his policy price reflects that (and is expensive).

So your saying if I had advised JR was the prominent breed potentially the premium could be less ?
Gosh it's an absolute minefield but as I say how do I know what she actually is 🤷🏽‍♀️

OP posts:
BiteyShark · 07/01/2023 10:27

Yes I was wondering if it was something like the prominent breed that was the issue here.

purpleme12 · 07/01/2023 10:42

If you cancel you'd still have to pay the last 6 months because you've got a claim in that policy period. Whenever there's a claim in that policy period you have to pay for the whole premium of that year because that's what you're paying for, the possibility of making a claim

mushforbrain · 07/01/2023 10:46

I’m sorry no advice on the exact issue but I cancelled our policy with many pets this year as my premium went up from £68 to £98 per month! (This is for dog+cat)
Its a shame as I was happy with them but that hike is just ridiculous and not justifiable imo.

wetotter · 07/01/2023 10:59

Utterly normal that your premiums go up once your dog has a condition that might either recur or require ongoing treatment.

I don't think the breed/type will make as much difference as the facts of orthapaedic surgery and thyroid treatment.

For context, your new premium is only £10 per month higher than that for my KC registered terrier with a mild orthopaedic issue, that does not at present require treatment but might require an operation (so £kkk) in future. Also Many Pets. No thyroid or other issues requiring medication.

Be glad they didn't just reject the claim, based on your supplying incorrect information. I'm sorry that you're feeling bounced, but the company's onwards actions are all based on what you told them.

A hard way to learn that it's better to keep saying what you know to be accurate "rescue, don't know for sure, advised cross staff/JR" not go further because they keep asking ("I don't know, I can't say which, she's a rescue and we were advised cross staff/JR")

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 11:03

@wetotter , I don’t think the OP is moaning about the premiums going up , she’s complaining that they are putting them up in the middle of the year - when she signed up she signed up to £x per month and after 6 months they are saying she needs to pay £xx per month . Had they said the cost was £xx she may have gone elsewhere , whereas now they have her over a barrel as she will have more exclusions on her policy .

purpleme12 · 07/01/2023 11:05

I understand why OP is annoyed unfortunately it is normal that once they know something is wrong on a policy they have to amend it asap in insurance, rather than waiting till renewal

Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 11:34

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 11:03

@wetotter , I don’t think the OP is moaning about the premiums going up , she’s complaining that they are putting them up in the middle of the year - when she signed up she signed up to £x per month and after 6 months they are saying she needs to pay £xx per month . Had they said the cost was £xx she may have gone elsewhere , whereas now they have her over a barrel as she will have more exclusions on her policy .

Absolutely

OP posts:
Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 11:35

wetotter · 07/01/2023 10:59

Utterly normal that your premiums go up once your dog has a condition that might either recur or require ongoing treatment.

I don't think the breed/type will make as much difference as the facts of orthapaedic surgery and thyroid treatment.

For context, your new premium is only £10 per month higher than that for my KC registered terrier with a mild orthopaedic issue, that does not at present require treatment but might require an operation (so £kkk) in future. Also Many Pets. No thyroid or other issues requiring medication.

Be glad they didn't just reject the claim, based on your supplying incorrect information. I'm sorry that you're feeling bounced, but the company's onwards actions are all based on what you told them.

A hard way to learn that it's better to keep saying what you know to be accurate "rescue, don't know for sure, advised cross staff/JR" not go further because they keep asking ("I don't know, I can't say which, she's a rescue and we were advised cross staff/JR")

Reject the claim based on me giving wrong information !!!!
I never have given wrong information !!! I registered her as a crossbreed which as far as I know she is but obviously can't say for 100% certain as I don't know her history .
To say I should be grateful is ludicrous

OP posts:
BiteyShark · 07/01/2023 11:40

I've just googled many pets and crossbreed/mix breed and there are a number of articles which describe what they mean in terms of definitions and what you should do in terms of defining what breed(s) for rescues (e.g. contact rescue or ask vet for help clarifying) as it affects the premium.

Fallulah · 07/01/2023 11:41

Many Pets did similar to us. I took my rescue dog’s insurance out and put in a random date to make her 7 years old as I didn’t have her exact age. I then received her paperwork and her exact date of birth was about a month out. I corrected it and they put the premium up about £10 a month!

That said, the vet situation where we live is dire (barely any vets and when you can get an appt it’s £65 for them just to look at your dog) so the free video vet that you get with Many Pets has so far saved us £130 over the past year when the dog has done something silly and we need an opinion on whether she needs to physically see a vet.

I did think that all crossbreeds were mongrels though! I am now off to check that I definitely put mongrel for mine as we have no idea what she is!

TheFlis12345 · 07/01/2023 11:45

maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 10:22

So your saying if I had advised JR was the prominent breed potentially the premium could be less ?
Gosh it's an absolute minefield but as I say how do I know what she actually is 🤷🏽‍♀️

Show quote history

Get a DNA test done and you will know! They aren’t that expensive.

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 12:15

Having said that mine is down as a patterdale x , I’ve looked and he’s down as terrier x on my insurance , which is really vague ( direct line ) , we’ve made a few claims over 12 yrs and never had an issue .

Original poster
maddog1996 · 07/01/2023 15:13

Fallulah · 07/01/2023 11:41

Many Pets did similar to us. I took my rescue dog’s insurance out and put in a random date to make her 7 years old as I didn’t have her exact age. I then received her paperwork and her exact date of birth was about a month out. I corrected it and they put the premium up about £10 a month!

That said, the vet situation where we live is dire (barely any vets and when you can get an appt it’s £65 for them just to look at your dog) so the free video vet that you get with Many Pets has so far saved us £130 over the past year when the dog has done something silly and we need an opinion on whether she needs to physically see a vet.

I did think that all crossbreeds were mongrels though! I am now off to check that I definitely put mongrel for mine as we have no idea what she is!

Exactly ... every person I've asked said the same " I thought crossbreed was a mongrel 🤷🏽‍♀️"
They really should make things much clearer as Jo Bloggs doesn't know the difference . I still believe it's a way to get more cash from people when they have large claims . It's always that same old chestnut with insurance wether it be dog cat home car ... basically fine whilst your paying in but when they have to pay out it's a different ball game

OP posts:
wetotter · 07/01/2023 16:17

Floralnomad · 07/01/2023 11:03

@wetotter , I don’t think the OP is moaning about the premiums going up , she’s complaining that they are putting them up in the middle of the year - when she signed up she signed up to £x per month and after 6 months they are saying she needs to pay £xx per month . Had they said the cost was £xx she may have gone elsewhere , whereas now they have her over a barrel as she will have more exclusions on her policy .

I got that.

They're putting them up to what she would have paid had the information been available to the company at the outset. So that the cost of a year's policy is correct for what OP has most recently said about breed/type

And she's been lucky - some companies would invalidate the policy.

The information you gave on the original declaration was not the same as that you disclosed on the form so they are taking it that the first form was wrong. That's what I meant by giving wrong information - you gave later, different information.

Getting DNA done might be a good step - though that might contain surprises (I know someone who thought that had a Goldie cross, that turned out to contain no Goldie at all!)