Pet insurance advice - do I claim?

[LilyLilacanna]

My dog was seen at the vet last week and then referred to a specialist for a new condition.

The specialist has said the changes are age related and nothing further needs done yet but may need surgery etc in the future.

My bill was around £350 which I paid but my question is, do I claim this back on my Insurance so they know about the condition or do I need to?

My Worry is I claim for this amount and my premiums shoot up which I know they will anyway due to my dogs age but if I don’t let them know, and need to claim for the same issue in the future is it considered pre-existing and will they reject my claim?

I don’t want to be left in the position where in the future surgery is needed and I want to claim for a higher amount. But I don’t know if this would all be considered one condition and therefore it would be thought of as an ongoing claim?

It will be considered pre existing anyway because they'll get your vets notes for any further claim. So you may as well claim.

If you stay with the same insurer, they will cover it if you a have a lifetime policy. If you switch insurers, they won't cover unless you've paid extra to cover a pre existing condition.

How much is your excess? It might not be worth claiming.

however yes you should make them aware, but you don’t need to make a claim to do so, you just phone them and tell them

What does your policy say? I think let them know. That's what the insurance is for and although it will go up, it's £350 which you've probably paid in, and some. No point really having insurance if you're not going to use it!

Some policies won't payout unless you have notified them of the condition within 12 months of diagnosis.

For example, I know a dog who was diagnosed with luxating patellas as a puppy. The owner chose to delay the operation for a few years. By which time the insurance refused to pay out.
IME policies don't go up because you have made a claim. I have claimed £1000s every year for one of mine, but her policy has only increased by a few pounds a month each year.

You will have to notify them at renewal about the new condition anyway (you risk invalidating the policy or future claims otherwise) so you may as well claim. I had an older dog that we had a big claim for. At renewal the prices were so high, we just decided to put the money aside if she needed it instead. Depends on future surgery costs really and also we said the dog was of an age where we wouldn’t do anything too large again anyway as it wouldn’t have been fair. You’ve got to weigh it all up really

You must tell them anyway, as other pp have said - so you might as well claim for it. But what sort of policy do you have? Mine (PetPlan) covers the dog for any new condition for life.

Thanks everyone. Yes we have a lifetime policy with an excess of £60. We won’t ever leave this insurer anyway because my dog has another lifelong condition which would be considered pre-existing if we moved to another insurer.

ill give them a call and let them know.