Cat Insurance-cancel or not?

[Sparklingbrook]

Sparklingcat is roughly 14 years old and has a hyperactive thyroid and a kidney issue for which she takes 4 tablets a day. This is keeping things at bay for now.

Because I was a numpty and didn't take a lifetime policy out the year that the insurance plan paid for the drugs is long gone and I am now obtaining them from Pet Drugs Online at my own expense after getting the vet to issue a prescription.

The vet has said that if the thyroid drugs stop working we are looking at an operation which I will be paying for.

The insurance renewal quote has just come through for £37.67 a month. Over the years I have made multiple claims so that's why it's so high, never had an issue with the insurance.

I am a bit conflicted about whether to cancel and put that money away each month.

She's an outdoor cat but over the last few months that's got less and she spends a lot of time inside and sleeping.

I guess if she got another health condition the insurance would cover that for another year.

Do you think I should just carry on paying?

Personally I would continue to pay. I got a rescue cat a few years ago that I couldn't insure because of many pre existing conditions and the vets bills were really high. ( like £200 or £300 every couple of months) Probably more than you are paying in premiums. But if you feel that you could cover the costs yourself then obviously that's different. Surgery would probably be upwards of £1500 I'd guess from recent operations my elderly dog has had. Scans are super expensive too. As are drugs. It's an expensive business having elderly pets

And a blood test for my young cat two weeks ago was £190

@Sooverthemill

Personally I would continue to pay. I got a rescue cat a few years ago that I couldn't insure because of many pre existing conditions and the vets bills were really high. ( like £200 or £300 every couple of months) Probably more than you are paying in premiums. But if you feel that you could cover the costs yourself then obviously that's different. Surgery would probably be upwards of £1500 I'd guess from recent operations my elderly dog has had. Scans are super expensive too. As are drugs. It's an expensive business having elderly pets

Thanks for replying. I know that the only looming surgery could be the thyroid and I will be paying for that.

I am very risk averse so I am hovering more towards not cancelling. Also a big believer in 'sods law'. It's mad to think this insurance started out at about £8 a month and there's no shopping around to be done now.

My previous cat lived until about 15 with no health issues at all and then got ill and had to be put to sleep within a week. I paid insurance religiously for her too.

@Sooverthemill

And a blood test for my young cat two weeks ago was £190

I pay to a plan at the vets which gives a couple of blood tests and check ups a year and a % off dental treatment etc. It also pays for all flea and worm treatments and her boosters.

That's £12 a month.

Yes we pay that too but the non routine blood tests aren't included. Our very elderly cat had twice yearly 'senior' check ups including thyroid etc bloods but anything extra like illness was just 10% reduction. Tbh our animals cost us a fortune 5 x £12 a month vet plan, elderly dog insurance is £1500 a year, young Dog £750, each cat around £200 insurance . And obviously we pay the excess plus 20% for old dog but last year he was very unwell and vets bills of around £4K were paid by insurance. Ditto insane young dog he goes to vets regularly ( he's accident prone)

Similar to you OP, we have claimed so much over the years for our 12 year old cat that it now costs about £500 a year. Like you, we’ve never had any issues with the insurance and they’ve always paid out when necessary so I’ve decided to just stick with it. It’d be typical that I cancelled it and he ended up needing surgery a month later!

I would keep the insurance. We switched insurers when our old cat was 11 or 12 so couldn't get lifetime cover. Petplan paid out £3k 2 years in a row for triaditis then diabetes.
That said, we just got our Petplan renewal through. £58 a month..... Our lad is nearly 4 and it's lifetime cover. I am reluctant to change from past bad experiences with other insurers! Annoying thing is if I do a quote using my parents address elsewhere in the UK, it's half the price! We live in London and from what I know our vet bills aren't that much higher. I still think we've had more from them than we've paid them.

@Sooverthemill

Yes we pay that too but the non routine blood tests aren't included. Our very elderly cat had twice yearly 'senior' check ups including thyroid etc bloods but anything extra like illness was just 10% reduction. Tbh our animals cost us a fortune 5 x £12 a month vet plan, elderly dog insurance is £1500 a year, young Dog £750, each cat around £200 insurance . And obviously we pay the excess plus 20% for old dog but last year he was very unwell and vets bills of around £4K were paid by insurance. Ditto insane young dog he goes to vets regularly ( he's accident prone)

Like you say pet ownership is so expensive. i would hate to add everything up but she's worth it. I think it was just the realisation today with the new amount of £37 coming through.

My 11 year old cat has just been diagnosed with something and I too didn't have the lifetime part of the policy covered.

So they're only paying for any meds/investigations, etc, related to this condition until August this year.

I will be cancelling my insurance after that. I have a monthly plan with the vet for some dental, blood tests and minor investigations.

We will pay for anything else that crops up that can realistically be cured or treated, if it can't then we will make the decision that needs to be made.

I’d pay. Sparkling cat is worth £37 a month.

I wish my premium was only £37 a month! Mine is £125 and may double next year. So I'm having to consider what to do for one of mine.

I do feel mean even thinking about the costs, I just usually let the direct debits go out and not think about it too much.

I mean I have had value for money because I did claim for everything I could claim for and there's always going to be an increase due to that.

I really wish I had taken lifetime insurance out though.

I would always advise lifetime insurance for all animals. It's so much less stress. If you can afford it. We've had animals that never go to to the vet and others that had cancer ( and just diagnosing it was so much money) and a really small amount of treatment before we put him to sleep and that was massive. But insured. Old dog has a recurring back issue which costs a lot from time to time plus tumours last year and another illness. We won't keep any of them going longer than the vet advises and we trust our vets very much. Our2 very old cats were expensive too but we are lucky in that we can afford insurance or the costs when necessary. Many others cannot. I feel very sorry for people that can no longer afford their pets during Covid