Is it normal for a new vet to say this?

[stirling]

"Before your first visit, we strongly advise you to sign up for pet insurance"

??
Registered my 8 month old kitten and only wanted to have her checked and neutered etc. I live in a ridiculous area where people have a huge amount of money and the residents are completely money driven /obsessed (except me of course!) but since I'm a highly sceptical person, I'm fearing this means

"we plan on exaggerating or inventing medical problems so that we can maximise your costs which you'll claim back from insurance"

Of course, I could be paranoid!

More likely they are recommending people are responsible pet owners.

FFS.

• probably should explain that I've met too many crook dentists and plumbers inventing jobs that didn't really need doing...

That's normal. Vet bills can be enormous. We're shielded from how much medical expenses actually cost because of the NHS. For example my pet just had an antibiotic injection and blood test - £350.

If you're going to be responsible and have pet insurance (which you should) then getting it before your first visit is sensible so you're covered from the start.

I think it’s generally advised to have pet insurance. presumably it’s advised before the first visit in case anything comes to light that you couldn’t then claim for as it’s a pre-existing condition.

They are just recommending you get insured before they find anything, otherwise you won't be covered.

Your interpretation is weird. What they are saying is that if you have a pet which may have unknown medical issues, get it insured first, wait the allotted time, and then bring to the surgery. If these unknown medical issues are then spotted, you will be covered by insurance.

You are being very strange and also making assumptions that insurance companies are stupid and vets are unethical.

If you go to the vet first there's a medical condition, you might not be able to insure for it. If you get the insurance first, then you should be covered for anything that might occur.

Insurers won't cover pre-existing conditions. If you sign up before your first vet visit no condition will be pre-existing. If you turn up with no insurance and discover your pet has some kind of issue you won't be able to get that covered in subsequent treatment. My kitten has a heart murmur. It is unlikely to cause her any issues, but if I hadn't had insurance before her first appointment I'd be facing issues if it does ever cause problems.

I should say I have a healthy dose of scepticism having just paid £50 for a probiotic available on Amazon for £11, but there’s not many other options if your pet needs veterinary treatment.

What a weird interpretation. Of course vets should advise everyone to get pet insurance especially before actually visiting the vet...

Vets recommend getting insurance because treatments can be expensive, and many pet owners can't afford this without being insured.

Also, if you attend the vet and your pet is diagnosed with a condition before being insured, no insurance company will cover the costs for that condition.

Best to get insured before any illness or conditions arise!

As others have said, it's because you'll then never be able to get insurance to cover anything pre-existing once it's been mentioned in the pet's notes, even if it doesn't require treatment now. I know people who found out their kitten had a heart murmur or a problem with their hips in the first checkup and hoped they had got insurance beforehand.

If you visit the vet and they pick something up before you get insured then the insurance will not cover you for that issue as it will be an existing condition. I took out insurance as soon as I got our 2 cats

Get insurance. Our pet has cost £6k in the last 2 years. If we didn't have insurance we'd be fucked.

It's completely normal and sensible advice, and you are very unreasonable to jump to that conclusion.

Absolutely sensible advice.

My old rescue girl (who was broken beyond belief) could not be insured.

The operations and tablets alone cost at least £26k.

She went on to have a very full and happy life and was worth every penny of that and more.

It isn’t a scare tactic or a scam.

Insurance is sensible.

Our cat has a lifelong condition found at 6 months. He takes a tablet every day & has done for 12 years. I'm very glad we have insurance although we do now pay quite a large excess.

it’s likely so you have the insurance incase they notice something… it would be devastating if they noticed a health condition which then wouldn’t be covered if you later decided to take out insurance

OK thank you, I see I'm being overly paranoid.
It's been over 20 years since I last had a cat. Times have changed..

It’s so that you don’t get caught out like we did. We got two new kittens and took them for an initial check up only to find that one has a kidney problem. As soon as it’s known about you can’t get insurance for it. So now he doesn’t have insurance even though his brother does.

Yes, it's so you are insured before any conditions emerge - which wouldn't be covered if they pre-dated the policy.

You either need insurance or savings of several K that you are prepared to spend on treatment if needed.

You're completely wrong. All vets recommend pet insurance because the cost of pet treatments are so high.

I've had cats for many years and vets have never talked to me about insurance. It is a good idea to have insurance for your cat though. Hope you won't be charged too much by your wealthy neighbourhood vets. My vet charges are so reasonable, thank goodness.

I think the comment is probably well-meant advice. Our vet’s practice has never mentioned insurance and at least one vet is always trying to flog treatments, so I don’t think not giving this advice means they are scrupulously giving cost-effective treatment!

However, it isn’t essential to have insurance to be a responsible owner. I consider whether I want to take insurance out for different risks or effectively self-insure as a personal finance decision and don’t need my vet to express a strong opinion on it.