# Insurance for dogs



## Patchworkqueen (Dec 7, 2007)

Hi We will be getting a puppy in 3 weeks time when she is 8 weeks old. We have had dogs before and never had insurance because having 4 dogs it was too expensive for us at that time.

Now we are retired our income is more restricted so we are considering the merits if insurance.

I have read though previous posts and see that Pet Plan are recommended but has anyone experience of Marks and Spencers, Saga or Healthy Pets pet insurance?

I have been getting quotes online and these 3 are of interest. Pet Plan seems very expensive.
Thanks


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## richardjames (Feb 1, 2006)

We went with John Lewis which seemed to be the best value


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## hsscrm (May 24, 2012)

we are with john lewis and just made a claim for the first time which was settled quickly and without any fuss

although let's see what happens to our premiums next year... 

those friends of mine who don't opt for insurance put aside the equivalent amount each month and use that to pay unexpected bills

remember that there will likely be an excess so most bills (plus regular treatments like vaccinations) are not covered

our excess is £75 and up until now, all our bills have come in at under £75!


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## motormouth (Jul 3, 2010)

Lots of views on this if you search for pet insurance.
We have always insured our dogs and not made a claim yet, but you never know.
It's all well and good putting money away each month instead of paying for insurance, but what if your dog needs something major after a few months?? Look for the thread from Aldra and how much Shadows treatment cost, and she had insurance.


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## greenasthegrass (Oct 27, 2007)

Put the money to one side I am not a lover of these policies. i put £50 a month away which is the premium I would be paying so far in 5 years I have needed only £1200 of it. If you are on a low income there is always the PDSA.

Just my opinion, no doubt, the usual ones will let the arguments commence!

Greenie


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## adonisito (Nov 6, 2009)

Some of you may know how we lost Bramble early. Anyway, we have never taken out insurance and the bill for the final operations etc came to £800. I am seriously thinking about taking out a policy for Sasha, but the premiums seem so high.


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## Patchworkqueen (Dec 7, 2007)

I am aware of the arguments for and against insurance and I have read though previous threads.

Am considering Healthy pets, Saga and Marks and Spencer so would welcome comments on these .

I have tried to get a quote from John Lewis but will have to wait till puppy is 8 weeks old and I have microchip number. 

I am likely to take insurance for the 1st year in case of any early problems not picked up by puppy vet check. £500 is a large investment.
Thanks 
Chris


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## chasper (Apr 20, 2008)

We have pet insurance with the Caravan Club, it covers them for life and is with Axa Insurance, and yes if we did not have it Smiffy would have cost us nearly £800 in 3 years.


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## papaken (Nov 21, 2010)

We have a Lhasa Apso covered by 'Protect your bubble.com' and they paid out no trouble when he needed an eye op.
They have different levels of cover to select from and they cover repetative illnesses not like some insurance.
At £95 a year paid monthly by direct debit for standard cover we feel we are adequately covered.


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## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

Two schools of thought. 
Take out insurance for peace of mind. read policies thoroughly before commiting.

Or Don`t bother.

I am in the latter camp.
With an average of four dogs at anyone time over the last 39 years we have only had a bill for £300 other than routine jabs.
The last eight years we have had a pack of six dogs.
The insurance premiums would have been well over £15k.

Dave p


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## simbadog (Jul 12, 2011)

It's noticeable that every single thing they ever go the vets for, get's excluded from future insurance cover  
Do wonder if it's worth carrying on? We are using pdsa insurance.


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## Patchworkqueen (Dec 7, 2007)

Hi Papaken 
The puppy we are buying is a Lhasa Apso. I didn't know much about the breed but when we stayed at CC site at Malvern recently the people on the next pitch had one and I was smitten.

We have had Border Collies and Rough Collies before but they need far too much exercise for us now so we are returning to dog ownership after about 14 years.
Pick her up on 14th October and really looking forward to the day.
Thanks Chris


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## DTPCHEMICALS (Jul 24, 2006)

My sister and niece breed L A`s They are one of the healthiest breeds of dogs. 
http://www.groomers-online.com/article.php/76/lhasa-apso-health
They can be energetic little critters.

Dave p


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## Jamsieboy (Jan 14, 2011)

PetPlan
Excellent cover with lifetime cover policy
Great to deal with, speedy settlement too


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## WildThingsKev (Dec 29, 2009)

I've just gathered a few quotes and carefully looked at cover whilst abroad. Bramble is a 5 year old mongrel, here are my comparisions (generally premium cover required giving £7000 vet fees in UK):

AXA £153. covers all PETS countries. 3 x 60 day trips abroad. Only £1000 vet fees abroad.

Caravan Club (improved AXA) £170. all PETS countries. Unlimited 60 day trips. £2500 vet fees abroad.

John Lewis (Royal Sun Alliance) £193. EU countries (ie not including Switzerland/Norway etc). 3 x 60 day trips. £7500 vet fees abroad.

Protect your Bubble (Agria) £190. All non long-haul PETS (ie all Europe). 365 day cover. £7500 vet fees abroad. (Note, excess includes 15% clawback on top of fixed excess).

Petplan was £240 for a similar level of cover but haven't looked further into it.

Still can't make my mind up!

Kev


ps, took a quick look at the cheaper policies but they had a distinct lack of travel cover.


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## Barts (Apr 16, 2007)

Hi

We have both our dogs insured with protect your bubble.com we found them far cheaper. Both dogs insured for £210. per year. Hope this helps

Kind regards

Barts


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

You are wise to choose carefully. Pet insurance is the only insurance I know of where, once you have claimed, you are stuck with that company.
After over £4,000 pounds worth of un-insured vet bills, for an injury our lurcher suffered, we decided that we would never have an un-insured dog again, ever. We managed to insure her at nine years of age with Asda. They, obviously, excluded the injured leg. They were the only option for us because of her age and their cover includes Europe. We have more than had our money back even though they now, because she is 13, load the premiums and take off a percentage. It is so wonderful to take her to the vet and not worry about the cost! I have no complaints about Asda they have paid up without a quibble every time. They have paid for hydro-therapy, acupuncture, chiropractic treatment. Because of this she is amazingly fit and well for her age.

As vets can treat more and more nowadays and dogs are, like us, living longer the premiums are never going to be cheap.
Our latest addition, a Whippet, was diagnosed with Addisons Disease at 18 months old, though she had probably had it since she was nine months old. Again - no anxiety attacks every time she vomitted or went lame.
If I could change I would go with Pet Plan. It worries me that Asda will decide to get out of the market as Halifax and some others did recently. They left their clients high and dry until a campaign by Dogs Today forced them to have a rethink.


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## Blizzard (Sep 21, 2009)

patp said:


> You are wise to choose carefully. Pet insurance is the only insurance I know of where, once you have claimed, you are stuck with that company.


Hi patp,

We're getting our first puppy in approximately 9 weeks and have followed this thread with interest.

Is it some sort of contract that binds you to Asda for insurance once you have made a claim, or is this common across all pet insurers ?

Insurance companies make their money by fewer customers making claims, than those that do. Some they win, some they lose, so it doesn't seem right that an insurer can force you to remain with them if they pay out. 
They could unfairly increase your premiums to claw back their loss and you would not be able to do anything about it ?

Are you able to provide more information please, because if it's only Asda that do this, then they're off my list.

Thanks,

Ken.


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## Patchworkqueen (Dec 7, 2007)

I thought I would give an update.
After much deliberation, I have gone with John Lewis.

Pet plan may be the best, I don't know, but at £22 per month for my Lhasa Apso puppy I thought it very expensive.
John Lewis £12.02 for very similar cover.

There are 3 levels of cover the price I quote is for their middle range.

I am now looking at dry, complete dog foods and that is another minefield.
Comments very welcome.

Chris


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## bulawayolass (Jul 27, 2010)

Petplan only dont touch the others a vn friend had M & S till couple of weeks ago she is now changing.

Just got B.. & D...' insurance renewals through today. B.. is 7 & last year was £24.99/month - only a claim on back leg lameness, D... is 5 & was £15.99, no claims at all.

D... has gone up to £22.10 & B... has jumped to £44.80

Moved to Petplan - £16.07 a month for D..

Sadly LA are not healthy no pedigrees are but on the positive side they are not the worst of the breeds 
This may help or depress you, by David Sagan he is a geneticist the list is added and removed from all the time :
http://www.vet.cam.ac.uk/idid/search.php


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## Hezbez (Feb 7, 2009)

Patchworkqueen said:


> I am now looking at dry, complete dog foods and that is another minefield.
> Comments very welcome.
> 
> Chris


Been in a simialar position recently with our 15 week Border Collie.
I wanted a high quality dry food, one with minimal grain/fillers (grain is not a natural food choice for dogs).

Currently feeding Fish4dogs (puppy version). Nice firm stools, no stomach upsets, but she does seem to be getting fed up with it now.

Tried her with some Arden Grange and she loves it. Quite a good food, but it has maize in it.

Thinking of changing over to Orijen. Very high quality but pretty expensive.

She's also been getting some raw meat, which she loves. If I had the knoweldge I think I would move her over completely to a BARF diet. But you really need to know what your doing if feeding all raw, plus it isn't handy when away in the motorhome. Not enough freezer room!


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Blizzard said:


> patp said:
> 
> 
> > You are wise to choose carefully. Pet insurance is the only insurance I know of where, once you have claimed, you are stuck with that company.
> ...


Sorry did not make it clear.
It is once you have claimed (or rather once the dog has been ill/injured) that you are stuck with that insurer as any new one will exclude anything to do with the illness/injury that caused the claim or treatment. Don't think that, by not claiming, you will avoid this trap. A new insurer will request the whole of the dog's medical history the first time you claim. If there is a sniff of a pre-existing condition they will not pay out on it. We decided that having the left leg excluded from any claim would still be worth it. We have been proved right and the peace of mind is priceless.


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Hezbez said:


> Patchworkqueen said:
> 
> 
> > I am now looking at dry, complete dog foods and that is another minefield.
> ...


Fish4Dogs is a good food, as is Orijen. My favourite is Burns. They have a brilliant helpline. John Burns was/is a vet and he got tired of advising people to cook for their dogs because the food available then was rubbish. Things are much better now.
One food to really avoid is Bakers. It is full of e numbers and causes all sorts of behaviour and health problems.


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## rtaff (Jul 7, 2012)

Broder has been on both higher quality kibble such as Arden Grange, Taste of the Wild and on raw. If we weren't going to be full timing soon then we would have definately kept him on raw. It's much cheaper and much healthier than commercial food.

I'd definately recommend having a look on petforums.co.uk as they have a dog's health and nutrition board. Here are some threads that might be of use when researching decent food:

http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-health-nutrition/255727-updated-dry-dog-food-index.html

http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-health-nutrition/111437-raw-feeding-everything-you-need-know.html

http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-health-nutrition/194976-wet-dog-food-index.html

Bakers, Pedigree and supermarkets own should all be avoided in my opinion.

http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-chat/186242-truth-about-bakers-dog-food.html


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## Blizzard (Sep 21, 2009)

patp said:


> Sorry did not make it clear.
> It is once you have claimed (or rather once the dog has been ill/injured) that you are stuck with that insurer as any new one will exclude anything to do with the illness/injury that caused the claim or treatment. Don't think that, by not claiming, you will avoid this trap. A new insurer will request the whole of the dog's medical history the first time you claim. If there is a sniff of a pre-existing condition they will not pay out on it. We decided that having the left leg excluded from any claim would still be worth it. We have been proved right and the peace of mind is priceless.


Thank you for explaining that for me and rest assured, it was not your explanation, it is me being a new starter around pets and pet insurance 

I hadn't considered that a new insurer wouldn't be too keen to insure an existing condition, bit it does make sense.

Ken.


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## IanA (Oct 30, 2010)

We have changed our insurance around a couple of times - the pre-existing illness bit wasn't covered for a period of time - 6 months if I remember correctly. They do tend to load the premiums as the dog gets older, even if you haven't claimed - our 12yr old Westie is over £40 per month, 7ry old Westie is only £20.

Funny how most of the bills are just under the excess - starting to doubt whether the insurance is good value, especially for the older dog.


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## Pollydoodle (Aug 18, 2005)

It was interesting top read this thread as I have just had the renewal for Maisie (age 4) and it has doubled, although we have never claimed. She was covered for the basics with the AA. I have thought about accident only, or just put a sum away each month but I've not decided. We never insured our previous dogs and luckily had no problems. Maisie is a rescue terrier, never off lead as once she gets a scent there is no stopping her...........!!


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## bulawayolass (Jul 27, 2010)

The problem with putting money away is generally it is there for the one off but it isnt there for the ongoing problem. Diabetes, kidneys, hearts, fitting or something like skin graffting even a wound that has to be dealt with over a long period of time as not suitable as to extensive or broke down with normal stitch up for some reason and those are just a few reasons and will often run into 1000s on either a mone off or long term with drugs and tests to see they are staying fit on the drugs.


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