Hi Carys
I did several online quotes yesterday - M & S, Animal for Friends, Tesco, Petplan and a few more, but I forget the names now. The cheapest was £13.85 from Tesco, and the highest was M & S at £32 (per month). However, you have to compare like for like: The £13.85 from Tesco online covered £2,000 per condition, per year. The others all covered up to £4,000 per condition, per year. They also included lots of other items like kennelling if owner is hospitalised unexpectedly, £1,000 on death of pet (may God forbid) and such like, whereas Tesco did not.
I agree, it is a bit of a minefield, but it's just a case of setting aside a few hours with pen and paper to compare all and come out with the one you feel most comfortable opting for. There's always a middle road there somewhere!
I liked the Animal for Friends one - the site professed to be non profit making, had lots of good advice on taking care with insurance cover - and laid everything out simply. Just good website design I suppose, but it all adds up.
The only plus, if it applies to you, was that Tesco was offering discount if you have any other pets. I have a cat insurred already with Tesco, but that didn't persuade me because they weren't offering as much cover as the others, which I think I will need with a dog. Well, I hope not, but you get my drift?!
Good luck with whatever you decide upon!
Potter