INSURANCE RENEWAL ADVICE WOULD BE APPRECIATED PLEASE !

[jobel]

I would be grateful for your help/advice please.

Keira's renewal came through yesterday from Marks and Spencer Insurance.  It has gone up from £15.00 per month to £22.00 

She is three years old and we have no problems with her whatsoever.  She has been with M&S for three years.   We had one incident about a year ago where we thought she might have diabetes cos she kept weeing in the house for no reason but she was given the all clear by the vet and we have had no problems since.  M&S paid up promptly etc .

My queries are - I can't afford to pay the hike in price.  I know a number of people of suggesting Healthy Pets.   

Can you change insurer's regularly and up to what age - particularly if you have a dog with no problems ?   Is it more or less the same as renewing car insurance without the no claims.   Sorry I am not very clued up on this.

Is it difficult to get insurance when your dog is reaching eight years old plus ? as I have seen something written re: excess for dogs age 9 years plus but am not really sure or understand what I have read

I would be grateful for your assistance.

Thank you

[loulabell]

That alot!!!!!

I pay that for my 10 year old........

I would shop around.

[Mrs T]

I have just rehomed Phoebe and for the first time have taken out insurance after reading the many posts on here about high vets fees etc and I have gone with Healthy Pets.   I got a quote on line before I picked Phoebe up and then telephoned HP when she was here to ask whether the fact that I did not know her previous history and that she is an ex-breeding bitch would affect this quote and I was told that it wouldn't.  I also asked whether the on line quote included a discount and was told that it didn't.   I quoted Phoebe's age as three (she has been estimated at between three and four) and the quote was confirmed at £11.47 per month.   Your post code may determine whether or not you would be quoted higher or lower than this.

Hope this helps.

[BabyB]

All four of ours are insured with Pet Plan (just putting in a claim for Dyl this evening for £671).

For our two 10 yr olds, their renewals have come in at £27 pm each, Katie who is 2yrs I pay £20pm I think and Henry who is 14 mths I pay £19pm.

I seem to recall someone saying that their renewal for Healthy Pets jumped up too.

If your pet is healthy, then yes you can shop around.  However, all I would say is that if you made a claim, then you may not be covered for life (only the first year) and if you then shopped around again, you'd be excluded the previous condition.

[Hurtwood Dogs]

I've got Healthy pets for my two but I know that they have recently been bought by a different underwriter and so I think fees are going up with them also  .
However, I mainly have the insurance for public liability. I've got the lowest medical fee's cover at the moment but as I have a big dog that's a bit of a hunter and disappears off sometimes and we do a lot of off lead walks, I feel happier knowing that if either of them knocked a mountain biker off or got onto a road and caused an accident, we're covered. I'm going to have to take a view on it next year if the prices keep hiking though..  In eight years, I've never really benefited from 'medical' cover with my dogs - infact, because of the excesses and lack of cover for 'routine' stuff, if I'd had my last dog insured to this level it would have cost me a lot more than the vets bills he incurred during his life - even though he died early of an aggressive disease and was hospitalised at one point.

It's all a bit of a minefield but I wouldn't worry about changing insurers after a price hike like that, particularly if there are no ongoing conditions that you are claiming for.

Hannah xx

[BabyB]

I've got Healthy pets for my two but I know that they have recently been bought by a different underwriter and so I think fees are going up with them also  .
However, I mainly have the insurance for public liability. I've got the lowest medical fee's cover at the moment but as I have a big dog that's a bit of a hunter and disappears off sometimes and we do a lot of off lead walks, I feel happier knowing that if either of them knocked a mountain biker off or got onto a road and caused an accident, we're covered. I'm going to have to take a view on it next year if the prices keep hiking though..  In eight years, I've never really benefited from 'medical' cover with my dogs - infact, because of the excesses and lack of cover for 'routine' stuff, if I'd had my last dog insured to this level it would have cost me a lot more than the vets bills he incurred during his life - even though he died early of an aggressive disease and was hospitalised at one point.

It's all a bit of a minefield but I wouldn't worry about changing insurers after a price hike like that, particularly if there are no ongoing conditions that you are claiming for.

Hannah xx

I totally agree with you Hannah. 

When I think about how much I'v paid in insurance renewals over the years, I could have bought a new car.  Coupled with the fact that you pay a large excess, and now two are over 8yrs old, I pay 20% of the bill too, it makes you wonder why we bother with insurance.

I suppose for me it's peace of mind that god forbid anythin major happened, then I know I don't have to find the moeny to pay for it.

[SimonandMandy]

So long as you have not got existing or past medical issues that might reappear you can shop around, anything claimed for in past becomes a exclusion.  Check with your vets if you are in a bigger practice, ours has its own insurance advisor who gives recommendations and I know M&S was dropped 6 months ago as there were issues other than price - think it was something to do with no longer having life long cover

We pay about £22 per month but would not be without it as I think in a short space of time Harvey racked up around £2k between 2 grass seed in eye incidents both requiring surgery and then a bad gastro (although sometimes I think insurances are a jinx, out cat never had a problem until he was insured and now he is competing to keep the vets in business... ). 

[Cob-Web]

So long as you have not got existing or past medical issues that might reappear you can shop around, anything claimed for in past becomes a exclusion. 

With most companies, it is anything that has been treated, even if it hasn't been claimed for on an insurance policy, that is excluded......so if you have popped your dog along to the vets for a few minor things over the year, then a new policy can have a number of restrictions on it; some companies lift these after 12/24 months, though 

I know that Bonnee would have anal gland issues excluded if I changed insurers, cos she had been to the vet twice and had them emptied; and Molo is likely to have exclusions for eye problems, because he had a dry eye test, even thought it was normal (it turned out to be hay fever  )

I pay over £50 a month for my two with M & S 

[amanda.seal]

I'm with HP and recently got Gracie covered with them, i was paying £5.58 for marley and now pay £19.10 for both so gracie's is £13.52, i don't think thats too bad as Gracie is 8yo but due to me having to take her to the vets when i first got her cus of her upset tummy that is exluded, though not quite sure what that means, its got stomache upset under exclusions. I do think however that it is quite a jump from marley's to gracie's

[Robbie34]

Charley is insured with M&S, and his renewal for this year was £359.  As he will be eleven in January there was not really an option, unless I took a chance and didn't insure him.  I haven't made a claim for some years, and unless he has a major problem I'm not likely to.  I have to pay the first £75 plus ten per cent of the remaining cost of treatment.

I wouldn't advise you to keep changing insurers, but I would look for a cheaper, reputable company that offers continuing cover and stick with it.  Unfortunately, M&S were one of the cheapest but their conditions changed two years ago.

[Jeeves]

Poor old Parker is uninsurable now... the only part of him that hasn't been tinkered with is his tail!

Due to a dire financial position I have had to cancel Mrs Bridges' and Ronald's insurance.  They were with Pet Plan (who are EXCELLENT!!) but were costing me about £50 a month which I cannot afford.

Luckily they are both pretty healthy although Mrs B spent the night chundering because she decided to eat the doormat while I was at work yesterday

[EmmaA]

Poor old Parker is uninsurable now... the only part of him that hasn't been tinkered with is his tail!

Due to a dire financial position I have had to cancel Mrs Bridges' and Ronald's insurance.  They were with Pet Plan (who are EXCELLENT!!) but were costing me about £50 a month which I cannot afford.

Luckily they are both pretty healthy although Mrs B spent the night chundering because she decided to eat the doormat while I was at work yesterday

Poor Mrs B what was she thinking
I am also with Petplan and they are pricey but excellent. When my Groove was having exploratory work done they did not grumble about anything (even a call out to the emergency vet) and my vet submitted all the forms and that was last I heard of it.

I recommend if you can't afford insirance premiums that you put a bit aside monthly into an account so you have some money there just in case.

[Jeeves]

B****r - as if on cue - more of the doormat has appeared at my feet.  Excuse me while I fiond a bucket and disinfectant...

[michelle123]

I have just rehomed Phoebe and for the first time have taken out insurance after reading the many posts on here about high vets fees etc and I have gone with Healthy Pets.   I got a quote on line before I picked Phoebe up and then telephoned HP when she was here to ask whether the fact that I did not know her previous history and that she is an ex-breeding bitch would affect this quote and I was told that it wouldn't.  I also asked whether the on line quote included a discount and was told that it didn't.   I quoted Phoebe's age as three (she has been estimated at between three and four) and the quote was confirmed at £11.47 per month.   Your post code may determine whether or not you would be quoted higher or lower than this.

Hope this helps.

Whilst we were having Charlie 'on trial' to see if he got on with Blue, I took him to the vets as I was concerned regarding his skin & importantly his weight - it was very very obvious that he was overweight.  In view of this I had to declare to HP, that he had been seen for these issues, therefore these were excluded.     

If I hadnt made a claim then I would have no problem at all about swapping and changing Insurers - now a days the Insurers have no loyalty to their customers and so vice versa !

I agree it is a mine field 

[PennyB]

I am also with Petplan and they are pricey but excellent. When my Groove was having exploratory work done they did not grumble about anything (even a call out to the emergency vet) and my vet submitted all the forms and that was last I heard of it.

They paid up all my bills for Ruby and her eye within a few days --- came to about £1000 and I also sadly had a cat pts at home years ago and they paid for that as well and they haven't quibbled about Wilf's hydrotherapy and acupuncture each month (in fact I don't pay anything as the vet puts it all through and they pay her).