Cat insurance: Does anyone bother?

[Andrewd]

Hi all,

I am relatively new to these forums but wondered if I could get some advice on whether to take out pet insurance for Remi.

I never really thought about to be honest until a friend of mine made an expensive insurance claim for a lump to be removed from her cat. Remi is 3 years old and seems to be in great health, but it has got me thinking that perhaps taking out insurance is the way to go.

So with that being said, could I get a hands up for who currently has their pets insured and who thinks its worth it? Help! :?

Any advice on this would be appreciated.

Many thanks,

Drew

[angieh]

Hi Drew! I am new to cat insurance with the arrival of Kizzy and now Pip. I didn't have any insurance for my previous cats and Merlin's care did get costly in his later years, but not IMO unreasonably so.

I was swayed to take out insurance by another member on this forum who has a little cat with severe immune problems. Her owner's experience persuaded me that it is a good thing, especially if you get a company that is well respected in general and perhaps even recommended by your vet practice.

You could always take out a regular savings plan instead in order to help with any vet bills, but in the event of something costly happening, this may not cover.

It's entirely up to you of course ........ it is insurance against horrible things happening after all.

[Andrewd]

Hi Drew! I am new to cat insurance with the arrival of Kizzy and now Pip. I didn't have any insurance for my previous cats and Merlin's care did get costly in his later years, but not IMO unreasonably so.

I was swayed to take out insurance by another member on this forum who has a little cat with severe immune problems. Her owner's experience persuaded me that it is a good thing, especially if you get a company that is well respected in general and perhaps even recommended by your vet practice.

You could always take out a regular savings plan instead in order to help with any vet bills, but in the event of something costly happening, this may not cover.

It's entirely up to you of course ........ it is insurance against horrible things happening after all.

Thanks for your reply

A regular savings plan could be an option, I am just a bit scared of the thought of paying out thousands of pounds in vets bills. hmmmm its a tough one.

What level of cover does Kizzy and Pip have? Does it cost much?

[Phoenix]

Dylan's insured with Tesco pet insurance (good thing he is really because of how many fights he's been in)

Cost about £3000 when he got injured through fighting with a rat and the cat fight injuries he's had have cost so far about £500.

Just thought I'd mention it so you can compare what it would cost to insure against what vets bills your cat/s are likely to incur :D

Beauty, with her treatment, we didn't have insurance for her and altogether it probably cost about £2000-3000 for all her treatment. Excluding the costs to have her PTS.

Here's who we are with: http://www.tescopetinsurance.co.uk/

[yola]

Vet costs can mount up very quickly. Costs for insuring a healthy young cat can be quite low and as long as you keep the insurance going it shouldn't rise too much (I had mine 'capped' so it didn't rise as the cats grew older).

I personally would recommend it. When my first CP persian got an intestinal blockage the operation and associated treatments cost close to £2000; the insurance paid all except the £15 excess!


*edit to say, yes like everything else it's a calculated risk. Your cat may never need treatment and you may never have to claim!!

[Phoenix]

Vet costs can mount up very quickly. Costs for insuring a healthy young cat can be quite low and as long as you keep the insurance going it shouldn't rise too much (I had mine 'capped' so it didn't rise as the cats grew older).

I personally would recommend it. When my first CP persian got an intestinal blockage the operation and associated treatments cost close to £2000; the insurance paid all except the £15 excess!


*edit to say, yes like everything else it's a calculated risk. Your cat may never need treatment and you may never have to claim!!

Who are you with Yola?

We've got a £50 excess :shock:

[angieh]

Kizzy and Pip are both with PetPlan. They have the "budget" cover which costs just over £20 per month. They are covered for life, so if they get an illness that needs repeat treatments, those are covered.

Kizzy is approx 2-3 years old now and Pip is just over 8 months old.

The information from rescuecatsrule above is very helpful - as you can see vet bills soon mount up and insurance does at least take away the worry of a large bill.

[yola]

Who are you with Yola?

We've got a £50 excess :shock:

Angie, this was my previous insurer; E&L (originally called Equine and Livestock). They were excellent until Balie hit age 12. Then for no reason I received a really shirty letter stating that as I had missed a payment (I had not), they were cancelling his insurance. Well I do know the reason - they obviously have a policy of not insuring over a certain age :twisted:

So I got shirty back and moved all my cats to Animal Friends which is an ethical insurer.

[Elaine]

My old fella Winston never had insurance, he never had a days illness until hye reached the age of 18, then he was diagnosed with CRF. I spent thousands over the next 2 and half years, I regret a penny but it was costly.
I recently lost a young puss at the age of 5 and a half years. She was insured and thank god she was as in just over 3 weeks I spent more than £700 at the vet, which the insurance has re-imbursed minus my excess and she was also under a specialist at the Edinburgh vet school which the insurance pays direct, that bill is around £2500 to £3000.
So all in all, I think insurance is worth taking out as we never expected Eva to become so ill so suddenly. Sadly we lost her but it wasnt for the want of trying, if I didnt have the insurance I wouldnt have been able to get her the specialist care.

[dandysmom]

I have mine with ASPCA here in the States; it's very very reasonable at $135.00 anually for my one cat. I have never had to use it as she is in excellent health, but the peace of mind it gives me knowing it's there in case I need it is well worth the small outlay.

[Andrewd]

Dylan's insured with Tesco pet insurance (good thing he is really because of how many fights he's been in)

Cost about £3000 when he got injured through fighting with a rat and the cat fight injuries he's had have cost so far about £500.

Just thought I'd mention it so you can compare what it would cost to insure against what vets bills your cat/s are likely to incur :D

Beauty, with her treatment, we didn't have insurance for her and altogether it probably cost about £2000-3000 for all her treatment. Excluding the costs to have her PTS.

Here's who we are with: http://www.tescopetinsurance.co.uk/

Wow, £3000 injury from fighting a rat? It must have been huge!! It’s becoming very apparent that having insurance is a necessary precaution. I have tried to use the price comparison websites but its quite hard to distinguish which company is actually the best for what I want. I notice that some of the more specialised pet insurers do lifetime cover which could be a good route to go.

Vet costs can mount up very quickly. Costs for insuring a healthy young cat can be quite low and as long as you keep the insurance going it shouldn't rise too much (I had mine 'capped' so it didn't rise as the cats grew older).

I personally would recommend it. When my first CP persian got an intestinal blockage the operation and associated treatments cost close to £2000; the insurance paid all except the £15 excess!

*edit to say, yes like everything else it's a calculated risk. Your cat may never need treatment and you may never have to claim!!

That is pretty amazing; from what I have heard Persians are quite prone to having a few problems though? I think your right and it’s a calculated risk, I just don’t want to be stung with a £3000 bill.

Angie, this was my previous insurer; E&L (originally called Equine and Livestock). They were excellent until Balie hit age 12. Then for no reason I received a really shirty letter stating that as I had missed a payment (I had not), they were cancelling his insurance. Well I do know the reason - they obviously have a policy of not insuring over a certain age :twisted:
So I got shirty back and moved all my cats to Animal Friends which is an ethical insurer.

I typed in E&L into Google and found that they didn’t have many good reviews. They were a strong possibility until I saw them.

My old fella Winston never had insurance, he never had a days illness until hye reached the age of 18, then he was diagnosed with CRF. I spent thousands over the next 2 and half years, I regret a penny but it was costly.

I recently lost a young puss at the age of 5 and a half years. She was insured and thank god she was as in just over 3 weeks I spent more than £700 at the vet, which the insurance has re-imbursed minus my excess and she was also under a specialist at the Edinburgh vet school which the insurance pays direct, that bill is around £2500 to £3000.

So all in all, I think insurance is worth taking out as we never expected Eva to become so ill so suddenly. Sadly we lost her but it wasnt for the want of trying, if I didnt have the insurance I wouldnt have been able to get her the specialist care.

Yeah, that’s true. The only question now is with who and of what level of cover? I think were looking for a policy that strikes a good balance between a good level of cover and cost. It’s all rather confusing stuff to be honest. Tesco looked ok, but nothing special for the money compared to some others.

Thank you for all your replies :)

[Elaine]

I am with Pet Plan. The policies I have for my pets are the Covered for Life Budget plan. This gives me up to £4000 vet fees per year with an excess of £70.
I have to say that this is the first time I have made a claim and they have paid out very quickly with no quibble;) unlike bloody car insurances:twisted:

[angieh]

That's the same policy that I have for Kizzy and Pip. They do seem to pay out promptly and with no quibble - and my vet practice will bill them direct if needs be.

[niki71uk]

my older cat isnt insured.i never really thought about it,but as he has had flea allergies,i then couldnt insure him. my dog is insured and so is my younger cat,even tho she doesnt go out,

was i silly to insure the indoor cat???

both the younger cat and the dog r on one policy,its cheaper apparently,about £25 for both together

[Elaine]

No, not silly at all Niki, you just never know when or if you might need it. xxx

[niki71uk]

i guess lol,she has escaped a few times,but not gone far thank goodness,dont think she'd run away anyway,or let anyone pick her up lol.she's a very nervy cat,from being a kitten and she's nearly 2

[MrsH]

We have Healthy Pets whole of life Gold Plan for our 2 cats and the spaniel which will pay up to £7500 per condition. It was recommended by other cocker spaniel owners but since we took out our policy some are finding their premiums have gone up rather a lot. I've heard very good things about Greenbee (John Lewis)

[pinklizzy]

Imogen is insured. Some people thing it's odd that I have my animals insured when I work in a veterinary practice :?
However, because of the job I do I see so many cases of people having to make decisions on the care their animal receives based on cost.
Obviously this is a major consideration and I would never want to push someone into treatment that will put them into a massive debt but I wanted to know that Imogen or Darcy could be referred for any treatment they needed, without having to worry. I know there is no way I could put enough into a savings account to be able to pay out thousands for treatment ( and most referral centres require payment upfront if you don't have insurance) They are both with Petplan.
I do however bang my head on the desk repeatedly when trying to fill out the claim forms :shock: ;)

[calismum]

I don't have cats at the moment but my dogs have always been insured - I use PetPlan.

Cali has had numerous claims:-
emergency spay due to a pyometra -£2500
emergency surgery due to intestine blockage (swallowed a stone!) - £3000
severed bicep tendon with referral to specialist - £4000
Ongoing undiagnosed neurological condition resulting in referral to Vet School in Glasgow/MRI scan/Spinal tap/X Rays etc/Pain clinic referral/acupuncture - £5000 +

All in all no matter what they raise the premium to and no matter if I never claim again the insurance is a small amount compared to what they have paid out.

I have never had a query from them, no refusal, and prompt payments.

When I add that to the claims I have made for the other dogs I'm probably never going to be out of pocket.

[Phoenix]

Wow, £3000 injury from fighting a rat? It must have been huge!!

His leg was torn open then when the stitches came out the wound burst open again.

You never know when you'll need to claim, we didn't know Dylan was going to fight with the wild rats!

[dandysmom]

And being an indoor cat doesn't mean she/he won't develop CRF, diabetes, etc ......

[Andrewd]

We have Healthy Pets whole of life Gold Plan for our 2 cats and the spaniel which will pay up to £7500 per condition. It was recommended by other cocker spaniel owners but since we took out our policy some are finding their premiums have gone up rather a lot. I've heard very good things about Greenbee (John Lewis)

Oh how old are you 2 cats and spaniel? I had a good look into pet insurance yesterday and for me Healthy pets came out on top. They seemed to be the best value for money, offering high levels of cover for a relatively low price. They also get good reviews online, which cant be a bad thing? Have you claimed from them before?

I will take a look at JL and see what people say about them online. :-D

[Aquatic]

Felix isn't insured I didn't really think about it. But now I'm thinking about getting it.
My friends dog got attacked by a Badger! and all his leg muscle was hanging out. They didn't think he would recover from it because he wasn't eating anything and had lost loads of weight and didn't have the energy to do anything but thankfully he is fine now.

[MrsH]

Oh how old are you 2 cats and spaniel? I had a good look into pet insurance yesterday and for me Healthy pets came out on top. They seemed to be the best value for money, offering high levels of cover for a relatively low price. They also get good reviews online, which cant be a bad thing? Have you claimed from them before?

I will take a look at JL and see what people say about them online. :-D


The cats are both 4y 6m old and Morgan the spaniel is 20 months old.

I've claimed only once when Morgan ate (or so we thought :roll:) some ibuprofen, we had to go to the emergency vet's one Sunday evening. It was really easy to claim and they paid up promptly, I had to pay the vet first then claim back from Healthy Pets, some companies will pay the vet direct. (by the way, he hadn't eaten the tablets, they'd fallen behind the spice rack :roll:)

I didn't have the cats insured at first, it was something we'd never done before, but when we got Morgan he came with 6 weeks free insurance organised by the breeder and we decided to continue having him insured. We didn't stay with that company and it took a lot of head-scratching trying to decide which company/what level to go for. It seemed a good idea to add the cats onto the policy at the same time.

[Andrewd]

The cats are both 4y 6m old and Morgan the spaniel is 20 months old.

I've claimed only once when Morgan ate (or so we thought :roll:) some ibuprofen, we had to go to the emergency vet's one Sunday evening. It was really easy to claim and they paid up promptly, I had to pay the vet first then claim back from Healthy Pets, some companies will pay the vet direct. (by the way, he hadn't eaten the tablets, they'd fallen behind the spice rack :roll:)

I didn't have the cats insured at first, it was something we'd never done before, but when we got Morgan he came with 6 weeks free insurance organised by the breeder and we decided to continue having him insured. We didn't stay with that company and it took a lot of head-scratching trying to decide which company/what level to go for. It seemed a good idea to add the cats onto the policy at the same time.

Poor Morgan! :) Yeah a lot of people say Healthy pets are really good at paying out when it comes to making a claim. I will be joining a company that specializes in pet insurance rather then a general insurance company. From what I have seen the cover and service is a lot better with a company such as Healthy Pets.

I have had problems in the past getting money out of insurance companies for cars and house contents. So I don't really want to go through that all over again.

[lhobbs]

Felix isn't insured I didn't really think about it. But now I'm thinking about getting it.
My friends dog got attacked by a Badger! and all his leg muscle was hanging out. They didn't think he would recover from it because he wasn't eating anything and had lost loads of weight and didn't have the energy to do anything but thankfully he is fine now.

Thats awful, badgers can be viscous cant they!! A friend of mines dog had to be taken to the vet after he was attacked by a badger.

I took out insurance last year for Sadie, i think its worth it. :)
xx

[Kazz]

Never had the cats insured.....never considered it but the dog is insured....and any animal I get in the future with 4 legs will be to...its peace of mind. Never had any really big vet bills but the thought is always there.

Karen

[angieh]

Yes, that peace of mind is worth something too, isn't it?

[Hollyp]

Never had the cats insured.....never considered it but the dog is insured....and any animal I get in the furure will be to...its peace of mind. Never had any really big vet bills but the thought is always there.

Karen

I never used to insure my cats either but then one of them came down with an reoccurring urinary tract problem that got quite costly :cry:. Ever since then I have insured my cats so at least if something bad happens (fingers crossed) they are covered.

I have been with quite a few insurance companies over the years, but found Healthy pets to be the most reliable. Perhaps they are worth a look?

[pookyandjo]

i have two cats... George (9 yo male moggie) and Harry (1 yo female moggie ninja) George isn't insured and Harry is insured...
Before we got harry i had another cat Tinky Winky he was 11 years old when he died... he wasn't insured either.. but he got sick and had numerous surgeries for cancer before they finally amputated his right hind leg.. he was recovering when he suffered a blood clot and died...in the 11 weeks before he died we spent just over $10,000 on him... we were lucky we were in a position to have access to the money we needed.... i decided that when we got Harry that we would insure her because we might not be so lucky next time... George wasn't able to be insured because he is too old
Whilst i hope i dont need to make a claim on Harry's insurance at least i know that its there if required...

[lhobbs]

I would have never of thought of insuring my pets until out of the blue a friends cat needed to have surgery. I think she had to make a claim for around £2500, which thankfully the insurance company at the time paid out in full.

I took out pet insurance quite soon after hearing that. :)

[maxiesmum]

I have insurance for both my cat and my dog, its a joint policy for the 2 of them. I never had insurance for my last cat and when we discovered she was epileptic, it cost us a fortune in vets bills and after she died, I vowed that any animal i have after that would be insured. Hopefully will never have to use it, but just for my peace of mind knowin the animals are covered if the unthinkable happens

[lhobbs]

I have insurance for both my cat and my dog, its a joint policy for the 2 of them. I never had insurance for my last cat and when we discovered she was epileptic, it cost us a fortune in vets bills and after she died, I vowed that any animal i have after that would be insured. Hopefully will never have to use it, but just for my peace of mind knowin the animals are covered if the unthinkable happens

Thats how I now feel :) who are you insured with?

[maxiesmum]

Max and Barney are insured with Tescos. costs £11 per month, but thats for the cat and the dog combined, so its a reasonable price i feel :)

[James]

With regard to whether or not to insure, Set against today's health provision for animals, I would say 'yes' . We did not have insurance for Dunkley. Thankfully, once nursed back to health she was very healthy until her last illness, the treatment for which was expensive. Since then, in parallel with human medicine, the range of treatments and medication available has increased enormously and with it, the cost. We have insured Boodle for life so that the only bill to pay would be the excess. Fingers crossed, she may never need really expensive treatment, but at least we have the peace of mind knowing that if she did need it we are covered.

[dandysmom]

I said it before, but will repeat, the peace of mind is well worth the expense.

[Hollyp]

With regard to whether or not to insure, Set against today's health provision for animals, I would say 'yes' . We did not have insurance for Dunkley. Thankfully, once nursed back to health she was very healthy until her last illness, the treatment for which was expensive. Since then, in parallel with human medicine, the range of treatments and medication available has increased enormously and with it, the cost. We have insured Boodle for life so that the only bill to pay would be the excess. Fingers crossed, she may never need really expensive treatment, but at least we have the peace of mind knowing that if she did need it we are covered.

I have life insured both my two with Healthy pets. Cat insurance initially seemed like a silly idea until the first bill came in. Well worth it in the long run.