More insurance questions

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

All the AXA underwritten companies tend to be a bit different with what they offer, soo all small print should be examined.

[swampmaxmum]

Swampmaxmum - Never heard of Greenbee    Maybe your vet gets commision with them or something?
[/quote]

I doubt it! They are part of the John Lewis group and are underwritten by AXA so probably just the same as AXA?

[karenjet]

I got an AXA quote last night for just Meeko and it was actually cheaper than Petplan, along with whatever discount they'll give me for insuring 4 cats it should work out less than the Petplan. Petplan was quite a bit more expensive than my M&S one, £37 something a month compared to around £25 I'm paying with M&S and even that is supposed to go down once the kittens turn 1 year old, or so they told me anyway.

Thank you everybody.

[Tiggy's Mum]

I'd get a quote from Axa (7k per year) and Halifax (the eXtra policy 6k per year also underwritten by Axa) if I were in your shoes Karen - they are the only ones (other than dirty M&S) who offer the per year policies with high limits, PetPlan are good but I think they are always a little more expensive than all other options and when you've got 4 cats to insure for 15 or more years then it all adds up!

Swampmaxmum - Never heard of Greenbee    Maybe your vet gets commision with them or something?

[swampmaxmum]

My vet is now carrying a leaflet for Greenbee on which they claim they've won some award. I'm stuck with my insurance cos of all the pre-existing conditions, but wondered if anyone knew if they are any good?

[Desley (booktigger)]

The thing that would concern me Susanne is looking at Karen's post, it is £4k per year, not £4k per condition per year, so if you had a cat with multiple issues, as both my last two did, you might struggle.

[Susanne (urbantigers)]

I'm with petplan.  Jaffa is on the budget policy with £4000 per year and Mosi is on the Cat plan that offers £6000 per year.  Jaffa has been on the budget plan since a kitten.  I agree that £4000 isnt' a lot but at least it's per year and not per condition so you do get that renewed each year, and £4000 covers a fair bit.  I don't think there was a policy offering £6000 when I took out his policy.  When I rung up about Mosi I was offered the Cat plan which offers £6000 per year so that's what he has. 

I've found them very good at paying out.  I've claimed 3 times.  First time was for Magpie - emergency treatment at vets overnight costing nearly £2000.  They paid up minus excess no quibble and quickly.  The second time was for Jaffa's dental (nearly £400) and again they paid up minus the excess no problem.  More recently I claimed for Mosi to have emergency surgery after he swallowed some string and again they paid up minus the excess. 

Advantages with petplan, imo, are that I've had no problem getting them to pay up, they pay for dentals and they are a well established company.  Disadvantages are that the excess for older cats (over 10) is high - for Jaffa it's now a fixed amt plus a percentage. 

I don't think they are the cheapest, although when I do trial quotes for Mosi with other companies they tend to come out with a premium very similar to that which I'm paying for him with petplan so I no longer feel that I'm paying a lot more than other companies charge, which at one time I did.  If I was taking out a policy for a new cat now I think I would seriously consider Axa instead of petplan, but I also think that a lot of the others are 'catching up' petplan in terms of the higher excess for older animals etc. and are finding that they have to get more money from customers to keep pace with what they are paying out.   Premiums seem to be going up with all of them, but there's only so far they can go otherwise people will just consider it too expensive.  The only other way to recoup their losses then is to increase the excess.

[Desley (booktigger)]

I wouldn't go with £4k either, but CS and Susanne both have £6k, so worth checking out, if not, i would check out AXA.

[karenjet]

I'll do that, candyshandy. And will look up AXA while I'm at it. Thanks all 

[candyshandy]

I'm with PETPLAN for Fabes and they are excellent re paying quickly.

I have the policy which is £6k per condition per year.  Fabes has unexplained high blood calcium levelks and just been diagnosed with a heart murmur.  He has to go to Uni of Liverpool evry 3weeks, which isn't cheap!  Last year the total amount claimed was about £4k so I would call them and ask for a quote for higher cover and see what the difference is.

[karenjet]

Just did the quote thing to see and here's what it is . . .

Our Covered for Life policies are designed for pet owners looking for comprehensive cover. Once insured, each new illness or injury is covered throughout your pet's life, regardless of age or how long the condition lasts, provided the policy is renewed each year without a break in cover. Terms and conditions apply and may be varied on renewal.
 
Benefits
Veterinary fees - £4000 per year - Provides cover for examination, consultation, advice, tests, X-rays, legally prescribed medication, surgery and nursing required to treat an illness or injury, provided by a vet, a veterinary nurse or another member of the veterinary practice under the supervision of a vet. This includes physiotherapy and treatment of a behavioural illness provided it is carried out by a veterinary practice.
Please take the time to read the section relating to this cover in the full Terms and Conditions so that you understand all of the benefits and limitations.

Complementary treatment - up to £750 per year - Covered for Life plans cover complementary treatment, including acupuncture and homeopathy, up to £750 per year.
Physiotherapy or Behavioural Treatment carried out by a vet is included within Veterinary Fees.
Please read the policy Terms and Conditions for precise details on what is covered.

Boarding cattery fees - up to £250 per year - We will pay the cost of boarding your pet at a licensed cattery, or £5 a day towards the cost of someone, who does not live with you, looking after your pet while you are in hospital for unforeseen visits during the policy year.
Please take the time to read the section relating to this cover in the full Terms and Conditions so that you understand all of the benefits and limitations.

Advertising and reward - up to £250 per year - If your pet is lost or stolen, we will pay for local advertising and a reward in the UK and whilst in any of the agreed countries under the Pet Travel Scheme. Please note, we will only pay for rewards for lost or stolen pets if those rewards are agreed with us in advance.
Please take the time to read the section relating to this cover in the full Terms and Conditions so that you understand all of the benefits and limitations.

Emergency repatriation - up to £500 per year
If your pet is ill or injured during a trip abroad and you need to make special arrangements to get it home.
Please take the time to read the section relating to this cover in the full Terms and Conditions so that you understand all of the benefits and limitations.

Quarantine expenses and loss of documents - up to £1,500 per year - If the documents required to get your pet back into the UK are lost, we will cover the cost of obtaining duplicate certificates and the cost of quarantine.
Please take the time to read the section relating to this cover in the full Terms and Conditions so that you understand all of the benefits and limitations.

Excess applies

[Desley (booktigger)]

If it is only £3k, I would cancel to be honest, it isn't nearly enough for young cats, and I wouldn't even touch it for my oldies, Tiger and Pebbles cost over £1k each in just one year, admittedly both had more than one issue, but even so. And (although you might be fed up of me posting this!!), if you have a specialist who do things like MRI's, you can be looking at £2k for that, never mind what you might have had to do before hand, or what you will need to pay after it. And much better to do it before they have an existing condition.

[Gill (sneakiefeline)]

Thats a lot different to M& S or AXA which is £7000 a year

[karenjet]

I think she said £3000, I should have been writing it down really, but I compared it to my M&S policy and from memory of what she said it all sounded much the same, cover-wise.

[Desley (booktigger)]

How much do you get per condition KAren?

[karenjet]

Sorry but I'm such a dunce when it comes to any kind of insurance type stuff.
Is anyone with Petplan, and how do you find it?
I put in for a quote online with them last night and they phoned me first thing this morning. I ended up taking out the policies, I think it was the budget cover for life plan. It sounded good but I suppose they make them all sound good. I have 14 days to cancel though so I'll have a good read through the paperwork when it comes and then see. Just wondered what other people's experiences were?

I really want away from M&S asap after stuff I've read about here. There's nearly 5 months left of my good policy with them but if one of the cats, God forbid, was found to have something I'd be stuck with them cos of a pre-existing condition.