Hi again. Just about to get my GSD's insured but not sure who to go with as there are so many. I am looking for one that does life cover and not just a 12 month period. Also do any ensure for the use of a hydrotherapy pool incase of any hip probs later in life.

I have heard Argos Pet insurance is great value ? I am looking around myself as my time with Kennel Club is nearly up . Does anyone else have a better recommendaton ?
Lel

If you do a search on Insurance you'll find loads of threads on the subject. Personally, I'm with Petplan, but I haven't had to claim (yet!) so I can't vouch for them myself.
LynnT

I'm with petplan and have claimed a couple of times for my 7yr old, female GSD. Each time it was a hefty bill, each time they paid in full (minus excess) with no problems at all. They may be a bit dearer than some but they don't have any hidden clauses to watch out for :)

Has anyone else used Argos ?
Just want to know what the smallprint says ?
Lel

Hi Jacqui. Do you have the life cover with Petplan and how much a month do you pay if you don't mind me asking. Also i dont know the exact date of birth of my of my GSD's as he is a rescue. Does this matter when getting insurance. I think he is about one year old.

Fiona

You can get a quote on-line which you don't have to follow through on. You can't really go on what someone else pays because they'll have different dogs, different ages, different area, etc.
LynnT

I'm with PetPlan. My vet said he gets on well with them.

Michael
5 January 2003

I have a rescue dog - date of birth unknown. Petplan accepted our estimate of his age :)

Daisy

I do have life cover, Harley. Always have. They will pay out the value of another dog (or your purchase price) for death by accident or illness no matter the age. I've claimed for the loss of my other Shepherd and their was again, no problems. Sounds a bit harsh I know but that's why I like Petplan.
I didn't know Jakes dob as he was a rescue. Just an estimate will do with a note to explain why.
It costs me £32 for both GSD's per month, a bit dear but it's peace of mind :)

We had 6 weeks free insurance from our breeder through Petplan and when I spoke with my vet regarding this he highly recommended them as a company and they have never had had quibbles with them over treatment so having looked arouind I will be re newing with Petplan!!

I have heard nothing but excellant reports regarding them albeit they are a few ££ a month extra.A lady I spoke to today wa scomplaining that after her dog had a pre cancerous lump removedthe insurance company she was with refused to have anything similar done again to her dog, yet one of her other dogs is with Petplan and had similar ailments treated with no problem, so she is insuring her 3rd dog with Petplan !!

Jude

Petplan are by far the best insurers to go with, but they are also one of the most expensive. I looked into pet insurance after my dachsie had degenerative disc disease, and needed a costly operation. I was with Pet Wise at the time. The surgeon who performed Biddy's op, said that there was a chance it could happen again, with her. I rang Pet Wise, and they told me they wouldn't cover her a second time (even though the disc that had caused the problem had been removed). I am now with Pet Pals(Domestic and General). I'm covered for upto 3000 pounds a year. It costs me just under 9 pounds a month. I have three dogs, one of which is not covered by his yearly vaccines. Not all insurers will take on dogs that are not protected.
If i could afford to do so i would go with Pet Plan. I had a friend who worked at a vets, she said Pet Plan never quibbled about paying up, like others did. If you can afford it go with the best.

I'm with Petplan, all my fellow dog owners highly recommended them. I pay approx £20 per month, but that is cover for life using the supreme dog cover plan.
Sections covered: / Max benefit / Excess(what you pay)/
Vets fees (injury illness)/ £unlimited / £60
Boarding/kennels / £1000 / £nil
Death from injury / £800 / £nil
Theft or straying / £800 / £nil
Advertising/rewards / £1000 / £nil
3rd party liability / £3,000,000 / £250
Death from illness / £800 / £nil
Holiday cancellation / £1000 / £nil
Hope this helps!
Julie :)

Have to agree, Petplan are far and away the best. I work for a veterinary hospital that deals with insurance claims daily. Petplan are the only reliable payers and very rarely stop a claim, unlike many others that won't pay for one reason or another.

Sam :)

i am with pinnacle, but i havent had to claim .. . . . . yet !! fingers crossed i wont have to either. This one is for life & every year you re-insure with them you get sent vouchers towards the cost of the booster vacs.
scatty

I too use Pinnacle. I used to be an insurance underwriter (before qualifying as a housewife & mother lol :D) so I checked carefully through each companies policies before deciding on them. Pet Plan are good but are one of the most expensive. I used to work for the insurance company that owns them so qualified for a discount - we didn't have a dog then though!

Jill

im with direct line, had no problems with them, they are friendly, helpfull, and they pay out promptly, when callum broke a tooth he went to the doggie dentist had it fixed and it cost £250.00, i pay the first £45.00 so i got back £205.00 thank god i was insured.

Same here, though haven't ever claimed on it! Has anyone else dealt with a claim through Pinaccle???

Will Petplan insure if your dogs do not have yearly boosters?

The wording in my Terms and Conditions leaflet states, "2 - You must arrange for your pet to be kept vaccinated against the following. Dogs - distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis and parvovirus....If you do not keep your pet vaccinated, we will not pay any claims that result from any illness it must be vaccinated against."
As they are excluding any result of not vaccinating, maybe they still take on non-vaccinated dogs. It's probably worth a call to discuss with them.
LynnT

Hi everyone thanks for all messages. Have decided to go with Direct Line. Life cover for ongoing illness, 10% discount for insuring two dogs and 5% discount for having car insurance with them.

Useful message for me, thanks, as didn't realise Direct Line now offered life cover - have just phoned and 'upgraded' my standard cover. £23.57 per month for both of my Rough Collies (i.e. just under £12 each), and their payments have always been extremely prompt and quibble free so I would highly recommend them.

Marina

Petplan do still insure if not vaccinated - one of my cats won't come in - i have to feed her outside etc, she had first lot of injections but no boosters since, they won't pay out if the cat gets an illness covered by the vaccinations but everything else is covered - a road accident can't be blamed on no vaccs for example and is a very expensive thing to happen, so i still insure her - i pay about £7 per month for each of my cats and £20 for ebbie.

Nikki xx

sending one off tommrow to princale for gollies op £350.00.this is the first claim so we wait and see,chase is with mark/spencers,the other 4 are with p/p.
but andrew will 50 in april so i will see what saga have on offer,

Hi there
we too are with petplan, we received 6 weeks free when we got our mini schnauzer from breeder. Also vet highly recommended as they provide lifetime cover i.e. no limit to claims and they will cover any ongoing illnesses for dogs lifetime i.e others will chuck you out after certain no of claims or after 12 months.
It is £12.95 for us...well worth it I think

From experience with the horses DO NOT USE E&L - they dont pay up and if they do they argue like mad about it

Hello
Go with petplan its the best around. I have my two GSDs insured with them and have had to use it alot and they have always paid in full. Never go with any superstore one's after all what do they know about animals. Also be careful that the insurance you do get is for life most insurance companys will just pay for a year of the problem whic you dont want.
My 9 month old GSD male has hip and elbow problems now which is costing a fortune petplan insures on everything sabre will need untill the day he dies including the hydrotherapy pool.
Alex, Norfolk.

Hi, just a quick question -

we used Petplan many years ago for our family dog at the time, but stopped when our local vet introduced their own scheme, because Petplan's 'lifecover' stopped when the dog reached the age of 10. As our dog lived until she was 15 this would have only been two thirds of her life. Does anyone know if they have changed this now?

:)

I was with pet Plan with my last Labrador and yes they were very good but boy were they expensive and they loaded the excess and the premium as my dog got older.

I looked around very carefully for an insurer for my two Lab pups who would give both the cover I wanted at a reasonable price.

I am now with Scottish Pet Insurance http://www.scotpet.co.uk/ who have a fixed excess of £35 ( paid once per condition and not annually ) & no loading as your dog gets older. Their top plan (Total Plus Policy) has all the benefits of Petplan ( £5,000 per condition with no time limits) and costs only £158 per year per dog (for my area).
My vet has told me that he has never had a problem with them paying out on claims.

I would say that this company is well worth a look at if your in the market for pet insurance.

Hi all, I did have Kennel club insurance for Mauser and Decoy as they both had the six weeks cover from the breeder, I keep it on for their first year but then put the monthly money away in an account. I have claimed for Mauser and it was so easy, vet did all paperwork (although since , he now charges a fee for this) and they paid promptly no hassle, and didn't exclude the condition on the renewal. I didn't carry it on though, just personal choice. have the savings account should anything arise. Sunny was with Fourpaws insurance, and didn't claim with them whilst she was insured for first year, but bitterly regretted not having her insurance when she had the Diagnoses of Brain Tumor - £700 just for the MRI scan - lucky I have a flexible friend:D Julie:)