I've been reading the previous thread on insurance with great interest but I have a question. Are there any companies that will pay the vet direct less the excess, which we would obviously pay? We had our cat insured and had to borrow the money for an operation when he fell out of a window - £1521 and the daft thing went and died!!

This is obviously going to be quite important to us when it comes to choosing insurance - along with the lifetime cover, non pre-exisiting condition exclusion etc.

Also which insurance companies are best for working gundogs or are they pretty much the same.

Thanks,

Chris

I think Pet Plan pay direct to the vet's practice - there's a bit on the form that asks whether the cheque should be sent to you or the vet's practice. But I don't know whether this is just for pre-authorised claims. It would be a bit of a risk for the vet otherwise. Someone else may know.

When I made a claim I filled in my bit of the form and then left it at the vets who completed it and sent it off for me so they would know what you had filled in on where the cheque was to go to.

Joan
Take the rough with the smooth

Hi Chris,
Even with insurance policies that say they will pay direct to the vet it's still at the vet's discretion whether to accept this method or not. I would assume most vets prefer not to get involved as if there are any problems with the insurance company paying up their contract is with you, not the vet. You are entitled to make interim claims if it's going to be a huge total, and you still only pay the initial excess.
As far as I'm aware you won't find any insurance company willing to take on pre-existing conditions, unless they're doing an amnesty for publicity reasons, as one company (Pet Plan I believe it was) did last year.

Regards
Jacquie (Myatuk Alaskan Malamutes).

I'm with Petplan and although I have always paid the vet first, Pet plan have paid up within days of making the claim, none of this waiting for even a week let alone longer. I think this is something that you will have to arrange with your vet perhaps.

I think most companies will - the question is whether the vet insists on being paid up front first. I think most vets for a large sum they know will be reimbursed will probably make allowances, however my last vets wanted to be paid up front for each part of the treatment.

Wendy