Penumbra Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 The whole REIMBURSEMENT thing is something they all like to keep in small print. Although, surprisingly I did hear the word mentioned in the latest RSCPA insurance ad. It is hardly a con - you're lucky if it is a waste of money - then your dog hasn't been seriously ill. I'd never be without it. Isn't that one of the points though... that even if you never make a claim, the insurance company still keeps all of your money... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancinbcs Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 In all my years of owning dogs the biggest expenses I have had have been for ongoing medications for old dogs and the insurance policies seem to have pretty low limits on medications. For a lot of years I had 4 dogs so the combined premiums would have been much more that I averaged on what would have been covered on the bills I had on average each year. Of course all the expensive bills were breeding related and not covered. Even with the few dogs that have run up $1000 for an illness at times, I am still way ahead on premiums. What really irks me is how much they concentrate on accident cover when so many accidents are caused by the owners lack of care in ensuring their dog's safety. If the didn't cover expensive accident damage due to owner negligence the premiums would be a lot less and people could afford to insure their pets against illness, which is a much bigger threat. With accidents that cannot be prevented, like a ruptured cruciate or broken leg from the dog stepping in a hole while running, aren't even classed as accidents. The other thing that could bring premiums down is for all puppies to have to have a vet exam first and provide proof of health screening of the parents before they can be insured. So as an example, in breeds prone to HD, it would only be covered if the parents had hip scores under a certain amount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penumbra Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Bloody oath. Also, I'm a firm believer in Medicare for pets. With all the crap taxes go on already, surely the average tax payer wouldn't mind some of it going towards pet health insurance. The average tax payer owns a pet, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puppoochi Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 (edited) Bloody oath. Also, I'm a firm believer in Medicare for pets. With all the crap taxes go on already, surely the average tax payer wouldn't mind some of it going towards pet health insurance. The average tax payer owns a pet, no? that ain't never gonna happen, EVER. Why should someone who chooses not to have pets, pay for your insurance? You have got to be kidding right? Edited August 7, 2012 by Puppoochi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penumbra Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Because we're meant to be living in a bloody community perhaps? Because there's shitloads of people who have to put their animals down for simple things like broken legs? Or maybe because most people own at least one pet in their lives? :laugh: You act as if people's taxes actually go to everything they believe in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 I have just claimed $2500 for surgery for my dog. Add that with ehr claims of around $1000 in the past for xrays etc and I have quite a few years premiums back at around $400 per year. She is covered for up to the insured amount every year - whatever the issue or condition. I am happy with my insurnace. I would have found it a bit hard to come up with the required money right now as we are building kennels. This meant it was a no brainer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esky the husky Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 As nice as it would be to have such a large rainy day fund, I'm sure not everyone can just have 10k casually lying around in their bank accounts. I think insurance is a good idea for lots of people, I'm sure it saves a lot of heartbreak. That said I don't have it yet, I keep saying 'yeah let's get it' then reading too much into it and getting scared off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSoSwift Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 My understanding with Pet Plan at least, is if you say claim for a cruciate issue, they will cover the other one should you have an issue. If however, your dog has a pre-existing cruciate injury then both cruciates will be excluded from their cover. I may be wrong though and will clarifiy that over the next little bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megan_ Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Sangrubber - I'm on the iPhone which does autocorrect. The mould was a rare form of toxic mould that impacts humans and dogs and causes them to shake uncontrollably. This can then lead to a heart attack. My dogs are small so they are impacted more greatly. As others have pointed out, saving is great if your dog waits 5 years before they get I'll or have an accident. Even then, you'd have to hope that they get I'll during standard business hours to save you money. Mrs rusty bucket - that is how some of the cheaper insurance companies work. The one I use has lifetime cover for ailments, while most only pay for the first year. It costs me almost $90 per month for two small, young dogs but I'm keeping it for that reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minimax Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 I have insurance not to cover the small things like a bout of diareah, but major things like surgery. I have a $100 excess, and I pay annually for both my dogs. I also researched a lot before going with PetPlan, specifically so I didn't end up with a restrictive company. I figured there were two lots of insurance - PetPlan and everyone else. "Everyone else" (because they are all underwritten by the same company, thus their terms are basically the same) seemed quite restrictive, but PetPlan (the only pet insurance underwritten by someone different, therefor having completly different terms) actually covered illnesses for more than 12 months, and covered more things, thus being less restrictive. In summary - if you researched and didn't just go with the cheapest, you probably wouldn't be having issues. I pay $550 a year per dog (which is $90 per month, same as Megan said up there), and I have two Pugs. I sleep well at night knowing I have a breed that are prone to health issues and lifetime cover for their illnesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lavendergirl Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Bloody oath. Also, I'm a firm believer in Medicare for pets. With all the crap taxes go on already, surely the average tax payer wouldn't mind some of it going towards pet health insurance. The average tax payer owns a pet, no? The Federal Government just knocked back a proposal by the States to levy a tax to cover the NDIS - so I don't think a tax to cover dogs will be on the agenda anytime soon when we can't even look after our disabled :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cointreau Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 Lucky for me I haven't needed to use my pet insurance recently and whenever I don't need to use it I am happy. Should the need arise then I can get the treatment needed without concerns about the vet bill. As for restrictions when I got my cat he was still on treatment for ear mites, there was a 12 month restriction on his insurance for claims related to ear mites only, he is now fully covered. All insurance - never want to use it, don't like paying the premiums but if I ever need it I am certainly pleased I've got it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indigirl Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 I have basic accident insurance on all my Italian greyhounds until they are 18 mintns old. This is solely intended for leg breaks which the breed is prone to as puppies. A broken leg would set me back between $1200- $3000 so this is the cost I am insuring against. Once the dog reaches 18 months old I cancel the insurance. Thankfully I have not had yet to use it, but at least I know that if one of my young Iggies breaks a leg 80% of the cost will be covered by imsurance. Although I still have to pay it upfront and they reimburse me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Augustine The Boxer Posted August 7, 2012 Share Posted August 7, 2012 FYI... About 1 to 1.5 years ago there were approx. 18 pet insurance companies and from memory 16 of those had the same underwriters. Now there are many more pet insurance companies but I can't imagine the underwriters being different. It's a re-badge (not necessarily a bad or good thing), but that's why there probably won't be that much of a variance between policies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penumbra Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 Thankfully I have not had yet to use it, but at least I know that if one of my young Iggies breaks a leg 80% of the cost will be covered by imsurance. Although I still have to pay it upfront and they reimburse me. That's why there is no real point in people on the dole getting it. People who are working on the other hand should be alright. FYI... About 1 to 1.5 years ago there were approx. 18 pet insurance companies and from memory 16 of those had the same underwriters. Now there are many more pet insurance companies but I can't imagine the underwriters being different. It's a re-badge (not necessarily a bad or good thing), but that's why there probably won't be that much of a variance between policies. It's the same deal with human insurance companies as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puppoochi Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 Because we're meant to be living in a bloody community perhaps? Because there's shitloads of people who have to put their animals down for simple things like broken legs? Or maybe because most people own at least one pet in their lives? :laugh: You act as if people's taxes actually go to everything they believe in! Penumbra you act as though tax payers owe you a living. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penumbra Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 (edited) They do. Next? When I start work again in October, I'll be paying to support unemployed people as well. It's just how the "community" is run. Unless of course you would prefer all unemployed people to be homeless... Just another note, the states wouldn't run if it weren't for non-paid volunteers. Even politicians admit this. Edited August 8, 2012 by Penumbra Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheena Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 I carry my own insurance. If I added up what it would have cost me over the last 30 years with the dogs I have had, plus the excess payable, I could have just about bought another house with the money. I know bad luck can happen & be expensive, but I try to minimise this by getting a healthy dog in the first place, from good breeding. This hasn't always been the case, though, with my previous dogs being from BYB's...they ran up the vet's bills all their life, but it still worked out cheaper to carry my own insurance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snout Girl Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 (edited) I have had pet insurance for Bruce since he was 8 weeks old. He is now 10 months and we have claimed over $3000, only paying premiums of around $400 plus $100 excess. There is no way we could have a $10,000 fund just sitting around so insurance recommends value and peace of mind for us. we are with petplan who cover a condition for life, not just to your claim limit. we havent had any problems with them thus far. they have been a little slow (almost 4 weeks to receive cheque) but claiming has been relatively painless despite the forms. Edited August 8, 2012 by Snout Girl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sayreovi Posted August 8, 2012 Share Posted August 8, 2012 I am about to find out how worthwhile insurance is, I've just sent in my very first claim after have 2/3 dogs on it for years, if they don't put it through then I will be cancelling it :) I have a credit card with a large limit on it that is also my dog emergency card so do have a backup just in case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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