Pet Insurance - Premium Increases With Age Or Claims

[camo]

Hi all,

I have put in an expression of interest with a breeder of Labrador's and seeing that the puppy will come to us with 6 weeks free insurance, has made me start thinking about what I should do. I have had 2 dogs in the past, neither were insured, and one we called the 6 million dollar dog as he had to have bone grafts and time with the specialist, and the other who other than check-ups was always healthy.

I spent today doing research and have read of those who have benefited, as well of those who are disappointed, and it is clear this is a very divided subject. I was a bit hesitant to start a new thread, but could not find a thread in which these specific elements had been well covered.

Other than denial of claims, the main complaints I have read are of premium increases. I called one of the insurers to try to clarify some points around this, and to be honest I left the conversation feeling that I had uncovered some dirty secret and they couldn't get me off the phone quick enough.

What I was trying to determine was, what is likely to happen to the cost of the fortnight/month premiums when my dog exceeds 8 years. I realise there are potentially a lot of factors which determine this, but as a bit of a pessimist at heart, I am wondering if what happens is after 8 years old you start finding that the premiums increase to a point were it is unrealistic to continue?

I would love to hear from people who have taken out insurance on their dog, and continue into later years, and how the premiums were effected by age, especially once they passed the 8 year mark.

Also the guy on the phone, mentioned that when the insurance is renewed annually that past claims are a factor in determining premiums. I was wondering if people who have had to make large claims, have found their premiums greatly effected in future years?

My reasons for bringing this topic up are not to bad name insurers, but instead to get a feel for what the cost might be for the life of the dog. I am fortunate enough that I could access the required funds in an emergency, so I am steering towards the idea of taking out insurance for the first year (hopefully discover any issues), and then if the dog is healthy, self insuring (putting the money into my home loan). I am and always will be a dog owner, I can feasibly see having at least 4 more dogs in my life reaching the age of 13 (2 dogs at a time, so the next 26 years), and looking at the sums, especially with the assumption that their premiums will drastically increase in their final years, I can see how any one dogs vet bills could exceed it's premiums, but less likely that the vet bills for all 4 future dogs will exceed the premiums.

Thanks,

Camo

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

I have Pet in suran ce Aus tralia insurance. It's gone up by way more than CPI but I can't get a cheaper premium with anyone else.

Even Me diba nk pr I v ate can't get near it with a 25% discount.

I figure it goes up because my dog gets older so the risk is higher but because I've not claimed - it does take that into account a bit. But not as much as no claim on car insurance.

Also when you're doing online quotes you will probably get a different price depending how you enter your dog's breed. It's completely stupid.

I haven't tried this with labs but I have with cattle dogs.

Australian Cattle dog is different to red heeler is different to blue heeler is different to queensland cattle dog is different to crosses of any of those...

So I reckon a Labrador would be different to a Labrador Retriever would be different to a Yellow Lab, Golden Lab, and Chocolate Lab. Worth checking out all possibilities and using the cheapest one.

[SchnauzerMax]

Most pet insurances wont cover a dog who is 9 years or older for illness. They will cover for accident.

[camo]

Thank you very much for the fast replies.

Most pet insurances wont cover a dog who is 9 years or older for illness. They will cover for accident.

I was worried this was the case, but after discussing it with the insurance company (at least for the one I spoke to), they will insure a dog for life, as long as the policy is continuous and you signed up before it gets to 9 years.

but I cannot switch to a different one because none will start a new policy because of his age

This is one point I had not considered, so effectively by the time your dog passes 9 you have only 2 choices, pay whatever the insurance company wants to set each year when the policy is renewed, or have no pet insurance (switching is no longer an option unless you just want accident cover).

I've been tempted to cancel the policy but I'm not game enough to risk having to come up with thousands of dollars with no possibility of reimbursement, should something go wrong.

This is my concern, getting to a point were my dog is of an age that if he has a problem it is likely to be expensive, and then having to pay way more than I anticipated per month to maintain the insurance. I think it's reasonable that the premium would be higher for an older dog, but with no disclosure and the fact that the policy can change every year, it makes it very hard for someone to determine what they are getting into if they go down the road of insurance v's self insuring. I guess this is where I wonder if at least with the self insurance, if I had had a healthy dog for it's earlier years, as long as I had been committed to putting the money aside, I would then at least have a piggy bank of funds for his later life.

I guess one of the other concerning factors, is most seem to take out the insurance based on the fact that they would just be unable to come up with the large sums of money required at the time, and so paying a bit per month is the better option. I wonder how many of those get to the later years to find the premiums rising so much that they can't possibly fit them in the budget and have to drop out (probably when their dog is at the greatest risk of needing an expensive surgery). My other concern for these people is do they realise that (from what I understand), the claim can not be approved before the surgery, so at best you need to find the large sum of money upfront for the short term, and at worst for the long term if the claim gets denied.

I did some basic equations using some assumptions, and looking at 2 insurers with the 2 underwriters (I tried to favour these assumptions to benefit taking the option of insuring). I wanted to see how much I would need to pay for a labrador till 13 years old. It's about $14000 (assuming the premiums go to just double what a 3 year old costs in the final 3 years).

Having now looked into it, I think for my circumstances I am going to insure for the first year (hope that any major issues make themselves apparent in the first year), then self insure by putting double what I would have paid into my home loan, as the dog gets older, depending on how much I have paid in vet bills, I can then consider tapering off the amount I put aside once the piggy bank gets to a certain level and interest starts working in it's favour.

In summary these are the reasons for my decision:

* I don't think having the insurance takes the financial decision out of the equation. Firstly you put the claim in after the surgery so you still need to find the money, and if the claim is denied you are left with the burden, so you have to make the decision assuming the worst and be sure you can carry that burden in the worst case scenario

* There seems to be a lot of "claim denied" stories that seem unreasonable. Through self insurance at least I know what I have or have committed.

* With the policy only lasting one year at a time, the insurer is well within their right to make changes not only to premiums, but also things like how much they will reimburse

they have also introduced a change to their policy where reimbursement for surgery on older dogs will now be paid at 70% instead of 85% of the cost.

* I intend to get a second labrador (I always like to have 2 dogs), so this doubles the cost, and perhaps statistically reduces the risk (total cost over 13 years to insure both dogs will be at least $28000)

* I am able to take on the burden should I need to, and can access the funds. Again if you can't access the funds short term, then the insurance will not be the answer anyway.

* I have a home loan and so effectively will be earning a good rate of interest by investing this money into the home loan over paying it into the insurance. It's amazing the power of compound interest over 13 years.

* I should live long enough to have at least 4 more dogs (2 dogs each living 13 years, so 26 years total). Just like insurance companies assess risk, it's reasonable even with just 4 dogs to assess risk, and I think there would be a very small chance of the total vet bills for all 4 dogs in their lives exceeding the amount that I would have to pay, especially when considering interest earned (or in this case saved if put into a home loan).

I think if I was going to take the insurance option, I would take it out from the beginning of the puppies life, and still put aside money to cover the inevitable premium rises, reductions in reimbursement percentages, and unexpected claim denials.

Cheers,

Camo

Edited February 5, 2016 by camo

[Rebanne]

I would take out insurance for the first 18 months - 2 years then drop it. This is what I have done with my youngest dog. Phoebe is 18 months old now and her only trips to the vet have been for vaccinations. I am confident she is sound in body and mind with nothing lurking. Sure sh!t can still happen but I am prepared for that.

[camo]

I would take out insurance for the first 18 months - 2 years then drop it. This is what I have done with my youngest dog. Phoebe is 18 months old now and her only trips to the vet have been for vaccinations. I am confident she is sound in body and mind with nothing lurking. Sure sh!t can still happen but I am prepared for that.

Yes, I think you might be right, I have been thinking about the 1 year time I set, and thinking back to Storm's (my Labrador who has passed), 2 years may be more fitting for a Labrador. This will give him time to fully develop and also hopefully get him through the younger inquisitive stage. Then before I drop the insurance, it will be off to the vet for a full "NRMA inspection" :D

Now all I have to do is wait for the litter to be born and wait another 8 weeks before I can take one home....I want a puppy now...lol

Cheers,

Camo

[Casima]

I insured my BC Quinn when he turned 2 years old, then when it came time to renew the premium went up half as much again even tho I hadn't claimed anything, crazy expensive so I stopped it. Now I have a new puppy I have insured her and will for the first 2 years just incase she has any problems crop up while she is young. With the number of dogs I have it makes much more sense to self insure but I think I will always insure my puppies for the first 2 years since many of the bad chronic and expensive issues can become apparent in this time.

[camo]

I insured my BC Quinn when he turned 2 years old, then when it came time to renew the premium went up half as much again even tho I hadn't claimed anything, crazy expensive so I stopped it. Now I have a new puppy I have insured her and will for the first 2 years just incase she has any problems crop up while she is young. With the number of dogs I have it makes much more sense to self insure but I think I will always insure my puppies for the first 2 years since many of the bad chronic and expensive issues can become apparent in this time.

Interesting, I would not expect for the premium to rise that much at such a young age, especially without a claim. If that occurred, without a change to circumstancesother than age, then my calculations are definitely underestimates as from year 2 to 3 there was basically no change for taking out insurance.

Thanks for sharing this. Although I have basically decided a course of action, I hope others continue to share their experience with premium or other changes, good or bad, I am interested to see if these examples are in the minority or if they are part of standard practice.

Cheers,

Camo

[cointreau]

I have had insurance for my Great Dane since I got her at 9 months of age, the company had a big increase for most people before her 10th Birthday and I was tempted to let it go. Lucky for me I didn't as she developed a cancer and my refund was more than my annual premium.

What I did with her insurance is kept it at the high level until after 5 when they would no reimburse the cost or part cost of her purchase if she died. Then I decreased it to a lower level I felt comfortable with knowing if I needed to spend I think it was $15000 then I would really need to consider if the outcome would be beneficial to my girl.

I still have her covered and always will as I never know when I may need it, she will be 12 in June and is covered for both illness and accident.

[Monchichi]

I am with Petplan since the seconds my puppy left her breeder (the 6 weeks free insurance :) ) and she is now 2yars and 2months.

I opted the highest cover, I think they called it Ultimate level, with $150 excess fee. since after the 6 weeks free insurance finish, I have been paying the same amount every month $63ish up until now. The next year cover for mine will start from this April. So I wonder if they will increase my premium or not, as the past 2 years not.

in these 2 years, I had claimed twice. Both that I had to rush my puppy to the Emergency vet hospital. One for being vomiting & lethargic at 3am...vet ruled it out as gastro..from the water she drank at the puppy meet up we went that afternoon.

the other claims just recently, as suspecting rat bait consumption. lucky she didn't eat any! but still made my wallet empty. :laugh:

both claims had been processed relatively quick. the 2nd one within one week.

as with you Camo, fortunately I can access the funds if needed, so thinking to drop the insurance sometimes sooner. However, I still not gamble enough just in case...thinking of paying thousands of dollar in one hit does not favour my OH