Pet Insurance

[DrEPropp]

I researched 20 plus insurance plans out there in great detail before I chose. I created a spreadsheet to compare and contrast, pros/cons, exclusions, pre-existing etc. I felt that I needed to understand the fine print. I decided that PetPlan works best for me and my situation. (I have no professional connection to PetPlan other than that I have a policy for Montana). The Humane Society sponsors PetPlan as its ONLY pet insurance.

The things I liked about PetPlan were:

that I could slide the deductible from $0 to $50 to $100 or $200
Coverage amounts were available from $8000 to $20,000 per year. Plans levels are Bronze, Silver, Gold.
Coverage Percentage Splits can be 80 plan/20 client, 90 plan/10 client or 100 plan/0 client.
They cover CONGENITAL - HEREDITARY . The #1 reason pet insurance claims are denied is because the insurance company claims that the 'problem' is hereditary. It could leave your dog without treatment unless you can afford it out of pocket. This is a TrashCan CAUSE. It is a get our of jail free card that the insurance company can use at its discretion. I would rather rest easy and have that option off the table.
Claims are PER incident. Meaning that one car accident can take 40 visits but you only pay one deductible for that incident and then your percentage split takes over. (most plans deductibles are per visit).
You can go to ANY vet you choose. You file the claim and the plan reimburses you in 14 -21 days. This means you can use a credit card to float payment until reimbursement arrives.
There are NO usual and customary fees for vets. So if you live in a Major Metropolitan place where vet fees tend to be higher, the whole fee will be subjected to deductible and the percentage split. I hate usual and customary because I live in a HIGH cost of living area. If you live in a low cost area this is irrelevant but it means you can choose an expensive specialist when needed! The right treatment for your pet should determine where I take my dog not the fees set by insurances.

I suggest this review site to get an overview on a variety of pet insurance plans... http://www.petinsurancereview.com/

[KingstonTodd]

Very nice informaiton, I'm going to look into it.

[kirama]

I have the same plan for Beck, in my opinion it is the only one worth buying. Here's the url in case anyone is interested: http://www.gopetplan.com/ epropp covered it very well. One other thing, don't be fooled into buying a plan that covers spaying/neutering & vaccinations, you will pay more than those things cost every year in premiums. For Beck's policy I pay $27 a month, for that I get $8,000 coverage with a $50 deductible and they pay 90% of the bill. The other thing- the folks who run it are very nice & easy to work with.

[DrEPropp]

Todd, Glad the info helped.

Kirama, Good point about the spay/neuter fees not being recouped. I am glad to hear that the people are nice. I have had limited phone interaction so that makes me happy!

* I pay $23 per month for a $20,000 Gold plan with a $200 deductible and 100% plan coverage. I have a Montana savings account with $400 to cover 2 accidents. It works for me.

Jacque mentioned PetPlan discounts in another post. It is a good point that I neglected to highlight above! http://www.gopetplan.com/Dog-Insurance- ... ounts.html

PetPlan offers discounts UP TO 15% IF you use -online registration for 5% discount AND then any ONE of the following 10% discounts:
-veterinarian, vet tech, animal professional
-microchipped animal-must provide company name and #
-service dog
-multi pet household
-strategic partner
-employer group plan

Hope everyone is having a great day.

[tuffystar]

Wow! Tons of good information. We are looking into it! Thank you all!!!

[Jac]

Eileen, thanks for starting this thread! It is great info and I think it is very smart to invest in the insurance. (Then, really...hope you never need it! Much better to lose money with the surity of coverage than to have to make life and death decisions based on expense.)

[SamsonsMom]

I've been looking into pet insurance and just want to make sure I have this right:

1) Insurance will not pay for routine visits (yearly check-up - etc.)?

2) Insurance is more for major illnesses?

Have you guys ever actually used the Pet Insurance? And how did you filter through all of them? Some vet office's offer their own version of insurance here - I'm not so sure about that - what if I end up hating the vet? LOL. I am on a tight budget so it would be nicer to spend a little money monthly, than have to worry about one HUGE bill when I can't afford it.

[kirama]

Originally Posted by SamsonsMom

I've been looking into pet insurance and just want to make sure I have this right:

1) Insurance will not pay for routine visits (yearly check-up - etc.)?

2) Insurance is more for major illnesses?

Have you guys ever actually used the Pet Insurance? And how did you filter through all of them? Some vet office's offer their own version of insurance here - I'm not so sure about that - what if I end up hating the vet? LOL. I am on a tight budget so it would be nicer to spend a little money monthly, than have to worry about one HUGE bill when I can't afford it.

You can get insurance that pays for routine care, but it is a rip-off, you pay for it whether you use it or not and it is quite limited, for instance the policy might cost $200 more a year for routine care and the coverage will be limited to about that same amount.

Insurance is primarily for major illness or accidents.

drepropp has a link in the first post in this thread that will take you to a site that compares pet insurance and offers reviews. Some things to watch for:
1. Does the plan pay whatever your vet charges (less deductible & co-pay) or do they use a 'chart' of customary fees. One of the biggest pet health insurance companies has a maximum they will pay for each procedure and the prices are about 20 years out of date, so if your dog has x-rays it might cost $200 but that company will only pay $75 (less your deductible & co-pay)
2 How does the plan cover 'chronic' conditions- this is a huge issue, about 80% of the companies will only cover a chronic illness for the year in which it was discovered, so if your dog gets a thyroid disorder and requires lifetime care, you will only be covered until the expiration of your policy, if you renew, that condition will be excluded forever.

I spent hours researching this and petplan http://www.gopetplan.com/ was the only one that I didn't feel was a total rip-off

[Jac]

I agree with Lynne...there is much to be desired with pet insurance, in general. You can get routine care insurance, as Lynne mentioned, but that is all that is covered and the problem with that type of insurance is that so many things can be considered "pre-existing conditions"...meaning, in pet insurance-speak, that the animal had it all along...whether or NOT there were symptoms!

I think that routine costs are equal to the premiums. Maybe the basic care is good for getting the dog spayed/neutered and basic shots, heartworm, etc. but it will add up to be similar to what you pay for the insurance if you get those things on your own. Most insurances only pay a percentage of the charge, even if you use their vets...so you still have a pretty good sized co-pay for basics.

What I like about PetPlan is that they have several options. I personally like the full coverage (100%) with no co-pay. That is, once you have a diagnosis, under covered conditions, the plan pays everything. It is more expensive annually, but since I am insuraing so many dogs, it is important for me to get the best coverage possible.

This coverage is still under $300 per year! I have had vet bills that total $6000 and $11,000 respectively...I would have given anything to have had those things covered!

The best thing about PetPlan is that they say they cover congenital conditions...now, I think that all insurances have exclusions so find out what the details are. I also like that you can use your own vet, or any vet...not theirs.

Could you pay $300 a year and not need the insurance? Sure. But you could also take that risk and not get insurance and you might be facing the $11,000 bills that I had...or putting your beloved pet to sleep because you can't afford treatment. (In my case, we still lost the pup after the $11,000 bill...)

If you only have one dog, I strongly suggest that you get insurance...for catestrophic events, not so much for the routine care.

But, investigate...as questions and be sure that your coverage is right for you.

[SamsonsMom]

Great information guys thanks!! Maybe we should have the Senate do Doggie Healthcare Reform!!!

[Milo's humans]

Now that I am getting used to the forum, I brilliantly did a search before posting a question about pet insurance. What great information y'all have posted for us newbies!
Thanks, everyone!

[lindamarie]

Originally Posted by Milo's humans

Now that I am getting used to the forum, I brilliantly did a search before posting a question about pet insurance. What great information y'all have posted for us newbies!
Thanks, everyone!

[Nikkiey]

I know this thread is a little outdated, but I am hoping someone will be able to help me anyways. I live in Canada and am starting to look into pet insurance for my doodle (after many expensive vet trips lately).
I looked into PetPlan which was spoken highly of here and they are not yet in Canada. Does anyone have any comments or recommendation for pet insurance?

[Hays]

My husband actually has pet insurane through his work! He is going to look into it, but if the discount isn't what we are looking for, we are going to take a look at what you guys have mentioned here!! Thanks so much!!

[jodysh]

I have Pet's Best for Malcolm. So far it's been great. I did add the routine care to my plan and it wasn't that much more. My only complaint is that they only pay $25 per year for the flea/tick/heart work stuff :-/