Increased Dog Insurance

[mydannyboy]

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My 2 whippies are insured. Granted they're on a premier package. This is partly due to the liability amount. Background:

In the past they've knocked me down and I broke my wrist, one of them knocked a man down (no damage). This was all in the younger days. They're 5.5 and 6 now.

Not mine thankfully but where I live a whippet knocked a woman down causing her knee damage requiring many surgeries etc. this is where liability comes in.

The 6 year olds insurance has gone up by £11 a month. The other a more respectable £4.50. I'm going to get a quote for a standard package but wondered what others do.

What about insurance covering liability only. Does this exist?

Do others just save a set amount each month instead of insurance?

Thanks.

 

[masta]

been with same insurance 3 years each year it goes up around £10 i canx and re quote on line (same company) and get the same price as the previous year

 

[gypsysmum]

My insurance for my two has gone up a lot. Vet fees are now unafordable without insurance in my opinion. I bless the day I took out insurance every time I take mine to the vet now. There is no price on peace of mind.

 

[mydannyboy]

Thanks both.

I'm not going to stop it but will try and get a requote. I just wondered what others do.

 

[eingana]

My advice would be to read your home insurance policy carefully, because your dogs may be covered for liability through that.

My home insurance does have a liability section and because of this, a realisation that over the years I've paid in a little over £11,000 more than they've paid me (despite one of my cats having a dicky heart and being on medication and special food for life) and a pet insurance premium that doubled without ever having made a claim I made the decision to cancel all of my pet insurance and set up a bank account to act as a fund for all of the pet needs.

I pay in a little more than the premiums on the insurance were before I cancelled every month and then just use the money for vet bills when needed. The chances of all of my animals being sick at the same time is not very high and my savings fund doesn't have an annual renewal cost (multiplied by 5, one for each animal) or an excess and so far it's averaging out pretty well.

 

[mydannyboy]

Thank you for your reply. It's interesting about the home insurance. I will look into it.

I've learnt that Dogs Trust covers for liability if you become a member (not a bad thing in itself) and gives access to VetFone.

Saving up the monthly payments is something that I've considered. It certainly would cover for small issues - its just the "what if" big major issues should we be unfortunate to have one. This I suppose is what we all face and that's the risk. Insurance is a very expensive comfort blanket.

 

[eingana]

It's a VERY expensive comfort blanket when you're spending £150 a month on premiums!

My bank account currently has about £3000 in it, which would cover even most of the 'what if' major issues for one animal at a time, and we've only had to use the account for £200- worth of vet bills in the last year.

I don't take out of the account for all of the minor things just like I wouldn't claim on insurance- it's just there for when Molly needs ongoing medication for the arthritis that we know she will get in her older years in the front paw that her first owner so helpfully broke for her and that sort of thing. The chances that I'll ever need to take money out for two of my cats is very limited anyway, since I've got very little chance of ever being able to handle them and get them into a basket unless they are mortally ill (in which case it will probably be just for the last trip) because they're ferals who don't like being handled.

 

[masta]

It's a VERY expensive comfort blanket when you're spending £150 a month on premiums!

My bank account currently has about £3000 in it, which would cover even most of the 'what if' major issues for one animal at a time, and we've only had to use the account for £200- worth of vet bills in the last year.

I don't take out of the account for all of the minor things just like I wouldn't claim on insurance- it's just there for when Molly needs ongoing medication for the arthritis that we know she will get in her older years in the front paw that her first owner so helpfully broke for her and that sort of thing. The chances that I'll ever need to take money out for two of my cats is very limited anyway, since I've got very little chance of ever being able to handle them and get them into a basket unless they are mortally ill (in which case it will probably be just for the last trip) because they're ferals who don't like being handled.

whippets are very prone to accident trauma and it tends to be expensive i have just had a £600 episode with one of my young bitches chasing a deer (sunday afternoon double time and overnight stay etc) saving the premium each month just doesn't make sense we take out insurance as security should something bad and expensive should happen, 6 years ago i had a whippet bitch that started with Meningitis at 8months old i had taken out M&S insurance at £10 per month (no excess) so i had spent £80.00 my vets bills mounted to over £4k the £3000 you have saved could go in the click of a finger and then what happens if one of your other dogs requires expensive treatment? what do you do re your house and contents insurance?

 

[eingana]

The fund is only maintained at £3000 because that's how far i've got with the savings- it will be increasing as I can afford it. GSDs can have a some pretty enormous things in terms of vet bills too, from epilepsy and hip dysplasia to EPI and anal furunculosis. If Molly has none of these then it's pure luck because she's a rescue dog and because of that I know nothing of her parenting and health checks on her parents.

I only have one dog and we aren't likely to get another with the size of GSDs and the size of our living room (and budget constraints).

My house and contents are fully insured, and the premiums for that cost less than a third of the costs of my pet insurance, for 5 times the cover!

 

[masta]

The fund is only maintained at £3000 because that's how far i've got with the savings- it will be increasing as I can afford it. GSDs can have a some pretty enormous things in terms of vet bills too, from epilepsy and hip dysplasia to EPI and anal furunculosis. If Molly has none of these then it's pure luck because she's a rescue dog and because of that I know nothing of her parenting and health checks on her parents.

I only have one dog and we aren't likely to get another with the size of GSDs and the size of our living room (and budget constraints).

My house and contents are fully insured, and the premiums for that cost less than a third of the costs of my pet insurance, for 5 times the cover!

your actually dispelling your own reasoning? your listing all the problems and then compounding by saying if she doesn't have any it would be pure luck even more reason to have insurance don't know where your getting your iinsurance from but i have 6 dogs and have the platinum life time cover and i pay £75 per month £900 per year( for all 6) its a no brainer already claimed that so its paid for itself

 

[eingana]

The fund is only maintained at £3000 because that's how far i've got with the savings- it will be increasing as I can afford it. GSDs can have a some pretty enormous things in terms of vet bills too, from epilepsy and hip dysplasia to EPI and anal furunculosis. If Molly has none of these then it's pure luck because she's a rescue dog and because of that I know nothing of her parenting and health checks on her parents.

I only have one dog and we aren't likely to get another with the size of GSDs and the size of our living room (and budget constraints).

My house and contents are fully insured, and the premiums for that cost less than a third of the costs of my pet insurance, for 5 times the cover!

your actually dispelling your own reasoning? your listing all the problems and then compounding by saying if she doesn't have any it would be pure luck even more reason to have insurance don't know where your getting your iinsurance from but i have 6 dogs and have the platinum life time cover and i pay £75 per month £900 per year( for all 6) its a no brainer already claimed that so its paid for itself

I'm not dispelling my own reasoning. I know that dogs can be expensive and my fund will increase as I can afford it to take account of that. GSDs are clearly a lot more expensive to insure than whippets, since having never claimed and not having the top cover we were paying £48 a month for one dog aged 5 (and it was due to increase by another £14 a month when she hit 6), and to be honest I'd rather pay that money (and the premiums for the cats) into a bank account and then choose to pay it out again as I see fit for their medical use.

That's my choice- I'm not expecting anybody else to agree with me or to change their actions based upon my experience. It's still my choice and it's a choice that's as valid as yours, as long as I'm taking full responsibility for my animals and doing the very best for them.

 

[masta]

The fund is only maintained at £3000 because that's how far i've got with the savings- it will be increasing as I can afford it. GSDs can have a some pretty enormous things in terms of vet bills too, from epilepsy and hip dysplasia to EPI and anal furunculosis. If Molly has none of these then it's pure luck because she's a rescue dog and because of that I know nothing of her parenting and health checks on her parents.

I only have one dog and we aren't likely to get another with the size of GSDs and the size of our living room (and budget constraints).

My house and contents are fully insured, and the premiums for that cost less than a third of the costs of my pet insurance, for 5 times the cover!

your actually dispelling your own reasoning? your listing all the problems and then compounding by saying if she doesn't have any it would be pure luck even more reason to have insurance don't know where your getting your iinsurance from but i have 6 dogs and have the platinum life time cover and i pay £75 per month £900 per year( for all 6) its a no brainer already claimed that so its paid for itself

I'm not dispelling my own reasoning. I know that dogs can be expensive and my fund will increase as I can afford it to take account of that. GSDs are clearly a lot more expensive to insure than whippets, since having never claimed and not having the top cover we were paying £48 a month for one dog aged 5 (and it was due to increase by another £14 a month when she hit 6), and to be honest I'd rather pay that money (and the premiums for the cats) into a bank account and then choose to pay it out again as I see fit for their medical use.

That's my choice- I'm not expecting anybody else to agree with me or to change their actions based upon my experience. It's still my choice and it's a choice that's as valid as yours, as long as I'm taking full responsibility for my animals and doing the very best for them.

Not having a go, unfortunately people may read your story and decide to follow the same plan that you adopt and i am giving a balanced and knowledgeable counter argument ie the maths don't stack up and anybody deciding to save the premium in the bank and then encountering a serious problem could find that they don't have sufficient funds to deal with it