What pet insurance do you have and why?

[EllaJoy]

Originally Posted by Roxi Ree

I insured Roxi with PetPlan when she was 3 months old because they do cover genetic diseases. I pay $225 a year with $100 deductible (per condition) with 90/10 at regular vet and 80/20 at specialty/er with an $8,000 per year limit. Roxi was diagnosed with MVD (thankfully no liver shunt) and with PetPlan I only paid the $100 and then the 10% for the bloodwork done at my regular vet and the 20% of the costs incurred with the surgeon at the specialty hospital. Altogether her liver issues were around $2,000 and I received checks for about $1,500.00. I couldn't have paid for this without the insurance and PetPlan was awesome to work with. I had all 3 checks within 10 days of filing claim. They did make a mistake and charge a 2nd $100 deductible (remember $100 deductible per condition) and they reimbursed me within 3 days. I don't know how they handle pre-existing conditions...I made sure to get Roxi insured as soon as I got her.

Thank you for this info - I am looking for a plan that will for sure cover it. We are looking at getting a puppy from two parents who have already had a liver shunt puppy out of one of their litters- our Ella. (I know we shouldn't do this but our hearts are already invested.) We are going to do testing on the puppy as soon as we can but by then we will already be in love and I want to be able to do whatever is necessary to treat her if she has it.

[shodanusmc]

MargeCo. The bill is never rejected and always gets paid, and boy, do we have Pet care Bills.

[Roxi Ree]

I found this website with reviews of many of the major pet insurance cos.

www.petinsurancereview.com

[dottiesyrky]

I have Trupanion and apart from the relatively high cost, I am very happy with it. I have $0 deductible as it is per incident and am paid 90% of covered costs whatever they are (apart from doctor visits). However I found with the cataracts that after the first consult the remaining bills did not usually include a doctor visit fee, only procedures and meds etc. I have really used it recently with my Austin's cataract surgery. The many pre-op and all bills so far have been paid within a week with no questions asked. They keep you informed by e-mail of status of the claim.
I have always found customer service timely and very pleasant and helpful.
They also do cover genetic diseases and if a problem can be bilateral, e.g. cataracts, only one deductible applies.
So far so good and in my mind Trupanion delivers all it promises in the contract. Hope it stays that way!!!
PS. I have no connection with Trupanion, just my experience with them.

[LittleLolasMom]

Just got my yorkie a little over a month ago and going to look into getting her on insurance asap!

[deonk1]

I use Petsecure... and I'm not very happy. I messed up my plan a year ago when I decided to take a lower premium for a higher annual deductible our first claim of the year was $1300 and I only got $722 back after deductible and co-insurance. I was pretty angry. Plus I thought I had $1000 per incident, but that's only for accidents, it's $1000 per year per illness, so if Harley has any GI issues I only have $280 left Now seeing GI is an "existing condition" I can't switch.

[dottiesyrky]

Wow, what a mess!!!! You are surely between a rock and hard place. The trouble is that once you are in one insurance the ugly question of existing condition can really be a pain if you need to change.
It is so hard to decide which insurance to get with all the different rules and conditions.
Good Luck and I hope this is not as bad in the future as it looks now.

[LittleLolasMom]

after reviewing i think i may go with trupanion. it seems they price doesnt change over time and with 35 bucks a month i dont think i can go wrong.

[dottiesyrky]

I thought Trupanion was the best for my needs. However, although the cost does not change with age, it can go up if costs in the area go up. Mine did go up but I guess CA is an expensive area for vets.
Perhaps you could talk with TP and ask if your area is likely to increase soon???
But even with the cost, I am happy with the service and at least they hopefully will not go bust if they are monitoring costs and raising prices??? Good Luck and lets pray you will not need the insurance for your little one.

[LittleLolasMom]

Originally Posted by dottiesyrky

I thought Trupanion was the best for my needs. However, although the cost does not change with age, it can go up if costs in the area go up. Mine did go up but I guess CA is an expensive area for vets.
Perhaps you could talk with TP and ask if your area is likely to increase soon???
But even with the cost, I am happy with the service and at least they hopefully will not go bust if they are monitoring costs and raising prices??? Good Luck and lets pray you will not need the insurance for your little one.

thanks, i live in NJ, so i know vets here are pricey. I paid 200 for a visit and 3 shots. i wish there was an eaier way to figure out the best one.

[LittleLolasMom]

just signed up now for lola's pet insurance. i went with Pet Plan

$100 deductable. 90% reimbursement.

[mikie1977]

I have 2 yorkies, 4 and 5 years old and am planning to get them insured. Here is what I found out so far:

Healthy Paws - I am leaning in this direction so far. No annual maximums or per incident maximums, unlimited lifetime maximum as well. The deductible is annual, which I like. Does not cover exams though. For the 2 dogs for a $250 annual deductible with 10% co-pay is $75 a month ($70 a month with 20% co-pay).

Embrace - Number 2 choice so far. Also an annual deductible. Using the silver plan (most popular) it does have a $10,000 annual max though. $200 deductible at 20% co-pay is $83 a month for the 2 dogs. Seems a bit pricey, especially considering the annual max. They offer dental and wellness / preventative too, but at additional fees. $50,000 lifetime max too.

Pet Plan - good prices. $66 a month for the 2 dogs. But no annual deductible - their deductible is per incident. Not sure I like the sound of that. This is also using a $200 deductible and 20% co-pay. Also has a $12,000 annual max, which I also don't like the sound of. It does include exams though which is nice.

Trupanion - similar to Pet plan in terms of the per incident deductible. But no annual max. $250 deductible and 10% co-pay. $70 a month for the 2 dogs. Does not include exams. Does not cover hip displasia in base policy.

Thoughts??

[mikie1977]

I decided to go with Healthy Paws after all, at a $100 annual deductible with 10% co-pay, for about $43 per dog a month. This is what my gut told me. : )