Pet Insurance? Pro/Con?
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| We use the pet insurance through the AKC called pet partners. We LOVE it! I would highly recommend it. there are different plans to suit your needs. On one dog I have the basic plan at a cost of about 350 a year. Covers emergency only. Not regular maintenance and not preventative. Only illness and ER. You pay the vet bill, send the Vet a form to sign and then submit to the plan. within 15 days they send you a check. No nickel diming you. max they will pay is $3,000 per "event per year. So, say your dog eats something and has a blockage. They will reimburse you up to 3 grand. During the same year your dog also has a gastro problem and ends up sick or in Er. They will still pay up to 3 grand. Two different "events' but same year. Look at all their different plans. I would recommend them highly as they've already paid us back more than tripe what the insurance cost us. |
| Can you afford to provide the level of care you want if you don't have insurance? Insurance is always a waste of money if you never use it. If you need it and have it, you'll think it's money well spent if you've chosen a policy carefully. We just about maxed out on Darby's allergy coverage- $3,000. (It still covers other things.) Yup, it's the AKC coverage Diane mentions above. But we finally got the diagnosis that it is ragweed allergies. More policies are now covering congenital defects like hip dysplasia so read the details carefully. A lot of times people complain that insurance didn't cover what it was supposed to cover. Many times they simply did not understand the coverage they purchased. Pre-existing conditions are not covered so the time to purchase insurance is when a dog is healthy. Premiums generally go up as a dog ages. Personally, I will always carry coverage that includes genetic defects on any dog until they reach the age of two years. I then reevaluate the need for the best coverage. All of my dogs have some form of insurance... two only qualified for accident policies. I know some people say to put money away to cover unexpected illness or injury. That too is a good idea unless you have a dog that needs continued care or has multiple conditions or had multiple injuries. The money you set aside can be eaten up very quickly... if you've had time to save enough before needing it. Good luck with your decision. |
| Jacki, great point. Insurance for dogs is like insurance for humans. If you never need it, its a waste of money. If you need it once, it probably pays itself off. That is the insurance business. They hope you never need it and just paid the premium for nothing! If you are disciplien enought to put aside mioney every month for emergency dog expenses, that is great. I know most people will not do that. It would be terrible to ahve your dog need a procedrue or something else and you cannot afford to pay it. the price for the insurance is worth its weight in gold if its ever needed. for myself I can give you some examples... Dog with MRSA virus....medical bill over 6 grand for ten days in the ICU...insurance reimrubsed 3 grand... Same year...ER visit for dehydration due to Giardi...two night stay at Er bill was about 16 hundred...Insurance reimbursed 13 hundred...This was for my insurance I pay about 350 a year on so within one year that premimum paid for itself in their reimbursements... |
| We have gone with a "deluxe" insurance plan for Mady, it covers pretty much everything, including her spay, routine and regular vet visits. I hope we never have to use it for anything serious, that would be a "waste" of money I'd gladly accept. I'm not sure if we will continue with the deluxe package, we could switch to a lower plan. I think it's pretty important to have at least basic insurance that covers any serious accident. I would hate to have to decide between going broke and re-mortgaging the house or something, or saving Mady's life (well, it would be a no-brainer for us, we'd go to any length necessary if it would help her, but it'd be nice not to lose our shirts in the process). |
| I think you made a wise choice. I also had the delux plan for the first year - which paid for the spaying, etc. I then lowered my plan a bit but kept the preventative, like flea and tick stuff. Since we use both almost year round, I kept it. One thing I ahve found is I bring the dog into the Er now if its the middle of the night and they are obviously very sick. Knowing I have the coverage has helped and not once have I brought them there where they weren't sick - and sick enough to have to stay over night. So for us, it is worht its weight in gold! Hope you NEVER need to use it! |
| ^^ I agree with you both. I think you can reduce the level of coverage later on but if you've had claims, you may not be able to increase the level of coverage. So I now start out higher and drop back if it doesn't look like there are any genetic or chronic problems. I'm glad just we took out a good policy on Bumble. His is through Embrace. I had also selected continued care so it provides $2,500 worth over coverage annually for his skin problem. |
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