Pet Insurance

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

In researching pet insurance, it looks like it will cost me about $38 a month for my 3 y/o Greyhound, Dante. I didn't have insurance on my other dogs, Spencer, Buzz or Emmy. My Greyhounds ended up being very expensive with various medical problems and I just don't save very well so I know if I put money aside for vet bills I would end up using it for some other crises that came up.

 

So I'm just curious to know various opinions from people that have pet insurance to those that don't. Thank you!

 

[Guest larock]

We pay about $75 per hound per month for Secure 3 with Petsecure. This is in Canada. It's more than paid for itself.

[a_daerr]

I have an accident/illness policy through ASPCA pet insurance for emergencies. It's only $12 a month. The only time I ever had to use it was when Henry required a partial tail amputation (I think he got his tail caught under the fence). They reimbursed 80% after the $100 annual deductible was met. I was very pleased with the claims process. It did take a pretty long time (6 weeks), but that wasn't a huge deal for me. I use Care Credit for everything else, because most charges are 6 or 12 month financing at 0% interest. I have friends who have more comprehensive pet insurance policies (Trupanion and VPI) that cover routine things, immunizations, flea/tick preventative, and on and on and on. They pay between $60-$80 a month. The only thing you have to be careful about is "pre-existing conditions." I never opted for the better package, because I was always afraid any run of the mill thing could be interpreted as a "pre-existing condition" when you're dealing with an ex-racer.

[OwnedBySummer]

I have unlimited coverage with no deductible for about $100/month. A bit of overkill, I'm sure, but I feel more comfortable this way. The company we're with is Trupanion. I have had no difficulty with any claim and they pay very quickly. My understanding of pre-existing conditions is that these are conditions which were treated or noted by your vet PRIOR to applying for insurance. In fact, with a previous dog, I switched my vet so that there would not be any pre-existing conditions on file (hip dysplasia had just been diagnosed), got him re-examined and re-diagnosed and then submitted my first claim.

[Guest Fasave]

I'm with Embrace. Two pups (4 & 7 yo) for about $68 each (total $134/month). Accidental/illness coverage only. $300 annual deductible and 10% co-pay. I had VPI with my first two and do NOT recommend them. I went with Embrace because they covered alternative therapies ( ex. accupuncuture) but it sounds like other companies are now starting to cover these as well Thankfully, I really haven't had to submit any claims with them yet so no insight on customer service. I will say, their rates have climbed quite a bit since I started with them. It pays to do your homework and find a plan that meets your financial requirements.

[claudiav]

I was on VPI for 10 yrs with my german Shepherd. My rate about doubled over the years.

 

I'm with Best Friends Pet Insurance now. I love it, and would never own a dog without having him/her covered. I just got $4400 back on a $5600 claim for Remy's Achilles tendon tear surgery. I'm expecting another $500 back for subsequest meds & bi-weekly bandage changes over 3 months. Leyla's dental surgery wasn't covered (I didn't know) so no more dentals for us... it cost me $1000. Otherwise, I'm quite happy with them. I put in claims for everything, except routine vaccines. With the exception of the dental,. they have covered everything (mutliple corn hullings, partial tail amputation, various bouts of colitis, lipoma aspirate, etc..) I pay $650/year for both for the silver plan I get an additonal discount for prepaying the year's premium upfront. ($325/each = $27/mo) I would definitely reccommend them!! and they're affiliatd with Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Utah (which is heaven on earth for animals)....

[Remolacha]

I had VPI, and the first few years it was OK, I just had the cats then. The rates really (really) start to go up as your pets get older, whether you have had a claim or not, and they refused to cover Fletcher at all because of his IBD, even though he was only 2. I didn't expect them to cover the IBD as it was a pre-existing condition, but they wouldn't cover him at all I dropped all my coverage and started a vet savings account, and so far that has worked fine, but my biggest vet bill month so far was only @$1300.

[JohnF]

Peggy's on a Pet Plan whole life policy at the equivalent of about $50 a month. The first $100 of any claim has to be paid first though before they'll cough up so that rules out minor injuries.

[MP_the4pack]

I had VPI for 11 yrs. At first they were very good, but rates have gone up but not their schedule. They go by a schedule, not a percentage of the vet bill. So my two younger ones are being switched over to Healthy Paws. I have 90% reimbursement and $100 yearly ded. I chose HP because I liked the yearly ded better than per incident. And since I do have three that are covered, I did need to look for something a little less expensive. I'm paying $58/month for my 5 yr old Tanzi. I'm waiting until the waiting period is up before I cancel VPI. And if I get a partial refund from VPI for Tanzi, then I'll transfer Emma over to HP and cancel VPI.

 

Opal has to stay with VPI because she's had a couple of problems (like a blown ligament this past summer) that will be excluded with other ins companies, but is still covered with VPI since she's been with them for 7 yrs. So she stays.

[ShebasMom]

That's about how much I pay monthly with Embrace, although I pay yearly. I never had insurance for any of my Great Danes until I had over $5,000 emergency treatment for my first greyhound in 2009. Because of that unexpected high cost (I had recently retired and it hurt!), I decided I would get insurance for Sheba when I adopted her at almost 2 years of age in 2010 and have had her covered ever since. My annual deductible is $500 so an accident or illness would cost me that much, but for any really big bills, I'm covered. I also have their basic wellness plan that covers up to $200 for annual vaccinations, exam, and meds and can opt for their wellness plus plan that covers dental when I decide it's needed from year to year (her teeth are greyt, so didn't need it this year).

[Guest DragonflyDM]

I have had good luck with TruPanion. It runs me about $45/mo. for my almost-six year old.

[Walliered]

I have Trupanion and I am sure they wish I had gone elsewhere! My hounds have been very expensive. Huck died of cancer, Da Vid has had two back surgeries and Lady had a neck surgery last week. They cover all meds, blood work, surgeries, x-rays, MRI's and CT scans I pay 10%. They pay 90%. Great company.

[kudzu]

So far Healthy Paws has been good. For each hound it's approx $45/mo. That's with $50 annual deductible and 90% coverage. It covers accident & illness. Does not cover office fee or preventative care like vaccinations, HW tests, HW prevention, deworming, etc. Have only had to place two claims. First one required forwarding prior vet records so took an extra day or two for claim processing. Next one went super quick. They paid exactly what they said they would, quickly, without questions. Hopefully it will stay that way. There was a rate increase this year but only about $2/mo. I'm OK with that.

[45MPHK9]

We've had a Trupanion for several years. I'm very happy with them. I'd never go without pet insurance.

[45MPHK9]

I have friends who have more comprehensive pet insurance policies (Trupanion and VPI) that cover routine things, immunizations, flea/tick preventative, and on and on and on.

None of the things above are covered by Trupanion as far as I know. Not sure what and on and on and on things you are referring to, though.

[a_daerr]

None of the things above are covered by Trupanion as far as I know. Not sure what and on and on and on things you are referring to, though.

 

• Trupanion: Accident, illness, hereditary/congenital conditions, diagnostic tests, surgeries, medications, hospital stays, and veterinary supplements with the option to add hip dysplasia and other "alternative treatments" like acupuncture, physical therapy, hydrotherapy, and behavioral modification
• VPI: Most of the same things as Trupanion with the option to add wellness exams, vaccinations, deworming, microchip, flea and/or heartworm preventative, blood screen, urinalysis, dental cleaning, spay/neuter

[Guest DragonflyDM]

Trupanion is not for routine care.

 

But I am interested--- if people have a better AND cheaper plan. I am all ears.

[Feisty49]

I have Healthy Paws Insurance for my 5-year-old. It costs me just under $35 a month. I have a $250 deductible and 90% reimbursement. I hope I never have to use it for something serious but it gives me peace of mind to know it's there. I've had the insurance for almost a year and haven't met the $250 deductible, for which I'm thankful.

 

If I were you, I'd make a decision pretty quick and sign your boy up before a pre-existing condition comes to light.

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate your responses!

 

My research shows that VPI pays 100% after their deductible is met. If I go with the $100 deductible then it will cost me $37/mo. If I go with the $250 deductible then it will be $32/mo., so not much difference.

 

Healthy Paws pays 90% after the deductible. If I go with $100 it will be $43/mo and if I go with $250 then it's $38

 

Pets Best (which was created by the same guy who did VPI) is 90% after $46 for $100 deductible and $38 for $200 deductible

 

Trupanion, Embrace and Pet Plan were the most expensive.

 

I'm still having troubles choosing.... ugh! It's not always about the $$

 

[MP_the4pack]

VPI says they'll pay 100%, but it's 100% of THEIR SCHEDULE. Which I found out this past summer that their schedule is very outdated. My vet bill was over $4500 with all the followup xrays and checkups. They paid $1200. That's why I'm leaving for Healthy Pets for two of my girls that are still young.

[45MPHK9]

I've never read anything good about VPI. They only pay what they feel the vet should charge for a service on a predetermined schedule. Trupanion pays 90% of the actual bill. We pay very high rates for vet care. This is one reason I'd never choose VPI. I won't leave it up to them to decide how much they should reimburse me for a vet bill.

 

VPI also has maximum payout limits on their plans. What good is paying for insurance if you'll reach the max payout on a major incident and then have to pay the balance yourself?

[KF_in_Georgia]

I had VPI. Jacey's last bill was $4,500. VPI paid about $1,100. They never paid 100%, so check what they claim to be paying "100%" on: 100% of the bill? Or 100% of their "allowable vet charges"? For Jacey they paid 90% of their allowable, but their allowable was crap. This was an 8-year-old dog they'd insured for 5 years with only claims on the preventative plan of theirs (dental and vaccinations), and she had an immune-system illness that in no sense could be a pre-existing condition. I'm still trying to recover financially from that. (I used money saved for 2011 taxes to pay my vet bills; in 2012, all my spare income went to paying off my taxes for 2011; now I have to try to find money to pay taxes for 2012--and put away money to pay my 2013 taxes.)

 

Pet insurance for Sam, nearly 13 years old, would be outrageously expensive. And I can't get insurance for Silver at any sort of reasonable rate. She was picked up as a stray and there were no previous medical records for her. One insurance company said they'd cover her the next year if I'd submit a year's worth of medical records. In the first year, we identified a corn on one foot, a permanent limp on another leg (bad Achilles tendon), and a chronic skin condition (finally cleared up after a $720 biopsy), as well as allergy issues. That's three legs and her respiratory system that the insurance would have excluded (one insurance actually quoted me something that excluded all those bits); she's left with one insurable leg and perhaps some internal organs. But I'm not going to trust any insurance policy that has so many exclusions since it wouldn't take much effort to tie a new problem to an already-excluded, pre-existing condition.

Edited February 7, 2013 by KF_in_Georgia

[Guest Spencers_Greyt]

Thanks for the heads up on VPI! Maybe I should go with Healthy Paws.....

 

[a_daerr]

I spent a good two hours today researching insurance plans and reading reviews. If you don't want/need a wellness plan for routine things, then Healthy Paws, Pet Plan US, and Trupanion are the best. Healthy Paws was the cheapest of the three. If you want a wellness plan (sort of like an FSA for dogs), then Embrace is the way to go.

[greymatters]

We finally got pet health insurance for our two last fall. After a lot of research and reading of fine print, we went with Healthy Paws. Two things that were key for us is that they pay based on the actual vet bill and that they cover Rx meds. When we signed up they didn't cover alternative treatments, but a month or so ago they sent us a letter saying that they've changed their basic policy to include those as well .