[Optimistic Gardener]

I have a bruiser of a cat who regularly gets into fights...scratches, bites, abcesses you name it...I've had 14  years of it but I wouldn't change him for the world.  After yet another visit to the vet last night (I think I must own shares in the practice by now), why is it that the bill always comes in at exactly the same amount as the insurance excess... Mrs Cynical or Just One of Life's Imponderables....?!!!

[NormandyMary]

I had insurance for my 3 for years before we left the UK and in all that time, I never had a bill that exceeded the excess. Didnt stop the premiums going up every year either!

[Ice]

When I had my dog exactly the same happened with my vets fees.  You would almost think they were in collusion, wouldn't you?

[joyfull]

As I now have 3 dogs I no longer have pet insurance (have never used the insurances that we have ever had in the last 15 years anyway) but I do save a set amount every week to pay for any vets bills. I am just banking that they don't all get ill at the same time otherwise the credit card will have to be used 

[Optimistic Gardener]

I've always had insurance for my cats in the past.  My previous cat had a cancerous tumour in her chest which took some diagnosing at first; the final bill was £400 and that was 15 years ago.  Knowing that I had insurance, it was a great freedom to be able to say to the vet "do whatever you need to do and I don't care about the cost".  Apart from the excess it was paid for entirely by the insurance company.  So I think it has its place for serious injuries / illnesses.  However, my dear old tabby just keeps having minor war wounds which is fortunate in one way but frustrating on the purse!

[Mosslane]

We were lucky enough to have insurance when Jake need serious surgery and rehab which totalled nearly £500. However that is the only claim e ever made and when you add up all the monthly payments, we paid way over that in the time we had the insurance so maybe a monthly saving plan is more beneficial.

[maxyboo]

The rising costs of vet fees also means the insurance does not give the reassurance it used to. I took cat insurance out over 10 years ago to cover up to £4000. These days however that cost can be very easily exceeded by the time an animal has an MRI and an operation plus all the usual fees for medication and overnight stays in hospital.

[Lulu]

most of the visits to the vets with my dogs come under the excess for the insurance, but when the old boy was younger and he began to get dermatitis on his paws it was well worth having the insurance- I think over the year they paid out £2500 for his fancy immunology vet visits etc..  But of course they will only pay it for a year.  Once that episode is done - its down to you.  I still have him insured even though he's 16 - 18  months ago he sustained a football injury that cost £200 as it happened on a Sunday!!  It was fun explaining that one on the phone (badly twisted leg whilst jumping for a football).  Anyway - my believe has always been - yes its expensive but it reassures me that I can get the care the dogs need. 

[Raven81]

We cancelled our dog insurance last year when they suddenly raised it to £60 per month, plus there was an excess I can't recall, and they would not cover the first 20% of any treatment. 

They also would not cover anything that had previously been treated and our vet wanted the full amount of any treatment up front and they would then reimburse you once the paperwork had gone through.

We worked on the basis that he was unlikely to need £864 worth of treatment in a year, not including his skin or ears, which had been previously treated or dental work which was not covered.

[spottymint]

We have insurance for our cat's, just incase they play with Mr Car. 

Knew a cat who had really bad injuries, £1000's in vet bills, so we have it for that.

Tesco are meant not to be too bad, D Lin are really tight by all accounts, won't cover my upcoming £400 bill, so looking at joyful's idea. Set up a direct debit to an account set up for vet fee's only. That way, money is not lost on insurance premiums & will be available for all our pets who need it, not just a certain animal.

My brrod is growing, another critter is due to arrive in the next few months with others due to lay eggs (they hatch at room temp) so no need to incubate, they will hatch anyway.

[Dawnuss]

My three dogs are insured with petplan. I only have to pay the excess once in a year and anything that might happen after that is seen to so its worth checking your making the most out of the insurance. You may have to pay an excess this time but if you go back in the year the bill could be fully paid. Not all insurances work like this but just double check could save you a bit