Pet Insurance?

Yui · 11-07-2009, 02:19 PM

Which company is best for people with pets who have per-existing conditions and which is best for those without? Do they pay 100% of the bill or only a portion of it? Which plans are best(is it smarter to get the more expensive one that covers $20,000 or the one that covers $5,000; is it normal to exceed $5000 on yearly vet bills)?

Alex927 · 11-10-2009, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hiroko

As far as I know, none of the company insure pets with pre-exisiting conditions. For non pre-existing conditions, I recommend you Trupanion Pet Insurance if you are in the US, or VetInsurance if you are in Canada because they both treated my wink very well, and they cover 90% of the vet bills. To get expensive policy or not is totally upto your need, I guess.

Trupanion is something I am considering right now actually.

However, what is their coverage like regarding vet visits and testing?

I'm in NYC.

I checked with a cmpany called VPI and they wanted $37 a month! This included vet visits but for a terrible paltry amount...up to $250 a year for vet visits. That's BS.

I would imagine the premium for anything regarding pre-existing conditions will be quite costly.

Max'sHuman · 11-10-2009, 01:34 PM

Well not having pet insurance (yet?) myself and having only looked into it a little bit, from everything I have heard VPI is the oldest, largest and therefore probably the most cost effective if you want insurance to cover maintenance as well as emergencies. I guess because of their size and experience they'd be a decent bet. ::shrug::

Alex927 · 11-10-2009, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hiroko

Alex927:

Trupanion doesn't cover routine care like vet visits because they consider it the owner's responsibility to plan for expected costs. Plus most companies that have routine coverage are profiting from offering the service, which means you (the customer) are not saving any money on average.

I hope this helps!

so basically..pet insurance is one big racket, like the rest of the insurance world.

it only covers emergencies basically. hmm.....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Max'sHuman

Well not having pet insurance (yet?) myself and having only looked into it a little bit, from everything I have heard VPI is the oldest, largest and therefore probably the most cost effective if you want insurance to cover maintenance as well as emergencies. I guess because of their size and experience they'd be a decent bet. ::shrug::

unfortunately not. They cover maintenance up to only $250 a year. and the additional cost is an addiitonal $23 a month on top of the base package (base package is like $14 a month)....bringing your total to $37 a month.

If you do the math..37 dollars times 12 months = $444 per annum.

So you pay $444 and they cover you up to only $250 for maintenance per year. Of course it becomes a bargain only if an emergency occurs and of course this is the sort of "bargain" that NOBODY wants.

I'm really torn about this. I hate insurance companies.

So the best way to go is likely this:
With respect to vet maintenance it's likely best to create your own little fund where you put your monthly installments of about $20 away.

For emergency purposes however, the insurance can prove beneficial to the customer (as opposed to the insurer

)...at an additional $15 a month.

The more I think about it..the more I see that this will be the best way.

yes, I realize that insurance is a business like everything else.