Your attitudes towards Dog Insurance - 2012

With prices rising over the last few years have your attitudes towards dog insurance changed? Did you used to insure but no longer do?

Although I've tried to put up a poll, please do post with further details if at all possible

Also, who do you think is to blame for rising prices?

I've never insured any of my dogs. My first rescue was very old and I couldn't have got reasonably priced insurance, the 2nd came with existing conditions which would've been excluded, so I haven't bothered since.

I think its predominantly the vets charges which are the reason for the high costs - I've seen on here how much some people have had to pay for treatments. My vet (who has hardly any 'patients' who are insured) charges only a fraction of those prices.

With one dog having spinal surgery and another leg amputation and chemo for osteosarcoma, I am firmly in the insurance camp! My dogs also do agility and accidents can and do happen so I pay for peace of mind as much as anything.

I know that insurance companies will always make money. They are just Book makers who work out the odds, do the calculation, and make money.
But the Vets do not help. Most of them make far to much profit!!

I will always insure my dogs as long as I can afford to and the cost benefit analysis is in the favour of the latter.

I've never insured. I've always had several dogs and cats all at the same time and it would be impossible to insure them all. Pepe came with the free insurance from Petplan but I didn't follow it up.

If I had just one dog then I probably would.

All my dogs are insured and always will be provided the cost doesn't get silly. On the poll I ticked the option "I insure my dog/s - but will stop if it gets above £75 per month per dog"". You have to draw a line somewhere and I would not be prepared to pay that.

Thankfully my premiums have never been anything like that. My most expensive dog insurance wise is my Labrador at £30 a month which isn't bad considering he will be 10 years old early next year and we have made multiple claims.

For me it is a safety net I cannot do without. If I was landed with a bill for thousands I simply could not afford to pay that money outright. One of my dogs is especially accident prone and is always injuring herself so being without it would be foolish.

I no longer insure my dogs except for the first year with me and that's just so that I can get a handle on any health issues etc. Not because I can't afford it or rising premiums but I have only ever made one claim in all my years of dog ownership and that was way back in the 1980's and it was for far less than the premiums paid in. Also at around the same time they decided to triple my other dogs insurance because he was 8 years old. I cancelled it at that point as I'd never claimed anything for him and nor did I spend much on him right up to the end, he was healthy and hardly ever required any vet attention. I think the biggest bill I've ever had was Rio's recent uti/ struvite crystals/ incontinence issues which was about £500. I however have funds should my dogs need it and a credit card with a very high limit too.

I have only ever insured 2 "bought"in puppies for the first year of their lives in the past. I wouldn't consider insuring any of my dogs now, the insurance companies pay out excessive fees asked for some animals & also will pay for treatment that really doesn't benefit the animal more the owner.

I do not have any pet insurance for Pereg - third party in case she causes an accident is covered by my general household insurance policy.

I have just paid the equivalent of ~£290 for today's Vet visit, which was for the following:

A fairly comprehensive medical check-up and blood drawn. Some blood has to be sent to an outside laboratory to do the blood tests for Phenobarbitone levels and a thyroid panel. As they are specialised tests they cannot be done at the surgery and the outside lab charges a fortune.

The surgery does full standard haematology and blood chemistry tests, and those were done while we were there.

Three packs of Pb [I picked up six packs but had already paid for three when I phoned to order them.] Each pack lasts 20 days so those will last 120 days.

Two packs of 3 Frontline Plus pipettes, and Pereg had two Cestral worm pills while we were there. I have no idea of the price of those but Frontline and worm pills are expensive here.

Of the total amount, if I did have insurance it would not pay for the Frontline or worm treatments. Nor would it pay for her yearly shots [next one due in six months]. Yes it would pay for the blood tests and her medication, but I would still have to pay a certain amount before the insurance kicked in.

We were in at surgery for about two hours in total.

Does anyone think my Vet overcharges?