Pet Insurance - Page 1

Hi

Any advice on pet insurances? I see Healthy Paws seems to be the most popular here. This is for my 810 week old GSD puppy and I have a choice of $50/pm with a 90% $100 deductible with Healthy Paws or a $26 p/m with VPI that has limits on each claim.

VPI doesnt exactly have the best reviews and I guess you get what you pay for but $50 a month does seem pricey.

 

Thanks

Mike

Why not put the monthly payments aside, save them for when vet care is needed. I have had dogs that died at fifteen and sixteen , a gsd that was almost thirteen,never needed to g to the vet in their long lives, never sick or injured....pet insurance companies would have made a killing off me if I had vet insurance on them.

Healthy Paws is by far the best. Joan's idea isn't bad, either ;) I do like my buyers to have it at least until they're through the puppy phase- buys peace of mind for accidents, accidental poisonings (one of my buyers almost lost their pup to grub killer and ended up with a 5k bill after deciding the Healthy Paws wasn't necessary). I keep it on my own. Once they're mosly out of the danger zone as far as eating things and accidents, or you know their joints are all ok, then cancel it and do Joan's plan. 

Both my dogs are insured with PetPlan.

So far I've had really good luck with them and I couldn't be happier. They have always paid my claims quickly and their customer service people are very helpful and understanding. You can also tailor your plan by choosing from three levels of coverage and deductibles. For me, having pet insurance is peace of mind, knowing that I will always be able to provide and afford the best vet care available for my animals. To date PetPlan has paid me over $12,000 in reimbursement claims, my dogs are three years old and 16 months old. 

You can't compare Healthy Paws to VPI, really. Healthy Paws is ahead of all the rest, then Trupanion ( but they have some sneaky loopholes) and then the rest are about equal, I think. 

You need to really read the policy. Most have so many exclusions - intact dogs, working dogs, breeding dogs, etc. that you need to be cautious or risk not comparing apples to apples. 

How is it $50/mo? What deductible? I pay $37 for my puppies and that's with a low deductible and 90% coverage...which is of course adjustable. 

 

Also keep in mind that Healthy Paws is a YEARLY deductible, like people insurance, while all the others are per incident. That can make a big difference at the end of the year. 

Thanks all, some really good advice and I like the idea of getting it now until the danger phase is past.

Jenni78 - I know.....I was surprised by that cost especially seeing as he is a pup. Maybe its my zipcode, but at first I thought it was due to a GSD and plugged in the cost for a Lab....same price .$100 deductible 90% payout.

And, the others are around the same price if not more(PetPlan).

Yes, in my research it seems like besides Healthy Paws and PetPlan, the others try and look for any way to get out of paying for claims.This is what excluded Trupanion for me.

Check out Pets Best http://www.petsbest.com/pet-insurance-plans/what-we-cover

They also offer an accident only plan which most do not for $8.29 a month - so this might meet the needs of young dogs. List of covered accidents:

• Trauma
• Poisoning
• Bite (insect, animal, snake)
• Hit by car or moving vehicle
• Foreign body ingestion requiring surgical intervention
• Bone fracture
• Laceration, cut, abrasion, wound
• Torn nail
• Medical problems directly attributable to accidental injury

As far as I know they are the ONLY ones willing to cover breeding animals ex - pregnancy in a bitch.

Be real careful who you pick and what their agenda is. True companion used to require all dogs to be spayed at a very young age or coverage was null. Several others have that written in the fine print also. HSUS backs some plans and gets referal fees - same with ASPCA - these are NOT dog friendly people folks their ultimate aim is to deprive you of the right to have a dog so  be careful you are not accidently funneling money to them.

Trupanion, TIG? Or is there one True Companion that I've never heard of?

Yes, they won't cover hardly anything if your dog is intact. For example, if Capri were hit by a car, it would not be covered, because they feel if she were spayed, she wouldn't have been in the road in the first place. If Simon, my APBT, were attacked on a walk, that wouldn't be covered because if he were neutered, he'd not have gotten in a fight in the first place. 

Healthy Paws has no such rules. I love that accident-only thing, though. I will have to check that out!!

Thanks TIG. I at first couldnt find it, because they try to make you sign up for the traditional insurance and sort of "hide" those options. Their traditional insurance is more expensive than others though. Anyway, that is a good plan and rate though. 

@Jenni78, how does Healthy Paw handle "pre-existing conditions"?  Here is a common trick I have heard other pet insurance companies pulling:  Say the dog is diagnosed with a reocurring condition, such as low-thyroid and needs pills for the rest of thier life.  After a year of the insurance covering the pills, check-ups, blood tests, etc, the following year the dogs thyroid condition is no longer covered due to it being a "pre-existing condition" from the previous year.

Do you know if Healthy Paws does this too, or is it simply an industry standard practice?  Also do they have a "life-insurance" component that comes with the health policy, like cremation, burial fees, lumps sum payout at death, etc.