Pet insurance recommendations?

[fionasmom]

You could say that it is like the days before the AFA. It is possible that there might be conditions or exclusions based on breed, but I don't know that for a fact with cats. The only ones I have encountered were for pre-existing condition which were already treated and documented by the vet. I have 5 insured cats, one with a couple of major conditions, so if I ever tried to change his policy those would be immediate exclusions.

There are a lot of insurance companies out there for pets, so you can investigate and see what might work for you. Ask for quotes from various companies. These companies are all legitimate and, as such, are regulated by the state departments of insurance.

 

[artiemom]

N Novus888 Why do you say that about Petplan/Fetch? I would like to know what it is based on.

I am paying a lot for premiums. They do increase every year; and as far as I can see, the more claims, the higher the premiums. But I would not do without it.

What I dislike is that I have to pay up front and then submit the claim. I know of only one company which paid up front-- but it had to be authorized. Came in handy for an endoscopy for my last baby.

All insurance companies will not cover pre-existing conditions, or any conditions which arise during the 'breaking in' period-- I forget if it is 6 months or so...
Many will forgive a condition, if the animal goes 12 months without a repeat of symptoms. This is something to look into.

It is so complicated, but I feel it is necessary in today's world. Veterinary care is so expensive. I have been through it. When I had Artie, I did get a lot from his insurance company; then when the new adjustor looked back at all his records, they decided it was a preexisting condition.. since he had been diagnosed with a heart murmur at initial vet exam--that was deemed a preexisting condition, along with his dental disease... so with that and all the GI issues they decided NOT to cover, I dropped insurance.

Now, I cannot deal with Geoffrey's issues. I need help. I have found Fetch to be pretty good, so far..
Now, I am just waiting for the shoe to drop.... anytime.. now...

All I can say, is that if anyone is thinking about insurance, to get it.. The only caveat is if you have an elderly pet..That is something different..

Good Luck!!
Check around and see what fits for you, your pet, and how much you can afford.. think hard because bills mount up quickly...

 

[daftcat75]

Even with pre-exsiting conditions, your cats may still figure out how to get your premium's worth and then some. My Betty has a pretty big exclusion: vomiting. And yet we still managed to get a few reimbursed visits in this year to pay her premium several times over. Same with my last cat, Krista, who in three short insured years at the end of her life, also with vomiting exclusions, she managed to rack up reimburseable bills that far exceeded the premiums I paid.

When I was shopping for Betty, I did a comparison across many different providers and compared things like how annual limits, reimbursement percentage, and premiums across deductible sizes. My conclusion was that Embrace is likely the best deal both in terms of reimbursement percentage and premium/deductible flexibility. I recommend opting for the highest deductible and if you can afford it, an annual premium option. Pay the premiums once and be done with it for the year. As alluded to before, once you have them insured, you don't want to cancel or make changes to their policy or anything that happened in the prior year becomes exclusions for the new policy. Thus, the best thing to do is make sure you get a premium you can afford with some room to grow as it rises with age.

My insurance comparison was screenshotted in this post.
Pet insurance recommendations?

 

[catmando2]

Even with pre-exsiting conditions, your cats may still figure out how to get your premium's worth and then some. My Betty has a pretty big exclusion: vomiting. And yet we still managed to get a few reimbursed visits in this year to pay her premium several times over. Same with my last cat, Krista, who in three short insured years at the end of her life, also with vomiting exclusions, she managed to rack up reimburseable bills that far exceeded the premiums I paid.

When I was shopping for Betty, I did a comparison across many different providers and compared things like how annual limits, reimbursement percentage, and premiums across deductible sizes. My conclusion was that Embrace is likely the best deal both in terms of reimbursement percentage and premium/deductible flexibility. I recommend opting for the highest deductible and if you can afford it, an annual premium option. Pay the premiums once and be done with it for the year. As alluded to before, once you have them insured, you don't want to cancel or make changes to their policy or anything that happened in the prior year becomes exclusions for the new policy. Thus, the best thing to do is make sure you get a premium you can afford with some room to grow as it rises with age.

My insurance comparison was screenshotted in this post.
Pet insurance recommendations?

I like that pay one a year and be don't with it. I do that for stuff like homeowners insurance.

When you send in a claim, how do the insurance companies know your pet's health history? At time of application? Is there like a shared database with vets?

 

[daftcat75]

I like that pay one a year and be don't with it. I do that for stuff like homeowners insurance.

When you send in a claim, how do the insurance companies know your pet's health history? At time of application? Is there like a shared database with vets?

When you sign up, they want your pet to have already seen a vet within a certain period of time (within a year at least but perhaps sooner than that?) Then they will contact the vet to collect your pet's health history from your vet. There is usually a new policy waiting period (two weeks for Embrace) where anything that pops up in that waiting period can also become a pre-existing condition. In Betty's case, I adopted her on a Tuesday. She saw the vet on a Friday. I signed her up for insurance on Monday. Two weeks and a few days later, she ate something she shouldn't have and we were at the ER doing all the testing and imaging. Interestingly, that visit counted towards my deductible because it was an accident. But I must have mentioned to the vet that she had vomited the week before. That got into her health record with the notes the doc took. When insurance reviewed the foreign body ingestion claim, they said, "oh we see there was vomiting reported within the waiting period." And that's how Betty got a vomiting exclusion despite not actually seeing the doc for vomiting. Embrace has been a little odd about what they reimburse because of this. For example, her endoscopy was not covered because that was part of her IBD diagnosis which traced back to the vomiting exclusion. But she had a bad reaction to her endoscopy and I paid another endoscopy's worth of emergency bills on ultrasound, x-rays, bloodwork, etc. They covered that.

 

[catmando2]

When you sign up, they want to your pet to have already seen a vet within a certain period of time (within a year at least but perhaps sooner than that?) Then they will contact the vet to collect your pet's health history from your vet. There is usually a new policy waiting period (two weeks for Embrace) where anything that pops up in that waiting period can also become a pre-existing condition. In Betty's case, I adopted her on a Tuesday. She saw the vet on a Friday. I signed her up for insurance on Monday. Two weeks and a few days later, she ate something she shouldn't have and we were at the ER doing all the testing and imaging. Interestingly, that visit counted towards my deductible because it was an accident. But I must have mentioned to the vet that she had vomited the week before. That got into her health record with the notes the doc took. When insurance reviewed the foreign body ingestion claim, they said, "oh we see there was vomiting reported within the waiting period." And that's how Betty got a vomiting exclusion despite not actually seeing the doc for vomiting. Embrace has been a little odd about what they reimburse because of this. For example, her endoscopy was not covered because that was part of her IBD diagnosis which traced back to the vomiting exclusion. But she had a bad reaction to her endoscopy and I paid another endoscopy's worth of emergency bills on ultrasound, x-rays, bloodwork, etc. They covered that.

This is very helpful information.

When you file claims, do you just submit everything and let the insurance company decide what to exclude? Despite knowing that some things will be considered pre-existing according to the insurance company's interpretation.

 

[fionasmom]

I have to send in or upload the bill and the chart page related to that visit. There also has to be verification as to when the condition started and if it is ongoing. They have adjusters, just like any other insurance company, who check into claims. My dog was well into Cushing's disease when I looked into insurance for him; even if I had gone to a new vet (questionable as his vet was brilliant, so why would I?), intending to try to outright lie, his bloodwork and overall condition would have raised a red flag.

I personally submit everything to them and let them decide what to exclude. My coverage for the cats is for accident/illness, not wellness, but in a couple of cases they have considered visits to be illness when I thought that possibly it might have fallen under wellness.

 

[catmando2]

One more question. I know now about not making changes to coverage otherwise that'll make the policy considered a new policy. How about if say a person makes no changes having a pet no longer covered (say if the pet passed away)? Hopefully, that wouldn't count as a new policy now.

 

[artiemom]

One more question. I know now about not making changes to coverage otherwise that'll make the policy considered a new policy. How about if say a person makes no changes having a pet no longer covered (say if the pet passed away)? Hopefully, that wouldn't count as a new policy now.

Sorry if I do not understand this.. If a pet passes, then the policy is stopped. Claims dated before the passing are covered..

If you are insuring multiple pets, then each pets policy will stay the same.
If you are trying to insure a new pet, then you have to abide by whatever new policy requirements are..

 

[daftcat75]

This is very helpful information.

When you file claims, do you just submit everything and let the insurance company decide what to exclude? Despite knowing that some things will be considered pre-existing according to the insurance company's interpretation.

Yes. I submit all my bills and let them be the villain. I hope it gives them troubled sleep to turn down this beautiful kitty who deserves better than that. This is the picture on her policy so they know who they are denying.

 

[daftcat75]

One more question. I know now about not making changes to coverage otherwise that'll make the policy considered a new policy. How about if say a person makes no changes having a pet no longer covered (say if the pet passed away)? Hopefully, that wouldn't count as a new policy now.

I'm not sure I understand this. Each cat is a separate policy. If one passes, that doesn't create a new policy for the other. When one passes, simply call them up and tell them the date of passing and they will prorate your premium, and issue a refund if necessary. You do not have to pay a premium on a deceased pet.

 

[catmando2]

I'm not sure I understand this. Each cat is a separate policy. If one passes, that doesn't create a new policy for the other. When one passes, simply call them up and tell them the date of passing and they will prorate your premium, and issue a refund if necessary. You do not have to pay a premium on a deceased pet.

Reason I asked was on a quote page, there was an option to add another pet. I didn't go through the entire process. Perhaps then the question is used for a multi-pet discount?

Does make more sense to have each pet have their own policy. Like separate checks eating out .

 

[daftcat75]

Reason I asked was on a quote page, there was an option to add another pet. I didn't go through the entire process. Perhaps then the question is used for a multi-pet discount?

Does make more sense to have each pet have their own policy. Like separate checks eating out .

Like bundling with a Progressive, they can offer you a discount for multiple policies. But yes, each pet is a separate policy. It makes no sense to apply one pet’s history or exclusions to the other.

 

[catmando2]

Thanks for all the knowledge here.

I went ahead and got a policy for each of my cats. Overall as pretty easy to sign up. The insurance company already sent an email requesting Vet office info of recent visits.

Looks like soon I'll be turning in claims to see how many get bounced back declined for the cat that isn't is that good shape.

 

[fionasmom]

Here is an example of the necessity of submitting all bills, even if you think that they will not be covered.

A couple of weeks ago, I took Jamie in for his yearly blood work and urinalysis. He is not sick and was not treated for any illness; however, he has been treated for, and reimbursed for, HCM and kidney disease. They covered his visit because it is considered part of an ongoing investigation into his two condition. To me, it seemed like routine wellness, but not to the insurance company.

 

[Irisinatl]

I have Fetch (it was PetPlan when I purchased it). I purchased it as soon as I adopted my 2 cats. I’ve had emergencies and they have been excellent and paid what was agreed. They do not pay for yearly wellness exams or prescription foods. Also make sure you get your doctor’s notes and be sure to submit your claim within 90 days. I pay a $250 deductible and they have been paying the 80% very well. So far my experience has been good with them. I think insurance is for those unexpected bills and one trip to the emergency vet and you can have high bills quickly.

 

[ClumsyBear]

This is very helpful information.

When you file claims, do you just submit everything and let the insurance company decide what to exclude? Despite knowing that some things will be considered pre-existing according to the insurance company's interpretation.

Just jumping in, I submit everything to my insurance. It's their job to review the documents and figure out what's applicable. You might assume something isn't covered when it is. I recently went for a checkup because I wanted to discuss my cat's asthma, see if I could increase dosage of his medication. I didn't think the consult would be covered, I was expecting them to reimburse me only for the medication cost. But, the consult and exam were covered!

I have Fetch (it was PetPlan when I purchased it). I purchased it as soon as I adopted my 2 cats. I’ve had emergencies and they have been excellent and paid what was agreed. They do not pay for yearly wellness exams or prescription foods. Also make sure you get your doctor’s notes and be sure to submit your claim within 90 days. I pay a $250 deductible and they have been paying the 80% very well. So far my experience has been good with them. I think insurance is for those unexpected bills and one trip to the emergency vet and you can have high bills quickly.

I also have Fetch and really grateful for them! They're super quick as well with reviewing and reimbursing.