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Cat Forum / General Topics / December 2006Cat Health Insurance Suggestions
Looking for the best cat insurance for two cats 1) Healthy Cat 2) Cat with preexisting medical problems suggestions??? >Looking for the best cat insurance for two cats > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >suggestions??? You probably won't be able to get medical insurance for the pre-existing condition. Been down that well traveled road too often for humans. That having been said, i'd get no pet health insurance. Put the money in a high yield investment and self insure. "Insurance companies don't make money paying claims....they make money NOT paying claims." As you've probaly guessed this is one non-fan of insurance companies. I'm older than dirt and have dealt with alot of insurance carriers over the years and you know what? They're all frauds, crooks, etc. Just ask the people in New Orleans. You'd have two people on the same street. Same storm destroyed their houses. One has Flood insurance, one does not. The guy with Flood insurance they told him he wasn't covered becuase the house was destroyed by winds. The guy next door has no flood insurance, his house according to the insurance people was destoryed by flooding. > > Looking for the best cat insurance for two cats > > [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > Put the money in a high yield investment and > self insure. As I said the last time this question was raised, this is only an option if you have enough money to pay for treatment until the account has had time to reach a usable balance. I'd agree in general about the pre-existing condition though, but it may depend on what it is. Ivor >> That having been said, i'd get no pet health insurance. >> Put the money in a high yield investment and [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >if you have enough money to pay for treatment until the account has had >time to reach a usable balance. And as i've said before alot of the insurance policies i've had for various things had a "waiting period" before you could file a claim. So if you're cat needs medical care and you don't have the moeny saved up in your investment vehicle there may well be a waiting period of xxxxx months/xxxx years before you can file your first claim. Read the fine print.....know what you're buying before you buy it. Also with some insurance policies all you have to do is file one claim and they'll cancel your policy. You'll never go broke betting on the sleazyness of insurance companies. >I'd agree in general about the pre-existing condition though, but it may >depend on what it is. They're not picky. Any pre-existing condition will suffice. They key concept to grasp here is they don't want to pay claims. > > > That having been said, i'd get no pet health > > > insurance. Put the money in a high yield investment [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > treatment until the account has had time to reach a > > usable balance. > And as i've said before alot of the insurance policies > i've had for various things had a "waiting period" before [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > xxxxx months/xxxx years before you can file your first > claim. Not on the Petplan policy we use. > Read the fine print.....know what you're buying before > you buy it. Of course, doesn't everyone..? > Also with some insurance policies all you have to do is > file one claim and they'll cancel your policy. That I have never heard of in the UK, on any of the many policies I have taken out over the years. > You'll never go broke betting on the sleazyness of > insurance companies. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > They're not picky. Any pre-existing condition will > suffice. Again, you are speaking only from your experience in your country. Do not assume this is universal worldwide. > They key concept to grasp here is they don't want to pay > claims. Of course they don't, but if they have to, they will. The key concept is to make them realise this. Ivor >> Read the fine print.....know what you're buying before >> you buy it. > >Of course, doesn't everyone..? You'd be amazed how many don't. >> Also with some insurance policies all you have to do is >> file one claim and they'll cancel your policy. > >That I have never heard of in the UK, on any of the many policies I have >taken out over the years. Very common practice here in the US of A. >Again, you are speaking only from your experience in your country. Do not >assume this is universal worldwide. Yes this is in the US of A. >> They key concept to grasp here is they don't want to pay >> claims. > >Of course they don't, but if they have to, they will. The key concept is >to make them realise this. Around here they've lost court cases and still refused to pay. I use www.petinsurance.com You can call them and talk to a human. I pay $24.00 a month for my 7 year old Tabby. I've had to make one claim and it was paid promptly. Their benefit schedule is a bit difficult to understand but you can discuss it with them. Mike in Illinois > Looking for the best cat insurance for two cats > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > suggestions??? >I use www.petinsurance.com > >You can call them and talk to a human. I pay $24.00 a month for my 7 year >old Tabby. I've had to make one claim and it was paid promptly. Their >benefit schedule is a bit difficult to understand but you can discuss it >with them. Sounds too low...have you read the fine print? If you do the math you'll spend about $7,000 on the cat during it's lifetime, when you buy insurance you'll spend alot more than $7,000. Read the fine print, understand all the ways they can sleaze out of paying. >Mike in Illinois > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] >> >> suggestions??? > > I use www.petinsurance.com > > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > is a bit difficult to understand but you can discuss it > > with them. > Sounds too low...have you read the fine print? > > If you do the math you'll spend about $7,000 on the cat > during it's lifetime, when you buy insurance you'll spend > alot more than $7,000. I pay £110 a year for my 12 year old Missy. She was 8 when I had her, so that's £440 I've paid so far (actually a bit less, as the premium has increased slightly, but not much). I'm not sure on the current US$ - UK£ exchange rate, but I don't think the insurance would amount to $7000 over her lifetime, even if I'd had her from a kitten. You may not like insurance, Barnabas (well I don't suppose any of us do really..!) but it is the only option for some of us. Not everyone has the money in the bank to afford to self insure as you suggest. Ivor >I pay £110 a year for my 12 year old Missy. She was 8 when I had her, so >that's £440 I've paid so far (actually a bit less, as the premium has [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >really..!) but it is the only option for some of us. Not everyone has the >money in the bank to afford to self insure as you suggest. Take a step back and look at the whole situation. No matter what currency you're talking about you take the cost of the medical care for the cat add in a good hefty cushion for the insurance company. Remember the insurance company is not a charity....they are in it to make a profit and they make a tidy profit. Never forget that. The insurance company is making a tidy profit, if they don't they'll bail out of the market faster than you can say meow. But read the fine print. Even if you don't have the money in the bank if you think insurance will bail you out think again.....especially when the insurance company denies your claim and tells you the waiting period is one year after the policy inception. Read and understand that fine print. [snip] > Take a step back and look at the whole situation. No > matter [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > not a charity....they are in it to make a profit and they > make a tidy profit. Never forget that. Of course they are, I have never suggested otherwise. All businesses are in it to make money. > The insurance company is making a tidy profit, if they > don't they'll bail out of the market faster than [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > denies your claim and tells you the waiting period is one > year after the policy inception. You have some strange insurance companies in your part of the world, then. I have never in 30+ years of having insurance policies of one form or another *ever* come across a policy with such a "waiting period" before a claim can be made. As soon as the policy has been accepted by the company, I am covered. > Read and understand that fine print. Of course. Ivor >> But read the fine print. Even if you don't have the >> money in the bank if you think insurance will bail you [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >claim can be made. As soon as the policy has been accepted by the company, >I am covered. I've had many a policy that enforces a waiting period for a claim to be filed. (This in the US of A.) Waitings periods can typically range from 30 days up to a year. Bear in mind this is in the US of A.....where the fox is guarding the hen house. The insrunce regulators in our government typically work for and are beholden to the insurance company. Also many of our legislators sell/work for insurance companies. Insurnce companies also doante heavily to political campaigns. > Looking for the best cat insurance for two cats > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > suggestions??? You won't get any insurance company to insure a cat with a pre-existing condition unless they draw up a policy excluding any treatments relating to the pre-existing condition Many years ago I looked into pet insurance (This was for Fugazi and Isis both now RB) and reached the following conclusions 1. What you pay out over the life of your cat will be more than you would ever pay a vet 2. You need to be sure the vet accepts your insurance company if you do take it out, I know someone who did and then had to pay the vet and claim it back, which was a long process and completely negated the reason for taking it out in the first place ie to not have to pay a large vet bill up front What we did...we both had credit cards (Combined value about 1,200 UK pounds) the rules were simple- neither of us could build up more than 100 in debt on the cards in any month and the person who did so was responsible for settling the account in full when it was due. Thus meaning at worse we still had 1,000 credit (and this was a few years ago) If either of us wanted to go over the limit it had to be discussed and agreed by both of us In an emergency either of us could use the cards over and above any limits since we agreed the one emergency that was at the discretion of either one of us was a vet emergency...Didn't want one of us to be dealing with a sick cat and trying to find the other to say "Is this okay?" so we pre-agreed it Credit cards were not to be used (unless things were dire like the time we were both out of work short term) for routine vet visits ie check up's, shots, spaying, flea treatment etc Worked for us (In fact we never used them for anything related to the cats but when Fugazi was ill it was nice to know there was money if anything could have been done for her, which sadly there wasn't) Other people here have saved money into accounts in the name of the cats and usually found that at the end of it they have a comfortable surplus for their next owner Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs |
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