• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Thinking of insurance - Help please!

Liz47

Wise Old Thumper
Was at the vets earlier with one of the dogs, and saw a sign which got me thinking of insurance. I might *hopefully* be getting a job by easter so should have a regular wage so I'm thinking of getting insurance for the buns. But, please forgive my ignorance I don't really understand it :oops: I understand I pay monthly but I don't know what it covers, will it cover stasis issues (emergency & non-emergency hours)? Dentals? EC treatment? Can Boris be covered because we don't know his age, but I don't think he is five years old or older. Also my mum said some won't cover the cost if the rabbit has had it before, so that would rule out getting covered for stasis.

Also what companies would you recommend? I picked up a leaflet for pet plan but it didn't really explain much.

Thanks for any help/advice! :)
 
I'm with Petplan for Spenser. To be honest I didn't shop around, but went with them becuase I got their leaflet through the Rabbit Welfare Association magazine, which seemed like a good recommendation.

Spenser's is about £11 a month, but most insurance company's will offer multiple pet discounts. I'm not 100% sure, but I think dentals are generally excluded for rabbits, but other conditions (unless pre-existing) should be covered. Spenser has had two claims for stasis-type illnesses that required emergency treatment, and a further claim for treatment at his regular vet following him having a bit of a stoppage last December.

I know Pets at Home insurance also do rabbits, but am not sure of any other types.
 
My 4 buns are insured with petplan. The policy doesn't cover any illness they had before the policy starts, and also in the first two weeks of the policy starting. Dentals are not covered but emergency out of hours fees are. I have claimed once so far and they paid the vet directly, I am happy with their service so far! :wave:
 
Another vote for Petplan here. They've been brilliant for us so far. As others have said pre-existing conditions aren't covered, along with things that would be considered routine such as neutering / spaying, vaccinating, dentals (unless it's something out of the ordinary). Many will pay the vet direct for you. I'm not sure where you stand with bunnies that you don't know their age though I'm afraid, I suppose it depends on how near to 5 yrs old they might be. Rosie was a stray when we adopted her, so we didn't know her age either, but the vet estimated her at 2 yrs old so no problem with the age limit. Maybe if she was 4 or so it might be a bit trickier. Have a look on their website or ring them with your questions :D
 
I have mine insured with exotic pets direct and they paid out, no questions asked, for a stasis case (my bun died in the end but I don't think I could have handled the £600 vet bill on top of that as well :( )
 
They generally pay out for everything as long as the vet thinks it's necessary. So if you take the pet to the vets for something silly at midnight they won't pay out so you should always phone the vet first for emergency treatment. For routine dental treatment they won't pay out for rabbits. For dental complications they should pay out. For all pets you need to have a yearly dental check up for them to cover dental issues. It's also worth mentioning that each policy will have an excess of around £50, which you have to pay, but it's only per issue each year. So if they get one illness but you need three vet visits £100, £50, £50 then you have to pay £50 and the insurance should cover the rest, £150.
Only consider for life policies, I think all PetPlan policies are for life, P@H do both a For Life and an Annual policy. For Life means as long as you keep paying the premium you can keep claiming for the same condition every year. For an annual policy once you have claimed for condition X it will be excluded next year.
And yes any illness they have had before you start the insurance is generally excluded, although for some conditions like stasis they may only exclude it for a certain amount of time. When you take out the policy you tell them about any previous illness and they will add it as an exclusion. If you think this is unfair you can write to them and send the medical history notes from your vet and they will consider taking the exclusion off.
 
I am im the same position ad you at the moment. I phoned pet plan for a quote for my 3 buns the other day and they said it would cost £30 per month for all 3. It didn't matter that I didn't know the ages.
 
Thankyou everyone for your replies, I will have a look on the website and ring if I have any further questions, but I do think it is something that would probably be benefitial :)
 
My 4 are with pets at home lifetime and we have put in a stasis claim which was paid out with no fuss :) excess £75 and its £6.76 per month per bun x
 
Back
Top