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Rabbit insurance: Who are you with... Fantastic update!! - post 18

Bunny Buddy

Wise Old Thumper
I've just had a huge shock with Gilbert's renewal - Helpucover...

Year 1 - £94
year 2 -£138 (he had had surgery for a blockage so I claimed £1,200)
year 3 - £208 :shock::shock::shock: (no claims in previous year)

Gulp. I have 6 policies with Helpucover, all of which I have made claims on so maybe not wise to swap... including Joel who has also had blockage surgery ... watch this space :cry:

I will be seriously considering cancelling Gilbert's insurance next renewal. I don't like Helpucover's terms in that they expect a 25% payment from age five so I was always a bit meh okay about them. They have been excellent in paying etc.

My most recent policies are all with Agria, I'm just wanting to compare experiences.

I'd fallen for a minilop who needs a new mum who I thought might like to come and live with Lois but this is a bit of a wake up call and may have to rethink. (But if I can hear some positive stories I might feel more like committing).
 
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:evil: I just did a dummy insurance quote for Gilly using his details but a false name and it comes in at £128 per annum. Grrrr.
 
:evil: I just did a dummy insurance quote for Gilly using his details but a false name and it comes in at £128 per annum. Grrrr.
Call them up? Often there's a lower price available, every year my car insurance renewal comes through, I call up and they have a minimum number they'll go to which they can just offer you if you ask [emoji38] maybe worth a try? I'd say tho about having gotten a quote with them which is cheaper.

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Call them up? Often there's a lower price available, every year my car insurance renewal comes through, I call up and they have a minimum number they'll go to which they can just offer you if you ask [emoji38] maybe worth a try? I'd say tho about having gotten a quote with them which is cheaper.

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Thanks. I have tried in the past with PetPlan but they know they have got you over a barrel so don't budge. It's worth a punt, I suppose...

I have just saved £70 on my car insurance by swapping (AXA didn't even offer to try to match my other quote),
 
Thanks. I have tried in the past with PetPlan but they know they have got you over a barrel so don't budge. It's worth a punt, I suppose...

I have just saved £70 on my car insurance by swapping (AXA didn't even offer to try to match my other quote),

Yea definitely worth a go. It's tricky though because of exclusions with pet health insurance.

Blimey that's poor!

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I am with PetPlan for Bigwig, the only/first rabbit I have insured as I got her from a baby (hand reared). My older adopted rabbits I find already have too much pre-existing to be worth it. I have only had one renewal, initially I was paying £9 something a month and now it is almost £12. No claims, although she is having treatment atm which I will claim for. If it goes up at renewal I will consider cancelling, as I find it unreasonable to go up excessively each year for a young rabbit. I am in a position to be able to afford vet bills for the rabbits without insurance.

With my dog I reduced his monthly premiums by opting for a higher excess payment, they did offer to reduce monthly premiums further with a % copayment but I declined that. Most have this as mandatory when the pet reaches a certain age but luckily Tesco doesn't.
 
Call them up? Often there's a lower price available, every year my car insurance renewal comes through, I call up and they have a minimum number they'll go to which they can just offer you if you ask [emoji38] maybe worth a try? I'd say tho about having gotten a quote with them which is cheaper.

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I was pretty sure they wouldn't budge on price. It was obvious it was non-negotiable. She said it was because there was a claim on the policy. But it's gone up with a bigger jump this year than last and no claim in the year just gone.

I explained that there were claims on all the policies that I had with them so I was expecting that with all of them... She didn't contradict me just kept saying "sorry". Boo. What I expected but nothing ventured and all that. I just hope Agria don't do the same or I'm going to be pedalling fast to keep up!
 
I am with PetPlan for Bigwig, the only/first rabbit I have insured as I got her from a baby (hand reared). My older adopted rabbits I find already have too much pre-existing to be worth it. I have only had one renewal, initially I was paying £9 something a month and now it is almost £12. No claims, although she is having treatment atm which I will claim for. If it goes up at renewal I will consider cancelling, as I find it unreasonable to go up excessively each year for a young rabbit. I am in a position to be able to afford vet bills for the rabbits without insurance.

With my dog I reduced his monthly premiums by opting for a higher excess payment, they did offer to reduce monthly premiums further with a % copayment but I declined that. Most have this as mandatory when the pet reaches a certain age but luckily Tesco doesn't.

Thanks

I had loads of policies with PetPlan with my original rabbits and they went up a steady £20 a year. In the end Elijah and Erin were about £300 a year :shock: With massive excesses. I cancelled Esme and then she needed blockage surgery at about £1k. PetPlan might be expensive but at least they are predictable. Gilbert isn't even 3 years old and if his insurance is over £200 now God knows what it will be like in a few years time.:shock:
 
I'm with PetPlan and would only ever go with them. I used to be a pet insurance advisor for my vet practice so saw all the good and bad sides of different companies.

The trouble with insurance is if your pet has ever had treatment for something, even if not claimed it would be a pre-existing condition and you won't get it covered by a new policy. (Sometimes you can arrange an exclusion period that clears if no symptoms or signs for an agreed amount).

Definitely call and see if they can offer a lower cost, ensure any multipet discounts have been applied etc.


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I'm with PetPlan and would only ever go with them. I used to be a pet insurance advisor for my vet practice so saw all the good and bad sides of different companies.

The trouble with insurance is if your pet has ever had treatment for something, even if not claimed it would be a pre-existing condition and you won't get it covered by a new policy. (Sometimes you can arrange an exclusion period that clears if no symptoms or signs for an agreed amount).

Definitely call and see if they can offer a lower cost, ensure any multipet discounts have been applied etc.

I'm not so much thinking of swapping as I'm familiar with the pre-existing conditions pitfall with pet insurance. I'm more looking to the future to evaluate if there's any company I would consider viable for my needs.

Petplan are good at paying out etc but their premiums and excesses for older rabbits make them untenable for me with the amount of rabbits I want to insure. (Inky is with them but that's a one-off).

Agria T&C suit my needs but I just wish I knew if they were as likely as Helpucover to hike up the premiums. I have had some helpful (positive) feedback from Facebook.
 
I too am a pet insurance advisor for my work but I personally didn't choose PetPlan for my dog due to the reasons you've given. Plus complementary treatment (hydro) is a big thing for my dog, where PetPlan cover 10 sessions per condition which I think is really poor. Sorry not relevant to bunnies!

I'm not sure why I chose PetPlan for Bigwig, reduced options I guess and the safety of knowing a direct claims is more likely with them. I think Agria dog policies I've come across are very good, but not known the renewal prices.
 
I am with Agria and they have paid out for everything so far. I actually need to change Maple from Petplan to agria because you get an extra 500 with a Agria (2500). I find Agria a little more expensive than Petplan but I managed to get Dennis insured on their age amnesty,
 
I had the same problem with Helpucover, they mlre ran doubled my premium for my rabbit over the three years I've had her (she's now 6) and I only claimed for one stasis episode and a blocked tear duct. I did query it but they just said it was because of her age. I moved to 4paws, have claimed once but no problem with them paying out. Will have to see what their renewal is like as and when it comes round!
 
Thanks everybody. I have decided to move all the rabbits that I have with Helpucover over to Agria after a lovely chat with one of their team this morning. I wish I'd had the thought to record it to be honest but I'm just so, so annoyed with Helpucover that I want out.

I won't be moving Jesika until renewal in February as I have just made a claim for her. Both Gilbert and Joel have had blockage surgery but I'd rather take the risk of not being able to claim than worrying about premiums going up so steeply year on year.
 
Thanks everybody. I have decided to move all the rabbits that I have with Helpucover over to Agria after a lovely chat with one of their team this morning. I wish I'd had the thought to record it to be honest but I'm just so, so annoyed with Helpucover that I want out.

I won't be moving Jesika until renewal in February as I have just made a claim for her. Both Gilbert and Joel have had blockage surgery but I'd rather take the risk of not being able to claim than worrying about premiums going up so steeply year on year.

Was also going to suggest agria as heard alot have gone onto them rwaf recommend to especially when they have an age amnesty for older buns.
I'm with petplan always have been, but any future pets then I think I'm going to choose agria. Mainly because the hike each year for cost is getting silly,one the reasons being area live in, which I do not believe should be a reason for higher charges
 
So, having binned off Helpucover and taken out a policy with Agria ... Gilbert managed quickly to test out his new insurance policy!

As stated in first post - Gilbert has a history of having had blockage surgery so there would be a high chance that insurers would just exclude any claim regarded as a "digestive" issue. Now of course 'gastrointestinal stasis' isn't necessarily a digestive issue but try explaining that one to insurance underwriters...

So, Gilbert's episode of refusing to eat - He was taken to the OOH hospital which costs an arm and a leg and there was no cause found for his lack of appetite. His stomach did not feel tense and blood glucose was at the high end of normal range. The vet said there was no suggestion of it being another blockage and treated the stasis. I decided that there was no particular reason to call this an episode relating to digestive problems - it's just not eating is a consequence of not not feeling well.

So, in the claim went. They are supposed to let me know the outcome after 10 days and after 12 days I was getting a bit worried but Covid and all that... Last night I got an email to say that they will be paying!! I'm so chuffed.

According to the staff member I spoke to when I changed the policy - if he had treatment for another blockage then it is possible they would cover it if it wasn't deemed to be from the same cause as the previous...now that one would be tricky and I can accept that not being covered but I am highly delighted with the outcome of this claim and have confidence in an insurer once more. I will be moving my Helpucover policies at the appropriate time.
 
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Well done Agria :) I have to say also it was helpful for Gilbert to test them out. I hope the lovely Gilbert is all well again.
 
Well done Agria :) I have to say also it was helpful for Gilbert to test them out. I hope the lovely Gilbert is all well again.

Thank you. I would rather he had tested it out during daytime so he could see our usual vets! I hadn't used the local/OOH practice since Lolly died and that day led to great lack of confidence (mainly given a lot of their vets are inexperienced). Luckily on duty that night was a vet of many years experience. I'd not met him before but he gave off the right vibe, so it helped me regain my confidence in using OOH vets, if I really have to. .. I'd still rather not, if I can avoid it!

Gilbert all good again (touch wood). It was less then 24 hours of inappetite - he didn't even need syringe feeding as he picked up really quickly.
 
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