Update on Pet Insurance Options

[Adina P]

Initially I contacted VPI pet insurance upon suggestion of one of our members in case they'd be able to offer DoodleKisses.com members a discount (since there are a lot of us).  I learned the discount is pretty small and decided to contact a few other pet insurance carriers: Pet Plan, Embrace, and Trupanion.

 

I have heard back from 2 of the 3 so far.  Essentially our options are:

 

1) Offer members a 5% discount for insurance carrier A.

2) Offer members a 10% discount for monthly plans or a 15% discount for yearly plans for insurance carrier B.

3)  Earn a commission ourselves on accepted applications from insurance carrier B.

4) Offer members $10 sign-up discount for insurance carrier C

5) Earn a commission ourselves on accepted applications from insurance carrier C.

 

Since the whole point in looking into this was to offer something cool for our members, I really wanted to check with you again on what you want.  I know most of you who are interested have already either chosen an insurance carrier or have considered the various options.  So it's not just about the biggest discount but also whether the insurance carrier offers what you most want/need in a pet insurance plan.  It would be COOL if we could earn a commission AND offer you a discount but that combo is not an option with those we've heard from, so we're going with a discount for you. 

 

Someone mentioned that saying "Doodle" when you sign up for Pet Plan (who has not gotten back to us yet) gets you a 10% discount.  This is due to the Doodle Messenger's partnership with them...I think they may even make a donation/commission back from this. 

 

Now, how should we proceed?  What do you say?  Should we take a formal poll on which carrier is MOST desired?  THIS IS NOT THAT FORMAL poll...but more of a quest for suggestions on what members want out of this. 

[Marcia Miller]

I've had PetPlan for my 3.3-year-old goldendoodle, and have mostly great things to say about the company. The only time they denied a claim is when my dog got her second ear infection within a year--they explained that they cover an ear infection like hers once per year... Though I didn't really like that "fine print," they did readily cover all but $90 of a bill that was over $2000, and all but $120 for a bill that was nearly $1800. So I can't complain! Their customer service people are very pleasant and helpful, and my vet's office submits all the paperwork for me, so it's quite painless!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I haven't read through every ones responses as yet, but I just wanted to add in that I''m a little unhappy with PetPlan at the moment.  They offer all these wonderful discounts, but will only give you up to a 15% discount, so if you have multiple dogs you get a discount, if you sign up on line you get a discount, if you mention doodle you get a discount and they give $25 to Doodle Messenger, however, you can't get them all.  Additionally, they raised my rates 35% after the first year.  I have been trying to resolve this with them since January.  I now cannot get them to call me back as well or respond.  Fortunately, I have not had to make a claim with them although I hear they are very responsive to claims.  So, I'm a little on the fence with them at the moment.  My opinion though is that it is crazy for them to offer all the various discounts and then not allow you to use them if you fit all their criteria.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

That makes me disappointed!  I really just got insurance for emergencies and after experiencing all of Taquito's health issues, I didn't want Peri to end up costing me $5000 by age 7 (like T. has). 

Oh well, if they go up that much for no reason, I will check out next time.  Clearly I will pay what is needed to keep my dogs healthy; insurance would be nice to carry Peri's whole life, but we shall see.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

The problem as I see it is that since I'm with PetPlan anything that goes into their file will work against me should I decide to change plans.  So as I see it, it is to our benefit to find what works for us and stay with them.  My example would be although Lucy has not technically been diagnosed with allergies, I have been purchasing antihistamines from the vet for over a year for her.  So should I end up changing companies they could claim that allergies were a preexisting condition and exclude that from her policy.

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

I think a formal pole is a great idea...the more responses the better the edge we will have.

 

PetPlan is who I am signed up with, I did not know about the "doodle" discount. Daisy is still pretty young so it's not that expensive but I know as the dogs get older the price goes up. Also I have to renew every year, that is when the price would increase I think.

[Tracy Satterfield]

I also have Petplan for the last 3 years and did lots of comparing before I decided. They were the most cost effective and also gave discounts for spaying/neutering , microchipping and something else I can't think of right now. They also offer three different types of coverage to choose from. I have had one claim when my dog had stomach issues and had to have several tests and a scope done to find out what was wrong. Very easy and quick payment.  My deciding factor was when I had a rescue who got sick after we had had her only  6 months and we spent over 3500.00 on her and would have spent more if it would have saved her, she had a rare cancer.  We decided after that we would get insurance. Its worth the 31.00 we spend a month for 2 dogs to be insured (oldest is 6). You don't want to have to be worrying about costs when something major happens. UT Vet hospital told us it would be 1800.00 for her to stay 24 hours when we took the dog with cancer to them and that was 7 years ago, I would hate to know what it would be now. Think of it as cutting back on a meal out each month for your dogs health insurance-LOL! My doodle got free insurance from Shelter Care because he was adopted from a shelter. I have never had to use the insurance but they could not beat Pet Plans premiums when I checked.

[Joyce,David"Mochi,Latte,Popcorn"]

If anyone's interested in how Pet Plan pays back, I've attached one of Mochi's claims from them.

They covered what they've promised, at least in our case.

I now have double insurance for Mochi (Pet Plan and Trupanion) and can't decide which one to cancel.

Trupanion does not pay the office exam fee. Plan Plan did include that for us. The office fee is expensive in our area, $60~$70 per visit.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I have PetPlan and I've been happy with them.  I do need to reduce my deductible though because I've had so many visits with Murphy that fall just under the deductible, and I end up having to pay.  It's really mounting up since he's been at the Vet just about every week for the past few months.  I've had two covered claims.  One when Guinness was first diagnosed with IBS, and the other when Murph had the Rocky Mountain Spotted fever.  Once I was able to get my Vet to fully complete and fax the paperwork, they paid promptly.  I also need to call and see if I can get the "Doodle" discount.

[Diane Hinson]

When I got my first Doodle, I could only find 2 choices: Petcare and VPI.  VPI excluded anything congenital such as hip dysplasia, and since I have a Goldendoodle, that did not seem like a very wise choice.  So I went with Petcare.  The only problem was that I signed up after having Kayla for one week.  At her first visit, the vet found both ear problems and Giardia.  Consequently, all ear and stomach problems are now excluded as "pre-existing" conditions.  Somehow, every other claim has also always been excluded too.  For my second doodle, we added her insurance before we even brought her home, but we still have never received a penny.  I keep wondering why we keep it.

 

Pet Plan sounds enticing, but won't they also exclude pre-existing conditions?

[Kim Davis]

Pet Plan requires you to send in your historical medical records and they d

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

In some cases Human Ins companies ask for medical history also before they will pay a claim.

[Adina P]

I checked the Doodle Messenger ( scroll down through the message on their front page: http://doodlemessenger.webs.com/ ) and they offer 5% in addition to any other 5% discount the company offers plus the Doodle Messenger gets $25 for each person who signs up through them.  The code to use when you sign up is: Doodle

 

GIVEN this info, would anyone STILL want us to also have a partnership with a different insurance plan for a discount?  The Doodle Messenger is a good cause.