Canadian Pet Insurance - Lottery or Scam? Is it the same in the US?

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

I came across this article on pet insurance in Canada and found it kind of alarming. Apparantly all insurance companies in Canada for pets are underwritten by the same company and they go to great lengths to make it impossible to get any reimbursements. The article claims pet insurance is like buying a lottery ticket, the occassional random person might luck out, but the odds are stacked against you.

http://trueler.com/2011/01/25/pet-insurance-review-complaint/ 

 

I know there have been discussions on here before about whether or not pet insurance is worth the money, but I have never seen the 'cons' laid out like this before. I'm starting to question whether or not I should be investing in this insurance. I have PC Pet insurance for Sophie and Penelope (Penny) and wanted to add Winston on too. However, according to this article it is a big scam. They are saying that there is this thing called co-insurance, which will limit the amount I get back and I didn't know about this before.

I haven't yet received any reimbursement from them so it's tough to say at this time how I feel about it. I have submitted the same claims for Sophie 4 times now and they only finally acknowldged receipt of the claim, but it was super annoying that they kept claiming that they had not received anything. That being said it does seem like I will be getting some reimbursed for the giardia, the UTI and the ear infection from the spring, minus the $100 deductible (the deductible is per year and is not per illness). 

 

I also still have confusion about what is covered. I was told that the coverage I have is good for hip displaysia, however this article claims it will not be covered. The insurance company just told me if I want coverage for hip displaysia then I woudl need to go to the higher plan. I don't know what the truth is, and I guess I need to read the policies carefully, but I find this stuff so confusing! Another annoying thing is that every time I talk to them they try to sell me an upgraded policy.  I know they are just doing their job, but it is so annoying to be given a sales pitch every time I call so I am not confident I am getting accurate information.

 

So all this to say, I'm trying to figure out what level of coverage I need for Winston, and questioning whether or not I have the right policy for Sophie and Penny, or if I should be cancelling my policy all together and putting my money in a savings account for them.

 

Here is what I have for Sophie:

Value Plan:

 $2,000 per incident on veterinary services

$2,000 selected illness* over the pet's entire lifetime

$350 for alternative therapy and medical devices per year, per category
  ($100 one-time deductible per year)

Premium

^$ 22¹⁰

monthly

 

I figured since she is young it is much less likely that she will develop any serious illnesses so I can get away with a lesser coverage plan. However, if I were to go up a notch, which is what they are trying to sell me,  this is what I would get:

 

Choice Plan:

$2,500 per incident on veterinary services

$2,500 per illness, per year

$350 for alternative therapy, behavioural therapy and medical devices per year, per category

Premium

^$ 36 ⁵⁵

monthly

 

Ultra Plan: 

$5,000 per incident on veterinary services

$5,000 per illness, per year

$350 for alternative therapy, behavioural therapy and medical devices per year, per category

Premium

^$ 46 ¹⁶

monthly

Priced it all out and if I were to go with the value plan for both dogs, then coupled with the cat's insurance, plus tax, and then minus the 10% discount for insuring 3 or more pets, my monthly cost would be $62.36/month (748.32/year). If I were to put both dogs on the Choice plan: $86.35/month (1036.20/yr), and the Ultra plan would be about $107/month ($1248/year).

Now, I already know I should have gottent the coverage for Winston prior to getting his blood work done so then I would have had his thryoid meds covered, but that is water under the bridge now. Given that his meds are going to cost me about $16/month for the rest of his life, and then add on annual shots, heart worm preventatives, etc, then on top of that is it really worth putting the additional money into insurance coverage?

Would I better off if I were to put $100/month into an emergency savings account for my furry ones? That way I can gaurantee excellent customer service, no hastle with claims and annoying sales pitches, and 100% coverage. Even if I don't have enough in my account at the time of a sudden emergency, there are always other sources, including gong into debt. Would the interest payments on a line of credit be so much worse than years of spending money on the insurance and only getting partial reimbursement?

I am not a mathematician or an economist, so figuring this all out is so difficult - my head hurts!!

Which is the bigger gamble - throwing away thousands of dollars to an insurance scam, or the possibility that one of my dogs will have an $8000 vet bill and I've only got $2000 in my emergency fund?

What do you think? Lottery/Scam or worhtwhile investment?  How do I know?

[Natasha]

I'm looking into "ShelterCare".  I can't get PC insurance in Quebec.

Shelter care (http://www.sheltercare.com) - $3000/accident; $3000/illness category (illness category = eyes, ears, skin, cancer, digestive system, cardiovascular and respiratory, musculoskeletal, urogenital, blood and lymphoid, endocrine, nervous system and infectious diseases.); $100 deductible/year; no coinsurance until pet is 8 years old (or 6 for some breeds) (i.e. up to 100% reimbursed), after 8 (or 6) years then is up to 80% reimbursed.

Cost $29.95/month

[Donna K & Quincy]

Natasha, my friend has her dogs insured with Trupanion and she is quite happy with it. We are in Newfoundland and I would think it should be available in Quebec as it is not a local company.

[Natasha]

Thanks for the tip.  I looked before and I thought that it was so expensive.  But I checked again after your advice and I realized that there are no maximums on the claims, you are covered up 90%.  That puts it in a whole different light.

It's $37.05/month if I get the extended plan that covers hip displasia.  The deductible is $500, so it's really just for big things.  If I put the deductible at $250 it is $45.50. Well it's more complete coverage for big things that I couldn't afford.  Sheltercare would cover me for things like torn ligaments or hip displasia, which would be the common things, but wouldn't be enough if something bigger happened.

It's a dilema.  I've got a bit of time to figure it out since my puppy isn't born yet.  I just put a deposit on it this week.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

As an update - I submitted Coopers tests and medication expenses to PC Insurance. it took a while to get there, they received it almost  a month ago, and it has been processed and approved, im just waiting for the check in the mail. i will get everything back except my 20% and the $100 deductible