Great Pet Plan Claim Experience

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I want to share our most recent experience with Pet Plan for those new Doodle owners who are deciding whether to purchase pet insurance and are comparing companies.  We got pet insurance with both of our boys right after bringing them home, and it has paid for itself several times over.  Murph has been struggling with GI problems for years now, but a few weeks ago it escalated and he became very sick.  He started during the night with severe diarrhea and vomiting.  He had been refusing to eat on and off for several days before and was acting like he had nausea, but after a Pepcid he seemed to feel better so I thought it was just part of his regular GI issue.  With the severe diarrhea and vomiting I took him to our vet....it was New Years Eve day and she kept him for the day and rehydrated him.  He perked up but they couldn't get him to eat anything so she didn't want to let him come home.  We had to bring him to a Specialty Hospital about an hour away and he was admitted.  By the next afternoon they felt he was stable enough to come home, and I was able to get him to eat some plain chicken and rice (and it stayed down).  They felt this was either Addison's Disease or an IBD flare.  So we went back to our vet for the Addison's test and the GI panel.  The Addison's result were negative, and the GI panel was borderline for IBD.  While his folate and cobalamin counts were in the normal range....they were right on the line.  So we started him on B12, metronidazole, and cerenia for the nausea.  We decided to keep him on nothing but the chicken and rice for a few weeks and see what happens.  We believe their are clearly foods that aggravate his condition and went ahead with the blood testing for food allergies knowing that the accuracy of these tests is questionable.  To be honest I just really needed a starting point.  It did show that chicken was okay, and our "test" over the past few weeks proves that to be the case.  So we're now at the point where we have to determine next steps.  He is stable and he's just finishing the meds.  My Vet has been in consultation with a GI Internist in a specialty clinic and there is consideration being given to doing an endoscopy.  That requires anesthesia and so there's a lot to consider.  I should have a decision and a more specific strategy for moving forward next week. 

So the point of sharing all of this is that I am very thankful that I had insurance, and to share the amazing experience that we had with Pet Plan on this claim.  I mailed the claim form and vet documents overnight a week ago Thursday.  On Saturday I received an email from Pet Plan saying they received it but one of the invoices was missing.  On Sunday I called them and explained that the Specialty Vet had included two invoices together.  They were fine with that and said they would expedite the claim.  By Tuesday I received a phone call that they had finished the processing and were covering everything but the deductible.  The following day I received an email saying the check for $1400 had been mailed and I should have it by Friday or Saturday (I'm expecting it today).  Basically they settled this claim (which was complicated) and released a check in less than one week.  Additionally, they kept me apprised of exactly what was going on from the day the claim arrived at their office.  When they called to say they had everything they needed and were going ahead with the processing the first thing the Claim Rep asked was how Murph was feeling.  This is fantastic customer service IMO and I just wanted to share the experience.

[Shoney & Ruby]

Thank you for sharing your story. Hopefully Murph keeps healing.

We just signed up last week for Pet Plan after adding up all the costs [without insurance] of previous pets.

Glad to hear that your experience was positive. Wouldn't it be something if our insurance companies asked how we were feeling?

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I can't even imagine anyone representing any "human" insurance company inquiring about how we are feeling.  Maybe they have something to learn from the pet insurers.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Boy, if that isn't the truth!! LOL

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Thanks for sharing this, jane. Based on this and some of the experiences others with really sick dogs have shared over the past few years, the next dog I own will be insured with Pet Plan. 

It's worth mentioning that my bill for JD's endoscopy (including an overnight stay at the ER) 3 years ago was almost $3000. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I am so grateful that if the decision is to go ahead with the scope for Murph I won't be faced with a $3000 bill. 

[F, Calla & Luca]

I am sorry to hear that Murphy has been so ill and I am hoping he is fine soon. I use Pet Plan and I'm glad to hear about their response.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Thanks, F!

[Julie, Eloise & Beasley]

Thanks for sharing your experience with Pet Plan - we use them, too, and this is good to hear.  I hope they're able to get some answers for Murphy soon and also hope he's feeling better. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Thank you, Julie!

[Lonnie & Libby Lu]

Thanks for sharing this Jane and I hope Murphy continues to heal.  I just signed up with Pet Plan this last summer and although we have not had to use it, thank goodness, I am very happy with the plan we bought.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Thanks, Lonnie.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I'm so sorry to hear that Murph has not been well and hope they can resolve his issues soon. My experience with PetPlan has always been very positive as well and I'm so grateful that insurance is available for our animals.  Give Murph a big hug for me and Tara sends a doodle kiss to Guinness too (she doesn't want him to feel left out)!