pet insurance

I know I`ve seen discussions about this here before, but can`t find any. I`m looking into getting our 4yo dog Lola signed up for some sort of coverage and was hoping to see some recommendations or experiences. I`m looking at PetPlan and VPI pet insurance. I saw the ASPCA has insurance too, but they won`t give a quote online.

I know it`s usually better to save the money in an account yourself, but she is having a problem- hopefully just a pulled muscle, but will be taking her in for a look in a couple of days if not better- sooner if it gets worse- and would like to have a plan in place just in case it turns out to be something expensive.

Advice please?

This website gives reviews of pet insurance companies ....

http://www.petinsurancereview.com/index.asp

Thanks Rainbow!
I`ll spend some time reading through those today.

I just purchased the Silver Plan under the insurance company, "Petplan." I heard many great things about the company and they seem to cover more than other companies I checked out through the insurance review site. Be aware and informed that most insurance companies, including Petplan do not cover pre-existing illnesses and injuries and in most cases there is a waiting period once you purchase a policy. "Petplan" has a 14 day waiting period after the effective date of the policy in which they will not cover any illnesses and a 24 hour waiting period for injuries. Any occurances that happen before policy effective date or during the waiting period are excluded from any coverage at all. They also require that your pet be UTD on certain vaccines, have been tested and currently be on a heartworm preventative, have seen a vet within the last year and also require copies of your vet's medical records along with Dr.s notes.

I called Petplan and asked tons of questions and they even sent me a copy of the actual policy in which I read from beginning to end. I strongly urge you to ask questions and READ, READ, READ from beginning to end the entire policy's terms and conditions BEFORE you purchase so you understand exactly what it covers and what it does not cover. Petplan is mainly coverage for accidents, illnesses, and emergencies...not wellness visits. You can go to any DVM you would like because you pay the vet upfront and then Petplan reimburses you. This may not work for someone who has to pay thousands of dollars to the vet up front for treatment then submit a claim to the insurance company for reimbursement. If you have just one major credit card with a large line of credit then this could work for you unless you are fortunate enough to have a very nice cushy bank account to draw from. They do use averages to determine reimbursement.
Good Luck in your search!

http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=62110&highlight=pet+insurance
Above is a link to a recent discussion on pet insurance. Use the search tool on this board for pet insurance and there'll be a ton of posts.

As posted before, all insurer will exclude pre-existed conditions. When I signed my dog up at 6 m.o., he had one visit to the vet for teary eye probably caused by hay fever/allergy. They found out from our vet and excluded his eye coverage for 6 mos. until we applied for a review. And after the 1st year with $1,600 claim, the co-insurance was increased from 20% to 50%.

We are now back at the 80% either b/c we hadn't claimed for 2 yrs or they changed their name & rolled us into PetSecure with a new policy. Of course, this came with a premium increase with or without increase in annual deductible. BTW, we didn't claim the last 2 yrs just to avoid the increase in co-insurance which may not make the policy unworthy. I sometimes think they'll try anyway to drop you if you are a high risk customer.