Bl**dy annoyed

[fine_and_dandy]

Not going to go into too much detail at this stage.

My horse is receiving treatment for sarcoid which runs out later this year. My policy was up for renewal in the meantime and an exclusion pops up saying, "sarcoids, melanomas and skin tumours excluded."

I got a tad pissy about this and my vets agreed, saying that there is absolutely NO evidence that a sarcoid will cause the others to appear. My wonderful vets are writing a letter to that effect to insurer.

My horse needed some treatment for an abcess on his lymph node [please note, not Strangles, has been tested etc] and being the nice customer I am, I call them to advise a claim will be coming their way to which I'm told down the phone, "You have an exclusion blah blah blah." Cue me getting very annoyed very quickly and asking since when was an abcess a tumour, melanoma or sarcoid?

I then asked to speak to a manager; guess what, there isn't one available. I've told them that unless they satisfy my query properly and call me back as promised, and behave in a fair manner, I will be pursuing them to the financial ombudsman, and any other means I see fit until the policy is a fair reflection of what issues my horse has had previously.

Am I really asking the earth for an insurer to treat an injury/illness which is genuine, and if an exclusion is to apply, it applies only to the area etc affected?

Takes the mick and I for one am not impressed. This is from what I have previously known to be a reputable company. If they want a fight, they'll get a war.

Rant over. Fizzy cola laces for all as I'm in such a grump!

 

[a_e_d]

No. You arent being unreasonable. I work in insurance claims and I hate to see other companies trying to hide behind irrelevant exclusions.
Am happy to give some specific comments if you would like... pm me details.
Whatever you do - good luck and don't roll over

 

[fine_and_dandy]

No. You arent being unreasonable. I work in insurance claims and I hate to see other companies trying to hide behind irrelevant exclusions.
Am happy to give some specific comments if you would like... pm me details.
Whatever you do - good luck and don't roll over

Will do, thank you. I most certainly will not be rolling over on this; I am so angry that it seems acceptable for them to do that and they don't understand when someone gets annoyed when it is questioned.

Gah.

 

[Tinseltoes]

My horse had one sarcoid,had it in sept 2009 then he was still covered for a year,(till next sept 2010) after which anything to do with skin,sarcoids and melanomas was excluded. I did 2 claims and the insurance comp told me I can get a vets letter and they will look into it.Thing is I have to pay for vet to examine him. They get you whichever way.

 

[fine_and_dandy]

My horse had one sarcoid,had it in sept 2009 then he was still covered for a year,(till next sept 2010) after which anything to do with skin,sarcoids and melanomas was excluded. I did 2 claims and the insurance comp told me I can get a vets letter and they will look into it.Thing is I have to pay for vet to examine him. They get you whichever way.

My vets know me well enough they don't charge to do this

 

[a_e_d]

Think I have replied to your pm, but I am on my phone so can't see sent messages Let me know if you didn't get it

 

[ladyt25]

Hmm, yes I can see the exclusion and unfortunately that is pretty standard as it is seen that, if a horse has had a sarcoid then it may be predisposed to them so any future ones will be excluded. However, the abscess situation is silly and screams of someone working in that claism department without basic veterinary knowledge. That does annoy me as I worked in equine insurance (not on claims side) and some things you'd hear other companies had said were mad. Thankfully we had two experience horse people in our claims team (we were a large farm insurer as well) so they knew what conditions were what.

Unfortunately not all insurers are the same and they do not know much if anything about horse conditions/ailments and what are likely to be reoccurring ones etc.