MRI and insurance question....

Marnie

Marnie

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My youngster who is out on loan is lame ans has been for a fortnight. She went to the vets on Saturday and preliminary nerve blocking showed that it is fetlock or below, she is going in again tomorrow for more specific blocks.

I got my insurance docs out (I insure her, even though she is on loan) and was reading the policy and she is only covered for up to 50% for MRI, and that is only if the company agree.

Is that usual? Hopefully MRI won't be needed, but I was a bit concerned and wondered if I should be looking for a different company for my other neds.

Thanks!
 
No i dont think it is the norm...mine dosnt mention anything about mri,just the usual colic(kbis),sounds to me that they know it is expensive so are limiting what they will pay!!!
Yep...think i would be looking elsewhere,we pay enough for our horses insurance,without them excluding or limiting before anything happens...christ my ins is more than my fully comp car insurance
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Hope your neddy will be ok and it dosnt come to that!!
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Thats usual and some companies dont even cover half the costs
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Really???that has shocked me as mine makes no mention of it!!If that is the case makes ya wonder why we have insurance eh...when it is the big bills we want covering for
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It looks as though it is a new inclusion on mine with this years renewal. I was a bit shocked, and glad I checked!
 
its very tricky to get the MRI scan cost out of an insurance company.
NFU covers half IF they decide to pay out.
Waiting for them to decide on my MRI claim myself at the moment.
 
I have to say the company I work for DO pay for MRi and not just part of the cost. However, they (our claims dep) do request they are contacted prior to any horse having MRi scans so they can discuss with the attending vet to ensure it is absolutely necessary.

I think it is actually quite bad that some only pay for part of the cost to be honest but can see the theory behind it as some (many) vets will say an MRi scan is required as soon as they find out that horse is insured for Vets Fees! Obviously MRi is expensive and will therefore eat into the limit allowed under Vets Fees cover on your insurance.

However, the thing is with MRi scans is they are going to become more the norm when it comes to diagnosing problems and x-rays will be become less common as the view you get from an MRi is soo much clearer. Also will work out cheaper in the long run as opposed to having x-rays and then MRi on top of that.

You should always check your wordings to see what is and isn't covered as these sorts of 'conditions in cover' have only been applied to certain company's policies fairly recently.
 
NFU cover 50% of MRI, Petplan will cover the whole cost, but like LadyT says, they will need to be sure it is necessary, and after only 2 weeks of lameness it would be unlikely that MRI would be approved. It's really a diagnostic tool for long chronic ongoing lamenesses, generally in the foot where ultrasound can't reach.

Petplan paid for my horse's MRI. It was over £1000.
 
I've been lucky. My insurance paid up for an MRI for both my horses at different times. However it does seem usual now for companies to only pay half. Personally knowing how beneficial they are as a diagnostic tool I'd stick with companies that pay.
 
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