Veterinary costs

[gedefaro]

Hi everyone! I will be moving to the UK very soon and taking my horse with me. I am in the process of choosing an insurance policy for her, but am unsure how much I need covered. Am primarily wanting to cover veterinary costs. Where I live (Switzerland) one colic operation costs 10k minimum. I saw that agria has a policy for 10k a year (not per case), but most only go up to 6k.

I was hoping for some experiences with costs, as I can't really estimate how much everything will cost. Hopefully I won't need a vet of course, but you never know. Do you think 6000£ (or 6500£) would be enough in a year, or would you spring for the 10k?

Thank you so much for your help!

 

[Parrotperson]

As much as you can afford. £10k for colic is the tip of the iceberg. It can easily be £3k plus for ulcers.

Read terms and conditions carefully. Some policies only cover part the cost of certain things like MRI scans.

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If you have some cash stashed away it might be better to just have public liability insurance and save every month for vets fees.

 

[Barton Bounty]

Hi everyone! I will be moving to the UK very soon and taking my horse with me. I am in the process of choosing an insurance policy for her, but am unsure how much I need covered. Am primarily wanting to cover veterinary costs. Where I live (Switzerland) one colic operation costs 10k minimum. I saw that agria has a policy for 10k a year (not per case), but most only go up to 6k.

I was hoping for some experiences with costs, as I can't really estimate how much everything will cost. Hopefully I won't need a vet of course, but you never know. Do you think 6000£ (or 6500£) would be enough in a year, or would you spring for the 10k?

Thank you so much for your help!

I have just had this quandary with a colic surgery, I could give you the detailed bill

Its not necessarily the surgery that costs the money, it is everything else, all the bandages, ultrasounds, every time they do a rectal it costs £80 plus vat. The vat is a killer.
It cost me around £8k in total. That was for a 21 day visit in hospital as well. The surgery itself cost less than £1k

If I were you I would do 6/8k

 

[Dazzer]

I would go for the £10K vets bills, and I will when I renew mine as mine currently is up to £6K. Agria is the only Insurer in the UK to offer Lifetime Policies for horses. Good luck with your move and hope you won't need a vet!

 

[gedefaro]

Thank you for your responses!

In that case I‘ll probably go with the 10k one. In Switzerland it‘s not common to exclude things from the policy, unless the issue presented before being insured.

I am probably gonna go for Agria because of the lifetime policy.

 

[Orangehorse]

Yes, I think that £10,000 vet cover would be a good idea because I think that might be required for colic surgery. As above, it isn't just the surgery, its the stabling and livery cost and every pair of gloves they use, etc. etc.

But there are lots of different options. All policies have an Excess amount, where you have to pay the first £100, £250, etc. etc. Some policies allow you to have a higher excess charge, which would bring down the premiums, leaving the cover for really serious things like a colic surgery, or lots of scans, hospital time, etc.

 

[shortstuff99]

A lot of insurance can also offer an uplift for colic, so normal claims are 5k but if colic surgery is needed will pay up to 10k which.

 

[dottylottie]

definitely go for 10k if you can, one of mine has had a lameness workup, a few ultrasound scans, a course of cartrophen and stem cells injected and the 5k is maxed out, and she still needs more follow up scans!

 

[Melody Grey]

Some UK policies, those attached to E&L (equine and livestock) have a co-payment of 17.5% of the treatment cost plus your excess. They are perfectly good policies and I’ve used them for years, it keeps premiums much lower. Just thought I’d mention it- may not be a thing outside of the UK?

 

[gedefaro]

Some UK policies, those attached to E&L (equine and livestock) have a co-payment of 17.5% of the treatment cost plus your excess. They are perfectly good policies and I’ve used them for years, it keeps premiums much lower. Just thought I’d mention it- may not be a thing outside of the UK?

I was looking at agria, they have a co-payment of 25% there..
What are some of the policies you are referring to? Do you have any personal eperience with them, are they any good when it comes to payouts?

I'm having some trouble with agria, because the breed of my horse is not listed. Have contacted them, and they said they'd never heard of the breed and have to check.. hoping it will work. To be fair, the breed isn't listed on any of the insurance sites, but on some you don't need to add the breed.

 

[Melody Grey]

I was looking at agria, they have a co-payment of 25% there..
What are some of the policies you are referring to? Do you have any personal eperience with them, are they any good when it comes to payouts?

I'm having some trouble with agria, because the breed of my horse is not listed. Have contacted them, and they said they'd never heard of the breed and have to check.. hoping it will work. To be fair, the breed isn't listed on any of the insurance sites, but on some you don't need to add the breed.

The policies I’m referring to are underwritten by E&L (equine and livestock) though marketed under various names (the insurance emporium, animal friends and possibly others). I have used them and been paid out numerous times without issue over the past 8 years or so. Some of my policies are still with them now. I think the co-payment is 17.5%? It has worked well for me as I can’t afford big premiums or to pay for treatments in full sometimes, but has given me treatments I couldn’t otherwise have afforded, so I would recommend it.