# Pet Insurance - Pet Plan vs John Lewis



## ChrisJ83 (May 14, 2014)

Hi

We have a working cocker spaniel named Barney (2 Years old) and have had him insured with Pet Plan since birth and thus far having had to make a claim (long may it continue!)

The reason I am posting is we had our renewal for Pet Plan and it is quoting around £30 per month which is a lifetime policy.

I had a quick compare and John Lewis seems to be the same cover with it being a long term policy and allowing up to £7,500 worth of fees each year for any condition and will continue to treat that condition year after year.

They come out £17.29 per month which includes a 20% discount, my only concern is when I spoke to Pet Plan about their price they said we will find all other companies offer good deals then hit you with high renewals, a quick Google search resulted in a lot of reviews claiming John Lewis massively hiked renewal prices.

I was just wondering if anyone had any experience of this or advice on this subject?

Any help/advice appreciated

Cheers


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## DirtyGertie (Mar 12, 2011)

Yes. John Lewis hiked my renewal by 120% last year and quite a few other members here had high increases with JL.

I spent a month in conversation with JL, got referred to the underwriters Royal & Sun Alliance because it is the underwriters who set the premiums, given the usual "explanations", i.e. depends where you live, breed and age of dog, etc. After explaining that I was living in the same house, had the same dog who was only one year older than the previous year (still young at 3) then why was the increase so much when nothing had changed. I was then told it was because vets' fees had increased. I checked with my vet, they had increased the consultation fee by 40p and the cost of medications had risen by 3%. Eventually RSA did admit that my one claim during the year, amounting to £302, had made a difference.

My son also had his dog insured with them and his rose by 60% with no claims being made.

John Lewis weren't the only provider hiking prices so much. A lot of companies are underwritten by RSA and quite a few of them had high increases upon renewal.

My vet was horrified at the increase and offered to talk to PetPlan on my behalf and said she would endeavour to get the condition the claim was for (a benign tumour of the hair follicle) not listed as pre-existing, but even doing it online with a discount the premium came out much more than JL's renewal.

I opted to stay with JL because there was a very good chance that any possible future tumours would not be covered by another provider. But to make it affordable I had to reduce cover from the top one to the middle one and increase the excess to the highest level.

But I would say that JL paid out my claim very quickly (within 7 days) with no problems at all.

Bear in mind that upon changing providers, it's not just any previous conditions claimed for that will be excluded. Anything that is on the vet's records that showed clinical signs or symptoms, whether claimed for or not, will probably be excluded. I was told this when I was ringing round other companies when the JL renewal came through.


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## Buzzard (Aug 10, 2012)

I would be inclined to stay put with Petplan. Anything on the records potentially will be excluded. Even a poorly tummy on the records could be enough to exclude any furture digestive problems. I too have heard about JL hiking premiums by crazy amounts. We have our dog with Animal Friends and not had a renewal yet so will wait and see.


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## suewhite (Oct 31, 2009)

This is true my monthly payments went from £16.98 to £31.28 in the second year.I honestly think they all do it.I am with Pet Plan (did a thread on it)a 4 year old Tibetan Spaniel no health problems £47 a month.I am seriously thinking of cancelling and paying when ever he needs treatment as I know it will just keep going up year on year,none of my other rescues are insured as they were to old when I got them and I seem to manage there vet fees.


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## ChrisJ83 (May 14, 2014)

Thanks for the advice folks.

Going to discuss it with my girlfriend just annoying as he hasn't any problems and we haven't ever claimed yet it goes up!


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## CheddarS (Dec 13, 2011)

Well I am a fan of Petplan. Mine has gone up by cost if living each year, so a couple of pounds a year. He has had thousands of pounds of injury, no premium put on and payment so quickly. Would never be without!


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## Lilylass (Sep 13, 2012)

JL changed underwriters a couple of years back and since then I believe some have found huge price hikes at renewal time 

Also remember that at first renewal, it would go up the 20% straight off + whatever inflationary rise is added 


What was the % increase this year with PP?


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## 1290423 (Aug 11, 2011)

Just fell out with John Lewis big time. Had milly with them since she was a pup, one claim ever for a cut paw two years back, she's now 6 and here insurance has doubled.
Their reason. She is now at the age when she could become ill.
My reply, so you,ll take a safe bet then, but when things could get sticky you welsh on it,
Needless to add I have not been into waitrose nor John Lewis since.


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## 1290423 (Aug 11, 2011)

To add, my eldest dog who's 13 insurance is cheaper then Millys, but alas the company he is with now longer offer that policy


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## Sally Hayward (Apr 14, 2013)

Really interesting post. Have certainly heard quite a lot recently to support the view that Petplan increases are less than many other policies. 

In order to provide pet owners with the best possible information later in the year Pet Insurance Surveys UK will be conducting a survey of renewal increases so we can identify the companies least/most likely to hike prices. I will post a link to the survey (it will be short!) on here when it is available. Hope that you will all contribute your experiences.

If we share our information we can all get a better deal for our pets!


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## Burrowzig (Feb 18, 2009)

When my PetPlan renewal came for Ziggy, the increase in premium was slight, but they changed the conditions so I now have to pay 20% of the bill myself. If Ziggy weren't so old, with arthritis (never claimed for), heart murmur (never claimed for), cataracts (never claimed for) and digestive issues (claimed for), I would have cancelled.

I recently paid out £1098 for repairs to my other dog's teeth after she collided with a wall. She's not insured. Only PetPlan (as far as I know) cover dental accidents (most don't cover dental at all). I would have paid more in premiums for her life so far, plus the 20%, than I did in picking up the bill.


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## ChrisJ83 (May 14, 2014)

Haven't got the PetPlan renewal to hand but it was around £30 per month where as John Lewis are quoting £200.71 for the year, if I added 20% onto that it would be £240.85.

Increase wise PetPlan wasn't that much we have paid £29.50 this year but we are thinking this is expensive various friends of mine don't seem to pay as much as us.

Seems like we are in-between a rock and a hard place!


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## Buzzard (Aug 10, 2012)

ChrisJ83 said:


> Haven't got the PetPlan renewal to hand but it was around £30 per month where as John Lewis are quoting £200.71 for the year, if I added 20% onto that it would be £240.85.
> 
> Increase wise PetPlan wasn't that much we have paid £29.50 this year but we are thinking this is expensive various friends of mine don't seem to pay as much as us.
> 
> Seems like we are in-between a rock and a hard place!


Do your friends have proper lifetime cover though? I was talking to someone last week who said they have their dog insured and it is £4 a month! Accident only it turns out and I don't think she realised the difference. To be honest if I had several thousand in the bank at all times I wouldn't bother with lifetime cover myself, but as I don't I need the reassurance. For the small amount difference I would stick with petplan as they are probably less likely to hike your premiums up in a year or two.


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## AlbertRoss (Feb 16, 2009)

I think you have to be careful here. John Lewis's premiums jumped because they changed underwriter not because John Lewis do a massive price hike every year. In my view it was a silly decision on JL's part to change without knowing the effect it would have on their regular clients (of which, I confess, I was one - but not any more).

Almost all companies will cut you a discount on the first year's insurance - it's simply a loss leader to get your business. Because they know fine well that if you make a visit to the vet - even if you don't claim - there will be a pre-existing condition that won't be covered by any other insurer*. In short, once you've signed up you are pretty much stuck.

At the end of that year you will see a comparatively large rise in premium because they will add an 'inflationary' element plus you won't get the discount any more. That may mean a 25-30% rise in premium. If you haven't made any vet visits (other than vaccinations or general health check) during the year then, of course, you can shop around again. However, even where companies have the same underwriter they often have policy differences and it may well be the case that trying to move companies would result in a loss of a particular insurable benefit. And that's without the problem of the fact that a new policy almost always excludes any claim for illness within the first 2 weeks (during which your pet is effectively uninsured).

*Most insurers won't cover pre-existing conditions, period. Some will give you a timescale where, if the pet has shown no symptoms in, say, 2 years they will provide cover again.

Just for interest, I had a 6 year old dog covered with JL. When the renewal came, like for everyone else, it was stupidly high. I went to Pet Plan but they wouldn't give me lifetime cover (I didn't have documented 6 years vet records, although I knew the previous owners of the dog and knew his medical background). I went to VetsMediCover and got a lifetime cover that wasn't much short of the Pet Plan cover but which didn't include some of the extras that Pet Plan provide. Much cheaper. And, I am delighted to report, we had to make a largish claim (£800) which was dealt with quickly and professionally with a cheque turning up within 4 days.


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## DirtyGertie (Mar 12, 2011)

AlbertRoss said:


> I think you have to be careful here. *John Lewis's premiums jumped because they changed underwriter not because John Lewis do a massive price hike every year.* In my view it was a silly decision on JL's part to change without knowing the effect it would have on their regular clients (of which, I confess, I was one - but not any more).


I just want to point out that when my John Lewis renewal premium was hiked by 120%, the policy was already with Royal & Sun Alliance as the underwriters. In my case the underwriters weren't changed to RSA, the policy was originally taken out with RSA as the underwriters. So in my case it was definitely a massive price hike for a different reason. I've two months to go before the next renewal, it will be interesting to see what it is this year.


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## Sally Hayward (Apr 14, 2013)

M&S Bank (also underwritten by RSA) recently hiked their prices by about 47%. I took a series of quotes for the Pet Insurance Surveys UK Price Survey in early February and then took another set of quotes (identical profiles) in late March because they had made some changes to their policies. The average price increase was 47%!

Pet Insurance Surveys UK | Marks and Spencer Pet Insurance Premiums Soar


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## AlbertRoss (Feb 16, 2009)

DirtyGertie said:


> I just want to point out that when my John Lewis renewal premium was hiked by 120%, the policy was already with Royal & Sun Alliance as the underwriters. In my case the underwriters weren't changed to RSA, the policy was originally taken out with RSA as the underwriters. So in my case it was definitely a massive price hike for a different reason. I've two months to go before the next renewal, it will be interesting to see what it is this year.


I think that RSA started to get more into the market and made a push to take over a lot of 'name' business - like JL and M&S. They did so, at first, by simply standing in for the original underwriter with no change in policy or rates. Then they became aware why those underwriters were happy to relinquish the business - it didn't make money. As a result they have changed policies and hiked premiums.

I'd be interested in knowing when you took out your original policy with JL under RSA because the one I had around 2 years ago wasn't with RSA.

One thing people should always be aware of is underwriters behind name brands, Very few 'names' - Tesco, Sainsburys, John Lewis, Homebase, Argos, etc. have anything to do with their insurance offerings other than putting their names on the front. The underwriter and administrators take the money, do the work, pay the claims and so on - and give the 'name' company a lump of the profits. They get more business because the customer simply accepts that it's a well-known name on the tin.


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## DirtyGertie (Mar 12, 2011)

AlbertRoss said:


> I think that RSA started to get more into the market and made a push to take over a lot of 'name' business - like JL and M&S. They did so, at first, by simply standing in for the original underwriter with no change in policy or rates. Then they became aware why those underwriters were happy to relinquish the business - it didn't make money. As a result they have changed policies and hiked premiums.
> 
> *I'd be interested in knowing when you took out your original policy with JL under RSA* because the one I had around 2 years ago wasn't with RSA.


Online quote done on 25 July 2012. Policy started 26 July 2012.
Premier cover with £60 excess (lowest) - £12.43 per month/£149.16 p.a..

Renewal notice 1 July 2013 to continue same policy - £27.29 per month/£327.49 p.a. with no advice of changes to terms and conditions.

Online quote done on 6 July 2013 to see what they would charge me as a new customer for exact same policy - £16.81 per month/£201.72.

Adding 30% discount I had for the first year (10% online plus 20% new customer) to the new customer quote - £60.51 then I would have expected the renewal premium to come in somewhere around £21.85 per month/£262.23 p.a. rather than £327.49.

They wrote and told me the key factors influencing the premium charged were

Where you live
Pet's age
Pet's breed

Then said general increase in vet's fees and medication cost would influence a renewal premium.

Then admitted that my claim for £302 had also impacted on the renewal premium.

To make it affordable for me I downgraded my policy from Premier to Plus and increased my excess from £60 to £140 and got a renewal premium of £19.58 per month/£234.96 p.a.


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## 1290423 (Aug 11, 2011)

AlbertRoss said:


> I think you have to be careful here. John Lewis's premiums jumped because they changed underwriter not because John Lewis do a massive price hike every year. In my view it was a silly decision on JL's part to change without knowing the effect it would have on their regular clients (of which, I confess, I was one - but not any more).
> 
> Almost all companies will cut you a discount on the first year's insurance - it's simply a loss leader to get your business. Because they know fine well that if you make a visit to the vet - even if you don't claim - there will be a pre-existing condition that won't be covered by any other insurer*. In short, once you've signed up you are pretty much stuck.
> 
> ...


John Lewis told me yesterday that the reason they changed underwriters is because AXA their previous underwriter is pulling out of the pet insurance market, I assume this is correct??


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## AlbertRoss (Feb 16, 2009)

DT said:


> John Lewis told me yesterday that the reason they changed underwriters is because AXA their previous underwriter is pulling out of the pet insurance market, I assume this is correct??


AXA announced they were pulling out of pet insurance in May/June last year - but not actually doing so until early this year. I'm afarid I have no idea who they passed their policies on to but it wouldn't surprise me if it were RSA.


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## Palma (Aug 28, 2018)

Don't go to John Lewis for pet insurance if you want to stay covered for long term and want your dog or cat safe.

Our premium increased with 430% in the past three years and went from £37.20 in 2015 to £160.43 this year with only having one claim during this period.

Never had a problem with Petplan, but one of my cats was over 10 years old and couldn't get a covered for life policy with them, so went for John Lewis Insurance with him. I wish I didn't! This is just the worst covered for life policy ever, where they force customers to cancel their policy or pay almost £2000 for a year. Disgrace.


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