How I Turned $8,000 of Vet Bills into $1,500 (Or, why pet insurance is awesome and everyone should have it)

You haven't really lived until you've put almost $9,000 on your credit card at the emergency vet, but that's just what I did at the end of January when my four dogs got into some ibuprofen. Ibuprofen ingestion is a serious medical emergency, requiring 48 or more hours of hospitalization to prevent kidney problems, GI ulcers/perforation, and neurological damage - even if the dog eats as little as one tablet of ibuprofen.

Thankfully, due to a quick response and excellent care, my pups are home and naughty as ever. And, thanks to PetPlan, my credit card is doing just fine, too. All four of my dogs have pet insurance, ranging from $20 to $40/month each (Maisy and Lola are more expensive due to their age and breed, respectively).

The expensive, naughty, utterly wonderful beasts in question.

Peace of Mind
The best thing about pet insurance is the peace of mind it provides. Taking a dog to the ER vet is always stressful, but it's so much easier when you know that you can make decisions based on what's best for your pet as opposed to what your wallet will allow. Even once everyone's home and healthy, it's a huge relief to know that I haven't just put myself into ridiculous amounts of debt, even if it would be worth it.


Financial Breakdown
PetPlan offers great plans, allowing you to choose your deductible, reimbursement amount, and yearly maximum. All four of my dogs have the Gold plan, which means they are covered for over $20,000 of care per year. (Some companies do not have a yearly maximum like this, but when I called around several years ago, those plans had more exclusions, or were significantly more expensive.) All four of my dogs have a $200 per-illness deductible, after which PetPlan pays 100% of the cost for the boys and 80% of the cost for the girls.

Here's what it looked like for each dog:

Pyg's total bill was $2,284.11. I pay a $200 deductible, and PetPlan pays $2,084.11.

Maisy's bill was $1,860.74. I pay a $200 deductible plus 20% coinsurance ($372.15), and PetPlan pays $1,288.59

Napi's bill was $1,943.02. I pay a $200 deductible, and PetPlan pays $1,743.02.

Lola's bill was $1,975.32. I pay a $200 deductible plus 20% coinsurance ($395.06), and PetPlan pays $1,380.26.

TOTAL BILL: $8,063.19
MY SHARE: $1,567.21
INSURANCE PAID: $6,495.98

The Process
Here's my favorite part of PetPlan: the reimbursement process. Now, all pet insurance is a reimbursement plan because pets are (technically) property in the US. This means that I had to pay the total cost up front. This is challenging (who has eight grand lying around??), but I guess god invented credit cards for a reason!

PetPlan makes it easy, though. To make a claim, all I have to do is download an app on my phone, take a picture of the bill and any medical records I have, and they do the rest! I made a claim for all four dogs on Sunday around 9pm, and a check was in the mail less than 48 hours later!! (Both the app and the website make it easy to follow the claims process online.) I should have the check by the end of the week.

PS- I am so not being paid to post this. I just LOVE PetPlan a lot. Seriously. Buy insurance for your furry friends. It is worth every penny; the way I figure, this incident just paid for FOUR YEARS worth of premiums. 

Is Pet Insurance Worth It?

Two years ago, give or take a few weeks, two things happened:

1. Maisy almost died (twice), accruing a ridiculous amount of vet bills (and THANK YOU to everyone who helped out during that time, I still think of you all with immense gratitude), and

2. I adopted Pyg.

The timing for a second dog was horrible, so pet insurance was at the top of my list for him. Although I did not initially buy insurance for Maisy (pre-existing conditions and all), I did end up purchasing it, almost on a whim, this spring. And thank goodness, because Maisy broke her rib a few months later.

So, is pet insurance worth it?

Financially, I'm not sure. Pyg and Napi are both around $275/year. Maisy and Lola are both just under $500/year. I've filed two claims, one for Lola, for which I received about $50 after deductible and co-insurance, and now one for Maisy's broken ribs, for which I've gotten about $350 back (about half the cost so far).

Emotionally? DEFINITELY. When I knew Maisy needed to go see the rehab vet, I was scared of the costs, but felt pretty confident that it wouldn't wreck me financially. I know that if/when Lola's back goes out, or if Pyg or Napi get sick or hit by a car or in a fight at the dog park or whatever... we'll be okay. The peace of mind is amazing.

Also, our insurance company has been great. We use PetPlan, and I've been consistently happy with the service I've received. With Maisy's claim, all I did was download the PetPlan app, snapped a few photos of the bills, and not even 10 days later, I had cash in hand! Plus, they cover a LOT without needing special riders to the plan, so that's great too.

And no- I'm not being paid to write this. I just love them.

Here's a bonus dog pic:

The Search for Pet Insurance

I was hesitant to adopt my foster dog because of the timing. Well, that, and money. Let’s be honest: Maisy’s vet bills in September alone topped $7000, an amount that would have been out of my reach had you guys not helped me. Your donations made it possible for me to pay for her care. Even so, things have been tight, so getting another dog… well, not only did it feel irresponsible fiscally, but I was also concerned ya’ll would think I was taking advantage of your kindness, or that you’d think I didn’t really need the help.

(Ed. Note: In the time between when I wrote this and when it got posted- often a delay because I don't have internet service at home and have to go to the library, and because I schedule several posts at once- someone did indeed raise this concern. Please know that I examined my finances very closely before I even agreed to foster. Although $7000 in one go was not affordable, the day to day expenses of a second dog is with a few modifications to my budget.)

Regardless of whether or not it was a good idea, Pyg is here to stay. With that decision made, I decided that I needed to protect myself from huge vet bills again in the future. I needed pet insurance. Getting it for Maisy is pointless; she has a pre-existing condition on practically every body system there is. But Pyg doesn’t.

I started my search by asking ya’ll on Facebook which company you use. I got four answers: Trupanion, Healthy Paws, Embrace, and PetPlan. I called around for quotes, and quickly got overwhelmed. Deductibles, limits, exclusions, co-insurance, on and on.

I did some internet research to learn about my options. I decided there were a few things I absolutely wanted: a plan that covered the vet exam fee (some don’t, surprisingly enough, and that was a pretty big portion of Maisy’s care!), prescription drugs, payment based on the actual vet bill, not a schedule, and specialist consults (including a veterinary behaviorist, which I sincerely hope I do not need). I also looked at whether the deductible was per year or per incident, what the annual and lifetime maxes were, and whether or not complementary/alternative approaches (including PT/rehab) were covered.

I chose PetPlan, largely because the premium vs. benefit schedule worked out best in my favor. Of course, the next step was to choose my coverage level. I chose the Gold Plan, which has the highest annual coverage (it covers up to $22,000/year). Then, because I’m a dork who loves charts, I used the calculator on their website to figure out how much of the bill would be covered if the bill was $500, $1000, or $5000 and based on the size of the deductible ($50, $100, or $200) and the reimbursement rate (80%, 90%, or 100%). Here, maybe this will help explain what I mean:

Next, I got a quote for each of those combinations. They ranged from about $18/mo to $43/mo. I didn’t want to pay more than $20 to $25/mo, which narrowed my options quite a bit. Then I looked at that first chart and decided that at that price range, I would get the best coverage with a $200 deductible with a 100% reimbursement rate. This is honestly not what I was expecting to choose, so I’m glad that I made the chart!

Now, is this the right coverage level and premium amount for you? I don’t know. I also don’t know if this is the right company for you either, but I’m hoping that by sharing my decision making process, you will be able to make decisions about what you need and want.

Finally, I just want to say that I loved working with Fabrice over at PetPlan. I asked him a ton of questions, and took up a lot of his time. He was patient with me, and explained everything in great detail. I can honestly say that the customer service I received from was amazing. (If you decide to use PetPlan, you should call him. He’s extension 2411.) And no, PetPlan did not pay me to say this. I just had a great experience.