'I paid nearly £9,000 to treat our sick cat' - can pet insurance protect you from soaring vet bills?

Vets are being probed by the competition regulator as the cost of treating Britain's pets soars and many owners still aren’t insuring their furry friends.

Last week, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it is scrutinising the vet industry over fears animal lovers are not getting a good deal. 

The regulator is particularly concerned that consumers are not being given easy access to information about pricing and treatment options when deciding which vet to use and which services to buy. 

It's also looking into the sharp fall in the number of independent vet practices - which accounted for 89% of the UK veterinary industry in 2013, but only around 45% by 2021. There's been a rise in bigger chains snapping up smaller practices and the regulator is worried about the impact that is having on competition and choice for consumers.

Here, Which? speaks to pet owners being charged thousands for treatments and explores to what extent pet insurance can help protect you against eye-watering vet bills.

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Pet owners paying thousands in vet bills

When a beloved pet falls ill or has an accident, owners have no other choice but to turn to vets. The cost of helping a four-legged friend get better can be eye-watering, however. 

The Association of British Insurers found the price of treating a serious condition can spiral into the thousands, with claims for spinal surgery on a dog, for example, totting up to £10,000 and the cost of a fractured femur for a pedigree cat hitting over £8,000. Worryingly, the CMA claims costs are rising at a faster pace than the rate of inflation - currently 6.8%. 

Pet owners told Which? how they were being charged huge sums for treatments, with the cost of medication also running into the hundreds.

'I paid nearly £9,000 to treat our sick cat'

Leicestershire-based Helen Venn-Brown says she and her partner paid a total of £8,500 to treat their kitten TC for a virus called feline infectious peritonitis earlier this year. She describes having to go to several practices before their cat was correctly diagnosed, with one vet quoting up to £20,000 for a three-month course of treatment.

'The vet wanted the money upfront, despite our kitten being near death and us not knowing if he would even live a week,' she says. 'They stated that they would not, if he died, take the drugs back and refund. In the end, we bought a bottle of 10 tablets at a time for a cost of £638 a pack, or £63.80 a tablet.'

She found the experience of shopping for a better price frustrating - particularly when they sought treatment for their other cat's thyroid problem. They were unhappy with the treatment offered by the first surgery they visited, but when they took their cat Samson to another practice, it turned out to be owned by the same vet who rudely chastised them for seeking a second opinion.

Even simple tests can burn a sizable hole in your wallet. 

Christine Rooney, a professional dog walker from south London, says vet fees have gone through the roof. When her dog Snoop was diagnosed with kidney disease a year ago, she says she was charged around £700 just for a series of blood tests.

Is pet insurance worth it?

Fortunately Venn-Brown and her partner had taken out pet insurance, which covered around 80% of the costs. But despite her dog being 15 years old, Rooney hasn't taken out cover for her pooch and instead 'self-insures' by putting away around £50 to £100 a month in a dedicated savings account. 

She's not alone in choosing to do without pet insurance - research from Tesco Bank shows as many as two in five pet owners don’t have any cover.

The price of insuring a pet has risen over the last couple of years, with ABI figures showing the average premium is up by 1% on 2021, to £327 last year. When Tesco Bank asked 2,000 UK dog and cat owners in April 2023 why they didn't insure their pet, two in five said it was because they thought it was too expensive and one in five claimed they were unable to afford it. 

Taking out pet insurance, however, could save you thousands in the long run and prevent you from having to pay a sky-high vet bill outright. Be warned, however, it may not cover all the costs.

As Anna McEntee, director at Compare the Market, explains, most policies will have a maximum cover limit depending on the level of protection chosen. If a pet owner reaches this maximum limit with a claim, they will usually have to fund any further treatment costs themselves.

She told Which?: 'Pet owners will typically be able to claim for emergencies and unexpected illnesses through their insurance policy, but routine pet healthcare usually won’t be covered, such as check-ups, vaccinations, micro-chipping, or flea and worm treatments. Owners will also typically need to pay an excess if they make a claim. If they have a co-payment policy, where they pay a percentage of each claim, they’ll need to pay this on top of the excess.

'Make sure to read the terms carefully to see what you will and won’t be covered for, particularly if your pet has any pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, as some insurance providers may exclude treatment for a condition that results from or is linked to a pre-existing condition.'

• Find out more: best pet insurance policies and providers

How to keep the cost of cover down

There are several ways to make sure you're not paying more than you should for pet insurance.

One simple tip to reduce the cost of a policy is to tweak the excess you pay. This is the amount you immediately contribute towards any claim. The higher the excess you are willing to pay, the lower the premium, but think carefully about how much you can realistically afford if your pet does need expensive treatment.

If you have more than one pet, then it might work out cheaper to get a multi-pet policy rather than insuring each individual animal.

Whether you are renewing or buying a new policy, it's always worth shopping around. Price comparison sites that allow you to view multiple pet insurance quotes at a glance are a good place to start. The main ones for insurance are Compare the Market, Confused.com, GoCompare and MoneySuperMarket. 

Once you've found a deal that is right for you, check how Which? rated the provider and policy. 

• Find out more: how to find cheap pet insurance 

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