Being insured against conditions or circumstances that affect your pet's health is a vital part of being a responsible owner. This section of our website gives an outline of how insurance works for you and your pet.
The standard way of claiming
Our 6 point graphic above represents the standard way of claiming for insurance. You pay for treatment and provide us with a claim form with the policy holders section completed and signed. We fill it in and send it to your insurance company who then reimburse you.
Please be aware that our claim direct facility is offered at Moorview Vets discretion. We reserve the right to decline this facility and ask for payment at the time of treatment.
1. Please call
your insurance company and give them authority to discuss your
policy with Moorview Vets. Or fill in a permission form supplied by
us at reception.
2. Call our insurance team on 0191 2566990 and ask to speak to Sarah Brewis or Jayne Robinson (during the office hours) and provide us with the following:
Insurance company and policy number
Policy cover level (if known)
Start date of the policy
Policyholders name
Previous vets your pet has been to.
We will then confirm if we can offer claim direct for your pet's treatment. Please note that the agreement to claim direct is not confirmation that your insurer will definitely settle your claim. In this instance you will be liable to pay any outstanding balance.
3. Please bring along your policy documents and a claim form for your pets treatment. Please ensure that the section to be filled out by the policy holder is completed and signed.
4. A further claim
form will be required for every subsequent treatment /
visit.
Facts about insurance that needs to be
considered
Please be aware that we cannot guarantee your claim as insurers may decline claims for a number of reasons. Our 'Claim Direct' facility is offered at Moorview Vets at our discretion. We reserve the right to decline this facility and ask for payment at the time of treatment.
There are over 60 insurance companies, all with diffreent types of policies. An excess will be payable as per the amount stated on your policy documents.
Cover varies between insurers: amounts covered may be per condition or for a specified period of time. Diet food, wormer, flea treatment, dentistry, hydrotherapy, physiotherapy, etc may not be covered.
Some policies are "12 months" - this means they will exclude a condition 12 months after the clinical signs of illness are first noted. Some policies offer "life cover" but will still attract an excess for each condition each policy year.
Inception periods: cover may be limited in the first 14days of any policy.
Pre existing medical illnesses must be declared when you insure a pet. Exclusions may be placed for conditions which were evident before your insurance policy began.
Some insurers may take up to 4 months to pay; others may not offer a claim direct facility.
The Data Protection Act - as the claim is essentially on your behalf, insurance companies don't necessarily tell us if there is a problem and some won't even talk to us regarding the claim.
Insurers may cancel your policy with immediate effect if payments are missed.
Moorview Vets Insurance Team
If you cannot supply us with a claim form within 3 days of treatment we reserve the right to ask you to pay in full.
If your account has not been settled by your insurer within 6 weeks of treatment, we reserve the right to ask you to settle the account and we will then instruct your insurer to pay you.
Insurance claims create a considerable administrative burden. Moorview Vets have a dedicated insurance department. Please contact us at the Backworth surgery if you wish to discuss your claim.
Although claiming direct, any problems or shortfalls are still essentially your responsibility. We will endeavour to help sort out any problems, but this is on your behalf. Please notify us immediately if you receive any correspondence from your insurer.
If you want to claim direct check your policy details before the procedure. We will need to know: policy number and start date, any exclusions and cover limits. We will need a completed claim form signed by the policy holder, in the correct place.
There is no way our staff can know all your policy details, this information must come from you. A further claim form will be required for all subsequent visits/treatments.
Copyright of Moorview Veterinary Practice 2011. All rights reserved.