Animal Friends Reviews

Name: Animal Friends
Rating: 1.65

1.7 Rating 579 Reviews

15 %

of reviewers recommend Animal Friends

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1.7

Based on 579 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Courier
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Live Chat, Email
Queries Resolved In	Over A Week
Customer Service	1.2 out of 5

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Animal Friends 3 star review on 22nd September 2024

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 1 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“Had to take one of our three dogs to the emergency vet at 2am a few weeks ago. The dogs are covered by Animal Friends Pet insurance so got a claim form and was hoping to get some of the ,£220 back. Got a letter back to saying because we took the dog to an emergency vet during out of hours , we won't be getting a penny. Policy says not allowed to take pets to emergency out of hours vet. At 2 am in the morning I wasn't going to look at the policy booklet. Tomorrow morning will cancel all the dogs insurance. Check policy before buying or before your pet gets ill.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Unfortunately, I have recently lost my dog and was hoping to claim. However by the time all of the small print clauses were applied, no claim was “valid”. There policy wording is very misleading and after paying a premium of about £370, I am disgusted that they have managed to avoid any claim!! There response to EMails was abysmal, generally taking over a week to respond and the chat facility was also useless. If you have a dog over 8, don’t waste your money insuring it! I also asked for a refund on unused months, but guess what, the small print states that no refunds are given!!! I think that it is very unethical for an insurance company to protect itself from most claims!! Disgraceful company!”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Terrible company your animal is not there Friend there only friend is the people who can find a loop hole so they don’t have to pay out. It’s stressful enough when your pet is not well without having to wait 4 to 5 week for them to tell you the £550.00 it cost to have your pet treated you can’t claim coz you are are day out of policie... phoned in the morning to see how claim was going and told should no later if I Phone back. Got home from work and letter was all ready here... not just horrible conning loop hole finder but bare face lying to you on the phone.... don’t use !!!!there is a reason there cheap coz they they take you money every month then think there smart and rip you off.........”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Would not pay out on claim was refused second time would not recommend them Insuring the queen's corgis”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“We've paid for insurance for our cat for five and a half years. We've just had our claim accepted however out of over £170, but they've only agreed to pay back £38! I accept there is a £99 excess, but this is appalling. Oh and they've now decided that we won't be covered for any related claims from now on. What a joke. I wish I could leave one star. I'm on holiday now, but will be cancelling the policy and changing to a new reputable company who will pay out what we are owed as soon as I get home.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“failed to pay out for my cat. He did have a similar condition over three years ago,but this is classed as an ongoing condition so wont pay out. I have found this is a very big issue with pet insurance. Have cancelled policy and will not take out insurance again.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“I would have given none AVOID AVOID AVOID They don’t pay out saying and linking things to PRE EXCISTING JOKE OF A COMPANY ! SOOOO regret changing to them”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“When I needed to make a claim, I was asked for specific dates of when lumps appeared on my dog. I was unable to be accurate (who keeps a diary of when lumps appear on their dog?) And asked them to accept the dates the veterinary practice had provided them with as accurate. They hounded me for specific dates and would not support my claim to remove a lump from my dog, unless I could provide the same dates the veterinary practice provided. In the end, they paid for some of the treatment my dog received and refused to allow any more lump removals as part of my "for life" cover. In the end, I had to pay a large part of the veterinary bill, despite paying for the premium, for life, insurance. The customer service team were intimidating and obstructive, with a clear goal to avoid paying for my dog's surgery. Absolute money making, non-customer focussed company. Totally untrustworthy.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“People please don’t get fooled by them. You’ll be better of putting aside that money in a draw each month. They will find excuses not to pay. My bill from vets were £2900 , they only paid £1700. Sadly my dog passed away , called them to claim £1000 deth of pet benefit, but been told because dog was over 8 yers old , they won’t give me a penny. If you already have insurance with them, check all fine print, there is tone of exclusions for payment. Cancel with them and look for a better insurer”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Customer for 3 years with no claims, had to claim then for removal of a tumour, just £180, they would not pay out..... They will find any way not to pay out, please don't make my mistake. AVOID”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Terrible company, highly adept at claim refusal and finding reasons to hike your premium and exclude general injuries and illnesses. I won't go into detail, enough reviewers have done that already, suffice to say, don't touch them with a barge pole. Best advice on here, put asside some money each month, I may just be unlucky but, I've yet to find a decent pet insurer having made only two claims in thirty years.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“DO NOT USE ANIMAL “FRIENDS” If I could give zero stars I would. I have been paying my dog’s increasing insurance for the past 7 years and have made no claim. I accidentally knocked a metal rake which fell on my dog’s face. Within hours her face under her eye had swelled up. I knew it hurt because she yelped at the time. Over the next few days we took her to the vet who gave anti inflammatories and anti biotics, we went back & forth, for 4 weeks, in the end she had a procedure to drain the fluid from her cheek, which they paid out for £289. Still this never worked, so we took her back to the vets, & upon x-raying her, discover she had fractured her tooth. Put in the claim, now animal friends have said that as this is a dental/gum procedure this is NOT covered in the policy, now I have to find over £1000.00 to pay for the rest of the bill. It was good feeling having her insured as it gave me a good sense of security for her future but the reality is not like that with Animal “friends” at all. They should rename their company as they do not care at all about the animals just about the money they can get from not paying out claims when it is needed. DO NOT USE ANIMAL “FRIENDS””

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Animal Friends - is that supposed to be ironic? My ten year old Viszla Lola recently underwent life-saving surgery to remove tumours from her intestine and spleen. It cost £3,500. My only comfort was that we were insured with 'animal friends'. That was naive. It turns out that because she had diarrhoea in 2008 (with hindsight, normal puppy stuff) and gastro-enteritis in 2009, that there is an exclusion on her policy relating to 'digestive system'. I naively assumed that this meant further diarrhoea or gastro-enteritis. How very naive. Apparently it covers any condition relating to everything from the oesophagus to the anus, including the spleen (I had no idea this had any function in digestion!!!). I've of course spoken with them. They feel the exclusion is entirely justified. So we get to pay the £3,500 ourselves. Either that or we should have let her die. So not really 'animal friends' after all then. If you are unfortunate enough to be insured with these people, check your exclusions - every year. Ask for extensive details, I suspect you'll be surprised how little cover they provide for you yet how much they cover themselves. I've now asked for a list of conditions our policy will cover - I suspect it will be much shorter than the list of exclusions. Alternatively, just go elsewhere. Petplan, whilst more expensive, were far better. My vet groaned when I said who we were insured with. I now know why.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“25% increase in policy cost after the first year, absolute rip off, I've made no claims and details have not changed. Disgusting.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“I wish I could give this zero stars. My cat was injured with a 4inch wide open wound going right across his neck. This happened on a Saturday night, so I was forced to take him to an OOH emergency vet. Upon putting the claim in they have refused to pay this portion of the fees as 'it wasn't life threatening' My vet has written then a letter stating is was essential to visit the vets that evening as Max would have been suffering immensely and if left til Monday could have had serious complications. However they continue to contest and I've had to pay this out myself. I'm not exactly sure how I was supposed to know that he wasn't going to die from this neck wound🤔 So in summary, if you want your emergency treatment paid for DO NOT choose animal friends!”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“**** AVOID AVOID AVOID **** Wanted to give no stars but that’s not an option ! Please avoid. Disgusting company. Will do their utmost to avoid paying a claim. Smart claims handler who didn’t have a clue what they are talking about! Every claim I have made they have tried their upmost to pay as little as possible .Also will delay pay out with unnecessary questions that are not relevant to the claim.Ask for details of the money they donate you won’t get any .”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“First claim in 3 years of paying premiums - increasing year on year !!!!! Because the nasal discharge was caused because of his teeth - they have declined the £374 claim - in the small print dental treatment is not covered . This is a total rip off and they DO NOT care about our animals at all. All they care about is the high premiums we have to pay (really not sure what I'm covered my dog for) ????????? Needless to say I have cancelled my policy. I am taking this further”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“I have had insurance with Animal Friends for my cat and dog since 2015. I have never claimed until my cat has suddenly become ill over the last few weeks. When support is required the Company seem sadly lacking and very adept at declining claims. Consideration of the animal seems to be the last thing on their mind. In order to get the claim paid I would need to subject my cat to an invasive operation for a full biopsy and they are not prepared to accept a statement from the vet and lymphoma specialist to confirm the condition. Perhaps if the cat passes away I could have a port mortem and prove the condition but there is probably an exclusion for that too.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Beware this company has the following get out clause which means you may not get paid your full claim. 1.2 Specific Conditions 1.2.1 Level of vet fees allowed: We reserve the right to obtain a second opinion from our vet advisor where we consider: • Vet fees charged appear greater than conventional fees charged by an attending referral practice; and/or • Treatment received may not have been required or may have been excessive when compared with treatment conventionally undertaken by an attending referral practice. There is a total lack of transparency on what limits are being applied and furthermore the limits are decided by a veterinary advisor in Animal Friends employment, which means that the amounts are biased in their favour. This not acting in the customer’s best interests who may end up paying more in the course of Veterinary Treatment for their Pet, as in my case. My Dog Tzu-Chi was referred to the Royal Veterinary College Queen Mother Hospital for Sick Animals by Foxgrove MediVet as they were unable to diagnose what was the underlying cause of his life threatening and eventually ending Breathing Difficulties. Because his condition was life threatening and also an out of hours emergency where veterinary costs are much higher, and due to the fact he was looked after in an Intensive Care Unit where costs would again be much higher. I strongly believe that the costs incurred to treat him were fully justifiable and due to the intensive level of care he was receiving, would have been much higher than the limits for treatment being unfairly applied by the Animal Friends Veterinary Advisor. I will be referring the matter to the Financial Ombudsman.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Terrible company - rip off!! My poor sister used these, I have recommended Pet Plan, who I use, so much better.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

Animal Friends is rated 1.7 based on 579 reviews