“Claim has now been in process for over 3 months, with all documents provided and our vet replying immediately to each of their requests. Quite straightforward claim too so shouldn’t take long to assess. Whenever I call I’m being told that our claim is still in process and waiting to be reviewed by an assessor. I have serious concerns about the standards of this company.”
“Just read all the reviews below this, and it probably covers all of the experiences we are having/had with this company. Would give ZERO stars if I could. Waiting weeks for any payout at all. Constantly on the phone to chase, and waiting ages for any response. Unfortunately our lovely dog had a mammary tumour.....( what a surprise, just been told they don't cover it, and not paying out !!!! ( its in the small print) ). Having had to go though the stress of the operation to remove it, we have now lost our lovely Bella due to the cancer spreading elsewhere :(. Absolutely disgusting company to deal with. Will NEVER have pet insurance again, and certainly cancelling the policy.”
“Still waiting for a payout for a claim made in October.
Communication is awful and you have to wait for around 20 minutes on the phone to speak to someone.”
“Claim submitted July 2024. Complaint also put in November/December 2024 as still no payment and Veterinary surgery adding interest each month. As if the death of our dear pet isn't enough to deal with, we still have this hanging over our heads. Not good for our mental health. Do they care??... why can they put loyal customers through this. Is there help out there?”
“I urge people not to touch this company, they are crocks, one claim and the premium shoots up by over 100%!! Do not touch them or you'll be putting similar reviews if you unfortunately have to make a claim.”
“Avoid this company. Claim submitted beginning of October for an operation on my pet. Still nothing apart from requesting medical history 3 times. Absolute shitshow”
“My pet was ill in August. I put a claim in at the beginning of September once her treatment had finished and after several phone call s chasing payment, still a yet to receive it. They can send renewal notices out on time, but reimbursing you for the insurance you pay first seems to be a completely different story !!!!!!”
“Over 3 months in (15th Sept) & claim hasn't been looked at. My vets provided the info requested within a week. I officially complained after 2 months and I was put on the priority list. 3 weeks later my complaint was upheld and it was stated that my claim was going to be looked at as a matter of urgency. That was now 12 days ago, I've just rang & it still hasn't been looked at.
For a claim dating back to the 2nd week in September, I did not expect it to be my Xmas shopping money that I am now left without.
Contacting the FCA & reporting to The Ombudsman. I've got a whole timeline & the official upheld complaint response to submit to them. They are still advertising that claims are done within 4 weeks which they are aware is openly & knowingly misleading customers. I am in tears now at this time of year.”
“Still trying to resolve unpaid claim from August. Fobbed off with excuses time and time again. Was told claim is delayed due to previous vets not providing the pets information. Called the previous vets myself to chase and they havnt been contacted by purely pets. Shouldn't need to do your work for uou purely pets. Disgraceful... distressed pet owners relying on insurance... stear clear!!!”
“Avoid this company at all costs. Claim submitted on 18.10.24 its now 11.12.24 and no one has even been able to start to process my claim yet. It was confirmed for me today on the phone that it hasn’t even been started.
Purely pets, why are you being so dishonest? Why are you telling your hardworking customers it is taking UPTO four weeks to process claims, when it seems like it is taking more than 12 weeks? Surely just being honest would avoid most of these complaints? I have now been told my case has been prioritised, this doesn’t leave me with much faith considering all the other complaints on here that have also been “prioritised” and not heard anything back from you for weeks!
To make matters worse I made a complaint with yourselves 4 weeks ago, it wasn’t even logged. So have had to write another complaint today which I have to wait for your response before reporting you to the financial ombudsman. (I have been told it will take two months for someone to process my complaint)
My advice to fellow customers is to make a complaint and then report this company to the financial ombudsman service. Purely Pet’s will receive a £650 fine every time they have to be investigated. You can reach the financial ombudsman here, 0800 023 4567.”
“Unacceptable delays in processing claims. I have one claim outstanding for for 9 weeks now for medication that has been authorised on 4 previous occasions. Another for the unfortunate death of my beloved boy is now into its 8th week.. It seems claims are not even looked at for the first 6 weeks. Good luck calling as you will be on hold for up to an hour at times with little resolution when you do get through”
“2 claims unpaid in their shockingly poor system - one is now 14 weeks and waiting, the other 9 weeks and waiting. They state 4 weeks turnaround. Abysmal communication, fobbed off with generic emails, online portal worse than useless, and no real reason offered than 'high volume of claims'. I am owed hundreds of pounds which I paid out on a credit card (now accruing interest) and my vet thousands of pounds. I submitted a complaint 4 weeks ago and even that has not been dealt with in their stated 4 week time limit. They now have another 4 weeks and then I fully expect to have to go the Financial Ombudsman. Avoid this shambolic company at all costs. I just want me and my vet to be paid.”
“Tired of chasing for settlement. Losing a beloved pet is bad enough, chasing for settlement adds to the distress. In desperation I wrote to the CEO, Kevin Spencer who didn't even acknowledge. apparently there aren't enough assessors to handle all the claims so more assessors are employed, then assessors leave...says a lot about morale in this company. I honestly do not believe they will settle my claim ever!!”
“They say claims take up to 4 weeks, it’s closer to 4 months!
Unbelievably difficult to speak to someone, when you do they fob you off with excuses.
We were over £3k out of pocket, eventually paid up but we had to really work and fight for it - it shouldn’t be like that.
Wish I had read reviews before going with them, will not be renewing next year!”
“Purely Pets charge huge monthly premiums for very low basic cover and the amount of time you have to wait for a claim to be processed it unacceptable in excess of 10 weeks. Dreadful insurance company avoid at all costs”
“Been trying to recieve my payment now for my pet Border Terriers' vet bill.Sent numerous emails and tried to get through on phone(impossible) just asking for an update, Not one reply !!!! Having read other reviews on this company I now understand why, they seem quite happy to take your hard earned money so you can give yourself protection in the unfortunate event something happens to your loved pet but when something does happen it near impossible to receive your insurance. Please be aware of this before you take out a policy with them !! Disgraceful and very unprofessional.”
“Just thought I'd update on my previous review!!!!
Having been quoted a 153.5% increase to renew my dogs policy I decided to try and speak to the company with regard to reducing the amount of cover. They very 'kindly' offered to reduce the amount of cover from £8000 downwards to £4000 annually. Great I thought. Well only until they quoted a renewal premium of £1241 which reduced the annual premium by £48. A £48 (3.35%) reduction for a 50% reduction in cover was derogatory. Needless to say I told them politely to shove it. PLEASE before you buy a policy from this firm read their 1* reviews first as almost all the 5* reviews are people buying policies (which the company are extremely efficient at) NOT people who have to negotiate their dreadful claims procedures'! You have been warned. They know full well that once you insure an older dog with them that you are stuffed once they start jacking the renewal quotes upward as alternative cover is usually impossible to obtain, especially if you've made a claim and therefor your pet has or has had 'pre existing conditions'. There are far better companies out there. You may pay more initially but please do your homework. Check out how they rate amongst other insurers.
Requests for further details are just a sham exercise to appear concerned about poor reviews. .**********JUST ONE LAST THING. To all the people who think they are getting a better deal with Purelypets by taking out a new policy with them at a reduced premium via price comparison websites. Be aware....they are the winners because by doing that you are losing cover for pre-existing conditions which is exactly what they want. Less risk for them and they've still got you screwed because on renewal next time they will jack up the price leaving you back in exactly the same position. They want your money with as little risk as possible to them. It's their business model: very low initial premium to suck you in and then bleed you dry!
MY BUSINESS MODEL when I get a new puppy is simple. Go to one of the bigger players, get a premium quote, double it and save money year on year in an decent interest earning bank account (maybe increase by a small % annually) and baring catastrophic problems you'll be quid's in over the lifetime of your pet. A gamble yes; but that's life.”
“I was a customer for 3 years. I made a claim in August 2024 and it took them 10 weeks to assess it and they only did that after I made a formal complaint.
They only paid out £200 of my £600 claim due to various deductions and fees so it wasn't worth the hassle at all.
They didn't communicate proactively and it was very difficult to get through to them on the phone to chase up the claim.
Ultimately I cancelled my cover and decided to just pay out of pocket from now on. I wish I'd done more research and gone with a different insurer in the first place as my dog is now classed as having pre-existing conditions that wouldn't be covered by a new insurer.”
