I ended up paying £14k after my cat was hit by a car
People with and without pet insurance are facing large bills when their animals get sick or injured. Piers Walker, from Bishopston in Bristol, ended up paying £14,000 after her cat was hit by a car. Without pet insurance, she had to pay £5,000 upfront for emergency treatment and has since been paying about £500 a month to clear the cost.
Details of the incident and treatment costs
Walker’s Siamese Oriental cat, Maneesha, escaped through a hole in the garden fence before being injured. After days of searching, Walker received a vet’s knock on the door with the news. Maneesha had been found by a dog walker, “freezing cold” and suffering from hypothermia.
Maneesha’s injuries were severe: her jaw was broken in two places and her skull was crushed. Initial treatment, including pain relief and scans, cost £1,500. Maneesha was then referred to a specialist practice in Wiltshire, where Walker was required to pay £5,000 before any further work could be done. The total bill eventually reached about £14,000.
Maneesha survived but lost one eye. Walker, who owns eight cats, many inherited after her sister’s death, had chosen not to insure them due to the cost. She said she had cat fencing in the garden and did not expect such an accident to happen.
Rising veterinary costs and insurance challenges
Veterinary care costs in the UK have increased by 63% between 2016 and 2023. This rise is attributed to higher overheads, advances in care, and growing corporate ownership of veterinary practices. About 60% of UK veterinary practices are now owned by six corporate groups, up from 10% a decade ago.
The Competition and Markets Authority has noted that vet prices have risen at nearly twice the rate of inflation and has called for reforms to improve transparency and address regulatory issues. However, the British Veterinary Association president, Dr Rob Williams, explained that rising costs reflect advances in care and higher operating expenses. He noted that vets can now provide much more advanced treatment than a decade ago, which comes at a cost.
According to Tesco Insurance, 40% of dog and cat owners in the UK do not have pet insurance, leaving them vulnerable to large bills when their pets require treatment.
Experiences of other pet owners with veterinary bills
- Sophie Butler from Brislington has pet insurance but has spent thousands on treating her dog’s follicular lymphoma and her 13-year-old rescue cat’s chronic kidney disease. Her insurance policy is capped at £7,000, so she pays the remaining costs herself. Her monthly expenses, including premiums, excess, and medications, amount to about £300.
- Shelley Perkins from Henleaze, Bristol, has spent over £20,000 on cancer treatment for her five-year-old cocker spaniel, Roxy, in two years. Although insurance covers most costs, she pays about 25% of the bills and her insurance premium has increased to £100 a month. Perkins expressed concern about future costs despite Roxy being in remission.
- Rosie Matthews from Chew Valley, Somerset, had taken out higher-level insurance just weeks before her cat, Scratch, was hit by a car. The policy covered an £8,000 hip replacement. Matthews said she felt fortunate to have insurance and a trustworthy vet, and believes insurance is essential but that there should also be limits on pricing.
Veterinary professionals’ perspective and advice
Suzana Hudson-Cooke, chair of the British Veterinary Union (BVU), explained that most pricing decisions are made at the corporate level and that veterinary staff do not control pricing structures or receive commission. She noted that increasing financial pressures on pet owners can lead to emotional stress for veterinary teams, who sometimes face abuse when owners cannot afford treatment.
The BVU advises pet owners to research treatment costs, consider insurance, and keep an emergency fund. Vets are required to outline all treatment options, which can sometimes give the impression that more expensive procedures are being pushed.
Further reforms expected later this year aim to improve transparency in veterinary pricing but are not expected to reduce costs.