Bow Wow Meow pet insurance

New potential customers, please be warned. BWM will entice you in with a cheap cheap monthly rate but believe me they will claw that money back before you know it. I fell for it and started at $80/month then after one year it went to $100 then this year it’s $120/month for a 2yo Golden Retriever. I have made ONE claim for $100. I rang and they tried to tell me the premiums went up because of the market and the claims history…..what market? what happened to golden retrievers in the last 2 year2 to justify a 40% increase! I can cancel my policy and sign up as a new customer and it’ll be $90!

Also, for the reviews that say the claims are easy – they are! but TOO easy. The option to explain what the claim is for is limited to something like 50 words so you can barely explain why you got something and what you want to claim. I did a blood test to check for any potential hidden issues – to save myself but also BWM money in the future. Wouldn’t you want to find things now before they come up? barely enough room to write anything and no avenue to appeal their decisions.

I’m glad facebook groups are now waking up to BWM, lots of people complaining now and dropping their claims. We’ve spoken to our vet about pre-conditions and there is nothing there so we’re comfortable with switching. Good riddance Bow Wow!

I have just taken out a policy for our new golden retriever pup, which we are picking up this Friday. I did it by phone as the online form would not accept my mobile number. After at least 30 minutes (from overseas) and at the very final stage I was told the policy would start at 1 minute to midnight on the Friday. I immediately objected and said I wanted cover for the full day on the Friday as well as we would be driving for 5 hours across Tassie with the pup. Told couldn’t change that detail now and we would have to do the whole thing again from the start. Very very mean spirited to have that starting time on the policy start date.

Thank you Bow Wow Meow. I’ve never before had pet insurance and I’m super happy with how easy you are to deal with. Any question I’ve had has been answered quickly and to my satisfaction. Super happy to have both of my precious girls insured with you.

We have been with Bow Wow Meow now for 8 years,they have been fantastic with all claims made.Would highly recommend to anyone looking for pet insurance,it’s peace of mind knowing we are looked after.. Just before Henry our Golden Retriever was one,he started having seziures,lots of vet visits & testing was done with specialist vets & overnight stays,all claims were payed out within 24 to 48 hours of lodgement know questions asked..It helped make a very stressful few weeks easier knowing Bow Wow were there❤️❤️

We had the best experience your team were so quick to respond to our questions and the claim process could not have been easier. Mitzi has now had her surgery and is on the mend we can’t Thank your team enough for the excellent service and care shown by all.

Don’t go with them unless it’s their first year… every year, the prices jump to an exorbitant rate. I paid $360 for my kittens first year, then $580 for the year after and now my policy is set to renew at $1420 for the third year. My cat is only 3 years old… certainly not this big of a hike year on year. I originally wanted to add my two other cats to Bow Wow Meow and asked if there would be any discount to have three cats under their premium policy. None… I’ve moved on now with my other two cats, moved onto a less scammy pet insurance that doesn’t double their pricing every year, and waiting for this years insurance to run out to finally leave this scam of a company 🙂

This company is a joke, Never made a claim since taking out the insurance for two dogs, the annual policy renewal came in with an increase of $509.28 per dog per year taking the annual premium to just under $3000. We had dental cover included in the original peace of mind policy they have changed our policy to a Nose to tail plan and removed dental as this is now an optional extra.

Took out insurance for our greyhound 7 years ago at

I wouldn’t normally bother with a bad review, but Bow Wow Meow’s poor customer service and untrustworthy claims assessment process has hit a nerve. Avoid this company, they use dodgy unethical means for avoiding claims payouts. My pet dog recently had a nasty ear infection and I didn’t want to wait for availability (after the weekend) at my usual vet clinic, so I took him to a different vet that could see him the same day. He has never previously had an ear infection, and no insurance claim has ever been submitted regarding an ear infection. After I submitted my claim, I received a claim rejection notice (2 days later) from Bow Wow Meow on the grounds that it was a pre-existing condition. When I called to object to the assessment and enquire on what grounds, what evidence, they had made this assessment, the customer service team told me that they are unable to answer this, and that I would need to wait for the claims assessment team to respond, which would take 30 calendar days.

I called them today (7 days after my claim was denied) to ask if they had spoken to my usual vet to obtain a medical record which would show that my dog has never been seen for an ear infection. The customer service person again told me that she cannot answer this and that I would need to wait for the claims assessment to respond.

A simple phone call, or email, to my usual vet would resolve this within 1-2 days at most. I have called my usual vet and they are gong to send me an email confirming no prior history of ear infections, as well as my dog’s full medical history. However, I have been repeatedly told by Bow Wow Meow to wait the full 30 days for an outcome. I don’t understand why Bow Wow Meow rejected the claim so quickly, cannot explain on what grounds they did so, and then force their customers to be out of pocket for a month in order to get a review.

It’s lucky this medical bill is ~$300, and not a major claim in the thousands. I do not trust Bow Wow Meow anymore with regards to accurate claims assessments, and it feels like they have an internal policy for rejecting claims as a default and waiting to see if a customers will object.

I am writing to formally raise a complaint regarding the excessive premium increases on my dog’s insurance policy, which has been active since 2017. When I first took out the policy, the monthly premium was $56. Yesterday, I received the renewal notice for the coming year and was shocked to see that the premium has risen to $286.98 per month. This equates to $3,467.78 per year (plus excess if claimed) — more than the cost of my own comprehensive GOLD health insurance with BUPA.

Every year, my premium has increased well beyond inflation, despite my requests for review. Last year I asked for a reassessment and nothing was done. This year I raised the issue again and, once more, no action was taken.

After 8 years of loyalty, I now face the decision of cancelling the policy altogether or moving to another provider, as the costs are unreasonable and unsustainable.

I consider these increases unfair and not in line with the principle of providing value to long-term customers.

I have no choice but to escalate my complaint to ASIC and AFCA for review and make everyone aware of the abusive costs of BOW WOW MEOW insurance.