Cost of colic referral ‘frequently exceeds’ insurance cover, research shows

The maximum insurance cover for colic referral treatment “has not kept pace” with inflation, a new study has found, although some costs have gone down.

Researchers from the University of Nottingham and Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic looked at costs from 248 colic cases at 18 UK vet hospitals last year and data from five insurance companies, including maximum cover for vets’ fees, cost of monthly premiums, ease of obtaining a quote and readability of insurance documents.

The information was compared to data from a 2018 study, and it was found that the average cost of colic surgery had decreased, when adjusted for inflation – from £8,134 to £7,905 – but the average cost of veterinary treatment and euthanasia without surgery had increased from £1,897 to £2,379. Monthly premiums ranged from £42.76 to £97.23 in 2024/5 compared to £34.01 to £59.39 in 2018. The maximum insurance cover was between £5,000 and £7,500 in 2018; this stayed the same for three of the five companies and a fourth had not increased the figure in line with inflation.

“The maximum insurance cover had not kept pace with inflation for four of five insurance companies, and costs of referral treatment frequently exceeded this,” said the researchers, adding that monthly premiums had risen above inflation for all five companies, and was more than double the 2018 inflation-adjusted levels for two.

“All insurance documentation was outside the recommended range for ease of readability scores,” the researchers added.

• Read the paper in full

Tim Mair of Bell Equine said: “Despite recent reports about vets fees rising substantially above inflation, this was not the case for the colic referral data in our study when accounting for inflation.”

Sarah Freeman of the University of Nottingham added that the research team is keen to work with vet practices and insurance companies to ensure that cost and insurance information is “clear and easily understood, so that horse owners can make the best choices.”

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