How the Swiss Social and Private Insurance System Defines Disability

Disability is commonly defined as a person’s mental or physical condition that restricts his or her movements, senses or activities. It is generally a condition that makes it difficult for a person to interact with the outside world. This definition does not apply to the term “disability” in loss of income and disability insurance in Switzerland. According to the Swiss social security system, disability does not refer to a person’s mental or physical condition, but to their capacity to earn income.

Before subscribing to Swiss loss of Income and Disability Insurance, it is important to understand the term “disability”.  The following examples will help to clarify:

Case 1: When a person suffers from a physical condition that partially restricts his movements and activities

Due to a serious car accident, a software engineer has to have his right leg amputated beneath the knee. Despite his impairment he can continue his desk job. This means he continues to have the capacity to earn income, not making him liable for a full Swiss disability insurance compensation package.

Considering the discomfort caused by the disability, the employee is authorized by the authorities to only work at a rate of 60%. This results in a 40% loss of his capacity to earn income, which qualifies him for partial loss of income and disability insurance benefits from his Swiss pillar one and pillar two pension plans.

Case 2: Person suffering from acute mental sicknesses such as a depression or burnout

If the same software engineer suffers from a burnout which unable him to work for several years, he will be considered 100% disabled as his entire capacity to earn an income has been lost. This condition qualifies him for the full Swiss loss of income insurance pillar one and pillar two compensation package. The pillar one benefits will be liberated after 360 days, the pillar two benefits after 720 days.

The Swiss loss of income or disability insurance compensation scale

As can be seen on the below scale, if one loses more than 40% of ones capacity to earn income one will benefit from the pillar one and pillar two Swiss disability or loss of income insurance compensation schemes. The amount of the full compensation scheme depends on the revenue one earns and the number of years one has been contributing to the pension plans for.

• 25% of the full compensation package is allocated for a 40% loss of earning capacity
• 50% of the full compensation package is allocated for a 50% loss of earning capacity
• 75% of the full compensation package is allocated for a 60% loss of earning capacity
• 100% of the full compensation package is allocated for a 70% or above loss of earning capacity

Note: There is no compensation for individuals who lose less than 40% of their earning capacity.

The loss of earnings capacity for the most common infirmities have been pre-defined by the authorities, some examples below:

• Tetraplegia:        100% loss of earning capacity
• Complete deafness: 85% loss of earning capacity
• Loss of an arm 50% loss of earning capacity
• Loss of a kidney         20% loss of earning capacity
• Loss of an eye         30% loss of earning capacity
• Loss of a thumb         20% loss of earning capacity

Understanding how loss of income and disability is defined in Swiss insurance law can help each and every one of us understand why it is wise to subscribe to a third pillar loss of income and disability insurance in Switzerland. If one suffers a loss of earning capacity following an illness the pillar 1 and 2 benefits will never exceed 60% of one’s last salary, and in many cases less. We therefore recommend consulting a professional such as Charles McHugo on +41 78 601 40 90, the Expat-Experts.ch insurance specialist, to calculate your social security compensation plan and how you can improve it. You can consult his guide to loss of income and disability insurance in Switzerland

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Does My Swiss Contents Insurance Cover My Valuable Items All Over The World?

Nearly 80% of the people who buy standard Swiss contents insurance believe that it will protect all of their personal belongings anywhere in the world. But this is not true. Thus, when the majority of people lose their expensive personal belongings or medical equipment they get little or no compensation whatsoever for these losses.

In this article, you’ll learn why a standard contents insurance is an extremely poor way to protect your valuable items and why subscribing to Swiss High Value Items Insurance is the only valid way to protect your valuable items that are close to your heart.

Let us start by understanding what standard contents insurance actually covers and why it is not the right insurance coverage for your valuable items.

What does the Swiss contents insurance cover?

Basic Swiss contents or personal belongings insurance only protects your personal belongings against three distinct risks if they get damaged inside your house; these are fire damage, water damage and damage following a natural event such as a flood or heavy winds. Contents insurance also protects your personal belongings in the event of robbery and burglary.

Valuable items like your watches or jewelry are poorly covered by the contents insurance because you can only get compensation for them if they are damaged by one of the above mentioned risks. You will also receive a capped amount which might not cover their full value if they are stolen from your home or by force when you are outside of your home.
The only way to protect ones valuable items all over the world is to subscribe to Swiss high value items insurance.

What does Swiss high value items insurance cover?

The truth is that your valuable items like jewelry, medical devices, or even musical instruments can get stolen, lost or damaged anywhere. It can happen inside your home or abroad. As mentioned above, the standard Swiss contents insurances have capped compensation for your valuable items for a limited number of risks.

So, if you accidentally damage or lose a precious item it is gone forever and the insurance company will not help you to replace it through your contents insurance plan.

High value items insurance in Switzerland is the only way to protect your valuables worldwide. Here is a list of things high value items insurance in Switzerland covers:

• Loss: If you lose your insured valuable items you’ll be compensated according to their declared value.
• Damage and repair: If your insured items get damaged and are repairable, then you will get compensation for the complete cost of repairing the items.
• Loss of value: If a valuable item, such as a complex watch suffers damage and the repair results in a loss of value, the lost value will be compensated.
• Robbery, burglary, or larceny: If your insured items are stolen from you by force or larceny you will be compensated for them.

Swiss high value items insurance is a unique all risk worldwide protection package. 

Examples of high value items insurance claims

Jennifer accidentally broke her engagement ring which she insured for CHF 12,000.

If it would cost Jennifer CHF 1,500 to repair the broken engagement ring which she was paying the premium for, the insurance provider will bear the total cost of CHF 1,500 to repair the ring (less the deductible if applicable). Moreover, if the engagement ring is only valued at CHF 11’000 after the repair, the insurance company will also pay her CHF 1,000 as compensation for the loss of value the engagement ring suffered.

How to subscribe to high value items insurance in Switzerland?

In order to subscribe to Swiss high-value items insurance protection, you need the following:

• The invoice of each individual item or a recent estimate to define the insured value. 
• A photograph of all the items you are planning to add to your insurance coverage.

It is important to remember that the high-value item's insurance in Switzerland is a lump sum insurance so the compensation for each of your items is capped at its declared value which you are paying a premium for. This is why it is important to re-assess the value of your items at least once every 3-5 years to see if the insured amount should be increased or decreased.

Expat Experts recommends that you consult a certified high value items insurance expert who will provide you with a detailed guide to high value items insurance in Switzerland so you can choose the best plan for you and protect the precious pieces that you have spent a lot of memorable moments with.

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