Hi,
I'll be shifting to a new apartment next month, Deposit amount for new apartment is around 4000 CHF which I plan to pay through SwissCaution. I've to pay some annual interest for this but does it really insure the house? Can anyone tell me when I leave this house the damage charges will be paid by swiss caution or by me?

hello

swisscaution is only for the caution of the apartment and not for the house insurance- for that you will have to get a separate cover from company like Zurich insurance etc.

what swiss caution does is to removes the need for blocking 3 months rent for initial deposit, though some agencies(reggies) do not accept it, so check that before signing the contract.

also, it will work well if you are going for a short term rental since for a rent of 4000 PM you would end up paying something close to 300 sfr per year; multiply that to number of years that you would stay and see for yourself.

on another note, your house insurance (again of the order of 300 sfr per year) would pay for damages etc (as long as they are not too excessive ) and that works fine (i had my insurance pay for repainting of some walls etc)

SwissCaution only covers the rental deposit. They will NOT pay any damages.

When you leave, any damage will have to be paid by you, some of which can be claimed on your 3rd party insurance (Haftpflicht Versicherung).

Thanks for the info, Better I'll go for some good house insurance then.

There is Hausrat (House contents insurance, fire/theft) and there is Haftpflicht (3rd party damage) insurance. Make sure you know which one you are buying!

Hi Sbrinz, I think Zurich connect http://www.zurichconnect.ch/site4/gm...me/welcome.htm covers both type of insurance, or is it something different?

erm, what i have heard is that the deposit is the bail for rent, damage, cleaning and/or the running costs while youre living there or after you have moved out...and didnt pay/cant pay any of these? and that money swisscaution stays in for, no?

Thats what I thought, Then on the other hand...they would be losing lots of money if they paid up every time no since the "inspectors" always seem to find something like a spec of dust for which 3 cleaning companies will need to come in....

From what I understand (since I moved out of my apartment this week) the rental company sends the bill to swisscaution, then swisscaution will send you a bill because it is deducted from your deposit. Your insurance will cover anything that was broken/needs to be replaced, but you need to pay out of pocket to reimburse swisscaution for any cleaning.

Just a little pointer - do NOT let your rental company issue an invoice to Swisscaution for any cleaning or follow-up work! Demand that they invoice you directly so you are in control and do not have to pay additional fees from Swisscaution for the privilege of them passing on the cost to you.

There are better ways to spend your money. Once you get the all-clear from the rental agency, they will simply tell Swisscaution to cancel the contract.

As a newbie to CH, I looked into Swiss Caution. My conclusion was that they were only worth considering if you didn't have the money available for a deposit.

Thanks for the useful reply. I also feel it's for those woh doesn't want to pay deposit money or block that sum from thier savings , since 1st month rent and deposit money together makes a big amount.

I'm pulling this thread in a different direction..but has anyone actually bought back the deposit from swisscaution to give it directly to the rental company ? My husband and I didn't have the deposit when we signed the agreement, but we hope in the near future we will have it, and save us the interest with swisscaution. I just have no idea how that would work.

How long am I tied to my SwissCaution guarantee ?

You can terminate your guarantee at any time without justification or charges. You need only to provide your lessor with a substitute guarantee of the same amount and same quality. Your lessor must return the cancelled rental guarantee certificate to SwissCaution.

http://www.swisscaution.ch/en/information/faqs

I'm not sure how that would work either, but your contract with SwissCaution might offer some clues. I haven't seen one, so I don't know, but if there's any clause saying something like you'll keep your Caution arrangement with them until your next move, then it might be very difficult to switch to a regular Caution arrangement and 'deprive' them of their interest.

You personal liability (Haftpflicht Versicherung), as correctly stated, covers your damage to the apartment as well as other areas so is something well worth having and indeed many companies or landlords won't rent to you unless you have it. The contents cover is separate for your possessions against fire, theft etc. Quite often we combine these under the same policy as they tend to go hand in hand for individuals or families.

OP: Drop me a line if you need any help understanding the covers or liabilities further.

Best,
David

What you have to pay Swiss Caution is more than you will get on the equivalent amount of savings in the bank. Furthermore, I understand that even when you secure the deposit with your bank, you still get interest on it.

it can take you upto a year to get your deposit back, so if you move you'll have to find another deposit before you get yours back, in our case that was quite a few thousand chf. good for you if you have enough savings to afford 2 rather large deposits in one go.

Yes, that's true. But I had to put away 10 grand that I can't touch until I move again - interest or not, some people can't afford that. If you have the cash, using it is generally a smarter way to go. If you don't, SC can be a good option. I used them on my last apartment, had a 50 chf penalty and paid maybe another 50 chf in handling fees.

Hi All,

I am considering using SwissCaution and personally I feel like it's too good to be true. Not having to give up around 10K the first month I am here would be a very nice cushion and the interest and fees are not bad at all. Is using SwissCaution frowned upon? Does it have a negative impact to your credit or things like residence visa application? Likeliness to get another flat? Anyone have a negative experience with SwissCaution?