Hi.

Can anyone recommend or point me in the direction of a "Loss of earnings" insurance policy? My other half is working self employed this winter and we want to cover our backs financially. Thanks.

Huh? If your partner does not make enough to satisfy their wishes... then an insurance should cover the rest? Huh?

Being self employed, the only thing I know about is the pension payments and the Taggeld if I am sick. Maybe that is what you are asking about.

The company I use is ÖKK. The deal with them is... if I am sick for over 30 days, I get payments to cover my loss of income from the 31st day. Yes, the first month is out of your pocket. The price of the policy payments is set according to the sum you claim to earn.

Keep in mind, the sick time must be confirmed by a doctor(s)... and any insurance company offering Taggeld will check with the doctors!
JC

Yes I mean should he be sick or injured. He is working as a ski teacher so injury is possible and would prevent him from working.

All the big companies offer this, but it is a very expensive insurance policy with not for it. Usualy first 30 days are for your account.

Gotcha, then you are looking for Taggeld. Maybe there are other variations to the Taggeld policy that pay quicker than the 31st day... but that will be costly! Most major insurance companies offer this, call your local agent or the visit the company's office where you have your Haftpflicht (liability) insurance.

Here are a couple of quick Google finds:

English: http://www.oekk.ch/en/UNTERNEHMENSKU...sicherung.aspx

German: http://www.kpt.ch/de/produkte/erwerb...bsausfall.aspx

Please check with the company directly. I would not deal with insurances here on EF.
JC

I would suggest he check with other ski teachers to see what they do, perhaps there is some kind of union or club he can join to get this insurance on the cheap, as otherwise as a single individual it can be very expensive.

Back in the day when I needed if for IT work, I join a local workmen's club that had a special deal with KPT.

Ski teachers are going to be high risk so expensive to cover.

Insurance isn't free money, insurers typically make a profit. It'll probably make more sense for you to put money away yourself in case of injury etc.

Now that is most screwed up idea I have ever read on EF (although only a short time, I have read plenty of good and BS here )

OK, given... the season is short. And if an accident happens the missing income is not that much.... But think of the long term loss of income that doesn't come in if seriously injured.

Still, IMO an insane idea.
JC

That's invalidity pay which is different

Sure, agreed... when it is permanent.
JC

My point is that if injury is a real possibility then insurance against loss of earnings will be insanely expensive.

Insanely expensive... what is it worth to you? I mean, it is all relative

There was a five month period a while back where I was incapable of working... It dawned on me half way through the second month that I was eligible for Taggeld. I applied and was taken care of for the duration. Was a real assurance that the rent would be paid during my recovery!

I suggest it, being Swiss and the Swiss are over-insured... still a peace of mind is worth it. Your choice.
JC

what if it was 60% of the salary you'd expect to earn? still worth the peace of mind?

Yes indeed. Better than nothing.
JC

I am an employee, not self-employed. However, one day, feeling absolutely fine, I went to the doctor with a small complaint. I turned out to have a serious illness which involved 9 months off work. Boy was I glad to have paid the loss of earnings insurance. It was one less thing to worry about.

I was glad to have good medical insurance too. Just a few hours of treatment cost 5000 CHF on one occasion.

This kind of insurance is generally based on your income though the amount you insure is entirely up to you.
As a general rule, people tend to insure somewhere between 70% and 80% of their income.
There is also a choice of "wait periods". i.e. after x amount of days, the insurance company will start to pay out.
Remember, this type of insurance is taken out for long-term sickness so if you have the flu and are bed-ridden for a week, it's not for that kind of scenario.
You can choose the wait period - the longer the period, the lower the premiums as you're taking on more of the risk (kind of like the deductible/franchise on health insurance).
You can generally choose from 15, 30, 60 or 90 days.
It sounds like some people here have the 30 day option.

It can appear rather expensive, true, but then if you're independent, how long could you last without working? That's the thing you need to ask yourself.

Nearly all the insurance providers do this kind of insurance. It's worth shopping around.
The premiums may vary depending on the sector of activity, your age, the length of wait period, the amount you wish to insure etc. etc.

Hope this helps

All the more reason to find out what the others are doing and see if there are any good offers going, I would have thought....

I have a question about whether or not I should cancel my loss of income insurance, which I got when I lost my job earlier this year. I was on RAV so the insurance company, Basler, took that as the income level. The insurance kicks in if and when I am ill at 91 days.

I started working again as of the 1st of November. My current employer provides for this insurance via my Pension scheme.

I am wondering whether or not I should cancel the insurance with Basler? Is it possible to have two loss of income insurance policies - one independent and the other through work?

Thanks in advance...

Not many of the ski instructors I know earn enough money to afford any insurance for loss of (minimal) earnings.
They have very little so would get social benefits & therefore have no need to pay for insurance!