Life & death cover
A lump sum or annuity you size freely, so that your family, or your cohabiting partner, keeps their standard of living beyond AVS and LPP pensions.
Two minutes is all it takes: tell us who you are and what needs covering. We come back with compared quotes.
The essentials
The death of a parent or spouse deprives the household of an income, often the main one. Survivors’ pensions from AVS and the pension fund exist, but they rarely replace the lost salary. Death cover then pays a lump sum or an annuity, sized as you choose, to keep up the rent, the mortgage and the family’s everyday life.
The weak point of the Swiss system is the cohabiting partner: AVS pays them no survivor’s pension, and the pension fund only protects them if its regulations provide for it and the partner has been registered. An individual life policy closes this gap: the beneficiary clause states precisely who receives the benefit, married or not.
Two approaches exist: pure risk insurance, economical, which pays only on death, and endowment insurance, which combines cover and savings. The need decreases with age, as the mortgage is amortised and the children become independent: a decreasing sum insured follows this curve and saves you from maintaining cover that is no longer needed.
What this insurance covers
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Lump sum on death
An amount agreed in advance is paid out in one go to the designated beneficiaries, without waiting for the estate to be settled, to absorb the immediate financial shock.
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Annuity on death
Rather than a single lump sum, a regular income paid to the spouse, partner or children for an agreed period, matched to the costs that recur month after month.
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Decreasing sum insured
The sum insured falls year by year, in step with the amortisation of your mortgage or your children’s growing independence, the premium follows the same slope.
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Beneficiary clause
You designate who receives the benefit, spouse, cohabiting partner, children, and adapt it as life changes: marriage, separation, birth, property purchase.
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Waiver of premiums
If a lasting loss of earning capacity deprives you of income, the premiums are taken over and the cover continues without interruption.
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Endowment insurance with savings
Death cover and capital building in a single contract, often linked to pillar 3, to be compared with a pure risk solution combined with separate savings.
Who it is for
- Families with children whose budget depends on one or two salaries.
- Unmarried couples, whom AVS does not protect and the pension fund does not cover automatically.
- Homeowners whose mortgage must remain affordable for the surviving spouse.
- Self-employed people without a pension fund, whose loved ones have little cover on death.
- Business partners who want to fund the buyout of company shares if one of them dies.
How we support you
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Analysing your risks
What you have, what is missing, what overlaps: an honest assessment.
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Competitive tenders
Several insurers approached against a precise specification, compared item by item.
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Long-term follow-up
Set-up, renewals, claims: a single point of contact, year after year.
Frequently asked questions
What do my loved ones receive on death, without insurance?
AVS pays survivors’ pensions to the spouse and to orphans, under strict conditions, and the pension fund tops this up according to its regulations. These benefits rarely cover all of a household’s costs, especially with a mortgage. A cohabiting partner receives nothing from AVS. We quantify this gap with you before discussing any solution.
Pure risk or endowment insurance: which to choose?
Pure risk cover offers high protection for a modest premium, but pays nothing if you are alive at the end of the term. Endowment insurance adds savings, at the price of a long commitment: an early exit often means a loss. The right choice depends on your saving discipline, your horizon and your tax situation, there is no single answer.
Can I name my cohabiting partner as beneficiary?
Yes. In pillar 3b, the beneficiary clause is free: you designate whoever you wish. In pillar 3a, the order of beneficiaries is set by law, but a life partner can be favoured under certain conditions, notably after five years of living together or where there is a child in common. Also remember to register your partner with your pension fund if its regulations allow it.
Does my need for cover change with age?
Yes, it generally decreases: the mortgage is amortised, the children become independent and your retirement assets grow. A decreasing sum insured or a well-calibrated contract term prevents you from paying for too long. We recommend reviewing your cover at each stage of life: birth, property purchase, separation, children leaving home.
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Jules Rossier, non-tied insurance intermediary within the meaning of Art. 45 of the Insurance Supervision Act (ISA), registered with FINMA under no. F01581788.