Household insurance: What you should consider

1. Why do I need household insurance?

The answer is quite simple: to protect your household contents. This somewhat arcane term means all of the movable objects in your home, i.e. all of your things, your property. These include, for example, your furniture, electronic devices, sports equipment, books and clothes. As a general rule of thumb, you can say that your household contents are everything you take with you when you move. And while household insurance isn’t compulsory in Switzerland, it is highly recommended.

2. What damage is not covered by household insurance?

Household insurance offers insurance cover for your property and covers damage caused by fire, water, natural hazards (e.g. storms, flooding, avalanches or falling rocks), theft during a burglary or vandalism. In general, household contents are insured at their replacement value. Thus, if you have incurred damage that is covered by the insurance, you will receive an amount to cover the cost of purchasing a new, similar product.

Costs in connection with the damage up to the insured sum will also be covered, e.g. the costs to replace locks or the costs for cleaning work or hotels stays.

Furthermore, most household insurance covers guests’ personal effects. These are the personal items of guests, which are also counted by the insurance as among your household contents. However, cash that guests have with them is generally excluded.

3. What is the insured sum for household insurance and how is it calculated?

As a general rule of thumb, the insured sum for household insurance is equal to the total value of all personal items in your household. You must provide this information to the insurer, i.e. you are responsible for making the estimate of the insured sum.

It is important that you calculate the value as precisely and as realistically as possible, as you may suffer serious disadvantages if you are under or overinsured.

Underinsured

If the value of your household contents is actually much higher than the insured sum you provided, the insurer may not assume the full cost in the event of a claim. Imagine you suffer a total loss (e.g. as a result of a fire or a burglary that completely cleans out your apartment). Your insurer will pay out a maximum of the full insured sum. However, if this amount is less than the actual value of your personal items, you will have to pay a portion of the cost yourself.

Please note: Even if you only suffer a partial loss (e.g. if only your TV is stolen during a burglary), your insurance may still not cover the full cost even though this is below the specified insured sum. Why? If the insurer learns as a result of a review by an expert than you are underinsured, it may only cover the portion of the damage for which you are insured. For example: If your household contents are actually worth CHF 100,000, but you have only specified an insured sum of CHF 80,000, you are only 80% insured. In this specific example, the insurer would only cover 80% of the value of your TV.

Overinsured

You may now conclude that it’s better to simply specify a much higher insured sum to be on the safe side and avoid being underinsured. However, we strongly advise against this, as the amount of the insurance premium is based directly on the amount of the insured sum. This means your premium would rise unnecessarily. In the event of a claim, however, the insurer would only pay the maximum replacement value of your entire household contents. This is reviewed by an expert and the specified insured sum is not paid out automatically.

Our tip: Review your insured sum on a regular basis and especially when you make larger purchases that increase the value of your household contents. You should also reassess the insured value when you move, move in with someone or move out of your parents’ house. You can find calculators online that can help you determine the value of your household contents as precisely as possible.

4. Who is insured with household insurance?

Are you planning on moving in with your partner? Or are you part of a shared flat? Then you should take advantage of shared savings potential, as you only need one household insurance policy per household and not every member of the apartment needs a separate insurance policy.  

Here, too, it is important to specify the insured sum as precisely as possible. So if you move in with someone, you should recalculate or reassess this amount. And don’t forget to cancel the policies you no longer need.

Of course, family members who live in the same household are automatically insured as well.

5. What does household insurance cost?

The amount of the premium for household insurance is determined on the basis of various factors, such as the specified insured sum, the size of the apartment or house and the standard of the furnishings. On average, household insurance for an average household costs CHF 150 to 300 per year.

Household insurance policies are generally concluded with an excess of between CHF 200 and 500.

6. Does household insurance include cover against theft?

Household insurance normally only includes theft during a burglary or robbery. If someone breaks into your apartment and steals some of your property, the costs to replace the missing items will be paid by the household insurance.

A robbery is when someone threatens to use violence against you to take your personal items (money, mobile phone, keys). Household insurance covers this as well, no matter if you are robbed at home or when you are out.

One exception that is not covered by household insurance is simple theft when you are out. This is the case if someone takes your mobile phone or purse (without using the threat of violence) while you are out. In this case, the household insurance will only cover you if you have explicitly taken out supplemental insurance in advance in conjunction with the household insurance. The same applies if your bicycle is stolen. Items that are lost or misplaced are not covered by household insurance.

Our tip: It is a good idea to include ‘simple theft while out’ in your household insurance.

7. What is comprehensive household insurance?

Comprehensive household insurance can be concluded as a supplement to household insurance and generally represents an expansion of such insurance. In contrast to normal household insurance, comprehensive household insurance also covers damage to your personal items that you accidentally cause yourself. Thus, it is similar to private liability insurance, but for your own property. So if you drop your mobile phone, break an expensive vase or spill your coffee on your laptop, comprehensive household insurance will cover the costs. The risks of losing or misplacing items can also be insured. The insured sum is between CHF 2,000 and 30,000.

Learn more about the following types of insurance as well:

Building insurance
Construction insurance
Owner's insurance
Private liability insurance
Legal protection insurance
Life insurance