Disability insurance

Disability insurance is worthwhile for everyone: young or old, employed or self-employed, families or individuals. After all, a disability will always mean a gap in the household budget. The benefits from state and occupational retirement provision are usually not sufficient to maintain the accustomed standard of living. With disability insurance, you at least protect yourself and your loved ones from financial worries following a stroke of fate.

Illnesses are the most common cause of disability, accounting for 81 percent of cases. Of these, mental illnesses (49 percent), diseases of the bones and musculoskeletal system (12 percent) and nervous disorders (9 percent) account for the largest share.

Accidents account for 6 percent and birth defects for 13 percent of the causes of disability.

Further information can be found in the [info sheet "AI statistics 2021" (german version)

A person is considered unfit for work if they can no longer carry out the following activities due to illness or an accident:

• their job
• other reasonable gainful employment
• a familiar activity such as childcare or household chores

A person can be fully or partially unfit for work. Zurich's disability insurance pays pension benefits starting from a degree of disability of 25 percent.

You will receive a pension with a degree of disability of 25 percent or more. The pension is based on the degree of your disability. You will receive your full pension in the event of a degree of disability of 66.6 percent or more. You will receive the pension until your standard retirement at the latest. However, you can choose how long the insurance should last.

Your health insurance will only pay your medical bills; it won't pay any compensation for a shortfall in income. To cover this income shortfall, you can take out daily sickness benefits insurance. However, this only pays daily allowances for a maximum of two years. After that, you won't receive any more benefits.

It is after these two years that the disability insurance kicks in. This pays you the agreed pension until your standard retirement at the latest. You can choose the term for yourself.

You should contact us after the agreed waiting period, but after no more than six months. You can report your case online.

Disability insurance (DI) covers the costs of retraining under the following conditions:

• The insured person can no longer perform their previous role.
• The insured person can now only perform their previous role with greater difficulty.
• The DI also covers the costs of retraining in the previous occupation.

For more information, see the OASI website.

In the event of a disability, you receive a disability pension from the 1st pillar. The amount of the pension depends on your degree of disability. You likewise receive a disability pension from the 2nd pillar. The level of the pension depends on the retirement provision plan of your pension fund. If you have children, you will also receive a disabled person's child's pension. In addition, you will be exempt from the obligation to contribute. That means that you no longer have to pay into the 2nd pillar yourself. The pension fund pays the contributions for you so that your retirement assets continue to accumulate.

Life is beautiful as long as we remain healthy. Unfortunately, we cannot rule out strokes of fate such as illnesses or accidents. If you want to protect yourself and your family financially in the event of an emergency, you need to take precautions early on.