Disability income insurance

An illness or accident can permanently reduce your income. Finwise helps you calculate the real gap between social benefits and expenses, then choose a pension adapted to your situation.

What is it?

Protection against lasting income loss

It pays a pension or benefit when illness or accident reduces your ability to work and earn a living.

Mandatory?

Only certain social bases

Disability insurance is mandatory, but private cover, daily sickness benefits, voluntary accident insurance or supplementary pension depend on your status.

Key point

Illness often creates the biggest gap

Many people are better covered for accidents than for long illness, burnout or psychological conditions.

Incapacity cover diagram

Protect income if working capacity falls lastingly.

  1. Form Annuity or capital By costs and horizon
  2. Critical Policy definition Medical and occupational criteria
  3. Core Income replacement Fixed costs and family
  4. Base Cover already in place Map LAA, LPP, daily benefits

The definition of incapacity and waiting periods matter more than marketing.

Why protect your income?

Disability income refers to a total or partial loss of the ability to generate income following lasting damage to physical, psychological or mental health. It can result from illness or accident.

In Switzerland, disability insurance, occupational pension, accident insurance and daily benefits can intervene, but rarely in perfect coordination. The real question is simple: how much is missing to pay rent or mortgage, family costs, health premiums, taxes and everyday expenses?

Cover
What it does
Common limit
DI1st pillar
Examines a pension in case of lasting impairment, particularly after significant and prolonged incapacity for work.
Capped pension and disability threshold; it does not always finance the waiting period.
Occupational pension / accident insuranceEmployees
Occupational pension supplements disability insurance if you are affiliated; accident insurance covers occupational and sometimes non-occupational accidents.
Accident insurance does not cover illness; occupational pension depends on salary, employment rate and regulations.
Daily benefits / private pensionSupplement
Closes the income gap in the short or long term depending on waiting period, duration and insured pension.
Health questionnaire, exclusions, waiting period and coordination with social benefits.

The calculation to make

Monthly expenses - Expected benefits = Gap to insure

The right pension is not necessarily the highest. It must cover the real gap without paying for unnecessary or hard-to-coordinate cover.

Illness or accident: the difference is essential

Une assurance-accidents ne protège pas contre une maladie grave, un cancer, un burnout ou une atteinte psychique. Pour ces situations, la protection dépend surtout de l’DI, de la LPP, d’une éventuelle indemnité journalière maladie et d’une rente privée d’incapacité de gain.

For self-employed people, the gap can be very large: no mandatory occupational pension, no automatic salary continuation and not always voluntary accident insurance. Without organised cover, income can drop as soon as the work stoppage begins.

Private pension or daily benefits?

Daily sickness benefits are mainly used to get through the first months or first two years of absence. They can replace part of income during the critical period before a possible disability insurance decision.

A private disability income pension targets the long term. It pays regular income when your earning capacity is durably reduced. Depending on the insurer, the pension can start from a certain degree of incapacity, with a waiting period chosen at signing: 3, 6, 12 or 24 months for example.

Common pitfalls

Gaps often come from confusion between covers.

Thinking accident insurance is enoughIt covers accidents, not illness.
Waiting for disability insuranceDisability insurance intervenes late and only if conditions are met.
Waiting period too shortIt increases the premium if your reserves or daily benefits already cover the short term.
Imprecise questionnaireA medical omission can create exclusion or dispute at claim time.

I already have cover: what should I check?

Check your pension certificate, accident insurance status, salary continuation, employer daily benefits, 3a/3b contracts, waiting period, pension amount, psychological illness exclusions and premium waiver. The goal is to avoid overlaps and gaps between short and long term.

Who should do a review?

A review is a priority for self-employed people, founders, liberal professions, part-time employees, people with several employers, families with a mortgage, high earners, couples dependent on one income and cohabiting partners.

L’analyse doit aussi être coordonnée avec l’assurance vie, le pilier 3a, le pilier 3b et votre stratégie de retraite.

With Finwise

We calculate the gap first, then the pension

We start from your income, expenses, pension certificate, accident cover, daily benefits, family status and projects. Only then do we compare pension, waiting period, exclusions, taxation and flexibility.

Finwise Assurances partner logos

Coordinate your income protection

Disability income protection is prepared with the other pension building blocks.

Understand the three pillars Occupational pension and pension fund Life insurance Pillar 3a

Calculate my income gap Understand the three pillars See life insurance

Let’s talk about your needs

Tell us about your situation in a few lines. A Finwise adviser will contact you to clarify your options and compare suitable solutions.