Paying for health insurance annually: early payment discount
You can pay your health insurance premiums on a monthly, semi-annual or annual basis. Comparis explains how to save money with prepayments.
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1. Paying for health insurance in advance: early payment discounts
Health insurance premiums in Switzerland have been increasing for years. This is placing a financial burden on many households. One way to save on premiums is the early payment discount.
There are various ways to pay your basic insurance premiums. Most people pay monthly. However, depending on your health insurer, you can also pay premiums semi-annually or annually in advance.
Many insurers offer premium discounts for particular payment plans – known as early payment discounts. In other words: if you pay your premiums in advance every six months or annually, you’ll receive this discount. Depending on the premium, this can definitely be worthwhile.
Discounts offered by health insurers for early premium payments
Here you can find the health insurers’ discounts for semi-annual and annual payments (list not exhaustive):
| Group or health insurer | Semi-annual payment | Annual payment |
|---|---|---|
| Agrisano | 0.5% | 1% |
| Aquilana | 0.5% | 1% |
| Assura | 1% | 2% |
| Atupri | 0.5% | 1% |
| Concordia | 0% | 0% |
| CSS | 0% | 0.25% |
| EGK-Gesundheitskasse | 0.5% | 1% |
| Groupe Mutuel (except Supra) | 0% | 0% |
| Helsana | 0% | 0.5% |
| KPT | 0.5% | 1% |
| ÖKK | 0.5% | 1% |
| Sanitas | 0.5% | 1% |
| Swica | 0% | 0.5% |
| Sympany | 1% | 2% |
| Visana | 1% | 2% |
3. Paying for health insurance in advance: tips
In order to unlock the full savings potential of discounts, prudent planning is important. Check at an early stage whether your budget allows for the advance payment of premiums. If you set aside a portion of your earnings on a regular basis, the semi-annual or annual payment option will be easier to manage.
Is it worth paying for health insurance in advance?
If you have the financial means at your disposal, it’s worth making a semi-annual or annual advance payment. Over several years, you can save quite a lot of money on health insurance premiums.
Suppose you pay a monthly health insurance premium of 300 francs. Your health insurer offers a discount of 2% for the annual payment of premiums. In that case, you save 72 francs each year. This might not sound like much at first, but it can pay off especially for families with several members.
Compare health insurance premiums
Compare both the premiums and discounts for early payment from different providers. This allows you to calculate which health insurance makes the most sense for you financially.
This article was first published on 28.09.2020
