Melanie’s situation

Because Melanie’s children are now at school, she has returned to work as a teacher on a 70% basis. While she would very much like to save for her  retirement, she simply hasn't got round to it.

Her needs: Melanie wants to put money aside for her and her children, on top of what her husband has. At the moment, she is partly covered by her husband. She also wants to save for her children’s future and, for that reason, does not want to take any risks.

This insurance product makes most sense for women in Melanie's situation

Loss of earning capacity
First and foremost, Melanie should protect herself against any potential loss of earning capacity and close any gaps between benefits from social insurance (IV) and occupational pension insurance (UVG, BVG) by taking out life insurance. If Melanie has an accident or gets sick, she will get a pension or a lump sum in addition to occupational benefits. This means she will be able to afford adequate household support and childcare, for instance. What’s more, Melanie can combine her life insurance cover with potential tax savings, i.e. payments into pillar 3a.

Death
On a smaller scale, she should also take out cover for the event of death so her husband can continue to pay for their home should the unforeseen happen. If she wants, Melanie can save an additional variable amount into her life insurance policy.

Susanne's situation

Susanne lives in a rented property and has been working full-time as an HR manager after a number of years spent studying. Because she has a good pension and has always only ever been responsible for herself, she has yet to sort out her retirement provision.

Her needs: Susanne is starting to worry that her chance to save for retirement is slipping away. She has done a little research and is now looking for a straightforward, sustainable solution. She is unsure which products suit her situation and which of them offers the best return. She is prepared to take a certain amount of risk when investing.

This insurance product makes most sense for woman in Susanne's situation

Pension fund
Because Susanne spent a long time studying and did not work very much during this time, there is a big gap in her pension savings. So, ideally, Susanne should buy into a pension fund now. Important: in Switzerland there are two types of pension fund: defined contribution and defined benefit funds. In the case of the defined benefit version, the pension is calculated as a percentage of the last salary. With the defined contribution version, the pension is based on the balance in the pension fund. Since most pension funds fall into the defined contribution category, Susanne should definitely look into the possibility of buying into a pension fund.

Pillar 3a
A pillar 3a would also make sense for Susanne. This is a tax-efficient way of saving for old age and for early retirement. If she should become unable to work, Generali will continue to pay in a maximum of CHF 3,000 a year up until her retirement.

Investment plan
If Susanne would like to invest a portion of the assets she has already saved, she would be well-advised to opt for our lucrative and sustainable investment plan "Tomorrow Invest".

Tessa’s situation

Tessa’s daughter is kindergarten age. They live in a small rented apartment. Tessa works part-time (50%) as a receptionist for a company. While she does not have a lot of financial leeway, she would still like to put some money aside – but is not sure how.

Her needs: Tessa bears sole responsibility for herself and her daughter. So she wants more financial security for both of their futures. But because she operates on a tight budget, Tessa is unsure whether that is even possible.

This insurance product makes most sense for women in Tessa's situation

Provident insurance package with all-round comprehensive cover
Because Tessa is fully responsible for her and her child, she would be well advised to opt for an insurance package that offers comprehensive protection. This comprehensive protection should income protection insurance, death cover and include an endowment policy. The advantage of this insurance package is that, as a package, it will cost Tessa less than the individual solutions.

PIllar 3a
If Tessa’s budget allows it, then she could also pay into her pillar 3 on a flexible basis to create savings. The maximum amount you can pay into a pillar 3a in 2023 is CHF 7,056. In this case, it would always be up to Tessa to decide how much and when to pay into her pillar 3a.

Insurance plan for children
Tessa should also seriously consider taking out cover for her child, to ensure that any costs associated with an illness or an accident are covered as well. An insurance plan for children provides double protection: if not drawn upon in the event of an accident or illness, the child will be able to use the accumulated funds to help them start out in life once they reach 18. And, if something should happen, the child will be well covered in the event of disability. Without this kind of cover, this would not be the case, because under normal circumstances, a child would only receive the most basic benefits under the state disability insurance scheme.

Anja’s situation

Anja is a third-year apprentice in the pharmaceutical sector studying for her vocational diploma in preparation for university. She lives in a flat-share and is supported financially by her parents. Anja knows that it is important to start saving for retirement but thinks she is still too young for that.

Her needs: Anja is looking for alternatives to classic savings accounts. She wants to remain independent and flexible when it comes to saving. And sustainability is also very important to her in this context. Before she takes out an insurance policy, she wants to know as much as possible about it. Anja is all in favour of creative ideas.

This insurance product makes most sense for women in Anja's situation

Combined insurance benefits
Anja should take advantage of her young age to start saving early for the third stage of life. At her age, it should be easy to take out an insurance package that includes disability cover and retirement provision – and benefit from very low premiums. If Anja should subsequently become unable to work, she would then be eligible for a pension for loss of earning capacity.

Once she is working, Anja would be able to keep this insurance package as part of a pillar 3a. And while at university, Anja can continue this insurance policy as a pillar 3b unrestricted pension plan. If Anja cannot afford her premiums while studying, she can temporarily pause the insurance plan and restart it again within 24 months without a further medical examination.

Flexible pillar 3a
If Anja is not ready to start saving at such a young age, then tax-privileged saving with the flexible pillar 3a is one alternative. In this case Anja would still benefit from an annual maximum savings contribution of CHF 3,000 in the event of a loss of earning capacity due to disability.

Sustainable investments
Another very lucrative option at this age would be for Anja to go on to invest her savings.  This is because her age would give her a very long investment horizon, which, historically, always generates positive returns. And since sustainability is a matter close to her heart, the “Tomorrow Invest” investment plan would be perfect for her.

Ursula’s situation

Ursula lives with her partner and works as a self-employed physiotherapist. As the owner of a sole proprietorship, she alone is responsible for all of her retirement savings.

Her needs: She knows finances in and out and knows that she needs to set more money aside. She wants to take out insurance to protect her from risks like loss of earnings and death because she is alone in her company and has limited savings.

This insurance product makes most sense for women in Ursula's situation

Pension fund
Because Ursula has a sole proprietorship without any employees, she has no second pillar – i.e. she has no pension fund. If she were to convert her venture into a limited company or a joint-stock company, she would have to join her company’s pension fund and would then gain access to its benefits.

Provident insurance package
Ursula would be well advised to opt for a provident insurance package with one or more life insurance policies. She can pay up to 20% of her salary subject to AHV contributions into these polices to compensate for her lack of a pension. This 20% is currently limited to a maximum of CHF 35,280 To cushion any fluctuations in income and stay flexible, our advice for Ursula would be to invest roughly 80% in a provident insurance package as part of a 3a solution with a constant premium and to invest the remaining 20% in a pillar 3a on a flexible basis.