Topic Consumer protection Life insurance
Life insurance provides cover related to the insured person’s biometric risks such as death, long life, occupational incapacity and invalidity.
A life insurance contract sets out the insurance benefit to be paid to the policyholder or other beneficiary in the contractually agreed insured event – usually the death of the insured person during a specific time period (for example in the case of term life insurance) or their survival up to a certain date. A popular form of life insurance is endowment insurance, which provides benefits in the event of the death or survival of the insured person. This is also available as unit-linked life insurance.
Private pension insurance is another form of life insurance. This insurance guarantees either life-long pension payments or a lump-sum payment when the insured reaches retirement age. If the insured dies before reaching retirement age, it can be agreed that their surviving beneficiaries receive at least the premiums paid or an agreed death benefit.
Funeral expenses insurance can be taken out to cover funeral costs in the event of the insured’s death. The insurance benefit is referred to as a funeral benefit (Sterbegeld). Funeral expenses insurance is normally provided by funeral expenses funds (Sterbekassen) in the form of small mutual insurance associations.
