Compare the Swiss personal liability insurance premiums and service ratings and get the best free quotes. Compare personal liability insurance now on Financescout24.
The insurance premiums are updated daily. Last text update: 8.9.2024.
Insurance for financial liability to third parties
Personal liability insurance is an insurance that covers all or part of the cost of a legal liability claim against you when the claim results from an accident. The insurance company can exclude legal liability resulting from certain activities. Legal liability for damages or injuries that you deliberately inflict are not covered by personal liability insurance.
Swiss laws (and foreign laws, in other countries) define the situations in which you are legally liable to compensate another party for injuries and damages. Legal liability claims do not necessarily need to be decided by a court of law, although larger claims often are.
Legal liability can be as simple as being required to compensate a friend for damaging their stuff, or as complex as compensating multiple injured people for estimated lifelong losses in earnings.
No. You are not legally required to have personal liability insurance. That sets personal liability insurance apart from third-party liability car insurance, which is mandatory for vehicles that use public roads, and occupational liability insurance, which is mandatory for certain professionals.
Insurance premiums for Swiss personal liability insurance start at around 50 Swiss francs per year, but can be as high as several hundred francs per year.
It is important to compare personal liability insurance offers based on your specific profile and needs.
Factors that can influence the cost include:
You can choose between an insurance policy for an individual, and an insurance policy for a family.
An individual policy covers:
A family policy costs more, but also covers:
Yes. However, geographical limitations may apply to certain types of coverage. For example, coverage for legal liabilities resulting from covered self-employment may be restricted to Europe.
The limits on liability coverage between insurance providers, and ranges between 3 million and 10 million Swiss francs. Most insurance companies let you choose between several options.
Special limits that are lower than the policy’s sum insured can apply to certain coverages, such as coverage for claims that go beyond legal liability.
Yes, there are certain situations in which Swiss insurance providers cover claims even though you are not legally liable to pay for damages.
For example, you are not liable to pay for damages caused by people who are incapable of good judgment (young children, for example) as long as you as their caretaker performed your due diligence obligations. But Swiss personal liability insurance providers typically cover these damages.
The easiest way to find out whether or not you are legally liable for a damage or injury is to claim on your personal liability insurance. The insurance company will then tell you whether or not you are actually legally liable.
Swiss insurance providers often let you choose between a selection of different insurance deductibles when you get personal liability insurance. The deductible you choose will apply to each individual claim you make. The insurance company only covers the portion of liability costs that exceeds your insurance deductible.
Deductible options vary between insurance providers, ranging between zero and 500 francs. The higher your insurance deductible is, the lower the annual insurance premium you pay will be.
Some insurance offers have separate insurance deductibles for certain kinds of claims. For example, even if a policy has a zero-franc deductible, it may have a higher insurance deductible specifically for damages to rented homes (200 francs per claim, for example).
There are no limits on the number of times that you can claim on your Swiss personal liability insurance. The insurance company has the right to withdraw from the insurance agreement every time it pays out a benefit, but in practice this only happens in exceptional cases.
Insurance companies have the right to reduce the benefits they pay out if damages or injuries result from gross negligence. This could be the case, for example, when you leave a stove unattended and a resulting fire damages your rented home.
All Swiss personal liability insurance providers let you add an optional insurance rider that waives their right to reduce benefits in the case of gross negligence.
Your legal liability for damages or injuries caused by your dependent children is covered.
If you have an individual policy, then your children are only covered while they are staying with you.
If you have a family policy, your children are permanently covered, even when they are living away from home (in a boarding school or shared apartment, for example). This applies until your children either become employed (excluding apprenticeships) or reach the age of 26.
You normally are not legally liable for damages caused by children who are incapable of good judgment, as long as you have met your due diligence obligations. However, Swiss personal liability insurance providers generally cover these damages anyway. This coverage for damages for which you are not legally liable is limited to a relatively low sum insured (several thousand francs, for example).
Yes. Accidental damages to a rented property are covered by Swiss personal liability insurance. You can find detailed information in the guide to liability insurance coverage for rented homes.
In the distant past, Swiss bicycle users were required to get special third-party liability insurance for bicycles and mount a plaque proving their insurance coverage on their bicycles. That is no longer the case, and today, damages and injuries to third parties resulting from the use of bicycles are covered by Swiss personal liability insurance.
Liability for accidents caused by using e-bikes is covered if the bike has a maximum speed of 25 kilometers per hour and no more than 500 watts of power.
From stray balls smashing windows to collisions on the ski slope, many sports come with a risk of injuring other people or damaging property.
Most sports are covered by personal liability insurance, but insurance providers generally exclude certain high-risk sports. Sports that are commonly excluded from coverage include:
Some insurance providers offer optional insurance riders that cover these activities. If you need to insure a specific sport or activity, make sure to compare offers and use an insurance that has the coverage you need.
Swiss personal liability insurance covers injuries or damages to third parties by certain pets, including dogs and cats. Liability for injuries to animals that you temporarily take care of for other people are also covered.
Horses are generally excluded from coverage, though some insurers let you add optional coverage for horses. Dangerous animals (poisonous snakes, for example) are also commonly excluded, and here too, some insurers offer optional coverage for dangerous animals for an extra premium.
Liability for injuries to borrowed horses and damages to borrowed riding tackle is normally excluded. Many insurance providers have an optional personal liability insurance rider that covers this risk.
You can find more information in the guides for pet owners and horse riders.
Damages and injuries to third parties caused by cars you drive are covered by the car’s third-party liability insurance, and not your personal liability insurance.
Damages that you inflict on a car that you borrow are generally not covered, but all Swiss personal liability insurance providers give you the option of adding a special insurance rider for damages to borrowed cars. A handful of insurance providers also include damages to rented vehicles in this coverage.
Swiss personal liability insurance covers your legal liability as the owner of a building that you live in which has a maximum of three apartments in it.
Apartments in condominiums or co-owned apartment buildings require separate liability insurance for buildings. However, personal liability insurance may cover the portion of liability claims against you that are not covered by the building’s liability insurance.
Liability resulting from self-employment activities is covered as long as your income from a specific activity does not surpass a certain threshold (typically 25,000 francs per year).
Self-employment activities that which may either be covered by the basic insurance or by optional insurance riders include:
A few insurance providers also offer coverage for liability resulting from your employment in the civil service, fire department, military, and police department.
Accidental damage to the environment is covered if it occurs suddenly and is not foreseeable before it occurs.
No. You can insure against the costs of legal action and court cases using legal insurance.
However, personal liability insurance does provide a legal service because the insurance company tells you whether or not you are actually legally liable for claims made against you by third parties.
Yes, liability for damages to borrowed or rented items is typically covered, though exclusions generally apply. For example, damages to borrowed or rented cars generally are not covered, unless you add a special insurance rider that covers this risk. The same applies to borrowed or rented horses.
As a general rule, liability for damages or injuries that are caused deliberately are not covered by Swiss personal liability insurance.
Damages caused by young kids and other people who are not capable of good judgment are an exception to this rule. They may be covered within the limitations of coverage for damages that you are not legally liable for, even if they were committed intentionally.
Because you cannot be legally liable to yourself, your personal liability insurance does not cover damages or injuries to you or other people who are insured by the same insurance policy.
If you want to get insured against the risk of accidentally damaging your own property, you can do this by getting household insurance with the supplemental household casco insurance rider for accidental, self-inflicted damages.
No. Although many insurance providers bundle personal liability insurance with household insurance, these are in fact two completely different kinds of insurance.
Personal liability insurance covers your legal liability for accidental damages and injuries to third parties.
Household insurance covers your own possessions against theft and damage.
As a general rule, having personal liability insurance is a good financial move. This is especially true if you travel, play risky sports, have an active social life, own pets, or otherwise engage in activities that carry a risk of creating legal liabilities.
Many Swiss landlords require you to have personal liability insurance in order to be eligible to rent their property. Having this insurance as a renter is generally advantageous because the likelihood of damaging your rented home is relatively high.
What is more, the premiums you pay for personal liability insurance are relatively low.
If you live with other someone else (a parent or a romantic partner, for example) who already has a personal liability insurance that covers their whole household, then getting your own liability insurance is not necessary.
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