When we arrived in 2021, we had to pay insurance before our children entered into school, and to show proof of the insurance.
Now it is more than a year later, and neither my partner nor I remember seeing anything about renewing the insurance - no notices, bills, requests from school, and such.
Likewise, nothing about the car or the house. How does this work? Is it on us to verify whether we are still covered? Will the insurance company notify us before going out of coverage (this is more common in other countries we have lived in)?
I can certainly ring up our agent, but before doing so, I want to make sure that I am not worrying about nothing.
It normally rolls over from period to period and the only action you need to take is if you want to end it. Then you should also look carefully at the notice period you have to give and any time frames. They can often catch you out and you end up rolling onto the next period. Probably the best thing you can do is to call them directly so you are 100% sure.
Thank you. So it's an automatic rollover? I'll have a look and see if it was debited from the account and just missed by us. Still, I would've thought an email or posted receipt would be in order.
Is there a reason you have an insurance agent? I've not found any benefit in going through one, and by not having one, I don't have to deal with their sales pitch for me to buy some fancier deal. Instead, I always deal directly with the companies with which I am insured, and ensure that I get all the regulations and documents sent directly to me.
It's hard to say for sure without knowing what insurance and what your contract says.
But in general, as with many things in Switzerland, the company might ask you for money simply after providing the service. The contract is what's binding and then the party who's owed money will move to collect.
You contract probably says something like "Client pays 100chf every year and is insured. Unless one of two parties cancels the contract before xx of November, then the contract is extended by another year". You know you are insured, and the company will collect the money at their pace
It can of course be that your contract is for a fixed time only and the company is not saying anything cos from their perspective it's all over
Our insurance agent works directly for the company we are insured through and was helpful in getting us set up, as we were handling multiple moves, and a variety of other things at the same time.
We actually priced our auto insurance through several different online companies (including hers), and when all was done, she came through with a price about 100 francs cheaper than our best online quote, and she's yet to hit me with a sales pitch of any sort.
This was our biggest fear, but as a bill arrived yesterday, which was a surprise, about which I guess that I am relieved.
I forget that every time I finish at the doctor, that the bill will come, as elsewhere I'm asked to settle up, although our vet was funny. We left without paying, and never saw a bill, and then four months later, he called and asked for payment. It was a non-issue as we paid immediately when he called. He says he gets so excited about his work that he forgets the billing sometimes.