Stiftung Warentest
Care is expensive, not everyone can afford a good one in old age – Warentest recommends this daily care allowance insurance
care costs. If you want more than the minimum, you have to dig deep into your own pocket.
© PhotoAlto / Imago Images
Those in need of care are at best wealthy, because good care is expensive. Daily care allowance insurance can help cushion the high costs. But that has to be paid for first. Stiftung Warentest has checked which policies can pay off.
The human body is a wear part, and everyone gets to feel that at the latest when they get older. The older a person gets, the more likely it is that at some point they will need the help of others. That can quickly add up, maintenance is expensive. Many cannot afford their own care needs and are dependent on support from family or state. If you want to protect yourself against this case, you can take out additional private insurance. But this has to be financed first. Stiftung Warentest has fought its way through the jungle of daily allowance insurance and checked which policies can be worthwhile.
Not being able to afford the care you want in old age is not a good prospect for the future. But often that is exactly the case. Daily care allowance insurance, if it is the right one, can close this financial gap. As soon as a degree of care is determined, the insurance pays an agreed sum daily or monthly. The money is not performance-related and can be used at your own discretion. Not only is the minimum of care covered, but those affected can also afford certain extras that make their life easier.
Daily care allowance insurance – expensive and difficult to plan
The problem: Not everyone can afford to take out such expensive supplementary insurance. Payments are sometimes made over decades, and the contributions also increase over the course of time – and this is unpredictable for the insured. “Insured persons pay the contributions for life, often even if they themselves are in need of care,” according to the Stiftung Warentest. It is rarely possible to pause the daily care allowance insurance. And if you cancel the policy, you throw the money you have invested in the wind – the money is then gone. Stiftung Warentest therefore advises against taking out daily care allowance insurance too early. At best, you shouldn’t wait until the first health problems appear. Depending on the state of health, it can even happen in the worst case that the provider rejects those who are willing to take out insurance.
For the test of 24 insurance companies, Warentest assumed that the policy was taken out at the age of 55 and that the monthly premium was around 115 euros. The stated maximum sum, which is paid monthly, applies to the highest level of care. The PG from Hansemerkur was the most convincing. The insurance benefits are generous and more than completely cover the financial requirements defined by Stiftung Warentest at 113 percent. Up to 2784 euros are paid monthly. What the policies from Allianz, DKV and Huk Coburg offer is also decent. They compensate for more than 85 percent of the demand. The SDK performed worst. Insured persons can count on a maximum of 1000 euros per month.
You can find a comparison of all insurance policies and an overview of the benefits to which everyone is entitled for a fee test.de