Many women reduce their working hours for their family. This results in larger gaps in retirement provision, leading to financial problems later on. Many women are not aware of this. Female readers, now is the time to take care of your pension. Read on for essential information, valuable tips and offers tailored to you.
Saving for retirement is still seen as a matter for men in many families. Women often leave topics such as savings products and risk cover to men – even though they're more likely to work in part-time roles and therefore to need to start saving for retirement early. After all, during an extended baby break, there is no money to put into a pension fund. The same applies to part-time workers who do not reach the minimum pension fund salary of roughly CHF 22, 050 a year.
The result: many women have very little to live off in their own pension fund once they reach old age. They are worse off in retirement – but, statistically speaking, they have a higher life expectancy.
What you need in your situation
The reasons women are faced with pension gaps are often the same. However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the problem. How do you start saving early? What types of insurance are the most important in the event of an emergency?
Which of these profiles sounds most like you?
The following five profiles show women in different professional and private life circumstances. Pick the one that most closely resembles your own situation. Each one has individual tips and product suggestions from our pension professionals.
About Melanie
- 35 years old
- Married
- Two children
- Lives in a terraced house
- Works part-time as a teacher
Because Melanie’s children are now at school, she has returned to work as a teacher on a 70% basis. She is actually interested in saving for retirement but simply has not 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 wants to put money aside for her children’s future and, for that reason, does not want to take any risks.
This insurance product makes most sense for women like Melanie
Loss of earning capacity
First and foremost, Melanie should cover herself against any potential loss of earning capacity by taking out life insurance and closing any gaps betweens benefits from social insurance (IV) an occupational pension insurance (UVG, BVG). 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 cover with life insurance with potential tax savings, i.e. payments into pillar 3a.
Death
On a smaller scale she should also ensure cover in 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.
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Read more You can find more tips and offers tailored to women in similar life situations to Melanie in the insurance brochure “Protecting your family”. |
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About Susanne
- 42 years old
- Single
- No children
- Lives in a rented property
- Works full-time in HR
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 these offers the best return. She is prepared to take a certain amount of risk when investing.
This insurance product makes most sense for women like Susanne
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. 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 – for early retirement too for instance. 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 with our lucrative and sustainable investment plan “Tomorrow Invest”.
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Read more You can find more tips and offers tailored to women in similar life situations to Susanne in the insurance brochure “Invest your assets with confidence”. |
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About Tessa
- 30 years old
- Single mother
- Lives in a rented property
- Part-time receptionist
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 freedom, she would like to put 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 like Tessa
Provident insurance package with all-round comprehensive cover
Because Tessa alone is 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 include the components loss of earning capacity, death and endowment benefit. The advantage of this insurance package is that Tessa will benefit from a combination discount on the individual solutions.
Pillar 3a
If Tessa’s budget allows it, then flexible saving with a pillar 3a is a possibility too. The maximum amount you can pay into a pillar 3a in 2023 is CHF 7,056. Tessa can decide how much and when to make payments into her pillar 3a.
Insurance plan for children
Tessa should also seriously consider arranging cover for her child too, to ensure any costs are covered should she fall ill or have an accident. An insurance plan for children makes twice as much sense: if nothing happens, the child can use the funds paid in to help support them when they begin living independently once they reach adulthood. If something should happen, the child will be well covered in the event of disability. That would not be the case otherwise, because under normal circumstances a child would only receive the most basic benefits under state disability insurance.
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Read more You can find more tips and offers tailored to single mothers in similar life situations to Tessa in the insurance brochures “Protecting your family” and “Saving for retirement”. |
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About Anja
- 18 years old
- Single
- No children
- Lives in a flat-share
- Student
Anja is a third-year apprentice in the pharmaceutical sector studying for her vocational diploma to prepare her for further study. 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 the classic savings account. She wants to remain independent and flexible when it comes to saving. And sustainability is 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 enthusiastic about creative ideas.
This insurance product makes most sense for women like Anja
Combined insurance benefit
Anja should use her young age as an opportunity to start saving for the third stage of life. At her age, taking out a combined insurance solution with the risks disability and retirement provision should not be a problem – and she will benefit from very low premiums. If Anja should become unable to work, she would receive a pension for loss of earning capacity within this insurance solution.
During employment Anja can take out a combined insurance solution as part of a pillar 3a. During her studies Anja can continue this insurance policy as free provident insurance (pillar 3b). If Anja cannot afford her premiums while studying, she can temporarily pause the insurance 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
If Anja wants to invest her savings too, that is something that could be very lucrative at her age. After all, historically, with such a long investment horizon, equity-based savings always generate positive returns. And since sustainability is a matter close to her heart, the “Tomorrow Invest” investment plan is perfect for her.
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Read more You can find more tips and offers tailored to young women in similar life situations to Anja in the insurance brochure “Pillar 3a and more”. |
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About Ursula
- 38 years old
- In a partnership
- No children
- Self-employed
Ursula lives with her partner and works as a self-employed physiotherapist. As 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 aside. She wants to finally get round to insuring risks like loss of earnings or death because she is alone in her company and has limited savings.
This insurance product makes most sense for women like Ursula
Pension fund
Because Ursula has a sole proprietorship without 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, then 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 this to compensate for her lack of 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.
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Read more You can find more tips and offers tailored to self-employed women in similar life situations to Ursula in the insurance brochure “Pillar 3a and more”. |
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What is your situation?
What is your personal situation? Find out with our pension calculator.