Cancelling supplementary insurance: deadlines and premium rises

Two laws, two deadlines: supplementary is not basic

You can switch your basic insurance (KVG) as of 1 January if your cancellation reaches your current insurer by the end of November. Supplementary insurance, by contrast, is governed by the Insurance Contract Act (VVG): it is voluntary, subject to private law, and the notice period is considerably longer.

At most insurers, supplementary insurance ends on 31 December if the cancellation arrives by 30 September. So if you only think about switching in November, you have long since missed the supplementary insurance date. This is the most common pitfall of the switching season.

What the law says: revVVG Art. 35a

Since the VVG revision (in force since 2022), there has been a statutory safety net: every supplementary health insurance can be cancelled at the end of the third insurance year at the latest, and every year thereafter, with three months' notice, in text form. Even a contract with a longer agreed term can be ended this way.

Important for insured persons: in supplementary health insurance, the ordinary right of cancellation, like the right of cancellation after a claim, belongs only to you as the customer, not to the insurer. Your ongoing supplementary insurance therefore cannot simply be cancelled by the insurer with ordinary notice.

Text form means that, by law, an email is sufficient, for example. However, some AVB (general terms and conditions) still require a signed written cancellation. You are on the safe side with a signed letter sent by registered mail, which every insurer accepts.

Deadlines in practice: usually 30 September

What counts is the date of receipt, not the postmark: the cancellation must have reached the insurer by the cut-off date. If 30 September falls on a weekend, several AVB require receipt by the last working day before it, so build in some reserve.

Minimum terms differ from insurer to insurer: many products allow you to leave for the first time at the end of the first year, while some insurers bind you for three years. Some also count by insurance year instead of calendar year, in which case the contract anniversary is the date. The AVB of your product are always decisive.

Beware of linked products: at some insurers, cancelling the hospital cover automatically terminates other supplementary products as well. Before cancelling, check which types of cover are linked.

The safe order when switching

The golden rule: only cancel your existing supplementary insurance once you have the new insurer's written confirmation of acceptance. Unlike basic insurance, supplementary insurance has no obligation to accept: the new insurer reviews your health information and can add reservations or reject you. If you cancel first, you risk a gap in cover.

Allow for the whole chain: application, the new insurer's health assessment, the statutory 14-day revocation period, and only then the sending of the cancellation, which must arrive by 30 September at most insurers. For a switch on 1 January, this means: ideally apply by mid-August; from the beginning of September, the date can hardly be reached via the normal route.

When comparing, it pays to look at the benefits before the price: hospital, outpatient and dental cover differ greatly. At easyall, you compare supplementary insurance by cover, and the cancellation letter is created automatically with your application.

Cancelling after a premium increase

If your insurer raises the premium of a supplementary insurance, the cancellation right of basic insurance (Art. 7 para. 2 KVG) does not apply. Your AVB determine whether you can cancel because of the increase, by when and in what form; the adjustment letter states the deadline. Many AVB grant such an extraordinary right of cancellation. It can still allow you to leave even if the ordinary date has passed.

Without such a right, ordinary cancellation under Art. 35a VVG, described above, remains. Under Art. 103a VVG it also applies to contracts concluded before 1 January 2022; your AVB may allow an earlier date (Art. 35a para. 2 VVG).

The safe order described above applies after an increase too: first the new insurer's written confirmation of acceptance, then the cancellation.

If you miss the ordinary date and have no special cancellation right, you cancel as of the next date under the AVB, or you deliberately start the new policy earlier and temporarily bear two supplementary premiums for the transitional period. Basic insurance is not affected by this: the end of November still applies there.

Checklist: cancelling supplementary insurance with ordinary notice

This is how to proceed step by step, with enough reserve for each stage:

• Check the AVB: minimum term, cancellation date (calendar or insurance year), required form, linked products.
• Compare new supplementary insurance by benefits and submit your application in good time: by around mid-August for the common date of 30 September.
• Wait for the new insurer's written confirmation of acceptance; never cancel before then.
• Let the 14-day revocation period pass.
• Send the cancellation signed and by registered mail, with receipt by the insurer by the date in the AVB, usually 30 September.
• Keep the confirmation of receipt of your cancellation; the new policy starts without a gap on 1 January.