Life Insurance Companies - Germany

I did search the archives but found nothing on this subject... Any info on reliable life insurance companies would be appreciated. Any first-hand experience?

thx

I got private insurance with Deutsche Kranken Versicherung. Also known as DKV. I was very pleased with the coverage they offered. If you have any questions feel free to PM me.

Life Insurance (Lebensversicherung) is not the same as Health Insurance (Krankenversicherung).

DKV provide health insurance, not life insurance.

I misread the post. However, health insurance companies do offer some kind of life insurance, usually.

I've been in "the business" for 20 years (10 in the UK, 10 in Germany) and if you know what you want (not always the same as what you need), then the best deals are to be had from the direct (i.e. no agent) companies, e.g. Europa, Cosmos, Hannoversche. Lots of info in the net. This is very general advice of course. Your personal circumstances, the strength of the companies blah, blah warnings apply...

Is there a good German version of those UK comparison sites for Lebensversicherung?

Let me google that for you, JE

Gee thanks for that. How silly of me.

However with 563,000 results I was kinda hoping somebody here would know the BEST one?

Didn't mean to be a smartass. The top link from the search seems to work pretty well. You could also PM Starshollow and ask him for advice.

In the UK for instance I would always just use MONEYSUPERMARKET.COM and the 1st one I tried here took a bunch of my details and offered no results so narked me off a bit!!

Actually looks like Cosmosdirekt.de mentioned in another post does exactly what I need and seem pretty damn cheap. My wife got a quote from our normal insurance bloke, but didn't sound like a great deal - and kept trying to flog us extra savings crap I don't want of course. Also he apparently denied the existence of "Berufsunfähigkeit" although I suspect that was just lost in translation (even though of course wife and insurance bloke both 100% German!!).

I did email Starshollow but actually I think cosmos will be the boys.

I agree - Europa is very good.

there are two ways to tackle this when looking for life insurance:
a) typical German ones where the premium (monthly contribution) is computed in such a way as to remain stable for the entire duration. To this regards, EUROPA, Hannover Leben etc are good choice and you can go directly or thru an independent broker
there are also a few insurances available where the premiums increase every year by age. Thus you start much lower when younger (because risk is lower, too) and end up paying more when much older. Since in many cases you'll only need the coverage until children are out of the house on one hand and on the other hand you'll certainly hope that your income increases over time, this is something many people find more interesting - but you usually won't find it online. Just go to an independent broker and let him/her help you in finding the best solution for you.

An independent broker would also be very advisable if you have had any major medical problems (including psychotherapy) in recent years, if you are a smoker or overweight and/or with high blood pressure or cholesterol. In any such a case the selection process becomes more complkicated and expert advice would be recommendable...

Cheerio

Also the question :what do you want life insurance for?Does your partner need it?Could you use one together on a mutual basis?(can save money).Do you need one with a decreasing death benefit (eg buying a house with a mortgage)?Would you require a payout before you die if you were seriously ill?Do you need one coupled with occupational disability?As Starshollow says,expert help -and not only lists on paper- is required!