Reminder

What is a reminder?

A reminder (Mahnung) is your health insurer’s written request to pay a bill that is due. In health insurance it concerns two kinds of claims: the monthly premium and the co-payment, i.e. the deductible and retention fee that the insurer bills you for after treatment. The reminder is the first step in a procedure laid down by law that can lead to debt enforcement.

In basic health insurance this procedure is precisely regulated because the insurance is compulsory: the insurer cannot simply exclude you if you do not pay. Instead, the law gives it a fixed sequence of steps and at the same time protects you from certain consequences. For example, the insurer may not offset your benefits against unpaid premiums.

Different rules apply to supplementary insurance. There the reminder is governed by the Insurance Contract Act (ICA), and the consequences are much harsher: the obligation to pay benefits can be suspended for as long as you do not pay. It is therefore worth checking carefully with every reminder whether it concerns basic or supplementary insurance. The insurer must send reminders for basic health insurance separately from other arrears.

How it works

The premium is payable in advance, usually monthly (more on this under premium payment). If a payment is missing, this procedure applies in basic health insurance:

1. Reminder: The insurer must deliver the reminder no later than three months after the due date. Many insurers first send an informal payment notice.
2. Demand for payment: After at least one written reminder comes the demand for payment. It gives you a grace period of 30 days and informs you of the consequences.
3. Debt enforcement: If you still do not pay within the grace period, the insurer must initiate debt enforcement. A person may be subject to debt enforcement at most twice per calendar year for their own arrears and twice for the arrears of a child.
4. Certificate of unpaid debt and canton: If debt enforcement ends with a certificate of unpaid debt (Verlustschein), the insurer reports the claim to the canton. The canton covers 85% of it; the debt to the insurer, however, remains.

Costs can be added to the outstanding amounts. The insurer may charge default interest of 5% per year on premiums that are due. If your late payment has caused additional work, it may charge processing fees if its regulations provide for this. Debt enforcement costs may also be added.

The most important consequence for you concerns switching insurer. From the time the reminder is delivered you are considered in default. As long as premiums, co-payments, default interest and debt enforcement costs are outstanding, you cannot switch basic health insurance. If you give notice anyway, the insurer must inform you that the notice has no effect if the amounts in the reminders are not paid in time.

Legal basis

The procedure is set out in Art. 64a of the Federal Health Insurance Act (KVG). Para. 1 requires at least one written reminder and a grace period of 30 days before the demand for payment. Para. 2 obliges the insurer to initiate debt enforcement and limits it to two debt enforcement proceedings each per calendar year. Para. 4 governs the canton’s assumption of 85% of the claims for which a certificate of unpaid debt has been issued, para. 6 the switching ban for insured persons in default, and para. 7 the cantonal lists.

The details are set out in the Health Insurance Ordinance (KVV). Art. 105a KVV sets default interest at 5% per year. Art. 105b para. 1 KVV requires the reminder no later than three months after the due date and separately from other arrears; para. 2 allows processing fees within the maximum amounts set by the Federal Department of Home Affairs. Art. 105c KVV prohibits offsetting benefits against unpaid premiums. Art. 105l paras. 1 and 2 KVV specify when you are in default and when notice of cancellation takes effect despite arrears.

For supplementary insurance, Art. 20 ICA applies: the reminder sets a deadline of 14 days from dispatch. If it is unsuccessful, the insurer’s obligation to pay benefits is suspended from the end of this period. If the insurer then does not take legal action to collect the premium within two months, the contract is deemed terminated under Art. 21 ICA.

Example: premium reminder and switching insurer

Lara, 34, lives in the city of Zurich and pays CHF 453.90 a month for her basic health insurance. This is the median premium of all 128 offers for her year of birth with a CHF 2,500 deductible and accident cover (premiums 2026, municipality of Zurich, region 1, adults; source FOPH). Because she changed bank accounts, the premiums for September and October remain unpaid.

What this means for you

React to every reminder immediately. First check whether the claim is correct: does it concern basic or supplementary insurance, is it a premium or a co-payment, and was a payment perhaps allocated incorrectly? Your insurer’s statements of benefits show which co-payments have been charged to you.

If you cannot pay everything at once, ask your insurer for an instalment plan before debt enforcement is initiated. If you are entitled to a premium subsidy, check whether it has been applied for; it is paid directly to the insurer and reduces your bill.

If you are planning to switch, pay all outstanding amounts by October at the latest. Then you will not have an open reminder before 30 November. You can find the dates under deadlines, next year’s offers in the premium calculator and the insurers with their data under health insurers.

Common mistakes

• Ignoring reminders. After the demand for payment, the insurer must initiate debt enforcement. A debt enforcement entry remains visible even if you pay later.
• Having arrears shortly before switching. A single premium with a reminder can make your notice for the end of the year ineffective.
• Confusing basic and supplementary insurance. In supplementary insurance, cover is suspended 14 days after the reminder; a payment for basic health insurance does not help there.
• Believing the insurer will stop paying altogether. In basic health insurance, benefits continue as long as you are not on a cantonal list.
• Transferring payments without a reference. Without a reference number the insurer cannot allocate the payment, and the reminder procedure continues.