Optimising Family Security: A Practical Guide for Comprehensive Protection
22 Apr 2025
6
Minutes
Katrin Straub
Managing Director at nextsure
The responsibility of a family is significant, and unforeseen events can quickly become a financial burden. Learn how thoughtful family protection provides essential security and why state benefits are often not enough. This article presents specific steps and practical solutions.
The topic in brief and concise terms
State benefits such as disability pensions or survivor's pensions are often insufficient to maintain a family's standard of living; private provision is essential.
A term life insurance and a disability insurance are key components to protect the family from the financial consequences of the main earner's death or inability to work.
Regularly reviewing and adjusting family protection to changing life circumstances, at least every three to five years, is essential for seamless coverage.
Laying the Foundation: Essential Insurances for Every Family
Every family needs a basic shield against everyday and existential risks. Private liability insurance is an absolute must here, as it covers you or a family member if you cause damage to others. Damages can quickly lead to costs in the millions, particularly in the case of personal injury. Health insurance is already legally required for every person in Germany. For families, the free co-insurance of children and, if applicable, the spouse in statutory health insurance is often an important pillar. These basic insurances form the first crucial foundation of your family protection. However, to be truly comprehensively protected, further components are necessary.
Secure loss of income: The term life and occupational disability insurance
The loss of an income is significant, especially when children or mortgage payments are involved. A term life insurance policy is crucial to fill the financial gap in the event of the main earner's death. Ideally, the insurance sum should amount to three to five times the gross annual income. Equally important is the disability insurance (BU). Statistics show that less than every second German family (43 percent) is insured against disability, although every fourth worker may be affected during their lifetime. In 2020, the state disability pension averaged only around 870 euros per month, which is often not enough to live on. A private BU secures your income if you can no longer work for health reasons. These two insurances are central to ensuring your family's standard of living over the long term.
Quick Facts on Family Protection: The Essentials at a Glance
For a quick overview, we've summarised the key points of family protection. These serve as an initial guide for your personal planning.
Statutory benefits often insufficient: Disability and survivors' pensions usually only cover the bare minimum.
Private liability insurance is fundamental: Protects against the financial consequences of personal, property, and financial damage caused by you or your family.
Term life insurance secures dependents: Essential for mortgages or if a main earner becomes unavailable.
Occupational disability insurance protects earning capacity: Compensates for income losses due to prolonged illness or accident. Fewer than 47 per cent of families with children have this protection.
Consider children: From co-insurance in health and liability policies to special child protection.
Regular review: Life circumstances change – adjust your insurance cover every three to five years.
These points highlight the necessity of proactively engaging with this topic. In the following section, we delve deeper into practical examples and expert advice.
Practical examples and calculations: Making the needs explicit
Theory is good, but only concrete examples make the need for family protection tangible. Imagine a young family with two children and a mortgage of 300,000 Euros. If the main earner with a net income of 3,000 Euros is no longer able to work, the average widow's/widower's pension of about 55 percent of the last net income (often less for young decedents) is hardly enough to cover the mortgage and living expenses. A term life insurance policy with a sum of at least 250,000 Euros would be essential in this case. Disability insurance should cover at least 75 percent of the net income as a monthly pension. For the main earner in this example, that would be 2,250 Euros monthly. Many underestimate that even the loss of the parent who is not working or only working part-time creates a financial gap, as costs for childcare or household help can arise, which quickly exceed 1,000 Euros per month. Therefore, a careful analysis of one's own situation is essential to determine the correct insurance sums.
Additional components: From child disability to legal protection
In addition to fundamental protections, there are other crucial components for the comprehensive safeguarding of your family. A child disability insurance policy provides benefits if your child becomes permanently disabled due to illness or accident, and can help cover the often lifelong additional costs of several tens of thousands of euros annually. A funeral expenses insurance can also be advisable to cover the average burial costs of between 7,000 and 10,000 euros and prevent placing extra financial burden on the bereaved. A family legal protection insurance offers financial support in legal disputes, the costs of which can quickly reach four-figure amounts. Additionally, consider whether a nursing care insurance supplement is relevant for you or your parents, as the statutory nursing care insurance often only covers a portion of the actual care costs, which can be up to 4,000 euros monthly in a care home. These additional elements individually round off your family protection.
Recommended Actions: Your Checklist for Optimal Family Protection
A comprehensive family protection plan requires a structured approach. This checklist will help you assess your current situation and identify areas for improvement:
Conduct a needs analysis: Record all your monthly expenses, ongoing loans, and future financial goals (e.g., children's education). Plan for at least the next 15 to 20 years.
Review existing contracts: What insurance policies do you already have? Are the sums insured still up to date and appropriate for your life situation (e.g., after the birth of a child or purchasing a property)?
Adjust/Take out term life insurance: Ensure the sum is sufficient to cover all financial obligations for at least five years in the event of an emergency.
Check/Take out occupational disability insurance: Is the agreed pension high enough (at least 75 percent of net income)? Are both partners, if both are employed, insured? Read more about the benefits of occupational disability.
Optimise personal liability insurance: Does it cover all family members? Is the coverage amount sufficient (at least ten million euros)?
Provide specific protection for children: Consider options such as children's disability or accident insurance.
Don't forget pension planning: Also think about the survivor's pension and your own retirement provision to close gaps in old-age coverage.
Utilise professional advice: An expert can help identify individual gaps and find tailor-made solutions.
These steps will help you build a robust protection plan for your family and look to the future with peace of mind.
Conclusion: Proactive family protection for a secure future
Family security is an ongoing process that requires regular attention. State benefits often provide only basic protection, typically under €1,000 per month in emergencies. A combination of personal liability, term life, and disability insurance forms the cornerstone of solid provisions. Complementary components such as child invalidity or legal expenses insurance offer additional, individualized protection. The most important step is to take action and honestly assess your situation. Use the information and recommendations provided here as a basis. For detailed planning tailored to your needs, nextsure is available as a competent partner. Request your individual risk analysis now: Have your insurance situation checked free of charge and receive specific optimization suggestions.
More useful links
Statistisches Bundesamt provides comprehensive information on living conditions and the risk of poverty in Germany.
Statistisches Bundesamt offers publications on family consumption expenses in Germany.
Statistisches Bundesamt provides up-to-date data on expenses for children in Germany.
Statistisches Bundesamt provides information on income, revenue, and expenditure in Germany.
Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung presents selected at-risk-of-poverty rates in Germany.
Wikipedia offers an article on the family benefits balance in Germany.
Wikipedia contains an article on parental allowance in Germany.
Wikipedia explains the child supplement in a dedicated article.
Wikipedia describes family insurance in Germany.
FAQ
Warum ist eine Familienabsicherung so wichtig?
Eine Familienabsicherung schützt Ihre Liebsten vor den finanziellen Folgen unvorhergesehener Ereignisse wie Krankheit, Unfall, Berufsunfähigkeit oder Tod. Staatliche Leistungen sind oft unzureichend, um den Lebensstandard zu halten oder Kredite zu bedienen.
Welche Rolle spielt die Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung bei der Familienabsicherung?
Sie sichert das Einkommen, falls ein Elternteil aus gesundheitlichen Gründen nicht mehr arbeiten kann. Da laut Statistik jeder Vierte berufsunfähig wird und staatliche Hilfen gering sind, ist sie existenziell.
Was deckt eine Risikolebensversicherung ab?
Sie zahlt im Todesfall der versicherten Person eine vereinbarte Summe an die Hinterbliebenen. Dies hilft, laufende Kosten, Kredite oder die Ausbildung der Kinder zu finanzieren.
Benötigen beide Elternteile eine eigene Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung?
Ja, idealerweise sollten beide Elternteile, sofern beide zum Familieneinkommen beitragen oder wichtige unbezahlte Familienarbeit leisten (z.B. Kinderbetreuung), eine eigene Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung haben. Der Ausfall jedes Elternteils kann finanzielle Lücken reißen.
Wie oft sollte ich meine Familienabsicherung überprüfen lassen?
Es wird empfohlen, die Familienabsicherung alle drei bis fünf Jahre oder bei wichtigen Lebensereignissen (z.B. Geburt, Heirat, Immobilienkauf, Jobwechsel) zu überprüfen und anzupassen.
Was ist der Vorteil einer professionellen Beratung zur Familienabsicherung?
Ein Fachexperte kann Ihre individuelle Situation analysieren, Versorgungslücken aufdecken und ein maßgeschneidertes Absicherungskonzept erstellen, das optimal auf Ihre Bedürfnisse und finanziellen Möglichkeiten abgestimmt ist. nextsure bietet Ihnen hierzu eine kostenfreie Risikoanalyse.
