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Not a job, but a personal loan

Not a job, but a personal loan

The current times are difficult and not a few people are becoming unemployed. At the same time, many of them have a personal loan to run and are now wondering how they can continue to service it. There are the following options.

High credit and suddenly lost your job?

Even if it is not a real estate loan that creates debts, a personal loan of CHF 30,000 can also be a problem if suddenly unemployment occurs and the installments can no longer be paid.

Now it is important to act quickly, because talking to the bank or the lender is always the first step in solving the problem. Some banks offer a deferred payment and suspend the installments. Then only the interest has to be paid, the repayment portion can sometimes even be suspended for several months.

A new payment plan is usually negotiated for the time after the deferred payment, because now the term of the loan is extended. This, in turn, is associated with higher costs in terms of interest, which the borrower makes as minus by the deferment.

Also important: if you are already in arrears with your installment payments, you will receive a specific code from the Central Office for Credit Information (ZEK). All borrowers are listed here anyway, so that information about the creditworthiness of the applicant can be obtained when applying for a loan again or for other reasons.

If a lender reports a so-called slow payment, this is noted and the person concerned receives the code in his profile. The code remains even when the loan is fully paid off and is an important reference for other lenders. The creditworthiness is permanently deteriorated, it becomes much more difficult to get a personal loan or a lease.

Hence the tip: It is essential to ensure that there is no slow payment in the first place! Borrowers should definitely seek a conversation with the bank in good time and ask for possible solutions.

Replace credit as an opportunity?

Theoretically, there is the possibility that the current loan will be replaced by a cheaper loan if this is significantly cheaper or if the installments can be adjusted downwards according to your own financial possibilities. This is really only possible in theory, because if you are unemployed, you will not get another personal loan.

When taking out a loan, it should therefore always be assumed that only around 70 percent of the income is available due to sudden unemployment. The installments should then still be payable! It is therefore worthwhile as a borrower to insure yourself in the event of unemployment, which is possible through residual debt insurance.

However, not all banks and financiers offer this type of protection. Other providers only insure certain risks such as incapacity for work due to illness or due to an accident. Unemployment is often not insured here. Tip: It is essential to read the details in the small print, the exclusions from residual debt insurance are listed here.

As long as there is no unemployment and the financial means are available, more than the actually agreed rate can be paid back. This allows the borrower to get a head start that allows them to skip an installment payment.

It is important, however, that there is no delay in relation to the actual underlying payment plan. Additional payments even lower the interest costs because the loan can be paid off more quickly and interest is usually only calculated on the basis of the outstanding amount.

Conclusion: If you are unemployed, quickly look for personal loan solutions

In the event of sudden unemployment, the borrower should quickly look for possible solutions if a personal loan is running. You just did not get into arrears, this is a corresponding note at the ZEK, whereby the entered code remains even after the repayment and permanently deteriorates the creditworthiness of the person concerned.

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Home office poses new threats to SMEs

Home office poses new threats to SMEs

Traditional working models were valid until Corona came. Now other solutions are being looked for in order to work more flexibly and independently. But at the same time new dangers for companies and their employees develop.

Higher risk to devices

The home office has its advantages and offers working with more personal responsibility and significantly more flexibility. At the same time, insurance companies are critical of this trend, as they assume that the devices used in the home office are exposed to significantly greater dangers.

As early as the spring of 2020, around half of all employed people in Switzerland were working from home, some of them permanently, others were limited to hours or days a week. The reason was the adopted corona protective measures, which the companies had to bow to and which meant that new working models had to be used. Digitization and workplace models, which are now more diverse than ever before, experienced a significant boost. Quite a few employees appreciated this type of work, at the same time many companies can come to terms with it. It can therefore be expected that the home office will also be used much more heavily after Corona than before.

In surveys, around 41 percent of those questioned even stated that they were significantly more productive at home, and around 34 percent wanted to work at home even after Corona. The environment is quieter here, there are fewer distractions from colleagues and everyday life can be better integrated into professional life. According to the insurers, all this means that the devices provided by SMEs in the home office are significantly more at risk than in the regular office. This is especially true for employees who work in the home office, but use a locked office space there, but are surrounded by family and pets.

Great need for security

By switching to the home office, companies quickly had to ensure that technical gaps were closed and that standard digital tools were used. In addition, employees had to be given access to the company's devices and technologies from home, which meant an additional intrusion into corporate security. Private devices were connected and used, which served neither the current security regulations nor the effectiveness. Not everything was and is compatible, so that many employees in the home office face new challenges every day.

The need for security has grown significantly in companies, especially since more and more phishing attacks were detected on the companies during the first lockdown. Fraudsters tried directly to take advantage of the circumstances and gain access to the computers via fake emails. However, it is not the devices that are the biggest problem, but rather the people, because they are still too lax about safety regulations.

If you don't handle your mail carefully, you can open the door to the company for fraudsters. Many companies now have security checklists for their employees so that they can orientate themselves on them when it comes to IT security. Very important: Family members should not have access to the computer that belongs to the company and on which the employee works. With every additional person as a user, the security risk would increase.

Conclusion: Home office is practical, but risky

Both companies and employees benefit from the home office and its possibilities for concentrated, quiet work. Nevertheless, the security risk is significantly greater here, especially since many users at home are less strict with the company's security guidelines.

Potential attackers can gain access to the network more easily because the devices at home have to connect to the devices in the company, insecure passwords are used or the e-mails of the supposed colleagues (in truth the fraudsters) are not handled carefully enough becomes. The shared use for private and professional purposes also makes the computer more vulnerable to attack. For these reasons, IT insurance coverage must be clarified separately for devices that are used in the home office.

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Swiss: New services in travel insurance

Swiss: New services in travel insurance

In view of the ongoing Corona situation, the airline Swiss has something new in store: It has added additional services to its travel insurance. These relate to Covid-19.

New offers from Swiss

As before, the travel insurance packages issued by the insurer AIG apply to the Swiss airline. They include travel cancellation and interruption insurance. Now additional services have been added that can be booked by the insured. The insurer's offers apply to all passengers who fly with Swiss or who travel with Australian Airlines or with Lufthansa as the parent company. 

The option for travel insurance is called? Travel Care? and is aimed at passengers who can fly but then have to be in quarantine because they have been found to be infected with the corona virus. The insurance then not only covers the medical costs for the treatment of the disease, but also bears the costs for any return transport of the passenger to Switzerland.

The travel insurance option can be booked by all passengers who are resident in Switzerland, Austria or Germany. The advantage for Swiss customers is that the insurance gives them greater planning security. Together with Lufthansa, Swiss tries to take away the guests' fear of traveling.

Travel flexibly without additional costs

The airline is offering passengers more flexibility with the new travel insurance policy, especially as there are no rebooking fees. To this end, all tariffs and the entire tariff structure will be converted by the end of 2020. Since the end of August, all tariffs with Swiss can be rebooked without additional fees, although this is also possible several times. A one-time rebooking was even possible in spring directly after the outbreak of the corona pandemic, but this could not be done multiple times.

Swiss in crisis

The background to the frequent considerations about how passengers can be accommodated is that Swiss has plunged into a serious crisis. Only a few customers have booked trips in 2020, after all, travel to almost all parts of the world had to be stopped or was and is associated with great difficulties. Sometimes only five percent of all aircraft were still on the move, the rest of the fleet had to stay on the ground.

The costs for the aircraft continued, however, the airline's operating loss is now around CHF 414.7 million. Only within the first nine months of the year! Since another quarter will follow, significantly higher losses must be expected, because an end to the current situation is currently not in sight.

In the summer months, Swiss tried to rebuild some of its offerings, and in some cases it succeeded better than expected. But since the middle of August, the travel restrictions have increased again and made any progress made by the airline and all other companies and tourism companies disappear again. In the meantime, Swiss has announced that there will be an austerity program. Among other things, the following measures are planned:

    • early retirement of employees
    • Hiring freeze
    • Part-time models
    • partial wage waiver by employees

In the next two years, Swiss would like to cut up to 1,000 jobs, although no layoffs have been discussed so far. However, the above-mentioned measures should nevertheless allow a gradual reduction in staff.

The airline's success will depend on how the health situation in Switzerland and around the world develops and how politicians react to this and what measures are taken to restrict corporate activities.

Conclusion: Swiss offers a new component in travel insurance

The airline Swiss offers an additional Covid service through its in-house insurer AIG. This involves financial support for passengers who have to be quarantined at their destination due to an infection with the virus. In addition, the return trip of the person concerned is financially secured through the insurance. Furthermore, multiple rebookings are currently possible, so that travelers do not have to accept any financial losses if they cannot fly.

 

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Legal protection insurance: Big differences among insurers

For whom does life insurance make sense?

Big differences among insurers

Finding the right legal protection insurance can be a mammoth task. The following tips will put insured persons on the right track in the future and show what should be considered when choosing an insurer.

For whom does life insurance make sense?

Tips for finding the right legal protection insurance

The differences between the providers of legal protection insurance are great and not all providers are really recommendable. Different premiums, notice periods and service restrictions are the basis and should be taken into account when choosing. The following points are important when choosing the right legal protection insurance: 

    1. premiums
      The premiums are extremely different depending on the legal protection insurance. For an individual you have to calculate between 150 and 350 Swiss francs, and legal protection costs between 60 and 150 francs.
      Usually traffic and private legal protection are combined in one package and cost up to CHF 500. Family insurance is often more expensive, but young policyholders can expect lower premiums.

    2. Personal legal protection
      This includes various areas of law that can affect a private person. The providers, however, come up with large differences in performance. In addition, not all of them really cover every area of law. Here it should be determined what is individually important and the insurers should be carefully examined.

    3. Motorist
      This only covers the areas of law relating to participation in road traffic. Driving under the influence of alcohol is not covered by the insurance.

    4. Advisory legal protection
      Here, too, there are big differences between the providers. Legal advice is usually only included in the services to a limited extent and is capped at a maximum amount of CHF 500. Given the high cost of a lawyer, that's a tiny amount.

    5. Free choice of lawyer
      Many legal protection insurances stipulate that the lawyer can only be hired through them. However, the insured can usually suggest a lawyer. The insurance company has the right to refuse this and can in turn make specifications. A completely free choice of lawyer is rarely possible.

    6. Coverage amounts
      Legal protection insurances not only differentiate in terms of coverage, but also in benefit regions. Switzerland, Europe and the world are three different regions in which insurance benefits can take hold. There are differences in the coverage of legal protection insurance depending on the region. In some cases, up to a million francs are covered, but other insurers severely limit their cover. For an insured event in Europe, the amount of cover can even be limited to CHF 30,000.

    7. Minimum contract term
      Often the insured should be given a multi-year contract. However, the minimum contract duration should not exceed one year, otherwise it is difficult to get out of the contract if you are dissatisfied. In most cases, the first possibility of termination is only available at the end of the minimum contract period. Even those who no longer need the contract are not likely to get out of it.

    8. Waiting periods
      In the event of legal disputes, it is no longer possible to quickly take out legal protection insurance and hope for the benefits of the insurance. Usually a waiting period is required. The insurance then only pays the legal costs when the waiting period is over. Therefore, the following applies: No payment for existing disputes!

Conclusion: find the right legal protection insurance

Finding the right legal protection insurance can be a gamble. A comprehensive insurance comparison should take place before taking out the insurance so that it does not necessarily become one. Above all, fixed contract terms, premium amounts and benefits should be compared here. These differ greatly depending on the provider and can therefore be to the advantage or disadvantage of the insured.

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Life insurance without a 100 percent premium guarantee

What can you insure, what can't

Life insurance without a 100 percent premium guarantee

The German neighbors shout out indignantly: A life insurance without premium guarantee, where can you get it? This has long been the practice in Switzerland and nobody is upset about the announcement of the alliance.

What can you insure, what can't

German insurer shocked? but not the Swiss

As the largest life insurer, Allianz shocked the Germans: There should no longer be any guarantee of premiums paid! What caused an outcry among the people in the northern neighbors has long been so in Switzerland and is no longer even worth asking. There are no lifelong guarantees on contributions and interest here anyway, and that is how it should be for life insurances in Germany in the future. 

After the savings phase has ended, there is no longer any guarantee that at least the contributions paid will be paid out. The regulation affects all new Allianz customers and is intended for both life and pension insurance. Only 60, 80 or 90 percent of the contributions paid up to then are guaranteed.

In Germany one speaks of breaking a taboo, but in Switzerland insurers have been acting in this way for a long time. The reason is simply that the phase of low interest rates has lasted for so long and insurers can no longer make a profit with commitments on premiums and high interest rates . Changes in the pension market have been noticeable since 2015, as the Swiss Allianz subsidiary? Allianz Suisse? The product range has therefore been adapted and the guarantees are only given between 50 and 90 percent. Gone are the days when up to four or even five percent interest could be collected without any risk.

Other insurers are also going this way

Various insurers in Switzerland state that life insurance is definitely a challenge that, under the prevailing conditions on the capital market, is no longer possible at the previously promised attractive returns. Gross premiums can no longer be guaranteed and this is not a new feature. 

This regulation is an advantage for the insurer as, thanks to the lower guarantees, he can gain more leeway, especially in the case of risky asset classes. He invests the money more in stocks and similarly more volatile investments, which have a higher risk of loss, but at the same time also offer better potential for returns.

The customers in Switzerland don't mind, they are used to it now. The classic life insurance of yore has long ceased to exist here, even if it was not an issue in Germany until recently to act in this way. It was clear to experts that things couldn't go well there for long either. 

In Switzerland, mixed life insurance in the third pillar is the most common form. On the one hand, savings are made here for old-age provision, on the other hand, death and disability are to be covered as the greatest risks. The focus is on protecting the bereaved, saving and risk protection should be combined. 

However, this has been viewed critically for years, because the products are only flexible to a limited extent and the associated life insurance policies are not very transparent. In addition, the customer has to determine how he wants to use the service in the future at the conclusion of the contract, which is hardly possible since nobody knows his life situation in a few years.

Conclusion: life insurance is not guaranteed

Even if the German neighbors stomp outraged and complain to Allianz: Life insurance, as it used to be, will no longer exist thanks to the ongoing low interest rates. The insurers no longer take any major risks and cover a maximum of 60 to 90 percent of the premiums. 

For the insured, however, this means that in the worst case scenario, they will incur losses and not even get back the contributions they have paid in. In Switzerland, however, this is no surprise, where insurers have long been operating in this way.

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Applying for a bridging loan: it costs nerves!

Applying for a bridging loan: it costs nerves!

Up to now, one family lived in a small house, but due to the addition of the family, something bigger was needed. The new house has to be financed, but the money is still in the old house. The bridging loan helps!

Why is a bridging loan necessary?

The example mentioned again in more detail: A family lives in a village in their own house. It will be too small, but a new house can be found quickly. And in the same place too! Now everything has to go very quickly so that the new object can be saved. The problem is that a large amount is required as equity. This, in turn, cannot be raised because it is in the property that has been inhabited up to now. It can take weeks or months until this is sold.

What helps is a bridging loan. The Lombard loan can be taken out, for example, if cash, collateral or securities are available and can be used. The terms of a Lombard loan are usually negotiable. Some banks even read to themselves and top up an existing mortgage. This is also a bridging loan. This is usually only possible if the existing property has already largely been paid off and if it has perhaps increased in value in the meantime.

The property serves as security

In principle, it is possible for a property to be used as security for a loan for another property. The bank will always ask for a mortgage note for the first property. This mortgage certificate must be ordered from the land registry. Important: If the existing mortgage is to be topped up, the applicant's financial situation must be examined again. Just because his creditworthiness has once been rated as good does not necessarily have to apply when topping up the mortgage.

In order to achieve this goal, a clever negotiation with the bank is necessary, although not all banks are eligible for a bridging loan. Some are rather skeptical about the wish for an increase and do not allow over-lending. It is therefore always important to prepare the documents that are required for a loan well so that the conversation with the bank can go as desired. In some cases, the borrower must then also undertake to sell the first property within a fixed period.

According to the banks, it is not so rare for one property to be taken as security for a bridging loan. The reason: If a property has to be sold first so that the next one can be paid down, there is a time gap that cannot be filled easily.
It becomes just as complicated when older people (60+) are looking for a new house that meets the requirements of age-appropriate living. In this case, they also need a bridging loan. However, experts estimate that around 40 to 50 percent of property purchases fail because the bridging loan has not been approved or because there are problems with it.

Tips on bridging loans

The time between the decision for a new property and the necessary financial clarification is nerve-wracking. The following tips will help protect your nerves:

    • Good preparation
      The better prepared someone goes into negotiations with the bank, the easier it will be to talk about a bridging loan.

    • Meet deadlines
      Necessary deadlines must be met, but borrowers should avoid going into long deadlines with a bridging loan. For the bank, the bridging loan is a normal mortgage and should be treated as such.

    • Fair interest
      The bridging loan is designed individually, but it may not be granted at horrendous interest rates. Be sure to compare with other loan offers!

Conclusion: The bridging loan makes dream homes come true

But that only applies if it can be concluded on the best terms. Otherwise, the only winner is the bank, which enjoys high interest rates and the security of the old property. It is important to reflect carefully on your own situation and to look for ways to keep the bridging loan as low as possible. It is also possible to top up the current mortgage in order to use the bridging loan to buy the new property. In addition, nobody should get involved in unfavorable conditions with a bank, nobody is tied to their previous bank for a bridging loan.

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Many Swiss are not adequately covered by household insurance

Legal protection Start of validity

Many Swiss are not adequately covered by household insurance

Many Swiss think that they are sufficiently covered by household insurance. But they are actually underinsured and thus exposed to a considerable financial risk in the event of an insured event.

Legal protection Start of validity

No adjustments to home contents insurance in recent years

As far as their household effects are concerned, the Swiss seem to be a very risk-taker. After all, around two thirds of the Swiss have not made any adjustments to their home insurance in the last five years. Since experience has shown that many new items are purchased within such a long period of time and that there is a significantly higher value in the household, the lack of adjustment in the insurance means a high risk. 

Those affected are underinsured, which can have serious financial consequences. In the event of damage, they will not get everything replaced and have to accept significant reductions in the actual value of their household effects.

Surveys by various comparison portals have shown that around two thirds of Swiss policyholders have insufficient insurance. There is always underinsurance if the agreed sum from the insurance is lower than the actual value of the respective items. If damage occurs to the entire household (for example due to fire or a burst water pipe), only part of the necessary sum will be reimbursed. This in turn means that the difference to the actual value has to be borne by yourself.

Satisfaction with home insurance has increased

According to the surveys, the Swiss are quite satisfied with their home insurance. They give a grade of 5.2, with the German-speaking Swiss being even more satisfied and giving higher grades. At the same time, however, it is also the German-speaking Swiss who are the least likely to adjust their home contents insurance; almost 70 percent of them missed adapting their home contents insurance to the values actually found in the household in the past year. 

At the same time it is noticeable that the Swiss are not changeless. You don't want to be insured with one insurance company one year and with your competition the next year. Rather, value is placed on continuous cooperation and long-term partnerships. At least, as long as the price is right, because increases in home insurance premiums are not only viewed critically, but also punished with terminations.

The Swiss are so satisfied with their home insurance that they say they would recommend it to others. The lack of adjustment of the insurance level in home insurance is mainly due to the fact that most people simply forget that such an insurance also requires a minimum amount of attention. And if it is only the insurance comparison that provides information as to whether other providers offer cheaper insurance, with which the insurance cover is still given in the desired amount.

Conclusion: underinsurance can be expensive? Adjustments necessary!

Unfortunately, it is still the case that a large proportion of the Swiss are underinsured in household insurance. Because despite the recommendations to carry out an annual check of the values of a household and to adjust the contents insurance accordingly, many citizens continue to have an insurance taken out in this form. New furnishings and valuables are purchased, but they are not insured. 

However, if the sum insured is too low, it means that there is a risk of high financial damage in the event of damage. If a defective water pipe floods the apartment, home contents insurance can only compensate for the damage that is also insured. However, if an expensive piano, several paintings and other things that significantly increase the value of the facility have been purchased since the contract was signed, you may be underinsured. The result: The insured person is left with part of the damage.

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New opportunities for digital adaptation of animal insurance

New opportunities for digital adaptation of animal insurance

Digitization is also finding its way into animal insurance and has made it possible for the first providers, for example, to make a new, simple product selection possible. This makes it easier for pet owners to find the right product.

New products and better choices possible

The world of the internet also makes life easier for dog and cat owners. They can now find out about products such as health insurance for their four-legged friends, but also about tailor-made solutions. What is good for one does not necessarily have to be right for another! Therefore, there are now much more efficient offers in the Internet world of animal insurance. 

The question of what the common denominator between all dog and cat insurances was, was the key to achieving a more efficient system. Customers now only need to provide a little information and are guided directly to the products that are most suitable for them. This means that consultation hours are superfluous, and hours of reading about the advantages and disadvantages of individual insurance components are also an end.

After entering the required information, the modern insurance tool can offer tailor-made products. This means that the selected insurance or the corresponding product is precisely tailored to the needs of the animal to be insured and its owner. The innovations make it easier for the pet owner to choose the right insurance, and under- and over-insurance are rented out.

Digital tools lead to the right insurance

The animal insurance specialists who are developing the new tools have used the digital tools available to them. In doing so, they took the specific problems that a pet has as a basis and created their solutions from them. For example: a cat that is outside all day is at different risks? Accident and illness? exposed as a cat kept as an indoor cat only. Owners of cats can now decide which variant to choose when choosing the product in question. 

Based on the selection of the specific risk, further questions are asked and the appropriate selection can be made. According to this selection, the insurers are able to offer new services and display specific prices.

What sounds so simple and obvious is not at all in practice. Comprehensive and complex algorithms have been designed here that operate on the principle? If x, then y? function. The data required for this has been collected over the past few decades and has now been meticulously evaluated.
Not only should customers be offered better and tailor-made solutions for their four-legged friends, the insurers are also interested in staying up to date. Customers' expectations of comprehensive service are increasing, as are their demands for contemporary insurance for their hairy family member.

Conclusion: New insurance solutions thanks to modern technology

Modern technologies are also making the insurance industry more effective and efficient. The reason: New tools make it possible to determine insurance coverage individually. This is based on the specific risks that individual pets have. It is therefore taken into account whether the animal in question has a rather risky life or whether it is rather unlikely that it will come into contact with accident or illness triggers. 

Based on this assessment, customers and pet owners can make their selection and are shown tailor-made products that cover precisely the necessary risks. On the one hand, this prevents risks from being insured that are out of the question for the individual animal. On the other hand, the insurance cover is also adjusted in height to the special needs of each animal.

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Extension of fitness subscriptions due to lockdown

Extension of fitness subscriptions due to lockdown

Many fitness studios are also struggling with the corona lockdown and cannot offer any training. You have extended the subscriptions that are already running for the time of the lockdown. But there are also black sheep.

Is the fitness subscription credited only when it is renewed?

The mindset of gyms that are not acting on behalf of their members is simple. You credit the lockdown time, but not directly to the current subscription. Rather, the credit is only issued when a new fitness subscription is redeemed. This is a significant disadvantage for the customer because he was unable to train during the lockdown. 

The money for the subscription had already been paid, which means that a service that was not provided had to be paid for. The logical conclusion that even good and reputable fitness studios have drawn: They extend the term of the subscription by the time of the lockdown. The black sheep, however, did not proceed in this way and rather let the current subscription expire. Anyone who did not want to extend was thus left empty-handed.

The argument of the fitness studios, which presented themselves as not very customer-friendly, was that they would also suffer from the consequences of the lockdown. By crediting an extended subscription, they wanted to mitigate the economic consequences a little or spread them over a longer period of time. But that is not legal, because this is where the law of obligations applies. 

This right states that a loss is to be reimbursed if a service could not be provided. Various legal experts have commented on this in the past and stated that this would only be different if the general terms and conditions of the fitness studio provided for a correspondingly different regulation. Then it would mean that the full amount would be owed even if the service could not be provided in full. If this formulation was not to be found in the studio's terms and conditions, the procedure for crediting an extended subscription described above is also not permitted.

Few black sheep

According to surveys in Swiss fitness studios, it was found that only a few would act to the disadvantage of their customers. Most would extend the current fitness subscription by the time of the lockdown and would not see any restrictions here. Especially since another idea of a studio violates the Code of Obligations. Only four weeks of the eight-week lockdown were taken into account, which means that half of the services not provided were still calculated.

Still other studios had a completely different idea. They asked their customers whether they would be willing to forego renewing their subscription and thus support the studio. Many customers showed their solidarity and agreed to refrain from requests for an extension. 

Some athletes who belong to the defined risk groups do not want to train again even after the lockdown because they are afraid of infection in the gym. The studios offer that their break can last longer and that the fitness subscription can even be extended by the corresponding time. However, not on mere acceptance, but the customers concerned would have to provide a doctor's certificate showing the assignment to a risk group. Sometimes it is even possible that the break lasts longer if the athlete himself does not belong to a risk group, but if he lives with a person at risk. 

Conclusion: Most fitness studios are accommodating

The lockdown forced athletes to take a break, they could no longer train in the gym. The necessary break was taken into account by the fitness studios on the current subscription, so that this lasted longer. Few black sheep among the providers wanted to offer the extension only if the fitness subscription is extended. 

However, this approach does not correspond to current law and contradicts the law of obligations. The only exception: if a corresponding regulation can be found in the fitness studio's terms and conditions, the extension can be waived due to the lockdown.

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P2P Lending, Business Lending, Crowdlending: Easy Loans For Personal?

Tips for household contents and personal liability insurance

P2P Lending, Business Lending, Crowdlending: Easy Loans For Personal?

Various providers in Switzerland grant loans to companies and private individuals. Who the individual decides for when taking out a loan varies from person to person and depends on several factors.

10 tips household and personal liability insurance

Personal loans as a simple solution

If you need a loan in Switzerland, you go to a bank with your request and submit the corresponding application there. Personal loans can also be applied for digitally or via an online provider, with a classic lender behind the loan or a crowdlending platform that is not dependent on a specific bank. 

No borrower has to specify a purpose here, so it does not matter whether the loan is used to buy a car, a new kitchen or for the planned vacation.

Whether the requested loan is granted at all depends on how the applicant's creditworthiness is rated. How big is the chance that he will actually pay back the borrowed money in the given time? The banks use a kind of catalog of criteria for this and obtain information from a credit agency. 

The Central Office for Credit Information is well informed about people's creditworthiness! After this assessment, the personal loan can be determined in terms of amount and term as well as the conditions. In this respect, the creditworthiness not only influences whether the applicant gets a loan at all, but also how good his conditions and especially the interest rates are.

Crowdlending as an alternative

In Switzerland there are now several different platforms on which crowdlending loans are possible. This form of credit is also known as P2P credit and describes the internet-based granting of loans.

Put simply: There is a larger group of private individuals who invest an amount X. This is put together and given to a person as a loan. Such loans also go to companies, although the sums can be very low. The crowdlending platforms are the intermediaries where the two partners involved come together. Loan seekers present their projects and give the lenders the opportunity to assess the project as lucrative or as a potential loss-making business.

If the lender decides to invest his money in a project, he will receive interest on the repayment. Important: Here, too, collateral is required and the loans must of course be repaid in full and with interest. The advantages of crowdlending are obvious:

    • simple online application possible
    • also possible with bad credit ratings
    • quick decision on the loan application
    • different loan amounts possible

However, crowdlending also has disadvantages such as absurdly high interest rates, a high rejection rate for apparently unprofitable projects and often a lack of transparency in fees.
Nevertheless: For many people in Switzerland, P2P loans have become a good way of raising money for certain projects in recent years. 

Even if banks classify these projects as not very promising and do not want to grant a loan, crowdlending may still find lenders who are interested in further developing the idea in question. It is not for nothing that the crowdlending sector recorded very high growth from 2018 to 2019!

Conclusion: Different types of credit for different target groups

In addition to the classic personal loan from the bank, which can also be applied for online, crowdlending is now an interesting alternative in Switzerland. The loan seekers are given the opportunity to present themselves and their project and to look for investors. These decide on the amount of their participation in a project and are given a return accordingly. 

If it turns out that the borrower is not solvent, the previously requested collateral can be attached. Crowdlending is sometimes considered to be riskier, but there are also loans available here that would not be possible with a bank. The latter first sees the creditworthiness of the applicant and only then pays attention to the possible lucrative value of the project in question, with crowdlending it is often the other way round.

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