Who Pays the Adviser?
Good advice on private health insurance is worth a lot — the decision is long-term and hard to reverse. But advice is never free, and knowing how your adviser is paid helps you read it with the right amount of trust. In Germany two models dominate: the traditional commission-based broker, and the fee-based adviser (Honorarberatung). Neither is automatically better; they simply put the cost in different places and create different incentives.
The core distinction: a commission broker is paid by the insurer out of the policy, at no direct charge to you; a fee-based adviser is paid by you for their time and, in return, works with tariffs stripped of that commission cost.
The Commission Model
Most people meet PKV through a commission-based broker. You pay nothing directly; the insurer pays the broker a commission when a policy is concluded, typically spread over the early years and built into the tariff’s pricing. The advantages are accessibility and no upfront cost. The thing to be aware of is the incentive: because payment follows a concluded sale, it is worth choosing a broker who compares broadly and explains why a tariff fits you, not just that it is available.
Fee-Based Advice (Honorarberatung)
A fee-based adviser charges you directly — a fixed fee or hourly rate — and is not paid by the insurer for the sale. The appeal is independence: their income does not depend on you buying a particular policy, and they can access commission-free (Netto-) tariffs whose premiums are lower because the commission is removed. The trade-off is that you pay the fee whether or not you proceed, so it suits people who want demonstrably neutral advice and a complex situation worth the fee.
Questions Worth Asking Either Way
- How are you paid for this? A straightforward answer is itself a good sign
- How many insurers do you compare? Breadth matters more than the payment label
- Are you an independent broker or tied agent? A tied agent represents one insurer; a Makler is legally on your side
- What happens at claim time? Ongoing support, not just the sale, is part of the value
The Bottom Line
Commission and fee-based advice are two honest ways to pay for help with a genuinely consequential decision. Commission keeps advice accessible with no upfront cost; fee-based advice buys demonstrable independence and access to commission-free tariffs. What matters most in either model is an independent adviser who compares widely, explains the fit, and stays around for claims — so ask how they are paid, and let the clarity of the answer guide you.
Frequently Asked Questions
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