Premiums Rise, in Steps
PKV premiums increase over the years, driven by medical cost inflation, longer lives and low interest rates on the reserves. The rises do not come smoothly. Legal rules mean a tariff can only be adjusted when a defined threshold is crossed, so premiums tend to hold flat for a few years and then jump, which makes any single year’s increase a poor guide.
Why Averages Mislead
- Sector averages hide spread: a market-wide average blends stable tariffs with poorly performing ones.
- Step changes distort snapshots: a tariff that jumps this year may have been flat for three, and vice versa.
- Old tariffs skew the picture: closed legacy tariffs often show the worst rises and colour the headlines.
- Your entry age matters: the reserve built from your starting age shapes your own path.
Judge the tariff, not the sector: the number that predicts your future is the multi-year increase history of the specific tariff you would hold, smoothed across the step changes, not a market average from a headline.
Reading a Real Record
Ask an insurer or broker for the increase history of the exact tariff over ten to twenty years, and look at the compound rise across that whole period rather than any single jump. A tariff with a moderate long-run record from a well-reserved insurer is worth more than a cheap opening premium from a tariff with a volatile history. This is the single most useful figure in choosing PKV, and the hardest to get from an advert.
Frequently Asked Questions
Compare PKV Tariffs for Your Situation
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