PKV Knowledge Base

Expert guides on German private health insurance for English-speaking expats, freelancers, and professionals.

29
Articles
12
Topics
2026
Updated
PKV Guide
GKV or PKV: A Decision Framework That Actually Helps

A practical framework for choosing between GKV and PKV in Germany, built around income, health, family plans and how long you will stay.

PKV Guide
Moving House Within Germany: What It Means for Your PKV

What moving house within Germany means for private health insurance — the admin to update, why the premium usually stays the same, and the regional factor that can change it.

PKV Guide
Health Insurance vs Occupational Disability: Why You Need Both

Why health insurance and occupational-disability insurance (Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung) do different jobs, and why professionals in Germany usually need both.

PKV Guide
Reading a PKV Angebot: How to Compare Two Private Quotes Properly

How to read a German private health insurance quote (Angebot) and compare two offers fairly — beyond the headline premium to benefits, reserves and long-run cost.

PKV Guide
How PKV Advisers Are Paid: Commission vs Fee-Based Advice

How private health insurance advisers are paid in Germany — the commission model versus fee-based Honorarberatung — and what each means for the advice you receive.

PKV Guide
The PKV Ombudsman: Free Dispute Resolution for Private Patients

How the independent Ombudsman for private health and long-term-care insurance resolves disputes free of charge, what it can decide, and how to bring a complaint.

PKV Guide
Unisex vs Bisex Tariffs: The 2012 Divide in PKV Premiums

How the 2012 unisex rule changed PKV pricing, why older gender-based (bisex) tariffs persist, and what the distinction means when you consider switching.

PKV Guide
Standardtarif vs Basistarif: The Two PKV Safety Nets Compared

The difference between the older Standardtarif and the newer Basistarif — who qualifies for each, how premiums are capped and what cover you get.

PKV Guide
How to Read Your PKV Leistungsabrechnung (Reimbursement Statement)

A plain-English guide to reading your PKV reimbursement statement: what each line means, why an insurer pays less than the bill, and how to challenge it.

PKV Guide
Your Health Data and Your Insurer: What PKV May Ask, See and Share

What PKV insurers may ask, see and share: the Schweigepflichtentbindung, claim verification, GDPR rights and the walls around your health data.

PKV Guide
How to Read PKV Tariff Conditions: An AVB Survival Guide

A survival guide to PKV tariff conditions: the document hierarchy, ten clauses to check line by line, and the wording that signals quality or trouble.

PKV Guide
PKV Application Rejected? Your Realistic Options From Here

Rejected by a PKV insurer? Why declines happen, how to protect your record, and five realistic routes: other insurers, surcharges, Öffnungsaktion, Basistarif, GKV.