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In Switzerland, around one in seven hire someone to do their cleaning, but around half break the law, risking fines and a big bill because they don’t have compulsory accident insurance, according to a recent survey by comparis.ch.
© Maxim Evdokimov | Dreamstime.com
The survey of more than a 1,000 people shows the main reasons for hiring a cleaner are a dislike of cleaning and a lack of time. Time pressure is most often caused by work. The most disliked household chores are ironing, window cleaning and dusting. Half dislike ironing and nearly half dusting. The average amount spent on a cleaner in Switzerland is CHF 250 a month.
Those employing home help in Switzerland are required by law to pay employee accident insurance, but 46% of those employing a cleaner say they don’t and 14% say they don’t know if they do.
The potential costs of not having this insurance are high compared to its cost. Someone paying their cleaner CHF 250 month would typically only need to spend an extra CHF 100 a year for the insurance. Some specialist companies offer even lower rates. quitt.ch offers insurance starting as low as CHF 49.
Anyone caught with an uninsured employee will need to make payments in arrears going back as far as five years with penalty interest on top. This sum can be increased ten-fold for the worst repeat offenders. Other costs can also be incurred, and if the courts get involved and find fraud, then criminal penalties can be expected.
Many employers get caught after an accident, which can be expensive.
Hiring a cleaner in Switzerland is an administratively intensive task. In addition to insurance, employers must ensure they check work visas, register staff, pay social insurance, remit tax deductions and issue pay slips. Hiring a foreign worker without a valid work permit can result in prison and fines – see specific law in French and German.
A guide to hiring a cleaner correctly can be viewed here – this guide shows employers how to do the administration themselves. An alternative is to get a specialist service provider like quitt.ch to do it for you. This avoids all the paperwork and hassle and removes the risk of getting caught out by the authorities, or receiving a big bill if something goes wrong.
More on this:
comparis.ch survey (in German)
Guide on compulsory accident insurance (LAA) – (in French)
Guide on compulsory accident insurance (UVG) – (in German)
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