Mortgage payment protection insurance: what it covers

In everyday Slovak, “mortgage insurance” (poistenie hypotéky) usually means payment protection insurance (poistenie schopnosti splácať). It covers agreed events that could stop you repaying: death, disability, incapacity for work or job loss. It doesn’t insure the flat or house. That’s what separate property insurance is for, which banks require for a flat or house.

Payment protection insurance is mostly voluntary at the banks whose terms we checked. Several banks, however, give a rate discount for it. That’s why you should weigh it together with the cost of the loan.

What the insurance covers

The scope depends on the package you choose. Banks usually offer several levels that differ in the number of risks covered. Tatra banka’s mortgage payment protection insurance and the UNIQA terms linked to it show how payouts can work:

Risk	Payout in the Tatra banka example
Death	The insurer pays the bank the insured share of the outstanding principal and interest.
Disability	Pays out when earning capacity falls by more than 70% and further conditions are met.
Incapacity for work	Monthly benefit to the insured person, for up to 12 months.
Job loss	Monthly benefit to the insured person, for up to 12 months. Voluntary resignation is excluded.

Other banks and insurers may use different definitions and limits.

Example packages by bank as of 19 October 2026:

• UniCredit Bank: Základné (death and disability), Štandardné (adds incapacity for work), Maximálne (adds job loss and serious illness).
• ČSOB: variant A (death and disability), B (adds incapacity for work), C (adds job loss). For incapacity or job loss it pays up to 12 instalments.
• 365.bank: Základný balík (death, disability) and Komplexný balík (adds incapacity for work). The insurance can be added within 6 months.
• VÚB: housing loan payment protection insurance covering death, disability, incapacity for work, job loss and caring for a family member.

At Tatra banka, 50% to 100% of the loan can be insured.

Mandatory or a condition of a discount?

Under Section 4 of the Housing Loan Act, a bank may require appropriate insurance. However, it must also accept a policy from another provider offering an equivalent level of cover. The law allows products to be offered as a bundle but prohibits tying the loan to the purchase of another service. The bank must state which services it requires and what happens if you end them in the additional obligations section of the ESIS form.

In its opinion of 14 May 2018, the National Bank of Slovakia stated that group payment protection insurance offered by a bank is voluntary. Before joining, you should receive information about the cost, cover, entry conditions, exclusions, frequent reasons for refusing a claim and the consequences of untruthful answers about your health. The opinion concerns this type of product. It doesn’t mean that every insurance is optional for every mortgage.

How individual banks handle payment protection insurance (as of 19 October 2026):

Bank	Payment protection insurance
VÚB	0.10 pp discount included in rates from 17 October 2026
UniCredit Bank	Voluntary, 0.20 pp discount included in rates from 6 October 2026; also waives the arrangement fee
Slovenská sporiteľňa	0.20 pp discount for loan insurance; the campaign from 5 October 2026, where at least one applicant is aged 35 or under, requires it together with DOMOV property insurance
Tatra banka	Voluntary; in Program odmeňovaniaTB Hypotéka a discount of 0.1 pp on its own or 0.2 pp together with the account. In the representative example in the campaign terms of 6 October 2026, it is a condition of the loan on those terms, together with the account and property insurance
365.bank	Voluntary, no rate discount
ČSOB	Voluntary, no insurance discount published
Prima banka	Voluntary, no rate discount stated
mBank	No insurance discount published; its terms allow life insurance to be required as security
Fio banka	No requirement for or discount on payment protection published

At Tatra banka, the insurance must cover at least death to qualify for the discount. At least 70% of the loan must be insured if the loan is up to €100,000, or at least 50% if it is higher. The bank checks the conditions every 3 months and applies the rate without the discount if they aren’t met.

Note: discount conditions change with price lists and campaigns. The table isn’t a comparison of insurance price or quality. The offer and ESIS you receive always take precedence.

How to compare an offer with and without insurance

A lower rate alone doesn’t show which package is cheaper. Proceed as follows:

1. Ask the bank for an offer for the same amount and term, with and without insurance.
2. Add the monthly premium to each monthly payment. You can check the payment at different rates in the mortgage calculator.
3. Compare who is covered, what share of the loan is insured and what the payout limits are.

Banks express the price in different ways. 365.bank’s fee schedule lists the Základný balík at 0.04% and the Komplexný balík at 0.05% of the approved loan per month. Prima banka lists payment protection insurance at 10.79% of the monthly payment. Your actual premium depends on the offer.

When the insurer doesn’t pay, or pays later

The policy terms determine when a claim arises. The general terms of UNIQA mortgage payment protection insurance, linked by Tatra banka, serve as an example. They don’t apply to other banks or insurers:

• Death: for cover without medical underwriting, there is a one-month waiting period. The exception is accidental death after the cover starts.
• Disability: requires a loss of more than 70% of earning capacity and further conditions. The waiting period is two years, except for accidents.
• Incapacity for work: a one-month waiting period and a two-month benefit deferral.
• Job loss: a three-month waiting period and a three-month benefit deferral. Voluntary resignation, termination during probation and expiry of a fixed-term contract are excluded.
• Early repayment of the loan ordinarily ends the insurance.

The waiting period runs from the start of the cover. The benefit deferral runs from the insured event. They are two different concepts. Tatra banka also warns that you need to keep paying after an insured event. The payout follows recognition of the claim, possibly retrospectively.

What to check before signing

• Which risks are covered and how the terms define disability, incapacity for work and job loss.
• What share of the loan is insured and whether both borrowers are covered.
• Waiting periods, benefit deferral and the maximum duration of monthly benefits.
• Exclusions, such as certain ways your employment can end.
• The health questionnaire. Untruthful answers can jeopardise a payout.
• Whether the insurance is a condition of a discount and what happens to the rate if you cancel it.
• What happens to the insurance on early repayment or refinancing of the loan.

This page explains how the insurance works. It doesn’t assess whether a particular policy is right for you.