Mortgage insurance in France: death, PTIA, ITT, IPT

The types of cover one by one

Death. The insurer pays the bank the outstanding capital on the day of death, up to the insured amount. The policy may provide for a waiting period and exclusions, for example for a dangerous sport. Suicide is covered only from the 2nd year; under a group policy guaranteeing a loan for the main residence, it is covered from the start of the policy, up to a ceiling set by decree at €120,000 (code des assurances (Insurance Code), art. L132-7).

PTIA. This requires being totally and permanently unable to carry out any professional activity and needing another person’s help for washing, dressing, meals and getting about. Depending on the policy, it covers you up to an age limit or for the whole term of the loan; the insurer often requires a Social Security invalidity pension (service-public.gouv.fr). ANIL specifies that it results in repayment of the outstanding capital.

Total permanent invalidity (IPT). Invalidité permanente totale covers a permanent inability to work, once your state of health has stabilised. It usually applies only from an incapacity rate of 66%, assessed according to the policy’s medical scale (ABE Info Service).

Partial permanent invalidity (IPP). Invalidité permanente partielle: an incapacity rate between 33% and 66% in most policies. It can only be taken out in addition to IPT and is not offered by every insurer.

Temporary incapacity for work (ITT). Incapacité temporaire de travail covers the monthly repayments during a period of total sick leave. The policy generally provides for an excess period (franchise), during which nothing is paid, and an age limit. Cover stops when you return to work, even part-time, unless there is a clause on therapeutic part-time work (service-public.gouv.fr).

Job loss. This is optional. According to ANIL, it applies after an excess period and a waiting period, for a limited duration, and often takes the form of a deferral of repayments rather than payment of the monthly instalments.

The same cover, very different policies

This is the point that service-public.gouv.fr and ANIL stress most. For IPT, IPP and ITT, the policy chooses:

• the reference: inability to carry out any activity, or your occupation on the date of the claim;
• the compensation method: flat-rate (forfaitaire, a percentage of the monthly repayment) or indemnity-based (indemnitaire, according to the actual loss of income);
• the excess period, the age limit, the cap on benefits;
• the exclusions: back or psychiatric conditions, high-risk occupations, sports, alcohol-related illnesses…

The notice d’information (policy information notice) is the authoritative document: ANIL recommends reading it in detail.

The share of cover: insuring a loan for two

The quotité is the percentage of the outstanding capital that the insurer covers for each borrower. ANIL sets out the rules:

• the minimum cover is 100% in total, without exceeding 200%;
• for two borrowers, the split may be 100/100, 80/100 or 70/30;
• each insured at 100%, the outstanding capital is repaid in full if either of them dies;
• each insured at 50%, the insurer repays only half, and the survivor remains liable for the other half.

The bank sets out in the fiche personnalisée (personalised information sheet) the level at which the loan must be insured (service-public.gouv.fr).

Choosing your insurer, cost and APR

Choosing the insurer. The bank may require insurance and set the minimum cover, but it cannot impose its own insurer on you. The policy you choose must meet the criteria in the personalised information sheet: a maximum of 11 criteria for death, PTIA, invalidity and incapacity, and 4 for job loss (service-public.gouv.fr). ANIL specifies that an insurance proposal remains valid for 4 months. Switching during the loan, possible at any time since 1 June 2022, is covered in our page loi Lemoine (the Lemoine law).

No health questionnaire if the loan is €200,000 or less per insured person and is repaid before age 60 (service-public.gouv.fr).

The cost is expressed in three ways in any document provided before the loan offer: the TAEA (taux annuel effectif de l’assurance, annual effective insurance rate), the total cost in euros over the term of the loan, and the cost per period (ANIL).

The APR includes compulsory insurance. Article R314-4 of the code de la consommation (Consumer Code) lists among the components of the TAEG “the costs of compulsory insurance and guarantees” (cited by the Banque de France, publication of 28 September 2026). Cheaper insurance therefore lowers the APR, which must remain below the seuil d’usure (usury ceiling): 5.40% for a fixed-rate mortgage of 20 years or more at 1 October 2026 (Banque de France).

Which professional to consult

The courtier en crédit (mortgage broker) compares insurance policies cover by cover and checks that they are equivalent to the bank’s personalised information sheet. The notaire (the public official who drafts property deeds) records in the deed each co-buyer’s share of ownership, a useful benchmark for choosing the shares of cover.