Krankenkasse-Which health insurer can you recommend for good service

beppi wrote:

If you are looking for a public scheme health insurer (as DAK is), they are all more or less the same. Since there is no competition on price and changing is difficult, there is no competition, no market forces and thus no motivation to serve you better than the (legally set) minimum standard.
Once you apply for membership (and are eligible), you are insured. If need be, the coverage will retroactively (up to three months) extend to the day you needed to be insured.  Thus there is no need to worry about the speed of their processing!

Both the premiums and coverage will be charged retroactively.

beppi wrote:

If you are looking for a public scheme health insurer (as DAK is), they are all more or less the same. Since there is no competition on price and changing is difficult, there is no competition, no market forces and thus no motivation to serve you better than the (legally set) minimum standard.
Once you apply for membership (and are eligible), you are insured. If need be, the coverage will retroactively (up to three months) extend to the day you needed to be insured.  Thus there is no need to worry about the speed of their processing!

This.

I think it comes down to personal preference and what sort of 'extras' they offer you (a lot of them have bonus programmes, offer classes – in non-pandemic times – etc). A lot of people like TK. I'm with AOK and feel they've been good to me, so I always recommend them (at least in and around Berlin, which is AOK Nordost). But generally I think they're all more or less the same (they all have to charge the same and offer the same core coverage) and everyone likes the one they're on because it's what they know.