Car insurance in Switzerland
Third-party liability is compulsory to drive. Everything else is a choice — and that is where the price gaps open up.
Is full casco still worth its price?
What it costs you cumulatively, against the most it could ever pay out. Two curves, no assumed probability.
From year 7 your cumulative premiums exceed what casco could reimburse.
| Year | Cumulative premiums | Vehicle value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHF 900 | CHF 15'300 |
| 2 | CHF 1'800 | CHF 13'005 |
| 3 | CHF 2'700 | CHF 11'054 |
| 4 | CHF 3'600 | CHF 9'396 |
| 5 | CHF 4'500 | CHF 7'987 |
| 6 | CHF 5'400 | CHF 6'789 |
| 7 | CHF 6'300 | CHF 5'770 |
| 8 | CHF 7'200 | CHF 4'905 |
We assume no accident probability: we have no claims statistics, and inventing one would be dishonest. The table only shows the two amounts. The judgement stays yours — and it changes if you could not replace the car out of your own pocket.
Liability: compulsory, and nothing for you
Motor third-party liability is required before registration. It compensates damage you cause others: their car, their injuries, their property. It pays nothing towards your own vehicle — the most common confusion.
The insurance certificate goes straight from the insurer to the road traffic office. Without it, no plates.
Partial casco: what happens to you
It covers events you do not cause: theft, fire, hail, glass breakage, collision with an animal, natural forces. It is usually required under a lease.
Full casco: what you cause
It adds damage to your own vehicle, including when the fault is yours. On a new or leased car it is effectively unavoidable. On a ten-year-old car it sometimes costs more than it will ever return: it depends on residual value.
The options that matter
- Bonus protection: after a claim your premium does not rise. Useful if you drive a lot.
- New-value cover: compensation at purchase price in the early years instead of market value.
- Driver protection: your own injuries, which accident insurance does not always cover in full.
- Breakdown assistance, often already included in a motoring club membership.
What drives the price
- The vehicle: power, list price, cost of parts.
- Your age and how long you have held a licence.
- Claims over the last five years.
- The annual mileage you declare.
- The canton of registration.
- The casco deductible you choose.
We show no tariffs on this page. Unlike LAMal premiums, no public register publishes prices for this branch: they depend on your profile and are calculated case by case. Quoting a figure here would be an invention.