When prices rise, so does frustration. We understand that. A number of economic developments influence insurance. In Switzerland, too. What exactly does this mean?
Today, car spare parts imported from abroad are up to 90% more expensive than 10 years ago. The bumper of a car now costs 72% more than in 2014, and a rear light costs 86% more. High-tech components such as sensors and batteries also make repairs more expensive. Around 10 years ago, minor front-end damage to a car often cost less than CHF 2,000.
Nowadays, sensors or cameras are usually also affected, which means that the damage can quickly exceed CHF 3,600. That's an increase of 89% – or significantly more, depending on the car. This trend is continuing, primarily because the technology is becoming more complex and more expensive. This can be seen, for example, in the fact that dynamic LED cornering lights cost more than static halogen headlights. Windshields with an integrated driver assistance system are also significantly more expensive than normal windshields.
In addition to the more expensive material costs, the labor and wage costs of garages have risen. The effects of more complex technology are also noticeable here. As a result, repairs and the replacement of spare parts are becoming more expensive.
As a study by Comparis from 2025 shows, the age of the car also plays a key role in repair costs. If you have your one-year-old Škoda Octavia repaired today, you will pay significantly more than for the repair of a 10-year-old vehicle of the same model. Further illustrating the point, repairing the new BMW 3 model is around three times more expensive.
Changes in the weather have resulted in more extreme precipitation. For example, hail, storms and flooding often cause serious and costly damage to vehicles – including total loss. This concerns not just the major events in the media, but also the flooded garage in the multi-family building next door.
As a mountainous country, Switzerland is one of the countries with the highest risk of hail in Europe. Heavy precipitation and hail are occurring more frequently in extreme forms (Meteo Switzerland). The hailstorms of 2023 in Ticino and 2025 in Appenzell and the St. Gallen Rhine Valley are examples of this trend. Some of the hailstones there were as big as a five franc coin.
We never know in advance whether there will be one big event or many small ones. But we are well prepared: In 2024, for example, we deployed a state-of-the-art hail scanner. Affected vehicles drive through the scanner and within minutes the result is available, which is discussed with an expert on site.
To prevent storm damage, we recommend:
In addition to storm damage, the number of vehicle damage claims is increasing – from minor scratches to total losses. There are many different reasons for this. They include both increased traffic density and also hectic and distracted driving. Cell phones, navigation systems or radios are more frequently operated while driving. This is distracting and leads to increased claims. It results even more frequently from reaching for objects, e.g. something on the back seat.
Insurance companies pay for insured events. They therefore set insurance premiums in such a way that these costs can be covered. This usually involves calculating the average projected damage and the resulting costs. These costs are passed on to the policyholders. If claims costs rise in general, this has an impact on the premiums of all policyholders.
There is often still room to maneuver with existing insurance cover – for example, if the car insurance was taken out a while ago, and it now appears that needs have changed. There could be potential for savings in the following areas:
