bonus.ch says auto insurance costs can vary by more than CHF 8,000

bonus.ch’s annual Swiss car insurance review found sharp price gaps tied to age, nationality and residence, with combined factors pushing premiums up by as much as CHF 8,072. The Lausanne-based comparison site says the spread shows how quickly insurers’ risk criteria can change what drivers pay. Why it matters: - Car insurance prices in Switzerland can swing by thousands of francs for the same type of coverage. - bonus.ch says age, nationality and place of residence are among the strongest drivers of those differences. - The findings matter most for young drivers and foreign nationals, who face the largest surcharges in the study. What happened: - At the end of May 2026, bonus.ch completed its annual survey of Swiss auto insurance premiums. - The comparison used tariff checks from major insurers based on three standard profiles: ages 18, 30 and 70. - bonus.ch found more than CHF 5,000 in price differences tied only to nationality, up to CHF 2,513 based on age, and more than CHF 500 based on residence. - In the most extreme combined case, the extra cost reached CHF 8,072. The details: - A 18-year-old Swiss driver paid, on average, 155% more than a 70-year-old Swiss driver for equivalent coverage from the same insurer. - For full casco coverage, the age gap reached CHF 2,513, with premiums of CHF 3,586 for the younger driver and CHF 1,073 for the senior. - For liability-only cover, the difference climbed to 296%, or CHF 2,126 versus CHF 536. - Even in the smallest age gap measured, the premium difference was still 84%, equal to CHF 512. - A 70-year-old Swiss driver paid on average about 2% more than a 30-year-old Swiss driver. - Some insurers charged seniors up to 53% more than 30-year-olds. - Other insurers offered premiums up to 17% lower for senior drivers than for 30-year-olds. - Nationality had a major effect on premiums, especially for younger drivers with a C permit. - A 18-year-old driver from Kosovo paid 63% more on average than a Swiss driver of the same age. - For full casco coverage, the gap reached CHF 5,054, with premiums of CHF 7,958 versus CHF 2,904. - Among the largest gaps within a single insurer, annual premiums were CHF 3,147 versus CHF 1,061. - At ELVIA, the smallest observed gap was 19% for partial casco, still equal to CHF 253. - bonus.ch says other pricing factors include driving experience, sex, residence, annual mileage and vehicle characteristics such as value, model and even color. - Last year’s study compared a sportier Audi Q3 35 TFSI S line with this year’s family-oriented VW Tiguan Allspace 1.5 TSI Basis. - In the most extreme cases in the prior study, the premium gap reached nearly CHF 7,500. - Location also changes prices sharply, with average gaps above CHF 500 between the most expensive and least expensive areas. - Within the same city, postal code alone can already produce meaningful price differences. - Across the eight biggest Swiss auto insurers, local price gaps ranged from 14% to 53%. - A combined profile of a young Kosovo driver living in Lugano versus a Swiss 30-year-old in Köniz produced a CHF 7,632 gap for full casco on a VW Tiguan Allspace, with premiums of CHF 8,946 versus CHF 1,314. - Switching to the Audi Q3 35 TFSI S line pushed the gap to CHF 8,072, with premiums of CHF 9,476 for the Kosovo profile and CHF 1,404 for the Swiss profile. Between the lines: - The study shows how insurers can stack multiple risk factors on top of each other, producing sharp jumps in price. - The biggest gaps appear when age and nationality are combined with a residence viewed as higher risk. - bonus.ch says premium changes can happen quickly, sometimes week to week, as insurers adjust to market trends and claims costs. What’s next: - bonus.ch expects insurers to keep revising rates frequently as costs and competition shift. - The company says consumers can reduce costs by comparing offers, and its platform records more than one million premium simulations each year. - The full results are available in the detailed analysis and the premium comparison tool . The bottom line: - For Swiss drivers, especially young foreign motorists, auto insurance pricing can vary by several thousand francs based on factors beyond the car itself.