After prices rose by 6,6 percent on average last year, thousands of customers in Switzerland chose to take the plunge and switch their health insurance provider. Now, with further price rises expected at the end of this year, a new study by Comparis has revealed how much people could save if they switch to the cheapest health insurance deal. Here’s what they found:

Health insurance prices vary hugely in Switzerland

To create the report, Comparis calculated how much policyholders would have saved had they switched from the most expensive supplemental health insurance package to the cheapest basic health insurance deal in the autumn of 2012, and kept on the same plan until 2023. This was done for the residents of each of the 26 cantons of Switzerland, as well as a number of major cities.

In all, people in Geneva stood to benefit most from making the change, saving 39.809 francs over 10 years or 3.980 francs a year. Lausanne (39.787), Zurich (36.560), Basel (36.559) and Bern (32.793) rounded out the top five.

Huge price differences found between identical insurance deals

While the initial findings may seem a bit obvious - pay less to receive less - the study found that those who want the same coverage can also benefit hugely from seeking out and switching to the cheapest deal. 

For example, for a policy that includes a free choice of doctor and a deductible of 300 francs, residents of Geneva could have saved 1.849 francs a year over the last 10 years had they made the switch to the cheaper but identical deal. Even in Lucerne, where savings were found to be smallest, policyholders would still have 883 extra francs left in the kitty every year if they had changed providers while keeping the same benefits.

Always be prepared to switch insurance provider, Comparis recommends

Comparis noted that health insurance prices have risen by an average of 46,9 percent in the last 10 years. In this climate, they argued that finding the cheapest deal is now all the more important.

With more price rises expected this year, experts have predicted that even more people will change providers. A recent study by Bonus claimed that 35 percent of people are planning to switch insurance companies this year, 15 percent more than actually switched last year, which was itself a record. 

For more information, check out the official Comparis study (in German).