Would someone kindly clarify a nuance with regards to car insurance when moving cantons.
We’re soon moving from VD to ZG. In principle, we’ve researched it and know what is required both for canton change and in particular for a car de- and re-registration.
Yet there is a nuance that is not clear.
Our timeline
officially, we’re moving to ZG on Feb-15, realistically on Feb-21
we’re planning to pay a visit to the ZG Road Traffic Office on Feb-24 (we have 14 days to do so)
our current insurer in VD informed the ZG Road Traffic Office that we have a valid insurance
our current insurance in VD is valid till Mar-31
Question
Do I understand correctly that I need to get a new insurance for ZG plates valid from Feb-15, de facto wasting the remaining Feb-15 to Mar-31 of our insurance in VD? If so, we’re still lucky I guess, because it’d be worse if we changed the canton mid-year?
I don’t think you need to get NEW insurance. Your insurance provider just alters your current policy to take into account the address change. Just like if you change car mid-policy.
Have you already done that?
I’ve contacted my current insurer and it is a bit confusing, let me throw in a few more points:
I’ve already received an invoice for 2025 as if I was living in VD, and it has an annotation saying that if I return my plates before Apr-1 I don’t need to pay it; also my insurer confirmed this invoice becomes void once we move.
My insurer generated an offer for ZG valid from Feb-15 (date of our move).
I managed to generate a more advantageous offer myself via their website (no matter from which date, I can generate both for Feb-15 or Apr-1)
They have a discount for new customers and this seems to be dependent on license plates (whether they were already registered with them or not); my insurer didn’t want to give me this discount as we were an existing customer while vie the website I can get that (as there it is based on uniqueness of license plates not on being an existing customer). But regardless of this discount my generated offer is still better than the one from the insurer (not the first time I am experiencing that).
I.e. if I could: tweak the existing insurance valid till Mar-31 to have a new address and new license plates but no discount for the next insurance it is OK.
If I need to get a new insurance for new license plates from Feb-15 with a discount it is also OK.
But I am wondering which is the way.
Unused insurance premium and road tax are refundable.
You can get out of the insurance contract at any time by “selling” the car to your spouse, though that may trigger a road worthiness inspection. The wife usually pays less (unless she has a “riskier” nationality).
BTW in your experience the reimbursement was when you just returned the plates or when you returned the plates and got new ones? Or was it a different story
The old plates need returned to VD, you simply hand them over to The Post/La Poste. Done.
I don’t think the insurance contract ends. It runs on, just the conditions (address and whatnot) get adjsted. For it to end you need to give notice, hence my remark above on “selling” to the spouse, in which case it ends immediately.
Mhh, I forgot to mention that in the case of ownership change the insurance bonus probably changes as well as you and your spouse probably are on different bonus steps.
As for selling I am not going down this route especially given that only one of us drives =)
As for returning plates, ZG does this (they take VD ones and give ZG ones right away).
As for the contract running on: the invoice for 2025 has a note that it’s not payable if I return plates before Apr-1. But I’ll double confirm on that with the insurer.
I think you are overcomplicating things slightly. Car insurance here is straightforward. You get insurance for a vehicle (before getting the plates) and they record this on a database, you then do the formalities with the Traffic office, they check this database, and give you the plates and gray card, and the insurance is informed electronically. Only then your insurance starts (and have to pay), from that day, and you get the insurance bill and road tax bill. If you do not register a car in 30 days it lapses and you have to ask the insurance to re-add you again. There is no cost until you actually register a car. Conversely, when you give the plates back and cancel the gray card, you are automatically issued a refund for any insurance and road tax already paid (based on the number of days left).
So if you have paid until 1 April, you will be due a small refund if you give the plates before then, even by one day, and of course you don’t need to pay the bill you have already got for after 1 April. But you will have to pay a new bill you will receive when you get the new plates.
There are never insurance days paid and “lost”, or double insurance.
In your case, you just go to the new Traffic Office, with the documents they want (in particular proof you live there), and hand over the VD plates and grey card. You will get the new ZG ones, and they will send the VD stuff back for a refund. There is no need to deregister with VD or your insurance, it will be done for you. If, say, there is an issue with the ZG insurance, they will see that and tell you - they wont give you the plates. If they give you new plates, then you can be sure that all was done OK. No need to worry about whether you have insurance, double-insurance or no insurance, etc.
As for the new cheaper insurance quote, I think the online system thinks you are a different person (with the same name) living in Zug wishing to buy the car, once they realise it’s the same car and person they may remove the discount (but yet again maybe not)… in any case, if you get the plates you don’t care, you just have to wait and see.
You’re misunderstanding, the renewal happens automatically unless you return the plates in time. This is done to avoid uninsured gaps as you must not drive without 3rd party liability insurance.
it is discounted for a new plate, and they use this reference everywhere - if I can get it it’s fine, if not then also fine
it is simply different when an offer generated by hand online or with a clerk via phone/email, it was my experience even when getting the first insurance - online I was able to configure better conditions and lower price and via email they were giving a policy with worse conditions and higher price, maybe a clerk gets a provision the more risk and charges he gives you or I don’t know…
overall the process is clear and it’s as you say, the only thing is that my move roughly matches with the expiration so even if I am covered on the move I want to make the most pragmatic deal possible next
Moving address within Switzerland (and changing plates, if needed) is not enough as a reason to break a car insurance contract.
If you had signed a 1-year only contract as you said (the default is 3 years), then you can cancel after 1 year, regardless if you are moving or not. But then there are conditions, eg to tell them in writing 3 months before the end that you are canceling otherwise you are stuck with another year.
Yes, you are right about the 3 months notice period, I checked conditions, so I am indeed stuck with them. OK, the best I can do is to either move my insurance with no changes hoping that the canton change favourably impacts the price (or perhaps it does not), or to renegotiate conditions using a generated offer from the website as an argument. Even without the discount applied it’s better than how they propose to renegotiate it…
Both parties have the option to terminate in case of an accident or other damage that is covered by the insurance.
The contract ends immediately if you sell the car, even if you sell to your spouse (I guess the holder needs to change, too). OP could use this fact in the negotiations with the insurance. Mind, a sale may trigger a roadworthiness test.
Owner vs holder:
Think of a leased car. The leasing company is the owner, the leasee the holder. This structure applies in general, with and without lease, though usually they’re the same person.