Insurance Guide

What Insurance Guide Does

Insurance Guide is a FINMA-certified insurance consultation service headquartered in Switzerland and explicitly positioned for expats and people newly arrived. The firm positions itself with the tagline "Swiss Insurance Consultation for Expats & New Arrivals", and its core business is free, independent advice on health insurance (the mandatory basic KVG coverage), supplementary coverage (VVG), and third-pillar pension and tax planning. The service operates under a compensation model where insurance providers pay for successful setups, not the client.

The firm's legal structure is a sole proprietorship trading as "Vision Bohne Einzelfirma" and operates as a FINMA-licensed insurance intermediary. Its primary contact is hello@insurance-guide.ch, with offices listed in Zurich and Geneva.

Arrival-Focused Services: Health Insurance in Your First 90 Days

Insurance Guide targets a specific moment in the relocation journey: the mandatory 90-day window to obtain health insurance after registering a Swiss address. The site repeatedly emphasizes this deadline ("Within 90 days of registering your residence. Missing this deadline means your canton assigns you a provider at the highest premium"). The firm positions itself as solving this exact problem for incoming residents who do not yet have a Swiss permit.

The starting point is a free online consultation, advertised as "45 to 60 min consultation" and "No obligation". The site describes the process as pick-your-own scheduling via video call (Zoom or Teams), with no upfront cost and no obligation to proceed. The consultant conducts an initial intake, reviews your situation, and provides personalized recommendations.

For health insurance specifically, the consultation covers mandatory basic KVG selection, deductible optimization, and supplementary dental and outpatient coverage decisions. The site's own copy states "Health insurance setup: mandatory KVG selection, deductible optimization, and supplementary dental/outpatient coverage for peace of mind".

A second service pathway is a rate check: "5 quick questions, your personal comparison within 24 hours". The site offers this as an asynchronous alternative to a live call.

Specific Services, Languages, and Advisors

The firm lists four service lines: health insurance setup, third-pillar and tax optimization, contract analysis, and customer trust (positioned as a credential on the homepage with "5.0 on Google" and "45 to 60 min consultation").

Staff consists of Nicole Bohne, identified as an "Insurance & Pension Advisor" with a FINMA registration number F01536402 and a 5.0 Google rating. Nicole consults in English, German, and French. A second advisor, Robert, is identified as a "Health Specialist" in Swiss health insurance systems for new residents and also offers free consultations.

The site lists five specific supplementary insurance products: health insurance, 3rd pillar and taxes, full insurance check (covering life, liability, and other policies), and a premium calculator tool accessible to anonymous visitors.

Compensation: the site is transparent about its revenue model. "We are compensated by insurance providers for the administrative work we save them, this does not affect your premium." The client consultation is free; the firm's revenue comes from the provider setup, not the customer.

The Consultation Experience and Provider Relationships

Insurance Guide's website emphasizes the relationship with major Swiss insurers: the site displays logos for CSS, Helsana, SWICA, AXA, Generali, and Allianz, indicating it holds partnerships or access to these providers' products. The implied working relationship suggests Nicole and Robert can submit applications on a client's behalf, expediting the enrollment process. However, the page does not disclose whether Insurance Guide has preferred-provider arrangements, volume commitments, or special rates with these insurers, nor does it state whether the advisors can negotiate premium improvements for clients beyond standard offerings.

The rate check pathway ("5 quick questions, your personal comparison within 24 hours") suggests the firm can deliver competitive analysis and a personalized recommendation quickly, ideal for arrivals working against the 90-day deadline. However, the page does not explain what this comparison includes: whether it spans all major insurers or only a subset, whether "best fit" is defined by lowest cost or optimal coverage, or whether the rate check commits you to any follow-up action.

The service model emphasizes accessibility: no obligation, no cost to speak with an advisor, and decisions remain entirely with the client. Nicole's profile notes the consultation is "independent and with no obligation", and the FAQ repeatedly assures clients of zero commitment. This transparency addresses a key concern for arriving expats: fear of high-pressure sales or being locked into a decision based on incomplete information.

What the Site Does Not Settle

The site does not provide pricing for any services beyond stating that initial consultations and rate checks are free. It does not disclose commission rates, how much a setup advisory typically saves in premiums, or whether they negotiate rates on the client's behalf. The page does not state the average premium figures for different scenarios (age, family status, deductible choices), though it claims "save 20% on average premium costs with our tailored optimization strategies" without defining the baseline or typical magnitude.

The site does not explain the technical difference between KVG and VVG coverage in detail, assuming reader familiarity with Swiss insurance terminology. It does not specify whether the advisory covers supplementary life insurance, liability, or home insurance beyond passing reference.

Processing timelines are absent: there is no estimate for how long a health insurance policy takes to activate, whether expedited processing is available, or whether coverage can backdated to the arrival date if the 90-day window is respected but the setup completes after. The site does not address non-resident arrivals, those without a Swiss address yet, or expats moving to Switzerland as posted employees of a foreign firm (a scenario that sometimes has different insurance requirements).

The page does not state how frequently Nicole and Robert take on new clients, whether there are waiting times for consultations, or whether during peak arrival seasons (common for work permit arrivals in January and September) the firm can accommodate urgent requests within the 90-day window. It does not specify the typical timeline from initial consultation to policy activation.

Who It Suits and Who It Does Not

This service suits expats and new arrivals with no existing Swiss network, limited German language ability, and a need to offload the research and decision-making burden within the 90-day window. The free consultation model means there is no sunk cost to testing the service.

It suits those relocating from Germany in particular (the site notes "Our content, worked examples and comparisons are written for the German starting position, GKV and PKV, Riester and Rürup") and explicitly mentions a sister site, expat-savvy.ch, as "often the better fit" for those preferring guidance entirely in English rather than a mix.

It does not suit someone seeking hands-off cost comparison across multiple insurers without a personal consultation, because the firm's approach is advisory, not algorithmic. It does not suit those seeking to negotiate the absolute lowest possible premiums for health insurance alone, because the service bundles health insurance with optional supplementary and pension planning.

The service requires comfort with video conferencing and online scheduling. The firm does not mention in-person consultations or phone-only options, though phone support is available after purchase.