Who we are.
Expat Savvy is the brand under which Lang & Partner GmbH serves international clients in Switzerland — a FINMA-registered independent insurance intermediary (FINMA register F01067278), based in Zürich, in operation since 2017. We are not tied to any insurer. The regulatory frame for that distinction is documented at our Article 45 VAG disclosure.
We work with internationals settling in Switzerland — a deliberately narrow brief. We do not serve every demographic, every insurance product, or every canton with equal depth. The longer answer to what an independent Swiss insurance advisor is, and how we differ from tied agents and comparison portals, sits in the positioning piece. German-speaking Swiss-local households who want the same standard in German are served by our sister brand, ThatDay.
We read the Swiss insurance contracts so you don't have to. We spot the traps sales agents won't mention. We match you with what you actually need — not what someone's trying to sell. — Expat Savvy
The team.
Four people behind the desk — three advisors and the founder. Each with a primary focus. Your first review is with Robert (health) or Nicole (life, 3rd pillar, tax); the booking flow shows availability per advisor by topic.
Robert Kolar
Health insurance
20+ years in Swiss insurance. Reads supplementary contracts line by line. German, English, Czech.
More about Robert →
Nicole Bohne
Life, 3rd pillar & tax
FINMA F01536402. Former Basler and Zurich Insurance specialist. Life insurance, insurance-wrapped 3a, tax. German, English, French.
More about Nicole →
Virginie Josten
International health insurance
A Swiss insurer's international desk before this — cross-border employees, expats and retirees abroad. Legal training and a master's from Paris Dauphine. English, French.
Davide Nezel
International health insurance
FINMA-certified independent intermediary, previously financial advice at Swiss Life. Globally mobile households, and the insurer coordination when a medical need actually arises. German, French, English.
Chantal Leprêtre
International health insurance
Client advice for internationally mobile households. English, French. Her fuller biography follows shortly — until it does, this card carries only what we can stand behind.
Ben Wagner
Founder
Fifteen years in Swiss health insurance, then tech. Runs loaded.ch and the Expat Digital Group network. German, English, Russian.
More about Ben →By the numbers.
What the advisory work looked like across 2025 — the quiet measure of a desk that reads contracts for a living.
For relocation agencies, employers and service firms — the partner page →
The four traps.
Every review we run uses the same four-point diagnostic. It gives the consultation structure and keeps the advice grounded in the parts of Swiss insurance that actually hurt later.
Cheap supplementary cover at 32 can become brutal later.
New residents have a clean window that closes quickly.
The brochure promise and claim behaviour are not the same thing.
Sometimes the best recommendation is less insurance, not more.
