Work accidents continue to fall - leisure accidents on the rise
Suva insures around half of all working people in Switzerland against accidents and occupational illnesses. In 2025, over 480,000 new cases were registered and recognized. While accidents at work and occupational illnesses continued to fall, leisure accidents increased by almost 3 percent. In total, Suva paid out over CHF 4.6 billion in insurance benefits.
Last year, Suva recorded and recognized over 480,000 new accidents and occupational illnesses. This is 1.9 percent more than in the previous year. Occupational accidents and illnesses fell by 0.9 percent to just over 166,000 cases. On the other hand, leisure accidents rose by 2.8 percent to around 296,000 cases. The number of accidents involving persons registered as unemployed and persons on IV measures increased by 15.4 percent. The main reason for this is the higher number of unemployed persons.
In total, Suva paid out over CHF 4.6 billion in insurance benefits in 2025.
Recognized cases newly registered with Suva under compulsory accident insurance:
Significant change: today, accidents mainly happen during leisure time
«The increase in accident figures compared to the previous year is mainly due to leisure accidents,» says Alois Fässler, statistician at Suva. «It is encouraging that occupational accidents are continuing to fall.» While occupational accidents used to account for the majority of reported accidents, Suva has been registering significantly more accidents in leisure time since the early 1990s. Last year, the ratio was 64 percent leisure accidents to 36 percent work accidents.
«Safety at work has increased significantly in recent decades, whether through continuous prevention work or the reduction in workplaces with a high accident risk, for example through more automated processes,» says Alois Fässler. «The number of leisure accidents, on the other hand, is increasing because more and more people are investing their free time in sports and outdoor activities.»
Most frequent sports accidents: Playing soccer, skiing, mountain hiking
Over the whole of 2025, Suva registered the most sports accidents while playing football (29,000 / 25 % of all sports accidents), skiing (16,000 / 13 %) and hiking (6,000 / 5 %).
There are gender-specific differences. Men were most frequently injured while playing football (29 %), skiing (12 %) and biking (5 %), while among women most accidents occurred while skiing (20 %), mountain hiking (9 %) and jogging (7 %). The most common injuries during sport were to the knees, ankles and shoulders.
Targeted prevention measures reduce accidents, suffering and costs
Accidents not only cause a lot of suffering, but also high costs. This is why prevention is a central component of Suva's services, alongside insurance and rehabilitation. Suva helps to prevent accidents and occupational illnesses with various prevention programs, education and training, training courses and advice for work and leisure.
Source: Suva
