Fleet insurance
Motor liability is compulsory; a fleet policy with comprehensive cover, passenger accident cover and the vehicle bodywork included bundles all vehicles.
Insurance broker / Business types / Health and care
Insurance for ambulance services, patient transport and medical driving services in Germany
An ambulance service combines two expensive risks: vehicles that have to get through traffic under blue lights, and patients who must arrive safely on a stretcher or carry chair. Add defibrillators, ventilators and a team doing heavy physical work. This page explains which insurance is compulsory in Germany, what it costs and where gaps open up.
The question almost everyone asks first
Who pays if we crash while driving under blue lights?
Motor liability pays the other party, including on emergency runs with special road rights. Those rights do not release you from the duty of care, so ambulance services are often found partly to blame for accidents at junctions. Damage to your own vehicle is paid only by comprehensive cover, and the medical equipment on board only if it is adequately insured under that cover or an electronics policy.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
Emergency runs
Crossing junctions on red, overtaking in traffic jams, driving at night: ambulances have a far higher accident risk than ordinary company vehicles.
- 02
Carrying and transferring
A patient slips off the carry chair in a narrow stairwell or falls from the stretcher during a transfer. Fractures in older people are common and expensive.
- 03
Treatment on scene
Mistakes with medication, ventilation or positioning lead to allegations against the crew. This is where the medical risk element of liability cover applies.
- 04
Medical equipment
Defibrillators, ventilators and suction units are carried every day, get dropped and get wet.
- 05
Strain on the team
Lifting, shift work, assaults and psychological stress lead to absences that hit the rota immediately.
- 06
Vehicles off the road
An ambulance in the workshop is an ambulance that is not running. Without a replacement you lose calls and revenue.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
Business liability
Covers harm during transport, carrying and treatment of patients, with the medical risk included.
Strongly advised
Electronic equipment
Insures defibrillators, ventilators and monitors against breakage, water and theft, also in the vehicle.
Business contents
Replaces furniture, stores and medicines at the ambulance station after fire, water and burglary.
Group accident insurance
Adds to the statutory accident insurer's cover for the team, including in their free time, and pays for permanent injury.
Depends on the business
Business interruption
Pays for replacement vehicles and lost income if the station cannot be used after a fire.
Cyber insurance
For digital call documentation and billing with the health insurers.
What it costs: example prices
The largest item is the vehicle fleet. On top come liability based on staff numbers and transports, medical equipment and accident cover for the team.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Fleet insurance | Five patient transport vehicles and ambulances, liability and comprehensive cover | around 12,000 to 25,000 euros a year |
| Business liability | Patient transport with 15 staff, medical risk included | around 800 to 2,500 euros a year |
| Electronic equipment | Medical equipment worth 150,000 euros, also in the vehicle | around 800 to 2,000 euros a year |
| Business contents | Ambulance station with furniture and stores worth 100,000 euros | around 250 to 700 euros a year |
| Group accident insurance | 20 staff, covered around the clock | around 1,200 to 2,500 euros a year |
For comparison: Fleet and liability cover for five vehicles cost about as much a year as the health insurers pay for 150 to 300 patient transports.
Guide prices excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026, from our own quoting experience; published tariff examples for this sector are rare. No-claims history, vehicle values and area of operation change the fleet premium considerably, and we obtain the exact quote for you.
Sources of the price examples
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Driving service
For: Patient journeys and carry chair transport with a few vehicles
- Fleet insurance
- Business liability
Together around 4,000 to 9,000 euros a year
Request this package02
Patient transport
For: Qualified patient transport with a station, equipment and a team
- Fleet insurance
- Business liability
- Electronic equipment
- Business contents
- Group accident insurance
Together around 15,000 to 32,000 euros a year
Request this package03
Ambulance service
For: Emergency rescue and transport from several stations
- Fleet insurance
- Business liability
- Electronic equipment
- Business contents
- Group accident insurance
- Business interruption
- Cyber insurance
Together from around 35,000 euros a year, calculated individually
Request this packageThe worst day at the ambulance station
Six things that really happen to ambulance services, all in a single shift. Tap through the day and see who pays.
Damage so far€268,000
-
On an emergency run the ambulance collides with a car at a junction. Damage to the car and injured occupants.
-
Your own ambulance is badly damaged; the body and the stretcher have to be replaced.
-
In a narrow stairwell a patient slips off the carry chair and breaks her hip.
-
The defibrillator falls onto the tarmac in the rain and stops working.
-
Lifting a heavy patient, a paramedic injures his shoulder and is off work for months.
-
A cable fire in the vehicle bay damages the station, the stores and the medicines.
Which package would you have had?
Illustrative amounts before any excess. Whether and how much is paid depends on the policy terms.
Practical tips from your broker
- Have emergency runs with special road rights explicitly confirmed in the fleet policy and check the deductible per claim.
- Insure bodywork and medical equipment at their real value; an ambulance today costs many times more than an ordinary van.
- Include the medical risk in your public liability cover so that mistakes in treatment on scene are covered.
- Arrange replacement and hire vehicles after an accident, or you will lose calls during the weeks of repair.
- Check with the licensing authority which liability sums your state's ambulance services act or your contract with the public provider requires.
- Protect your team with group accident insurance; in a tight labour market it is also an argument when hiring.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We look at fleet and liability together
As a broker we collect quotes from several insurers and align fleet, liability and equipment cover so that no claim falls between two policies.
We know claims handling from the inside
In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves. We know how to document an accident under special road rights properly.
One contact for the business and the team
Vehicles, the station, accident cover and staff pensions all sit with us in one place.
Family business since 1989
No cost to you, as the insurer pays our commission. You reach fixed contacts, also outside office hours.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Which insurance is compulsory for a patient transport service in Germany?
Motor liability for every vehicle. For the licence under the ambulance services act, many federal states also require proof of adequate liability cover for the business.
What does insurance for an ambulance cost?
With liability and comprehensive cover usually 2,500 to 5,000 euros a year per vehicle, depending on its value, the claims history and the area of operation.
Does liability cover pay if a patient falls while being carried?
Yes, that is a typical public liability claim. What matters is that the transport and care of patients are explicitly insured.
Are paramedics personally covered for mistakes?
Employees are covered under their employer's public liability policy. In cases of gross negligence the employer can take recourse against them, which is why many have their own professional liability cover.
Which statutory accident insurer is responsible?
For private and non-profit providers usually the BGW, for municipal services the regional accident fund (Unfallkasse). If in doubt, ask the insurer directly.
Is the medical equipment covered by the vehicle's own damage policy?
Often only up to a limit. Expensive devices are better insured under a separate electronics policy that also covers drops outside the vehicle.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Ambulance service
The recommended covers are already ticked. Change what does not fit; we obtain quotes and come back with a comparison. You can write in English.
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Related trades
Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 86.92 Rettungs- und Krankentransportdienste
Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), WZ 2025. All business types
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