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Insurance for animal transport with horses, cattle and other animals in Germany

Anyone who transports animals commercially carries live, valuable and sometimes unpredictable cargo. A horse is injured in the trailer, cattle break loose while loading, a motorway accident involves animals and people at once. This page shows what the rules require for animal transport in Germany, which insurance matters and what it costs.

Insurance for animal transport

The question almost everyone asks first

A horse is injured in the trailer during the journey. Who pays?

Motor liability pays for damage you cause to others with your vehicle and trailer, not for the animals you carry. The owner will claim from you if they think you secured the horse badly or braked too hard. For that you need livestock in transit or carrier liability insurance covering death, injury and emergency slaughter, plus public liability for your role as animal supervisor.

What goes wrong in this trade

  1. 01

    Injured or dead animals

    A horse falls in the trailer, pigs suffer heat stress in a traffic jam, a calf is crushed while loading.

  2. 02

    Animals breaking loose

    While loading or after an accident, animals run onto the road. Damage to other vehicles can be severe.

  3. 03

    Accidents with a trailer

    Heavy trailers, moving cargo and long distances raise the accident risk.

  4. 04

    Kicks and bites

    Drivers and helpers are kicked or crushed while loading.

  5. 05

    Vehicle off the road

    A specialist vehicle is hard to replace. If it breaks down, booked runs to auctions, shows or abattoirs fall through.

  6. 06

    Authorities and checks

    Breaches of journey times or stocking density lead to fines and disputes over approval.

Risk radar
Liability 5Fire and water 3Theft 2Cyber 1Downtime 4Health 4

Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.

The insurance you need

Essential

Car insurance

Motor liability is required for towing vehicle and trailer; comprehensive cover protects the expensive specialist vehicle.

Cargo insurance

Livestock in transit cover for death, injury and emergency slaughter of the animals and your liability to the owner.

Business liability

For your liability as animal supervisor and for damage while loading, for example to stables, gates and other vehicles.

Strongly advised

Business legal expenses

For fines, disputes with authorities over conditions and with customers over injured animals.

Accident insurance

For yourself if you are injured while loading; kicks from horses and cattle are common.

Depends on the business

Fleet insurance

From three vehicles, a fleet policy bundles tractors, lorries and trailers.

What it costs: example prices

Premiums depend heavily on species, animal values, routes and vehicles. Transporting valuable sport horses is rated very differently from slaughter livestock.

InsuranceExampleTypical range
Car insuranceHorse box 3.5 tonnes, liability and partial coveraround €700 to €1,500 a year
Car insuranceLivestock articulated lorry, liability and comprehensivearound €4,000 to €9,000 a year
Cargo insuranceHorse transport, animal value up to €50,000 per trip, annual policyaround €500 to €2,000 a year
Cargo insuranceLivestock haulage, carrier liability under § 7a GüKGaround €800 to €2,500 a year
Business liabilityAnimal transporter with two vehicles, €5 million coveraround €300 to €900 a year

For comparison: For animal transport we compare which animals and values are covered, whether emergency slaughter and vet costs are included and how your liability as supervisor is insured.

Guide figures from our own quoting work, October 2026, excluding German insurance premium tax.

Animal value and how animals are secured drive the transit premium.

The legal points come from the statutes and ordinances listed.

Sources of the price examples

Our suggestions: three packages

01

Horse transport

For: one horse box, trips to shows and clinics

  • Car insurance
  • Cargo insurance
  • Business liability
  • Accident insurance

Together around €1,500 to €4,000 a year

Request this package

02

Livestock haulier

For: two to four lorries for farm animals

  • Car insurance
  • Cargo insurance
  • Business liability
  • Business legal expenses
  • Group accident insurance

Together around €10,000 to €30,000 a year

Request this package

03

Long distance

For: fleet with long journeys and trips abroad

  • Fleet insurance
  • Cargo insurance
  • Business liability
  • Business legal expenses
  • Group accident insurance

Together individual, usually from around €30,000 a year

Request this package

The worst day in animal transport

Six losses that really happen in animal transport, all on one hot day in July. Tap through and see who pays.

Damage so far€55,900
  1. While loading, a cow kicks the driver in the knee.

    €5,000 · Paid by: Accident insurance

  2. Two cattle break loose and damage a car on a country road.

    €9,000 · Paid by: Business liability

  3. A sport horse injures its leg in the trailer during an emergency stop.

    €25,000 · Paid by: Cargo insurance

  4. The trailer starts swaying and the rig slides into the crash barrier.

    €14,000 · Paid by: Car insurance

  5. A pig dies of heat stress in a traffic jam and the owner claims compensation.

    €400 · Paid by: Cargo insurance

  6. The authority opens fine proceedings for an exceeded journey time.

    €2,500 · Paid by: Business legal expenses

Which package would you have had?

Paid by insurance: €0
Out of your own pocket: €55,900

Illustrative amounts before any excess.

What is paid depends on the policy terms.

Practical tips from your broker

  1. Have the value of expensive horses recorded before the trip; it makes settlement easier.
  2. Make sure emergency slaughter and vet costs are included in the transit cover.
  3. Keep approval, certificates of competence and journey logs up to date; breaches can put cover at risk.
  4. Check that your public liability explicitly includes looking after other people’s animals.
  5. Choose high motor liability cover; animals on the road can cause serious injury accidents.
  6. In hot weather, plan short legs and breaks; insurers ask how you manage temperature.

Why NAMMERT for your business

We know specialist tariffs

Few insurers write animal transport. As a broker we approach those that do and compare animal values and exclusions.

Claims experience from boat insurance

In boat insurance we handle claims ourselves. We know how much a documented value before a loss matters.

Vehicles, business and private in one place

Rig, liability, farm and pension with one contact person.

Family run, brokering since 1989

Norman Nammert acts as an insurance broker and we can advise you in English. Our work is free for you; the insurer pays our commission.

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

Which insurance is compulsory for animal transport in Germany?

Motor liability for towing vehicle and trailer.

Commercial transport with vehicles over 3.5 tonnes also needs liability insurance under § 7a GüKG

of at least €600,000 per event.

Do I need an approval to transport animals?

Yes, if you carry animals in connection with an economic activity.

The basis is EU Regulation 1/2005;

under the German Animal Transport Ordinance the approval number has twelve digits.

Drivers and attendants of horses, cattle, sheep, goats,

pigs and poultry need a certificate of competence.

Am I liable for an animal handed to me for transport?

Anyone who takes over supervision of an animal by contract is liable under § 834 BGB for harm it

causes to others, unless they took the care required in everyday dealings.

What does livestock in transit insurance cost?

From our quoting work, around €500 to €2,000 a year for horse transport with animal values up to

€50,000 per trip.

For farm animals, the premium depends mainly on routes and volumes.

Does motor insurance pay for injured animals in the trailer?

As a rule no, because the animals are cargo.

That is what transit cover is for.

NAMMERT insurance broker

Request quotes for Animal transport

The recommended covers are ticked.

Change what does not fit; we compare quotes, in English.

1Who is it for?
2Which insurance?

Choose as many as you like. For each one, the details an insurer needs for a quote appear below.

Personal

Business

3Details

Car insurance in Germany (liability, partial and fully comprehensive)

Most precise with the HSN and TSN codes from the registration document

Personal accident insurance (private Unfallversicherung)

Be specific, for example software developer in an office, or electrician on building sites

For example motorcycling, diving, climbing, paragliding

For example accident pension, cover when travelling home, help at home after an accident

Business liability insurance in Germany (Betriebshaftpflicht)

For example electrical installation in homes, café with outdoor seating, online shop for furniture

For example work at clients' sites, own products, exports to the US, parent company abroad

Business legal expenses insurance in Germany (Firmenrechtsschutz)

For example plumbing business, tax practice, online shop for electronics

Existing disputes cannot be insured, but knowing about them helps us advise you

Cargo and transport insurance in Germany

Only for hauliers and own-account transport

For example Incoterms, ADSp, packing, storage, previous claims

4Your current policy
5How can we reach you?

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Boat or yacht? NAMMERT has its own cover concepts for boats, arranged by the same broker.

Boat insurance

Your broker: Norman Nammert, trading as NAMMERT.

Insurance broker licensed under section 34d(1) of the German Trade Regulation Act.

Broker register no. D-C08Q-TOSD4-37.

NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH is a separate company.

It does not arrange your contract.

Statutory disclosure (German) · Updated