Business liability
With product liability for bursting bottles, foreign bodies and contamination, plus environmental blocks for tanks and cleaning agents.
Insurance broker / Business types / Manufacturing
Insurance for breweries, distilleries and drinks makers in Germany
One cracked tank, and 20,000 litres of beer run down the drain. One bursting bottle, and a customer nearly loses an eye. In breweries, distilleries and cider presses the risk lies in pressure, glass and liquid. Here is how to cover it in Germany and what it costs.
The question almost everyone asks first
Is the beer covered if a fermentation tank cracks?
Usually not under standard contents insurance, because burst pipe cover means water from pipes, not beer from a tank. You need an extension for liquids escaping from tanks and vessels, often called tank rupture (Tankbruch). The tank itself is covered by machinery insurance, depending on the cause. The two can be combined.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
A tank or cask leaks
A valve stays open, a weld cracks, a hose comes loose. The contents of a large tank are often worth tens of thousands of euros.
- 02
Bottles under pressure
Secondary fermentation in the bottle makes glass burst. Shards injure customers, retailers and staff.
- 03
Foreign bodies and contamination
Broken glass in the filling line, cleaning agent residues or germs lead to complaints and often to a recall from shops.
- 04
Carbon dioxide in the cellar
Fermentation produces CO2, which collects in cellars. Without a warning system it is life threatening.
- 05
Fire in the distillery
Alcohol vapour and open flames at the still: distilleries carry a particular risk of fire and explosion.
- 06
The bottling line stops
If the filling line fails in the middle of the season, there are no goods for festivals, drinks stores and restaurants.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
Business contents
Replaces brewhouse, still, empties and stock after fire and burglary, with an extension for liquids escaping from tanks.
Strongly advised
Machinery breakdown
Pays for damage to brewhouse, cooling, still and filling line caused by operator error, overpressure or material defects.
Business interruption
Secures income when, after a loss in peak season, you cannot brew or bottle.
Depends on the business
Cargo insurance
For goods on the way to drinks stores, restaurants and festivals, including breakage during loading.
Fleet insurance
If you deliver with your own lorries and vans and collect the empties.
Group accident insurance
Adds to the statutory accident insurer for staff who lift heavy loads and work with pressure vessels in the cellar.
What it costs: example prices
Premiums depend on output, turnover, tank volume and whether you serve drinks yourself. A brewery with its own brewpub also needs the building blocks of a restaurant.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Business liability | Small craft brewery or fruit distillery without a bar, up to €300,000 turnover | around €250 to €700 a year |
| Business liability | Brewery with 20 staff, supplying shops and restaurants | around €1,800 to €5,000 a year |
| Business contents | Plant and stock worth €800,000, including tank rupture | around €1,500 to €3,500 a year |
| Machinery breakdown | Brewhouse, cooling and filling line with a new value of €600,000 | around €1,500 to €4,000 a year |
| Business interruption | Business interruption for twelve months added to contents insurance | around €400 to €1,500 a year |
For comparison: Liability and contents insurance for a small brewery cost about as much a year as ten 50 litre kegs of beer sold to the trade.
Guide figures excluding German insurance tax, as of September 2026. Hardly any tariff examples are published for breweries and distilleries; the ranges are based on comparable businesses and our own quoting. We obtain the exact quote for you.
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Craft brewery
For: Small breweries, distilleries and cider makers selling direct
- Business liability
- Business contents
Together around €600 to €1,600 a year
Request this package02
Regional
For: Firms with their own bottling and deliveries to shops and restaurants
- Business liability
- Business contents
- Machinery breakdown
- Business interruption
Together around €3,000 to €8,000 a year
Request this package03
Distribution
For: Breweries with their own fleet and retail customers
- Business liability
- Business contents
- Machinery breakdown
- Business interruption
- Cargo insurance
- Fleet insurance
- Group accident insurance
Together around €10,000 to €25,000 a year
Request this packageThe worst day at the brewery
Six things that happen in breweries and distilleries, all on one Saturday before the town festival. Tap through and see who pays.
Damage so far€271,400
-
A storage tank cracked along its weld overnight. 15,000 litres of beer are in the sewer.
-
The labelling machine on the filling line jams; its gearbox has broken.
-
In a drinks store a bottle that is still fermenting bursts. A customer is injured in the eye.
-
While unloading at the festival tent a pallet tips off the lorry. 60 crates are broken.
-
With no bottling, there is nothing for the festival and two weeks of trade.
-
In the distillery, alcohol vapour ignites at the still. Still room and stock burn out.
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
- Include leakage of beer, wine, cider and spirits from tanks and casks expressly, with a sum that matches your largest tank.
- Have damage from bursting bottles and glass shards confirmed in your product liability.
- If you serve drinks or run a brewpub, the hospitality side belongs in your general liability and contents insurance as well.
- Insure empties and deposit stock too; they are often a surprisingly large part of the inventory.
- Look at a recall cost block as soon as you supply drinks stores or retail chains.
- For distilleries: agree fire and explosion protection with the insurer, as ventilation conditions are often written into the policy.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We ask about the tank, not just the turnover
Tank rupture, bottle pressure, empties: we know where standard policies leave gaps for breweries, and we compare quotes from several insurers.
We know liquid damage
In boat insurance we settle water damage claims ourselves. We know how to prove cause and quantity so that the insurer pays.
Business, brewpub and family
We look after production, hospitality, vehicles and your private cover from one place, and can do so in English.
Tradition meets tradition
We have been a family business since 1989. Our work is free for you; the insurer pays our commission.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does a brewery need product liability?
Yes. Under the German Product Liability Act you are liable without fault, for example for bursting bottles or contamination. It is usually part of general liability; check the sum and the exclusions.
Is leaking beer covered?
Only with an extension for escaping liquids or tank rupture. Burst pipe cover generally does not include it.
What does insurance cost for a small brewery?
Liability and contents start at around €600 a year. With machinery and business interruption, regional breweries usually pay between €3,000 and €8,000.
Are home brewers covered?
If you only brew for yourself, personal liability insurance protects you as long as you do not sell. As soon as you sell beer, you need business liability cover.
What is different for distilleries?
The risk of fire and explosion is higher, so insurers ask for fire protection and inspect the premises more closely. The value of the spirits in store must be insured too.
Who pays if an employee collapses in the fermentation cellar?
The BGN, as statutory accident insurer, pays for treatment and rehabilitation. A CO2 warning system is required by the rules and saves lives.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Drinks production
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.
Thank you, we have your request.
We will be in touch within one working day. If it is urgent: +49 3375 29 12 77.
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Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 11.01 Herstellung von Spirituosen
- 11.03 Herstellung von Apfelwein und sonstigen gegorenen Getränken aus Obst
- 11.04 Herstellung von Wermutwein und sonstigen aromatisierten Weinen
- 11.05 Herstellung von Bier
- 11.06 Herstellung von Malz
- 11.07 Herstellung von Erfrischungsgetränken und Mineralwässern
Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), WZ 2025. All business types
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