Professional indemnity
Professional indemnity pays when your advice costs the client money and defends you against unjustified claims.
Insurance broker / Business types / Professional services
Insurance for management consultants, interim managers and coaches in Germany
You sell advice, and advice can be wrong. If a consultant recommends an unsuitable stock management system or a business plan works with outdated figures, the client wants the loss back. There is no legal duty to insure, but many clients demand proof of cover in the framework agreement. This page explains what you need and what it costs.
The question almost everyone asks first
How high should my sum insured be?
Base it on the largest loss a mistake could cause for your most important client, and on what framework agreements require. For solo consultants working with small and medium firms, 250,000 to 500,000 euros is usual; for projects in large corporations, IT rollouts or financing, more like 1 million euros. Going from 300,000 to 1 million euros often costs only around 300 euros a year.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
The wrong recommendation
You recommend a software, a location or a partner, and it does not fit. The client's lost revenue quickly reaches six figures.
- 02
Outdated figures
A market analysis or business plan relies on old data, and the bank lends too little or nothing at all. The client claims the loss from the failed investment.
- 03
Missed subsidy deadline
If you handle grant applications, you are liable when a deadline or a document is missed. The lost grant is a classic financial loss.
- 04
Confidentiality
Strategy papers, salary lists and customer data go to the wrong mailing list or end up on a lost laptop.
- 05
Working at the client's site
At a workshop in the client's office the projector falls over or a participant trips over a cable: that is injury and property damage, not a financial loss.
- 06
Being out of action yourself
As a solo consultant you are the product. A long illness ends current projects and your income at once.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
Strongly advised
Business liability
Covers injury and property damage at workshops and in the client's office; many tariffs combine it cheaply with professional indemnity.
Cyber insurance
Helps with data loss, hacked accounts and reporting duties if you store your clients' confidential documents.
Occupational disability
Protects your income if illness stops you from consulting; the self-employed have hardly any statutory protection otherwise.
Depends on the business
D&O insurance
For interim managers appointed as officers and managing directors of a consulting GmbH, who are personally liable.
Business legal expenses
For fee disputes and disagreements over contract clauses; liability cover only defends claims made against you.
Electronic equipment
Replaces laptop, tablet and presentation equipment against theft and breakage, also on the road.
What it costs: example prices
The premium depends on annual turnover, your field of consulting and the sum insured. IT and financial consulting cost more than coaching or personnel development.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Professional indemnity | Solo consultant, turnover 60,000 euros, 300,000 euros cover | around 180 to 350 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Solo consultant, turnover 60,000 euros, 1 million euros cover | around 520 to 900 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Consultancy with five consultants, turnover 800,000 euros, 1 million euros | around 1,500 to 4,000 euros a year |
| Business liability | Office liability, 3 million euros, as an add-on to professional indemnity | around 80 to 200 euros a year extra |
| Cyber insurance | Small consultancy up to 100,000 euros turnover, 100,000 euros cover | around 300 to 500 euros a year |
For comparison: Professional indemnity with 500,000 euros cover costs about as much a year as two hours of consulting.
Guide prices excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026, from published tariff examples; the example for the five-person consultancy is a guide value from our own quoting experience. We obtain the exact quote for you.
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Solo
For: Coach, trainer or consultant without employees
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
Together around 250 to 500 euros a year
Request this package02
Project
For: Consultant with corporate clients, framework agreements and sensitive data
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Cyber insurance
- Business legal expenses
Together around 1,000 to 2,200 euros a year
Request this package03
Consultancy
For: GmbH with several consultants and a management team
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Cyber insurance
- D&O insurance
- Business legal expenses
- Electronic equipment
Together around 3,000 to 7,500 euros a year
Request this packageThe worst day in consulting
Six things that really happen to consultants, all on a single Wednesday. Tap through the day and see who pays.
Damage so far€185,700
-
A retail client calls: the stock management system you recommended keeps crashing, and he claims his lost sales.
-
At a workshop on the client's premises a participant trips over your projector cable and breaks his wrist.
-
The grant application you handled was incomplete. The subsidy for the new warehouse is lost.
-
Your email account has been hijacked and invoices with false bank details go out to all clients. Forensics and notification.
-
Laptop and tablet are stolen from your car at the station, right in the middle of a proposal.
-
A client refuses to pay the final invoice and claims the concept is flawed. You sue for your fee.
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
- Read framework agreements before signing: if the client requires a specific sum insured, your policy must explicitly reach it.
- Get confirmation that your actual field is insured, such as IT implementation, grants or HR consulting; general wording is not enough.
- Choose a policy with prior acts cover so that mistakes made before the policy started are not left uncovered.
- Make sure you have worldwide cover if you work for clients abroad; many tariffs exclude the USA and Canada.
- Avoid unlimited liability in contracts and agree a liability cap equal to your sum insured.
- As an interim manager, check whether the company you work for includes you in its D&O policy, or take out your own.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We find the tariff for your field
As a broker we compare several insurers. We make sure your actual work is written into the policy, not just a general job description.
We know the other side of a claim
In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves. We know which documents an insurer wants to see after an advice error and help you prepare them.
Business and private together
Professional indemnity, income protection, car and pension are managed for you in one place.
Family business since 1989
You pay us nothing, as the insurer covers our commission. And you have fixed contacts instead of a hotline.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Do I need professional indemnity as a management consultant in Germany?
Not by law, but in practice yes. Advice errors are pure financial losses that ordinary public liability cover does not pay. Many clients also write proof of cover into the contract.
What does professional indemnity for consultants cost?
With 60,000 euros turnover and 300,000 euros cover from around 180 euros a year, with 1 million euros cover from around 520 euros. Your field and turnover change the premium considerably.
Do coaches need the same insurance?
Coaches and trainers usually have smaller financial loss risks but more personal contact at seminars. A combination of public liability and modest professional indemnity often fits.
Does the insurer pay contractual penalties?
Generally not. Contractual penalties, guarantees and promises beyond statutory liability are excluded, so negotiate such clauses before you sign.
Am I covered by the company as an interim manager?
Only if you count as an insured person under its D&O policy. If you are appointed managing director you are personally liable, so this should be clarified before the project starts.
Does my insurance cover projects abroad?
That depends on the tariff. Europe is usually included; worldwide cover including the USA and Canada must be agreed explicitly.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Consultant
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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Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 70.10 Verwaltung und Führung von Unternehmen und Betrieben
- 70.20 Unternehmensberatung
- 72.20 Forschung und Entwicklung im Bereich Rechts-, Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften sowie im Bereich Sprach-, Kultur- und Kunstwissenschaften
Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), WZ 2025. All business types
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