Professional indemnity
Covers financial loss from wrong reports and defends you against unjustified claims; the core of your protection.
Insurance broker / Business types / Professional services
Insurance for experts, surveyors and valuers in Germany
An expert report is a promise: the client buys, sells, repairs or sues on the strength of it. If a building surveyor misses damp or a vehicle assessor misjudges earlier damage, German law holds them liable even for simple negligence. This page explains how to protect yourself and what it costs.
The question almost everyone asks first
Am I liable as a court-appointed expert too?
Yes, but more narrowly: under § 839a of the German Civil Code (BGB), court-appointed experts are only liable for intent and gross negligence. For private reports, insurance reports and market value appraisals, however, full liability applies even for slight negligence, including towards third parties who rely on your report. Most experts work for both sides and therefore need complete cover.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
A defect overlooked
A building surveyor inspects before a purchase and misses damp in the basement or pests in the roof. The buyer claims the repair costs.
- 02
The wrong value
A market value set too high leads to overlending, one set too low to a loss on sale. Both regularly end up in court.
- 03
Accident reports
Earlier damage that was missed or repairs costed too low cost the insurer or the injured party money and end in a recourse claim against the vehicle assessor.
- 04
Damage during inspection
A part breaks when a panel is opened, an engine fails during a test run, or a ladder topples into the display cabinet in the living room.
- 05
Always on the road
Inspection appointments mean many miles, time pressure and expensive measuring devices in the boot.
- 06
Fee disputes
If the client does not like the result, the invoice often goes unpaid. Fee claims are common in the profession.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
Car insurance
Motor liability is compulsory for every vehicle; if you drive to inspections every day, also consider own damage and breakdown cover.
Strongly advised
Business liability
Pays for injury and property damage during inspections, for example to the vehicle or in the client's home.
Electronic equipment
Insures measuring equipment such as thermal cameras, moisture meters, paint thickness gauges and laptops, also in the car.
Business legal expenses
For fee claims and disputes with clients; liability cover only defends claims made against you.
Occupational disability
Protects your income if you can no longer climb onto sites and into lofts.
Depends on the business
Cyber insurance
For hacked accounts and data loss if you store photos, findings and personal data digitally.
What it costs: example prices
The premium depends on your field, turnover and the sum insured. Building and property reports cost more than vehicle reports, and a combination of several fields must be written into the policy.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Professional indemnity | Start-up, turnover 25,000 euros, 100,000 euros cover | around 170 to 350 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Vehicle assessor, turnover 150,000 euros, 500,000 euros cover | around 800 to 1,500 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Building surveyor and property valuer, 1 million euros cover | around 1,000 to 2,500 euros a year |
| Car insurance | Expert's car with liability and comprehensive cover, high mileage | around 600 to 1,300 euros a year |
| Electronic equipment | Measuring devices, camera and laptop worth 20,000 euros | around 150 to 400 euros a year |
For comparison: Liability cover for a start-up expert costs less a year than a single report on a moderate bodywork claim.
Guide prices excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026. The start-up premium comes from published tariff examples, the other figures are guide values from our own quoting experience. We obtain the exact quote for you.
Sources of the price examples
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Start-up
For: Experts working part-time or in their first year
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
Together around 250 to 500 euros a year
Request this package02
Office
For: Full-time vehicle or building experts with their own car
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Car insurance
- Electronic equipment
- Business legal expenses
Together around 2,000 to 4,000 euros a year
Request this package03
Expert firm
For: Office with several experts and fields
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Car insurance
- Electronic equipment
- Business legal expenses
- Cyber insurance
Together around 4,000 to 9,000 euros a year
Request this packageThe worst day in an expert's office
Six things that really happen to experts, all on a single Tuesday. Tap through the day and see who pays.
Damage so far€103,300
-
A buyer calls: there is dry rot in the roof of the house you inspected, and your report did not mention it.
-
Inspecting a classic car, a bracket breaks as you open the bonnet and it crashes into the windscreen.
-
An insurer wants money back: you failed to spot earlier damage in an accident report.
-
On the way to your next appointment you run into the car in front at the lights. Both vehicles need repairs.
-
The thermal camera falls off the scaffolding onto the yard.
-
A developer refuses to pay for an evidence report because he dislikes the result. 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
- Have every field named individually in the policy, such as vehicles, building damage, market value or energy consulting; fields not named are not insured.
- Choose at least 500,000 euros cover for pre-purchase surveys and market value appraisals, and 1 million euros for commercial property.
- Make sure damage to the items you inspect is included; that is property damage, not financial loss.
- Limit your liability in your terms of business to the sum insured, as far as the law allows.
- Protect measuring devices with cover away from the premises, so that theft from a locked car is included.
- Think about run-off cover: defects in buildings you assessed often only appear years after the report.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We speak the experts' language
In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves and work with experts every day. We know where reports get challenged.
We compare several insurers
As a broker we collect quotes and check that your fields and inspection damage are really written into the policy.
Office, car and private cover in one place
Professional indemnity, your expert's car, equipment and your private provision are looked after together.
Family business since 1989
No cost to you, as the insurer pays our commission. You reach fixed contacts.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Do I need professional indemnity as an expert in Germany?
Usually not by law, but in practice absolutely. You are personally liable without limit for errors in your report, and publicly appointed experts are expected to be insured under their rules anyway.
What does insurance for experts cost?
Small start-up policies begin at around 170 euros a year. Full-time vehicle assessors pay more like 800 to 1,500 euros, building surveyors with high sums more.
Am I also insured towards third parties?
Yes, if the policy includes claims by third parties who rely on your report, such as the bank in a market value appraisal. This should be stated explicitly in the policy.
Does the insurance cover my work as a court expert?
Yes, court reports are part of the usual scope. There your liability is limited to intent and gross negligence under § 839a BGB.
What if I work in several fields?
Every field must be named in the policy. The combination often raises the premium, but a gap costs you the entire payout when a claim comes.
Is my measuring equipment covered by liability insurance?
No. You protect your own equipment with electronics insurance, ideally with cover on the road and in the car.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Expert
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.
Related trades
As an employed engineer, am I covered by the firm?
What sum insured does my chamber of architects require?
Are my customers' cars insured while they are in my workshop?
Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 74.91 Erbringung von Vermittlungs- und Vermarktungsdienstleistungen für Patente
- 74.99 Alle anderen wissenschaftlichen und technischen Tätigkeiten a. n. g.
Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), WZ 2025. All business types
Boat or yacht? Here we are not the broker but the underwriting agency, with our own policies and our own claims handling.
Boat insuranceNAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH, insurance broker licensed under section 34d(1) of the German Trade Regulation Act, broker register no. D-C08Q-TOSD4-37. For boat and yacht insurance we act as underwriting agency, not as broker. Statutory disclosure (German) · Updated