Insurance for online retailers and web shops in Germany
In online retail the shop floor sits on a server, and the stock often comes straight from Asia. If you import, you are liable like a manufacturer, and if you store customer data, you are a target for attackers. This page shows which policies protect your shop against the typical losses and what they cost.
Am I liable as a retailer if a product from China injures someone?
Very probably, yes. Under the German Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz), anyone importing goods from a country outside the EU counts as the manufacturer, and the injured party can come straight to you. Your liability policy must therefore include products liability for imported goods, ideally with worldwide cover if you sell abroad.
What goes wrong in this trade
01
Imported products
A charger that overheats, a toy with small parts a child can swallow: as the importer you are liable for the damage as if you had built the product yourself.
02
Hackers in the shop
Encrypted stock control, stolen customer data or tampered checkout pages: an attack takes the shop offline and triggers reporting duties under the GDPR.
03
Shop offline
If the shop goes down for two days in the middle of the Christmas rush, you lose the sales that carry half your year.
04
Fire in the warehouse
Cardboard, film and lithium batteries packed tightly together: a warehouse fire destroys the stock and often the packing station too.
05
Damage in transit
Broken ceramics, lost parcels, goods that never arrive: carriers are only liable up to a limit, and you still owe the customer a replacement.
06
Cease and desist letters
Faulty legal notices, cancellation terms or trade mark issues quickly lead to an Abmahnung, a formal warning letter from a competitor's lawyer, and fighting it is expensive.
Protects you against bad debts when you supply business customers on invoice.
What it costs: example prices
For small shops liability cover is cheap; cyber and transit cover cost more. The premium depends on turnover, product range, the share of imported goods and the countries you deliver to.
Insurance
Example
Typical range
Business liability
Small online shop with products liability, shipping within the EU
around 80 to 300 euros a year
Business liability
Shop with its own imports from Asia and worldwide shipping
around 300 to 1,200 euros a year
Cyber insurance
Online shop with 250,000 euros turnover, 100,000 to 250,000 euros cover
around 400 to 900 euros a year
Cargo insurance
Shipping your own goods to private customers
around 180 to 600 euros a year
Business contents
Warehouse with stock and packing equipment worth 50,000 euros
around 100 to 300 euros a year
For comparison: For a small shop, liability and cyber cover cost about as much a year as the postage on 150 parcels.
Guide figures excluding insurance tax, as of September 2026,
based on published tariff examples and our own quoting practice.
Product range and the share of imports can shift the premium considerably;
Six losses that online retailers really face, all on one Monday in December. Tap through and see who pays.
Damage so far€87,200
The shop shows nothing but a ransom demand; orders and customer data are encrypted. Forensics, recovery and a report to the data protection authority.
€18,000 · Paid by: Cyber insurance
Three days without a sale at the height of the Christmas trade. The lost profit is paid under the cyber policy.
€14,000 · Paid by: Cyber insurance
An imported power bank overheats in a customer's child's bedroom. Fire damage to furniture and carpet.
€9,500 · Paid by: Business liability
A pallet of handmade ceramics arrives broken at a trade customer. The haulier's liability is limited by weight.
€3,200 · Paid by: Cargo insurance
A former employee sues for unpaid overtime, and the dispute goes to the labour court.
€4,500 · Paid by: Business legal expenses
In the warehouse, a returned e-scooter battery on charge catches fire. Stock and shelving burn.
€38,000 · Paid by: Business contents
Which package would you have had?
Paid by insurance: €0
Out of your own pocket: €87,200
Illustrative amounts before any excess.
What is paid depends on the policy terms.
Practical tips from your broker
Make sure products liability expressly includes imports from outside the EU, and for every country you deliver to.
If you sell through international marketplaces, ask whether claims in the USA and Canada are covered, as exclusions are common there.
Choose cyber cover that also pays for lost sales while the shop is offline, not only for forensics and data recovery.
Deliberately include returns and lithium batteries in your warehouse cover, and follow the fire safety conditions for charging batteries.
Check the value per consignment: carriers' liability often ends at 500 euros, and your transit cover should go beyond that.
Have sales through Amazon, eBay or Etsy named in the policy, as some insurers ask about them separately.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We read products liability line by line
With imported goods, everything hinges on cover for non EU products and claims abroad. As a broker we compare exactly these clauses across several insurers.
We know how a claim travels
We handle boat insurance claims ourselves. We know which evidence an insurer needs after goods are damaged in transit or a warehouse burns, and we help you submit all of it.
Digital and physical risks in one place
We look after the shop, warehouse, vehicle, pension and your personal cover together, so no gap opens up between two policies.
A family business since 1989
You talk to people, not a chatbot, on +49 3375 29 12 77. Our work is free for you; the insurer pays our commission.
Frequently asked questions
Questions and answers
Do I need public liability insurance as an online retailer?
Not by law,
but it is your most important policy as soon as you sell goods that could injure someone or damage
property.
For importers it is practically essential.
What does liability insurance cost for an online shop?
Small shops start at around 80 euros a year.
With a large share of imports and worldwide shipping,
the premium can rise to several hundred and even over a thousand euros.
Are warning letters (Abmahnungen) covered?
Usually not.
Standard business legal expenses insurance excludes competition and trade mark law.
A few insurers offer cover against warning letters as a separate add on, often with limits.
Is cyber insurance worth it for a small shop?
Often yes, because small shops rarely have their own IT department.
Basic cover starts at a few hundred euros a year,
and after an attack the insurer also provides specialists.
Who pays if a parcel gets lost?
You do, at first, because the risk stays with you until the consumer receives the goods.
The carrier's liability is limited, and transit insurance closes the gap above it.
Is dropshipping covered?
Only if the policy describes it that way.
Even without a warehouse of your own, you are the seller in the customer's eyes,
and with non EU suppliers you are often the importer too.
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