Professional indemnity
Professional indemnity is required by law for managers of owners' associations and rented homes and covers mistakes with deadlines, resolutions and accounts.
Insurance broker / Business types / Property and finance
Insurance for property management, WEG administration and rental management in Germany
As a property manager you handle other people's money and make decisions about other people's buildings. Miss a warranty deadline, carry out a resolution the wrong way or let the buildings insurance lapse, and the owners will claim damages from you. That is why professional indemnity is compulsory for residential property managers in Germany. This page shows what else makes sense.
The question almost everyone asks first
Is the minimum cover of 500,000 euros enough?
It is enough for your licence, but in practice often not. A single case, such as a warranty deadline missed on a new roof or a refurbishment contract awarded the wrong way, can run to six figures on a large estate. Once you manage a few hundred units, we recommend 1 million euros per claim or more. The extra premium is usually small.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
Deadlines and warranties
Defects in the common parts are reported too late and the builder's warranty has expired. The owners then ask you, the manager, to pay for the repairs.
- 02
Resolutions handled wrongly
A contract is awarded without a valid resolution, an overpriced quote is accepted, a special levy is split incorrectly. Since the 2020 reform of the German Condominium Act (WEG), managers have more powers and more responsibility.
- 03
The building is not insured
The buildings insurance has been cancelled or the sum insured is too low, and then the water damage happens. The gap comes back to the manager.
- 04
Other people's money
Service charge accounts, reserve funds and tenants' deposits: theft by your own staff and fraud using fake invoices are real risks.
- 05
Data protection and cyber attacks
Bank details, tenant files, meter readings: one hacked property management system affects thousands of people and stops all your annual statements.
- 06
Keeping the premises safe
Gritting in winter, loose railings, broken playground equipment: the manager has to organise all of it. If someone falls, the claim is often made against the manager as well.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
Business liability
Covers injury and property damage from the office and during inspections, including the safety duties you organise and caretakers you employ.
Strongly advised
Cyber insurance
Pays for IT forensics, data breach notifications and downtime if your management software or email accounts are attacked.
Business legal expenses
For disputes over your fees, dismissal as manager and employment law, and for criminal proceedings, for example after an accident on a property you manage.
Depends on the business
D&O insurance
For managing directors of a management GmbH, who can be personally liable for organisational failures.
Business contents
For office furniture, files and IT against fire, water and burglary.
Company pension (bAV)
A company pension helps you keep good bookkeepers and property officers, who are hard to find in this industry.
What it costs: example prices
The compulsory cover is priced mainly on your turnover and the number of units you manage. For small and medium sized firms the premiums are modest; with higher cover and fidelity insurance they rise accordingly.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Professional indemnity | Manager with 40 units and 50,000 euros turnover, 500,000 euros of cover | about 120 to 250 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Manager with 300 units and 110,000 euros turnover, 500,000 euros of cover | about 230 to 460 euros a year |
| Professional indemnity | Management firm with 1,500 units and 500,000 euros turnover | about 670 to 1,200 euros a year |
| Business liability | Office with up to five employees | about 80 to 200 euros a year |
| Cyber insurance | Property management firm with around 500,000 euros turnover, 500,000 euros of cover | about 500 to 900 euros a year |
For comparison: For a small manager, the compulsory professional indemnity and public liability together cost about as much a year as the fee for managing a single flat in an owners' association.
Guide prices excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026, based on published examples from comparison sites and our own quoting experience. With 1 million euros of cover per claim, the premium rises by roughly a third to a half.
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Compulsory
For: Sole manager with a few owners' associations or rented buildings
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
Together about 200 to 450 euros a year
Request this package02
Office
For: Management firm with staff and a few hundred units
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Cyber insurance
- Business legal expenses
Together about 1,000 to 2,000 euros a year
Request this package03
Management company
For: Management GmbH with more than 1,000 units and its own caretaker service
- Professional indemnity
- Business liability
- Cyber insurance
- Business legal expenses
- D&O insurance
- Business contents
Together about 2,500 to 5,000 euros a year
Request this packageThe worst day in property management
Six things that really happen to property managers, all packed into a single Monday. Click through the day and see who pays.
Damage so far€147,400
-
The owners of a WEG demand the cost of a new flat roof because the manager only reported the defects after the warranty had expired.
-
A tenant slips on the icy path outside a managed building. Nobody had been hired to clear it.
-
The management software has been encrypted by hackers. Statements and bank details of 800 owners are affected.
-
A resolution on the façade refurbishment is challenged because the meeting invitation was flawed. A new meeting, an expert and delay costs from the contractor follow.
-
An owners’ association removes you early as its manager. You sue for your fee for the rest of the contract term.
-
During an inspection a property officer forces a rotten cellar door, damaging a tenant's door.
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
- Choose at least 1 million euros per claim as soon as you manage estates with more than 100 units. The legal minimum is only the floor.
- Make sure the policy also covers commercial rental management, management of individual flats (Sondereigentumsverwaltung) and building project support, if you offer them.
- Take out fidelity insurance against embezzlement by staff. It is a separate policy and not part of professional indemnity.
- Keep a deadline calendar for warranties and for the insurance policies of each building, and check the buildings sum insured every year.
- Check whether your policy keeps covering you after it ends (run off cover), because mistakes are often found years later.
- Remember the training duty of 20 hours every three years under § 34c GewO; without proof you put your licence at risk.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We know licensing rules
As insurance brokers we work under a trade licence ourselves, with compulsory insurance and proof of training. We know what a supervisory authority wants to see.
Several insurers compared
Professional indemnity policies differ on run off cover, exclusions and whether managing individual flats is included. We put the quotes side by side for you.
We know claims from the inside
In boat insurance we handle claims ourselves. That helps you when owners make demands and the insurer is checking whether you breached your duties.
For your buildings too
We are happy to compare the buildings, liability and natural hazards insurance of the owners' associations you manage. A family business since 1989, and free for you because the insurer pays our commission.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Is professional indemnity compulsory for WEG administrators?
Yes. Anyone who manages the common property of an owners' association, or rented homes on behalf of others, counts as a residential property manager under § 34c GewO and must hold at least 500,000 euros per claim and 1 million euros a year under § 15 MaBV.
Does the requirement also apply to commercial property?
No, it applies to residential property. If you only manage offices and shops, you do not need a licence under § 34c GewO, but you should still have professional indemnity.
What does insurance for a property management firm cost?
The compulsory cover starts at about 120 euros a year for small managers. A firm with a few hundred units usually pays 1,000 to 2,000 euros for professional indemnity, public liability, cyber and legal expenses together.
Who pays if an employee embezzles service charge money?
Not professional indemnity, which excludes intentional acts. That is what fidelity insurance is for, and it makes particular sense for managers who hold client trust accounts.
Is the manager liable for clearing snow and ice?
The manager has to organise and supervise it. If nobody was hired or the checks were skipped, the manager can be liable alongside the owners' association. Public liability covers this.
Do I need my own insurance as a rental manager if the owner is insured?
Yes. The owner's policies protect the building and the owner, not your mistakes as manager. For residential property, your own professional indemnity is compulsory.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Property manager
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Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 68.32 Verwaltung von Grundstücken, Gebäuden und Wohnungen für Dritte
Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), WZ 2025. All business types
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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