Business liability
As club liability cover it tops up the federation's policy for guests, events, rented rooms and grounds that go beyond the basic contract.
Insurance broker / Business types / Sport, culture and leisure
Insurance for sports clubs, club committees and sports grounds in Germany
If your club belongs to the state sports federation (Landessportbund), its group sports policy already gives you liability and accident cover for sporting activity. What often remains open is your own clubhouse, the ride-on mower, the cash box, the summer fete with guests and the personal liability of the committee. This page shows where the gaps are and what it costs to close them.
The question almost everyone asks first
Isn't the cover through the state sports federation enough?
For the sport itself it is a good foundation: liability and accident cover for members at training, matches and meetings. But it only covers the basic risks. Not insured are your own clubhouse and equipment, non-members at taster sessions, large public events and, usually, the committee's personal liability for financial loss at a sufficient level. According to the state federations, theft from changing rooms generally cannot be insured at all.
What goes wrong in this trade
- 01
The committee is liable too
Missed tax deadlines, lost charitable status, coaching allowances paid out incorrectly: committee members can be personally liable for the club's financial losses if they acted with gross negligence.
- 02
Injured spectators and guests
A ball flies over the fence, a step on the stand gives way, a child falls off the bouncy castle at the summer fete. Non-members are often only partly covered by the federation's policy.
- 03
Clubhouse and grounds
A fire in the clubhouse, lightning in a floodlight mast, a storm over the tennis hall: the club has to insure its buildings and equipment itself, and the ride-on mower too.
- 04
Damage to rented halls
In the council sports hall a member tears the padded wall or a shower runs all night. The local authority sends the bill to the club.
- 05
The club's cash
Cash from the cake stall, a treasurer who diverts subscriptions to his own account: embezzlement by the club's own people is one of the most common financial losses in a club.
- 06
Driving to away matches
Parents drive the youth team in their own cars. If there is an accident, the damage to their own car falls on the driver unless the club has business travel comprehensive cover.
Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.
The insurance you need
Essential
D&O insurance
Protects the chair and treasurer against personal liability for the club's financial losses, for example if charitable status is lost.
Strongly advised
Commercial buildings
Insures the clubhouse, stand, tennis hall and floodlights against fire, storm and escaping water at replacement value.
Business contents
Replaces sports equipment, the ride-on mower, the kitchen and the club's cash after fire, burglary or water damage.
Depends on the business
Group accident insurance
Tops up the modest accident sums of the federation's policy for competitive athletes, coaches or non-members.
Business legal expenses
Helps in disputes with the local authority, the tenant of the club bar or paid coaches.
Fleet insurance
For club minibuses and a business travel comprehensive policy that covers parents' private cars on the way to matches.
What it costs: example prices
For clubs in the state sports federation, basic cover is already paid for through the membership fee. Anything on top depends mainly on the club's annual budget, its own buildings and the number of events.
| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Business liability | Sports club with annual turnover up to 50,000 euros, 3 million euros liability and 300,000 euros financial loss cover | about 180 to 450 euros a year |
| D&O insurance | Committee of a club with a budget up to 250,000 euros | about 150 to 300 euros a year |
| Commercial buildings | Clubhouse with changing rooms, replacement value around 400,000 euros, including natural hazards | about 600 to 1,200 euros a year |
| Business contents | Furniture, sports equipment and ride-on mower worth 50,000 euros | about 200 to 450 euros a year |
| Business legal expenses | Club with up to 500 members | about 150 to 300 euros a year |
For comparison: Club liability and D&O together cost a medium sized club about as much a year as one set of kit for a youth team.
Guide figures excluding insurance tax, as of September 2026, based on published tariff examples and our own quoting experience. Building premiums vary widely by location and construction; we obtain the exact quote for your club.
Sources of the price examples
Our suggestions: three packages
01
Committee
For: club in the state sports federation without its own building that wants to protect its committee
- D&O insurance
Together about 150 to 300 euros a year
Request this package02
Club
For: club with events, guests and its own equipment
- D&O insurance
- Business liability
- Business contents
Together about 500 to 1,100 euros a year
Request this package03
Grounds
For: club with its own clubhouse, halls or pitches and paid coaches
- D&O insurance
- Business liability
- Business contents
- Commercial buildings
- Business legal expenses
Together about 1,300 to 2,800 euros a year
Request this packageThe worst day at the club
Six things that really happen at sports clubs, all on one Saturday with a home match and the summer fete. Tap through the day and see who pays.
Damage so far€94,700
-
While the marquee is going up, a pole tips over onto a neighbour's parked car.
-
The ride-on mower catches fire while cutting the pitch and burns out completely.
-
A guest who is not a member falls off the hired bouncy castle and breaks an arm.
-
The tax office withdraws the club's charitable status retroactively because coaching allowances were paid out incorrectly. The club claims the loss from its committee.
-
Lightning strikes the floodlight mast; the lights and the wiring in the clubhouse are destroyed.
-
Burglary at the clubhouse: the takings from the fete, the projector and the new training equipment are gone.
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
- Ask the state sports federation for the current sums insured and check events with many non-members separately.
- Take out D&O for the committee even if everyone is a volunteer: the limited liability for volunteers under § 31a BGB (German Civil Code) does not protect you against gross negligence.
- Insure the clubhouse and halls at index-linked replacement value and include natural hazards, especially for grounds near rivers.
- Have damage to rented council sports halls expressly included in the club liability policy.
- Handle cash under the four eyes principle and consider a fidelity module against embezzlement.
- Register taster sessions and holiday programmes with non-members with the insurer, otherwise accident cover is often missing.
Why NAMMERT for your business
We read the federation policy alongside
We put your federation sports policy next to the quotes and only insure what is missing. Your club should not pay twice.
We know clubs from water sports
Sailing and motorboat clubs have been our clients for decades. Committee work, hall rules and the summer fete are familiar ground for us.
We stay with you through the claim
In boat insurance we handle claims ourselves. That helps when the building insurer argues about replacement value after a fire in the clubhouse.
Free of charge for the club
The insurer pays our commission. The club pays no fee, and since 1989 you have had the same family business on the phone.
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does a sports club need its own liability insurance?
If it belongs to the state sports federation, basic cover already exists. Its own club liability policy makes sense for large events, its own grounds, non-members and sums above the basic contract.
Are club committee members personally liable?
Volunteer committee members paid no more than 840 euros a year are only liable for intent and gross negligence under § 31a BGB (German Civil Code). But exactly those cases do happen, for example with tax mistakes. D&O covers them.
Is the clubhouse insured through the state sports federation?
No. The sports policy covers your liability as owner, not damage to your own building. For that the club needs buildings and contents insurance.
Are coaches and instructors insured?
Paid staff have statutory accident cover through the VBG, and the club registers them there. Liability during training and supervision is usually covered by the club liability policy.
Who pays if parents have an accident driving to an away match?
Damage to the other party's car is paid by the driver's motor liability insurance. Damage to their own car they carry themselves, unless the club has taken out business travel comprehensive cover.
What does insurance for a sports club cost?
Club liability starts at about 180 euros a year, D&O for the committee at about 150 euros. With a clubhouse and equipment, many clubs pay between 1,300 and 2,800 euros a year.
NAMMERT insurance broker
Request quotes for Sports club
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
Am I liable if a member is injured on a machine?
Are our school boats covered by an ordinary boat policy?
Does the disclaimer on the entry ticket protect me?
Official classification
This page covers the following classes of the German WZ 2025 (identical to NACE at four digits):
- 93.11 Betrieb von Sportanlagen
- 93.12 Sportvereine
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