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Exhibition and trade fair insurance in Germany: exhibits and stands covered nail to nail

Germany hosts many of the world's largest trade fairs, and exhibiting there means trucking machines, samples and an expensive stand into a hall you do not control. German fair organisers largely exclude liability for exhibitors' goods in their terms of participation. Exhibition insurance, Ausstellungsversicherung in German, covers your exhibits, loaned items and stand equipment in transit, during set-up, at the show, during dismantling and on the way back.

The question almost everyone asks first

My company has general liability cover. Do I still need exhibition insurance?

Yes, because they pay for different things. Liability cover pays when you or your stand staff damage someone else, for example a visitor or the hall operator. Exhibition insurance pays for your own property: the prototype dropped by a forklift, the display case broken into overnight, the loaned painting that comes back damaged. A business contents policy rarely helps, as it usually only covers your own premises.

What the fair organiser will not pay

The terms of participation of German fairs follow a common pattern: the organiser is liable for loss or damage to exhibits only where it is at fault, often only for intent and gross negligence. Stands still standing after the dismantling deadline are cleared and stored at the exhibitor's cost, with liability excluded.

Hall security provided by the organiser lowers the risk but does not insure your goods. If something disappears from an open stand overnight or is crushed during the forklift rush at teardown, you carry the loss unless you have your own cover.

Nail to nail: transit and storage count

Most losses happen outside opening hours: during loading, on the road, at set-up and dismantling, and while crates wait in interim storage for the return trip. That is why German exhibition policies are built as house to house cover; in the art world the term is nail to nail, from taking a work off the lender's wall to hanging it back.

How long interim storage is covered depends on the policy. The German model wording leaves the number of days per storage period open, to be filled in for each contract. If you park goods with a forwarder between two shows, check that period.

Art exhibitions, museums and galleries

Lenders want proof of insurance at the value they set before they agree to a loan. Art policies therefore use an agreed value (Taxe in German) that need not be proven after a loss, plus rules specific to art: compensation for loss of value after restoration, a pair and set clause for parts of an ensemble, and a buy back right if a stolen work is recovered.

Public museums in most German federal states can obtain a state indemnity for important exhibitions instead of commercial insurance. It rarely covers every loan and every phase, so a policy is still needed for the rest.

Where neighbouring classes take over

Exhibition insurance is property insurance for your items. A visitor tripping over a cable at your stand is a matter for general or event liability insurance. If the whole fair is cancelled and your stand rental is lost, event cancellation cover may respond. Goods you ship to customers on a regular basis belong under transit or cargo insurance.

What is covered

  • Your own exhibits, machines, samples and prototypes
  • Third party property and loans, where agreed
  • Stand construction, display cases, furniture, decoration and flooring
  • Audio visual and presentation equipment on the stand
  • Outward and return transit by own vehicle, forwarder or courier
  • Set-up, dismantling and interim storage for the agreed period
  • Theft, burglary, robbery and vandalism
  • Breakage, fire, water and storm, usually on an all risks basis

What is not covered

  • Wear and tear and inherent vice
  • Damage caused by inadequate packing
  • Mechanical and electrical breakdown of running machines
  • Lost sales, delays or cancellation of the fair
  • Theft from an unattended stand where the policy requires guarding
  • Liability claims by visitors or organisers

Who needs it

  • Manufacturers showing machines and samples at German trade fairs
  • Companies with their own reusable exhibition stand
  • Galleries at art fairs and exhibitions away from their premises
  • Museums, art societies and collectors lending or borrowing works
  • Organisers of touring and special exhibitions

Who does not need it

  • Exhibitors who only bring brochures and low value promotional material
  • Companies whose contents or electronics policy expressly includes trade fairs with sufficient limits

Wheel of misfortune

Spin the wheel of bad luck

Six things that really happen. The wheel picks yours and shows who pays.

See all six cases
  1. Forklift drops exhibit while unloading, repair or replacement, often five figures. Budget policy: pays in part, Strong policy: pays. An all risks policy pays. Under named perils it depends on whether handling or accidents to the conveyance are listed.
  2. Display case broken into overnight, the stolen goods. Budget policy: pays, Strong policy: pays. Burglary outside opening hours is the core case. If the policy requires valuables to be locked away at night, that must have been done.
  3. Sample vanishes during the show, value of the sample. Budget policy: does not pay, Strong policy: pays in part. Simple theft during opening hours is not always covered and often carries a higher deductible.
  4. Loaned work returns with a crack, restoration and loss of value. Budget policy: does not pay, Strong policy: pays. Only if third party property is included. Strong art policies also pay depreciation after restoration.
  5. Fair cancelled at short notice, stand rental, stand build and travel. Budget policy: does not pay, Strong policy: does not pay. That is not property damage. Event cancellation insurance exists for this.
  6. Crates sit three weeks in storage, anything damaged there. Budget policy: pays in part, Strong policy: pays. Interim storage is covered for an agreed number of days. After that the cover ends unless something else was agreed.

What it costs

The premium depends on the value of exhibits and stand, the duration, the location of the show and the transit route. Single policies are rated per exhibition, annual policies on the total of all fairs in a year, often with a minimum premium. There are no independently published price comparisons, so we do not quote amounts.

What drives the premium

  • Value of exhibits, loans and stand equipment
  • Type of goods: machinery, electronics, art, jewellery
  • Number and length of exhibitions per year
  • Show locations in Germany, Europe or worldwide
  • Transit route and packing
  • Deductible and loss history

The premium is only fixed in the quote, once the insurer has your schedule of values, fair calendar and transit details.

The policy levels on the market

01

Single show policy

For companies with one or two fairs a year: exhibits and stand for one event, including outward and return transit and fixed storage periods.

02

Annual exhibitor policy

All fairs of a year in one contract, with a declared show calendar. Stand and AV equipment often on a first loss basis, plus storage between dates.

03

Fine art and museum cover

Nail to nail with agreed values, depreciation after restoration, pair and set clause and waiver of recourse against lenders and fine art shippers, also for touring shows.

How to recognise a good policy

CriterionMinimum standardStrong policyWhy it matters
Scope of perils named perils only all risks With named perils a loss has to fit the list; with all risks it only must not be excluded.
House to house only at the venue from your premises until return Most damage happens in loading, transit and dismantling.
Interim storage a few days sufficient storage period before and after the show Goods stored with a forwarder between fairs need that time covered.
Simple theft burglary outside opening hours only theft during opening hours included Small exhibits usually vanish in the middle of the show.
Guarding and locking duties strict, with loss of cover organiser hall security is sufficient A duty you cannot meet at someone else's venue makes the cover worthless.
Loans and agreed value own goods at current value only third party goods at agreed value Lenders require proof of cover at their value.
Waiver of recourse none against lender, organiser and shipper Otherwise a claim can strain relations with the partners you need for the next show.
Underinsurance proportional reduction average waived Values on an exhibition list are easily set too low.

Insurers on the German market

In Germany exhibition insurance is mostly written by marine and transit insurers, art exhibitions also by fine art specialists. Listed are insurers under German federal supervision for which we found policy wording or product information for this class. This is a market overview, not a ranking and not a statement about who we work with.

InsurerBackground
Mannheimertransit and art insurer from Mannheim with its own wordings for exhibitions and art exhibitions
ALTE LEIPZIGERexhibition cover based on the German model wording, plus special terms for art exhibitions
Allianzexhibition and trade fair insurance and a museum and exhibition policy
LVMexhibition terms as part of its transit insurance wordings
HDI Globalindustrial insurer of the Talanx group, transit and fine art for larger clients
Württembergischecommercial transit insurance including exhibition cover

From the BaFin register

161

161 insurers supervised by BaFin, the German regulator, are licensed for this class of insurance.

(Hagel-, Frost- und sonstige Sachschäden, Transportgüter)

Show all 161 names from the register
  • ACM Versicherung AG
  • ADAC Autoversicherung AG
  • ADAC Versicherung AG
  • ADAC Zuhause Versicherung AG
  • ADLER Versicherung AG
  • Allianz Direct Versicherungs-AG
  • Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE
  • Allianz Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Alte Leipziger Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Ambra Versicherung AG
  • AMMERLÄNDER VERSICHERUNG Versicherungsverein a.G. (VVaG)
  • andsafe Aktiengesellschaft
  • ARAG Allgemeine Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Astra Versicherung AG
  • AXA easy Versicherung AG
  • AXA Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • BA die Bayerische Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • Badischer Gemeinde-Versicherungs-Verband
  • Baloise Sachversicherung Aktiengesellschaft Deutschland
  • Barmenia Allgemeine Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • BavariaDirekt Versicherung AG
  • Bayerische Hausbesitzer-Versicherungs-Gesellschaft a.G.
  • Bayerische Landesbrandversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Bayerischer Versicherungsverband Versicherungsaktiengesellschaft
  • BD24 Berlin Direkt Versicherung AG
  • Bergische Brandversicherung Allgemeine Feuerversicherung V.a.G.
  • BGV-Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • CG Car-Garantie Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Concordia Versicherungs-Gesellschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • CONSTANTIA Versicherungen a.G.
  • Continentale Sachversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Cosmos Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • DA Deutsche Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • DARAG Deutschland AG
  • Debeka Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft Sitz Koblenz am Rhein
  • Delvag Versicherungs-AG
  • DEVK Allgemeine Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • DEVK Deutsche Eisenbahn Versicherung Sach- und HUK-Versicherungsverein a.G. Betriebliche…
  • DFV Deutsche Familienversicherung AG
  • Dialog Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Die Haftpflichtkasse VVaG
  • DOCURA VVaG
  • Dolleruper Freie Brandgilde
  • Domestic & General Insurance Europe AG
  • ERGO Direkt Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • ERGO Reiseversicherung AG
  • ERGO Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • EUROPA Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • EXTREMUS Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • F. Laeisz Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Fahrlehrerversicherung Verein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Feuer- und Einbruchschadenkasse der BBBank in Karlsruhe, Versicherungsverein auf…
  • Feuersozietät Berlin Brandenburg Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • GARANTA Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Gartenbau-Versicherung VVaG
  • Gebäudeversicherungsgilde für Föhr,Amrum und Halligen
  • Generali Deutschland Versicherung AG
  • GGG Kraftfahrzeug-Reparaturkosten-Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Gothaer Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Gothaer Versicherungsbank VVaG
  • Great Lakes Insurance SE
  • GRUNDEIGENTÜMER-VERSICHERUNG Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • GVO Gegenseitigkeit Versicherung Oldenburg VVaG
  • GVV Direktversicherung AG
  • GVV-Kommunalversicherung, Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Hagelgilde Versicherungsverein a.G., gegründet 1811
  • Hamburger Beamten-Feuer-und Einbruchskasse
  • Hamburger Feuerkasse Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Hamburger Lehrer-Feuerkasse
  • HanseMerkur Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • HanseMerkur Reiseversicherung AG
  • Harsewinkeler Versicherung VaG
  • HDI Global SE
  • HDI Global Specialty SE
  • HDI Haftpflichtverband der Deutschen Industrie Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • HDI Versicherung AG
  • Helvetia Schweizerische Versicherungsgesellschaft AG Direktion für Deutschland
  • Helvetia Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • HUK-COBURG Haftpflicht-Unterstützungs-Kasse kraftfahrender Beamter Deutschlands a.G. in Coburg
  • HUK-COBURG-Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • HUK24 AG
  • Häger Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Hübener Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • IDEAL Versicherung AG
  • INTER Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • Interlloyd Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • InterRisk Versicherungs-AG Vienna Insurance Group.
  • ISSELHORSTER Versicherung V.a.G.
  • Itzehoer Versicherung/Brandgilde von 1691 Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Janitos Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • KRAVAG-ALLGEMEINE Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • KRAVAG-LOGISTIC Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • Landschaftliche Brandkasse Hannover
  • LBN Versicherungsverein a.G. (VVaG)
  • Lehrer-Feuerversicherungsverein a.G. für Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg und Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
  • Lifestyle Protection AG
  • Lippische Landesbrandversicherung AG
  • Lucura Versicherungs AG
  • LVM Landwirtschaftlicher Versicherungsverein Münster a.G.
  • Mannheimer Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Markel Insurance SE
  • Mecklenburgische Versicherungs-Gesellschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Mercedes-Benz Versicherung AG
  • Minerva Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • MVK Versicherung VVaG
  • MÜNCHENER VEREIN Allgemeine Versicherungs-AG
  • NEH Neue Hildener Versicherung AG
  • Neodigital Autoversicherung AG
  • Neodigital Versicherung AG
  • Neuendorfer Brand-Bau-Gilde
  • Newline Europe Versicherung AG
  • nexible Versicherung AG
  • Nordhemmer Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • NV-Versicherungen VVaG
  • NÜRNBERGER Allgemeine Versicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • NÜRNBERGER BEAMTEN ALLGEMEINE VERSICHERUNG AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
  • OKV - Ostdeutsche Kommunalversicherung auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Ostangler Brandgilde, Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit (VVaG)
  • OSTBEVERNER Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit (VVaG)
  • Pallas Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • ProTect Versicherung AG
  • Provinzial Nord Brandkasse Aktiengesellschaft
  • Provinzial Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • PVAG Polizeiversicherungs-Aktiengesellschaft
  • R+V Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Real Garant Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • RheinLand Versicherungs Aktiengesellschaft
  • Rhion Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • S DirektVersicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • SAARLAND Feuerversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Schleswiger Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • SCHNEVERDINGER Versicherungsverein a.G.
  • SHB Allgemeine Versicherung VVaG
  • SIGNAL IDUNA Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • SIGNAL IDUNA Unfallversicherung a. G.
  • Sparkassen-Versicherung Sachsen Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Stuttgarter Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • SV SparkassenVersicherung Gebäudeversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • TRIAS Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Uelzener Allgemeine Versicherungs-Gesellschaft a.G.
  • Union Reiseversicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • uniVersa Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • Vereinigte Hagelversicherung VVaG
  • Vereinigte Tierversicherung, Gesellschaft auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Versicherer im Raum der Kirchen Sachversicherung AG
  • Versicherungskammer Bayern Versicherungsanstalt des öffentlichen Rechts
  • Versicherungsverband Deutscher Eisenbahnen-Versicherungsverein auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Verti Versicherung AG
  • VHV Allgemeine Versicherung AG
  • Volkswagen Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • VOLKSWOHL-BUND SACHVERSICHERUNG AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
  • VPV Allgemeine Versicherungs-AG
  • Waldenburger Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • WERTGARANTIE SE
  • WGV-Versicherung AG
  • WWK Allgemeine Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Württembergische Gemeinde-Versicherung auf Gegenseitigkeit
  • Württembergische Versicherung Aktiengesellschaft
  • Würzburger Versicherungs-AG
  • Zurich Insurance Europe AG
  • Öffentliche Feuerversicherung Sachsen-Anhalt

Source: BaFin company database, 18 September 2026; EU insurers without a German office excluded.

Legal basis and sources

Products and add-ons

Single exhibition policy

For one specific fair or exhibition, including outward and return transit. Ends when the goods are back.

Annual or open policy

Covers all declared fairs of a year, often cheaper and without the risk of forgetting to register a show.

Fine art exhibition policy

Nail to nail with agreed values and art specific clauses, for museums, galleries and lenders.

Sample collection insurance

Related class for sales representatives who show samples to customers all year, not only at fairs.

Event liability insurance

Complement for exhibitors and organisers: pays for damage caused to third parties at the stand or event.

Myth or truth

True or false?

Five things people say about this insurance. Guess first, then see the answer.

The fair organiser is liable for my exhibits.

This is false.

Usually not. German terms of participation largely exclude liability for exhibits, often except for intent and gross negligence.

General liability cover pays for damage to my own stand.

This is false.

No. Liability insurance pays for damage you cause to others. Your own property needs property cover such as exhibition insurance.

Good exhibition cover starts when goods are loaded at your own premises.

This is true.

True. House to house or nail to nail cover includes transit, set-up, dismantling and the return, where most losses occur.

German insurers have a model wording for exhibition insurance.

This is true.

Yes, the DTV-AVB Ausstellungsversicherung 2010. It is non-binding, and many insurers use their own versions with different periods and limits.

Public museums in Germany can partly rely on a state indemnity for loans.

This is true.

Yes, most federal states have schemes for important exhibitions. Whatever the indemnity does not cover still has to be insured.

Common mistakes

  • Relying on hall security provided by the fair organiser
  • Insuring only the show days and forgetting transit, set-up and teardown
  • Not expressly including loans and consignment goods
  • Leaving the stand itself out of the sum insured
  • Leaving valuables and small items unlocked at the stand overnight
  • Failing to declare a fair under an annual policy

Frequently asked questions

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

What is the difference between exhibition insurance and event liability?

Exhibition insurance pays for damage to your own or borrowed property.

Event liability pays when you cause damage to others, such as a visitor or the venue.

Exhibitors usually need both, and many German fairs require liability cover.

Am I automatically covered by the fair?

Usually not.

German terms of participation largely exclude the organiser's liability for exhibits.

Some fairs offer exhibitor insurance through a master contract;

check whether transit and dismantling are included.

What does nail to nail mean?

Cover starts when an item is taken down or moved at its home location and ends when it is back in

place.

In between are packing, transit, set-up, the exhibition, dismantling, storage and the return trip.

Are loaned items covered automatically?

No.

Third party property usually has to be included expressly and listed with its value.

Lenders often require an agreed value and a waiver of recourse.

Is theft during opening hours covered?

That depends on the policy.

Some wordings only cover burglary outside opening hours,

others include simple theft during the day, often with a higher deductible.

For small, portable exhibits this is the key question.

Is my exhibition stand covered?

Only if it is included in the sum insured.

Stand construction, furniture, display cases and AV equipment are often insured separately or on a

first loss basis.

For rented stands also check the contract with the stand builder.

Does the cover apply to fairs outside Germany?

If the territorial scope allows it.

Many policies cover Germany or Europe; worldwide shows are agreed case by case.

Outside the EU customs papers come into play, and confiscation by authorities is usually excluded.

What if the fair is cancelled?

Exhibition insurance does not cover that.

Lost stand rental and costs of a cancelled event fall under event cancellation insurance,

which is more common for organisers than for exhibitors.

Why use a broker?

Because policies differ widely on storage periods, theft, guarding duties,

loans and territorial scope,

and single and annual policies are rated very differently.

We obtain quotes and compare the wordings in English.

Our fee is paid by the insurer.

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Often goes with it

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