All about this insurance: Personal liability
Do I really need personal liability insurance in Germany?
Insurance broker / Insurance questions / Personal liability
In short
In a family or couple tariff, yes: spouses or registered partners and your own children are covered, children usually until the end of their first education. Unmarried partners often need to be named in the policy and live at the same address. A single tariff covers nobody but you.
What moving from a single to a family tariff costs, based on published tariff examples.
| Example | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Single, cover of EUR 10 to 50 million | about EUR 40 to 120 a year |
| Couple or family with children | about EUR 60 to 180 a year |
| Family tariff, example from a tariff calculation | about EUR 78 to 120 a year |
| Very good family tariffs in a consumer test | from about EUR 48 a year, average around EUR 99 |
Guide values as of September 2026 from publicly quoted tariff examples and test results. Your premium depends on cover and deductible; we obtain the exact quote for you.
Worked example
How combining pays off when both were insured separately.
| Her single tariff | about EUR 60 |
| His single tariff | about EUR 55 |
| Together so far | about EUR 115 |
| One joint couple or family tariff | about EUR 70 to 90 |
Savings of around EUR 25 to 45 a year, and a later child is covered without a new policy.
Covered are the people the tariff names. Common are spouses or registered partners, your own children, and stepchildren, adopted and foster children. Many tariffs also include parents who live permanently in your household.
For unmarried couples, many insurers require both to be registered at the same address (Anmeldung) and the partner to be named in the policy. If the name is missing, cover can be disputed in a claim.
| Person | Usual status in a family tariff |
|---|---|
| Spouse or registered partner | covered |
| Unmarried partner in the household | covered, often only if named in the policy |
| Child at school, in training or a first degree | covered |
| Child in a gap between education stages | depends on the tariff, often up to a year |
| Adult child who has finished education | usually no longer, needs an own policy |
| Au pair or household help | only in some tariffs |
In the UK or US, liability cover often comes bundled with home or renters insurance. In Germany personal liability insurance (Privathaftpflichtversicherung) is a separate policy, so moving in together does not automatically extend anything.
If you are not married, or your marriage abroad is not yet registered in Germany, make sure your partner is named in the policy. If only one of you is registered at the shared flat, ask the insurer whether that is enough. Policy documents are usually in German, so ask for the exact wording on who counts as covered.
What usually counts is not age but the first education: school, apprenticeship, bachelor's and often a master's that follows directly. Gaps such as a voluntary social year or federal volunteer service are included in good tariffs.
Cover through the parents ends with the end of the first education or with marriage. Many insurers let it run on for a while so that an own policy can start without a gap. A child studying abroad usually stays covered as long as the education continues, but check the tariff's rules for longer stays outside Germany.
If your child knocks over your TV, liability insurance does not pay. It only covers damage to third parties, and covered people are not third parties to each other. Your own things fall under contents insurance, where the damage is covered there.
There is one exception for personal injury: if a health insurer or employer claims costs back, many tariffs pay that claim.
If you live alone without children, the single tariff is cheaper. If your partner already has a good policy, one of the two is enough for now; you can cancel the other at the end of its term once the joint one is in place. Two policies do not pay a claim twice.
Questions and answers
Not always. Many tariffs require a shared address and the name in the policy. A short call to the insurer clears it up.
Usually until the end of their first school or vocational education, as long as they are not married. The exact end is in the tariff.
As a rule not through your policy. Their parents' liability insurance is responsible for damage they cause.
No. Damage between covered people is excluded, because no outside person has been harmed.
The policy stays with the policyholder. The other partner needs an own one; many tariffs keep cover running for a while after the separation.
For couples usually yes: one joint policy costs less than two single tariffs.
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All about this insurance: Personal liability
Do I really need personal liability insurance in Germany?
Are students covered by their parents' liability insurance?
Usually yes, if your parents have a German family policy and you are unmarried and in your first vocational training o …
Who pays when a child under seven causes damage?
Often nobody. Under German law (§ 828 BGB) children under seven are not liable, and parents only pay if they failed in …
How much does personal liability insurance cost in Germany?
Personal liability insurance (Privathaftpflichtversicherung) usually costs singles EUR 40 to 120 a year and families a …
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