All about this insurance: Travel insurance
Which travel insurance do I need if I live in Germany?
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What is the difference between trip cancellation and trip interruption cover?
In short
The dividing line is the start of the trip. Before departure, cancellation cover (Reiserücktrittsversicherung) pays the fees your tour operator charges. After departure, interruption cover (Reiseabbruchversicherung) pays for services you paid for but did not use, plus the extra cost of getting home. Break off in the first half of the trip, at the latest on day eight, and many tariffs refund the full price.
What it costs
Published premiums and ranges for bundles of cancellation and interruption cover, as of 2026.
| Example | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Basic tariff including interruption, short and cheap trip | from about EUR 6 per trip |
| Cancellation only, share of the trip price | about 3 to 8 percent |
| Trip for EUR 2,500, one person, bundle including interruption | about EUR 100 to 180 |
| Annual policy including interruption, one person | from about EUR 46 to 77 a year |
| Annual family policy, insured trip price EUR 3,000 | around EUR 123 a year |
Guide values as of September 2026 from publicly quoted tariff figures. The surcharge for interruption cover on top of plain cancellation cover is a few euros per trip; that figure is a guide value from our quoting practice. Your premium depends on trip price, age, duration and deductible; we obtain the exact quote for you.
Worked example
Family, package holiday for EUR 3,500, 14 days, broken off on day five
A child falls ill and the family flies home on day five. This is how a tariff with pro rata refunds calculates it.
| Trip price for 14 days | EUR 3,500 |
| Used before breaking off, 4 days | EUR 1,000 |
| Unused services, 10 of 14 days | EUR 2,500 |
| Extra cost of the journey home, new flights and transfer | about EUR 900 |
| Deductible of 20 percent on EUR 3,400 | about EUR 680 |
Payout about EUR 2,720. A tariff with a full holiday guarantee pays more here, because day five is in the first half of the trip: the whole trip price of EUR 3,500 plus the journey home, less any deductible. Worked example with guide values.
The start of the trip splits the two covers
Cancellation cover ends the moment you set off. Until then it pays whatever the operator or hotel keeps when you call the trip off, and shortly before departure that is often 50 to 90 percent of the price.
From the start of the trip, interruption cover takes over. It does not ask about cancellation fees. It asks what you paid for and could no longer use, and what the unscheduled journey home cost you.
| Case | Which cover pays | What you get back |
|---|---|---|
| Cancelling before departure | Trip cancellation | the operator's cancellation fees |
| Delayed start, you travel out later | Cancellation or bundle | extra cost of travelling out later, accommodation and meals, often capped at around EUR 150 per person |
| Breaking off because you fall ill | Trip interruption | unused services plus the extra cost of the journey home |
| Breaking off after a death in the family | Trip interruption | unused services and the unscheduled journey home |
| Damage to your own property, often from EUR 2,500 | Trip interruption | unused services and the journey home |
| Being flown home by ambulance or air ambulance | Travel health insurance | medically necessary repatriation, including a medical escort |
| The trip is seriously defective | no insurance claim | the operator owes you a remedy and the journey home |
Full or pro rata: the rule in the small print
Many German policy wordings contain a holiday guarantee (Urlaubsschutz): if you break off in the first half of the trip, and at the latest within the first eight days, the insurer refunds the full trip price. From day nine, or in the second half, it pays pro rata for the days you no longer had.
With separate bookings each item counts on its own: hotel nights, excursions, courses. With a package price the insurer divides the price by the number of travel days. Also check the deductible (Selbstbeteiligung), often 20 percent of the eligible loss with a minimum amount per person.
What if you are new to the German system
Germany splits travel cover into separate modules, and they are usually sold together as a package. Cancellation and interruption cover deal with money you lose on the booking. Travel health insurance (Auslandskrankenversicherung) deals with treatment abroad and the flight home on medical grounds. Luggage is a third module again.
Policy documents and claim letters are normally in German, and the German wording is what decides a claim. Note that a trip to your home country counts as travel abroad for a policy bought in Germany, so a visit to family is covered like any other trip.
What interruption cover does not do
Repatriation on medical grounds belongs to travel health insurance. It pays for the medically necessary transport home, and good tariffs also pay for one that is medically sensible, meaning earlier than strictly necessary. Interruption cover only pays the ordinary extra costs of getting home, such as a new ticket or a transfer.
A defective package holiday is not an insurance case either. If the trip is seriously impaired and the operator fails to fix it after you set a deadline, you can terminate the contract under section 651l of the German Civil Code (BGB). The operator then has to arrange your journey home and bears the extra cost.
When you do not need the bundle
For a short domestic trip, a booking you can cancel free of charge, or an amount you could simply absorb, the bundle is not worth it. On a weekend costing EUR 200 you would pay more for the cover than it can ever return.
It pays off on expensive trips booked long in advance, for families with children, for older travellers and for anyone with a relative at home who needs care. From about two trips a year, compare an annual policy against the sum of single-trip premiums.
Step by step
- Note the trip price and the operator's cancellation fee scale.
- Check that the tariff names interruption cover, not just cancellation.
- Read whether the full trip price is refunded in the first half of the trip.
- Compare the caps on the journey home and the deductible.
- In an emergency, call the emergency number before you fly home and keep the medical certificate and receipts.
Checklist
- Interruption cover named explicitly, not only cancellation
- Full refund in the first half of the trip, at the latest on day eight
- No tight cap on the extra cost of the journey home
- All travel companions named in the policy
- Deductible known, often 20 percent of the loss
- Separate travel health insurance covering repatriation
Common mistakes
- Insuring only the cancellation and having no cover from the day you leave
- Flying home without calling first and paying the extra cost yourself
- Expecting interruption cover to pay for medical transport home
- Chasing the insurer instead of the operator when the trip itself is defective
- Throwing away receipts for excursions and nights you did not use
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does cancellation cover also pay if I break off the trip?
No, it ends when the trip begins. After that only interruption cover applies, and it is usually part of the same package.
Do I get the whole trip price back?
If you break off in the first half of the trip, at the latest on day eight, many tariffs refund the full price. After that it is calculated pro rata for the days you did not use.
Who pays for medical transport home?
Travel health insurance, if the transport is medically necessary. Interruption cover only pays the ordinary extra cost of the journey home.
Can I buy interruption cover on its own?
Rarely. Most insurers only sell it together with cancellation cover, but the surcharge is small.
What if I can only start the trip later?
Many tariffs then pay the extra cost of travelling out later and refund the days you missed, often capped at around EUR 150 per person for accommodation and meals.
Will the insurer pay if there is a building site next to the hotel?
No, that is a defect in the travel contract. If the trip is seriously impaired you can terminate it, and the operator must then arrange your journey home.
Does the cover apply if I only interrupt the trip?
Many tariffs also pay for an interruption, for example a stay in a local hospital. Check whether your wording mentions interruption.
Sources
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NAMMERT 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
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