Does liability insurance pay if something is stolen from me?
In short
No. If something is stolen from me, liability insurance (Privathaftpflicht) does not pay, because it only covers damage you cause to other people. Your own stolen things are a matter for contents insurance (Hausratversicherung): burglary, robbery and, if agreed, bicycle theft. Simple pickpocketing is not covered under the model terms. Contents cover for 75 square metres costs about EUR 90 to 120 a year.
What the policies cost that pay after a theft or for damage to others in Germany.
Example
Typical range
Contents insurance, 75 square metres, medium tariff zone
about EUR 90 to 120 a year
Contents with bicycle theft and natural hazards
around EUR 150 a year
Private liability for one person, at least EUR 10 million cover
about EUR 40 to 120 a year
Private liability for a family or couple
about EUR 60 to 180 a year
Guide values from published market overviews, as of 2026.
The contents premium depends strongly on where you live.
Worked example
Cellar burglary and a stolen borrowed camera
Two bikes are stolen from a locked cellar. The same weekend, a friend's borrowed camera disappears in a café because it was left unattended on a chair.
Bikes from the broken-into cellar
contents insurance, burglary
Camera taken without force
no contents payout, simple theft
Friend's claim
exists, because the camera was left unattended
Private liability for the camera
only if your policy includes borrowed items
Contents insurance replaces the bikes. For the camera, only a liability policy that covers borrowed items helps; otherwise you pay yourself.
Why liability insurance does not pay for theft
Under the German model terms, private liability insurance covers your legal liability: it steps in when someone else can claim compensation from you. If something is stolen from you, there is nobody you owe anything to. The thief owes you, but is usually unknown.
Other policies handle theft of your own belongings: contents insurance (Hausratversicherung) for furniture, electronics, jewellery and bikes, and partial motor cover (Teilkasko) for the car.
Which policy pays for which theft
What matters is how the item was stolen. Contents insurance does not pay for every theft, only for the cases named in the policy terms.
What happened
Who pays
Condition
Break-in at your flat or cellar
contents insurance
the thief broke in or used false keys
Handbag snatched with force
contents insurance
robbery, violence against you
Wallet taken unnoticed from a jacket
usually nobody
simple theft is not covered in the model terms
Bike outside the house
contents insurance
bicycle cover agreed, bike locked
Laptop from a broken-into car
contents insurance
theft from vehicles agreed
The car itself
partial motor cover
theft of the vehicle
When a borrowed item is stolen
If a friend's borrowed camera is stolen while you have it, the friend will ask you to pay. You only owe compensation if you were careless, for example if the camera was lying visibly in the car. Without fault, the owner bears the loss.
Even if you are liable, the model terms of private liability exclude borrowed items. Many policies now include them, often up to a sub-limit. A stolen set of someone else's keys is only covered through a separate key loss option.
When you pay for theft yourself
Without contents insurance you carry every theft of your belongings yourself, even after a burglary. The same applies to pickpocketing in a crowd, which even good contents policies usually do not replace.
You do not need contents insurance if your things are worth little and you could replace everything yourself. For expensive bikes or electronics it is almost always worth it.
Step by step
Report the theft to the police at once and note the reference number.
List the stolen items with receipts.
Notify your contents insurer without delay.
For borrowed items or keys, inform your liability insurer as well.
Block stolen cards and have locks checked if keys were taken.
Checklist
Contents insurance with burglary and robbery
Bicycle cover if your bike stays outside
Theft from vehicles agreed if you leave things in the car
Liability policy with borrowed items and key loss
Receipts and photos of valuable items kept
Common mistakes
Reporting the theft to liability instead of contents insurance
Assuming every theft is covered by contents insurance
Going to the police only days later
Leaving borrowed valuables unattended
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does liability insurance pay if my phone is stolen from my bag?
No.
Liability insurance never pays for your own loss,
and under the model terms contents insurance does not pay for simple pickpocketing either.
Does contents insurance pay after a burglary?
Yes, burglary is a core part of contents insurance,
including cellars and storage rooms on the property.
What about a robbery in the street?
If the thief uses or threatens violence, it is robbery.
Contents insurance then pays worldwide through its cover away from home, within the agreed limits.
Do I have to pay if a borrowed item is stolen from me?
Only if you were careless.
Then liability insurance helps if your policy includes borrowed items.
Who pays if my car is stolen?
Partial motor cover (Teilkasko).
Motor liability alone does not replace a stolen car.
