Electronic equipment insurance or business contents insurance: what is the difference?
In short
The difference: business contents insurance (Inhaltsversicherung) only pays for fire, burglary, burst pipes and storm or hail. Electronic equipment insurance (Elektronikversicherung) pays for almost any sudden damage to devices, including short circuits, drops and spilled coffee, for about 0.5 to 1.5 percent of their replacement value per year. What is right for you? With costly tech, usually both.
What electronic equipment insurance costs on top of contents insurance in Germany, from published examples.
Example
Typical range
Software trading company, EUR 50,000 of electronics, EUR 100 deductible
about EUR 150 a year
GP practice, EUR 40,000 of electronics
about EUR 200 to 400 a year
Office, retail or trade, EUR 100,000 of electronics
from about EUR 370 a year
Rule of thumb for electronics cover
about 0.5 to 1.5 percent of replacement value per year
Guide values, October 2026, from publicly quoted examples;
the sources do not say whether insurance tax is included.
The loss amounts in the worked example are guide values from our quoting practice.
We obtain the exact quote for your business.
Worked example
Design agency in Berlin, 5 workstations, one year with three losses
How the losses fall if the agency only has contents insurance, or electronic equipment insurance as well.
Water in a laptop, replacement value EUR 2,200
electronics policy only
Surge destroys server and switch, EUR 6,500
electronics policy only
Break-in, two monitors stolen, EUR 900
both policies
Electronics premium for EUR 30,000 of equipment
about EUR 150 to 450 a year
With contents insurance alone the agency pays EUR 8,700 itself. With electronic equipment insurance it only carries the deductible per claim, usually EUR 150 to 500.
Named perils versus all risks
Business contents insurance protects everything inside your premises: furniture, stock, tools, machines and computers too. But it only pays if one of the perils named in the policy caused the loss, and you have to show that it was fire, burglary or water from a pipe.
Electronic equipment insurance only covers devices, but against almost anything. Every sudden, unforeseen physical damage is covered unless an exclusion applies, and in a dispute the insurer has to prove the exclusion.
Which policy pays for which damage
Most damage to computers, tills and medical devices happens in everyday use, not through fire or break-ins. That is exactly where electronic equipment insurance and business contents insurance differ.
Surge damage from lightning is often included in contents policies only as a clause with its own limit. Surges from the grid without lightning are usually only covered by electronic equipment insurance.
Damage
Contents insurance
Electronic equipment insurance
Fire in the server room
yes
yes
Break-in, laptops stolen
yes
yes
Burst pipe above the phone system
yes
yes
Coffee over the keyboard
no
yes
Tablet dropped on site
no
yes, if portable devices are included
Grid surge without lightning
usually no
yes
Operating error on the ultrasound
no
yes
Battery fades after three years
no
no, that is wear
Why businesses usually run both policies
Contents insurance stays necessary for furniture, stock, tools and supplies, which are not electronics. Electronic equipment insurance only adds cover for the tech.
To avoid paying twice, some insurers take electronics out of the contents sum or credit it. Ask about this if both policies sit with the same insurer.
Differences in settlement and sum insured
Both usually pay replacement value (Neuwert). For contents insurance the sum covers your entire inventory; for electronic equipment insurance only the devices, often as one blanket sum without an itemised list.
Neither basic policy fully covers data and software. Electronic equipment insurance offers an add-on that pays for restoring data after physical damage to the device.
When contents insurance is enough for your tech
If you only have a few inexpensive devices, say two laptops in a small shop, contents insurance alone is often enough. You pay for a coffee accident yourself but save a second premium.
If your business depends on medical devices, a server or till systems, contents insurance alone leaves out the most frequent losses.
Step by step
Read your contents policy: which perils, is there a surge clause?
Add up the replacement value of all electronics.
Identify which devices your business cannot run without.
Have electronics credited in the contents sum if you take both.
Decide on the data and software add-on.
Checklist
Contents insurance for furniture, stock, tools and supplies
Electronic equipment insurance for high value tech
Surges covered even without lightning
Portable devices outside the premises arranged
No double sum for the same devices
Common mistakes
Assuming contents insurance pays for any computer damage
Fully insuring electronics in both policies
Treating electronics cover as a replacement for contents insurance
Expecting either policy to pay for a ransomware attack
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Do I need electronics cover if I already have contents insurance?
If your business relies on expensive tech, usually yes.
Contents insurance does not pay for liquids, drops or short circuits.
Can electronic equipment insurance replace contents insurance?
No.
It only covers devices.
Furniture, stock and tools still need contents insurance.
Does contents insurance pay if lightning hits the phone system?
A direct strike, yes.
Surge damage from lightning nearby is often only covered by an extra clause up to a limit.
What about a laptop stolen from the car?
Contents insurance applies on the premises.
Outside, you need limited off-site cover or electronics cover with portable devices,
often only if the car was locked.
Is a cyber attack covered by either policy?
Usually not.
Encrypted or deleted data without physical damage is a case for cyber insurance.
