Insurance broker / Insurance questions / Dog and horse liability

How do I cancel my dog liability insurance?

In short

Cancel in text form (Textform), meaning a letter, email or the online cancellation button, usually at least 3 months before the end of the insurance year. After a premium increase or a claim you have a special right to cancel within 1 month. If your dog dies or you give it away, you only pay until the insurer learns of it. In federal states with compulsory cover there must be no gap.

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How do I cancel my dog liability insurance?

What it costs

Cancelling costs nothing. These guide figures from published tariff comparisons show whether switching is worth it.

Example	Typical range
Basic tariff	about EUR 19 to 35 a year
Standard tariff with EUR 50 million cover	about EUR 46 to 70 a year
Premium tariff	up to about EUR 195 a year
Listed breed (Listenhund)	about EUR 100 to 233 a year
With a EUR 150 deductible	about 20 to 30 percent cheaper

Guide values as of September 2026. Premiums you have already paid for the period after the policy ends are refunded pro rata by the insurer. That many insurers continue the policy for a new dog is a guide value from our quoting practice.

Worked example

Premium increase for a Labrador

How to use the special cancellation right without a single day uninsured.

Previous premium	EUR 68 a year
Increase from 1 July, letter received on 20 May	new EUR 82
Cancellation possible until	20 June, effective 1 July
New standard tariff from 1 July	about EUR 50 to 60

You save about EUR 22 to 32 a year and are covered seamlessly from 1 July.

The four ways out of the policy

Which notice period applies depends on the reason. Ordinary cancellation is possible every year; the other routes only open after a specific event and only for a short time. The legal basis is the German Insurance Contract Act (Versicherungsvertragsgesetz, VVG).

Reason	Deadline	Legal basis
End of the insurance year	usually three months before, one to three months depending on the policy	§ 11 VVG and your policy
Premium increase without more cover	one month after receiving the notice	§ 40 VVG
Claim	one month after payment or refusal	§ 111 VVG
Death or rehoming of the dog	no deadline, report immediately	§ 80 VVG
Policy with a term of more than three years	three months before the end of the third year	§ 11 VVG

Ordinary cancellation

Dog liability policies in Germany usually renew automatically for another year. What counts is the end of the insurance year shown in your policy document (Versicherungsschein), not the calendar year. If your policy starts on 1 May and the notice period is three months, your cancellation must arrive by 31 January at the latest.

State your policy number, name, address and the date you want the policy to end, and ask for written confirmation. You do not need to give a reason.

The insurer may not make cancelling harder. Its terms may not require more than text form, and if you could take out the policy online, you must also be able to cancel online via a cancellation button since July 2022.

Special cancellation after a premium increase or a claim

If the insurer raises the premium without giving you more cover, you can cancel within one month of receiving the letter, at the earliest with effect from the date of the increase. The insurer must point out this right in the letter.

After a claim you may cancel within one month after the insurer has paid or wrongly refused. The right applies to both sides, though: the insurer can also cancel your policy after a claim. A dog with a bite incident finds a new policy harder, so do not cancel in anger after a claim before you have a new offer.

If your dog dies or moves to a new home

Without a dog there is nothing left to insure. The insurer then only receives the premium up to the day it learns of this. Report the death or rehoming immediately, ideally with the date and, for a rehoming, the name of the new keeper.

If a new dog is coming soon, it is worth asking: many insurers continue the policy for the new animal, so you do not need a new application.

Switching without a gap

In Berlin, Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Schleswig-Holstein and Thuringia every dog must have liability insurance; in other federal states this applies to dangerous or large dogs. Even one day without a policy is an administrative offence there.

The safe order: accept the new offer first, set its start date to the day the old policy ends, then cancel. That way there is neither a gap nor a double payment.

Step by step

Look up the end of the insurance year and the notice period in your policy document.
If switching, take out the new policy first, starting when the old one ends.
Send the cancellation in text form with your policy number, end date and a request for confirmation.
Keep proof of receipt: registered letter receipt, fax report or confirmation from the cancellation button.
If your dog dies or is rehomed, inform the insurer immediately with the date.

Checklist

Notice period and end date taken from the policy document
New policy starts the day after the old one ends
Policy number in the cancellation
Proof of receipt kept
Cancellation confirmation received
In a state with compulsory cover: proof of the new policy to hand

Common mistakes

Cancelling for the end of the calendar year although the insurance year ends on another date
Cancelling first, searching afterwards and being uninsured in a state with compulsory cover
Cancelling after a bite incident without having a new offer
Reporting the dog's death months later and paying in the meantime
Letting the one-month deadline after a premium increase pass

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

Can I cancel by email?

Yes. Text form is enough, so an email will do. Ask for confirmation and keep your sent message.

Do I have to give a reason?

Not for an ordinary cancellation. For a special cancellation, state the reason, for example the premium increase announced on a given date.

Do I get money back if my dog dies?

Yes, the premium for the period after the day the insurer learned of it. That is why reporting quickly pays off.

What applies to a three-year policy?

You can cancel at the earliest at the end of the third year with three months' notice, then every year. You give up the long-term discount by doing so.

Can the insurer cancel my policy?

Yes, at the end of the insurance year and after a claim. You then have some time to find a new policy; in states with compulsory cover act immediately.

Is my dog covered by my personal liability insurance if I cancel?

No. Dogs are not included in German personal liability insurance (Privathaftpflicht); they always need separate dog liability insurance.

Sources

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Dog and horse liability insurance in Germany (Tierhalterhaftpflicht)

Which animals should be insured? * Breed or mix, for horses the type of use * For example Labrador, mixed breed about 20 kg, leisure horse Year of birth of the animal Is the dog classed as dangerous or on a breed list? * Claims caused by the animal in the last five years * What matters to you For example horse sharer, dog sports, dog walker, moving from abroad

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