Is my robot lawn mower insured if it is stolen or injures someone?
In short
Your robot lawn mower is insured against theft only if your contents insurance (Hausratversicherung) covers garden equipment on your plot against simple theft, in some tariffs up to EUR 5,000. If it is stolen and your tariff excludes this, a device policy starts at about EUR 20 a year. If it injures someone, you are liable when at fault, the maker when it is defective; liability insurance pays your share.
For a robot lawn mower, contents and personal liability insurance matter most. Separate device policies are an extra option.
Example
Typical range
Contents insurance for a 140 square metre house
about EUR 140 to 280 a year
Personal liability insurance, single
about EUR 40 to 120 a year
Personal liability insurance, family
about EUR 60 to 180 a year
Separate robot lawn mower policy, entry tariff
from about EUR 19.90 a year
Robot lawn mower policy with wider cover
from about EUR 5 a month
Guide values, October 2026, taken from published examples.
The limit for garden equipment is in your policy terms.
The purchase price in the worked example is a guide value from broking practice.
Worked example
Robot lawn mower worth EUR 1,200 in a fenced garden
The mower is stolen from the lawn during the day. The family has contents and personal liability insurance.
Purchase price
EUR 1,200
Contents insurance covering garden equipment up to EUR 5,000
replaces the mower up to the limit
Contents insurance without garden clause
no payment
Separate device policy
from about EUR 20 a year
With the right contents policy the theft is covered. Without the garden clause the family bears the EUR 1,200 itself.
Theft from the lawn is the sticking point
A robot lawn mower works out in the open. If someone carries it off, German insurers call that simple theft (einfacher Diebstahl), not burglary (Einbruchdiebstahl). Many contents policies pay nothing for simple theft outdoors.
Newer tariffs treat the robot lawn mower as garden equipment and cover it on your plot, often with a cap. Some require the garden to be fenced in. Older contracts often do not mention robot lawn mowers at all.
What happened
Who usually pays
Garage broken open, mower gone
contents insurance as burglary
Carried off the lawn, tariff covers garden equipment
contents insurance up to the agreed limit
Carried off the lawn, no garden clause
not contents insurance, only a device policy
Breakdown after the statutory warranty
only a device policy with breakdown cover
Worn blades and battery
nobody, that is your cost
When the robot lawn mower injures someone
Anyone who harms another person intentionally or negligently is liable under Section 823(1) of the German Civil Code (BGB). With a robot lawn mower this can mean letting it run while small children or guests walk barefoot on the grass.
Your personal liability insurance (Privathaftpflicht) covers this, also when the robot lawn mower strays onto the neighbour's land and damages flower beds. Older contracts may exclude robot mowers, so read the terms.
When the fault lies in the robot lawn mower itself
If a design fault stops a robot lawn mower from detecting an obstacle, the manufacturer is liable under the Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz) without fault for personal injury and for damage to things in private use.
On 8 October 2026 the Bundestag adopted new product liability rules, due to take effect on 9 December 2026. For robot lawn mowers placed on the market from then on, software counts expressly as a product, and missing security updates can also lead to liability.
When you do not need a separate robot lawn mower policy
A low cost robot lawn mower that spends the night in a locked garage, with contents insurance that includes garden equipment, needs no extra contract. A separate policy mainly pays off for expensive mowers on open ground or if you also want breakdown cover.
How a broker can help with your robot lawn mower
Norman Nammert works as an insurance broker (Versicherungsmakler) and can check whether your contents and liability policies include the robot lawn mower or whether a switch makes sense. The insurer pays the commission, so it costs you nothing.
Step by step
Look for garden equipment and simple theft in your contents insurance terms.
Note the cap and conditions such as a fenced plot.
Keep the receipt and serial number of the robot lawn mower safe.
Check that your personal liability policy does not exclude robot mowers.
Only if there is a gap, choose a device policy or a better contents tariff.
Checklist
Robot lawn mower included as garden equipment
Simple theft on your plot covered
Cap at least as high as the new price
No exclusion for robot mowers in personal liability
PIN and theft lock activated on the device
Mowing times set when no children play in the garden
Common mistakes
Assuming contents insurance pays for every theft from the garden
Letting the mower run while children play on the lawn
Not keeping the receipt and serial number
Buying an expensive extra policy when contents insurance already covers it
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Is my robot lawn mower automatically covered by contents insurance?
Not always.
Newer tariffs often count it as garden equipment, older ones do not.
What matters is whether simple theft on your plot is included.
Does contents insurance pay if the mower disappears from the garden?
Only if the tariff covers simple theft of garden equipment on your plot.
Some terms require a fenced garden.
Who pays if the robot lawn mower injures a child?
If you let it run unsupervised while children were in the garden,
you are liable and your personal liability insurance pays.
If the device was faulty, the manufacturer is also liable.
What should I do if my robot lawn mower is stolen?
Report it to the police straight away,
tell your insurer and have the receipt and serial number ready.
Is the manufacturer liable for a software fault?
For devices placed on the market from 9 December 2026 the new product liability law covers
