Skip to content

Insurance broker / Insurance questions / Contents insurance

Does contents insurance pay if a New Year's Eve rocket sets fire to your balcony in Germany?

In short

Does contents insurance pay if a New Year's Eve rocket sets fire to your balcony in Germany? Yes. Your Hausratversicherung pays for furniture, awning and anything in the flat damaged by fire, smoke or soot, at replacement cost, because the balcony counts as part of the insured home. If nothing burns and you only find a scorch mark, it pays only when your policy includes scorch damage.

Does contents insurance pay if a New Year's Eve rocket sets fire to your balcony in Germany?

What it costs

Typical annual premiums for contents insurance in Germany, without bicycle cover.

ExampleTypical range
1 room, 35 square metres, sum insured about EUR 23,000about EUR 50 to 90 a year
2 rooms, 65 square metres, sum insured about EUR 42,000about EUR 70 to 140 a year
3 rooms, 90 square metres, sum insured about EUR 58,000about EUR 90 to 190 a year
House, 140 square metres, sum insured about EUR 91,000about EUR 140 to 280 a year

Guide values, as of November 2026, from published tariff examples.

Your premium depends on where you live, the sum insured and any add ons; we obtain the exact quote.

The amounts in the worked example are guide values from our quoting practice.

Worked example

A rocket lands on the balcony, cushions and awning catch fire

A stray rocket sets the balcony cushions alight in a rented flat in Cologne, the fire spreads to the awning and smoke gets into the living room. The amounts are guide values from our quoting practice.

Garden furniture with cushions, replacement costabout EUR 600
Awning put up by the tenantabout EUR 900
Curtains and sofa damaged by smoke and sootabout EUR 1,400
Total paid by contents insuranceabout EUR 2,900
Balcony railing and window framesthe landlord's buildings insurance

Your contents insurance pays about EUR 2,900 at replacement cost. If it was your own rocket and the policy does not waive gross negligence, it may reduce the payment.

Fire or just a scorch mark

Contents insurance in Germany pays for fire damage. The model conditions define fire as a blaze that is not in its proper place, such as a stove, and that can spread under its own power. If a cushion catches fire and the flames reach the awning and the curtains, that is fire.

If a piece of the rocket only burns a hole in the rug or in the fabric of a deckchair without a spreading fire, that is scorch damage (Sengschaden). The model conditions cover it only when it results from a fire. Scorch damage from other causes is covered only up to the amount your policy states.

What happenedWho pays
Garden furniture, planters and awning burnyour contents insurance, at replacement cost
Smoke and soot get into the flatyour contents insurance
Only a burn hole in the rug, no firecontents insurance only if scorch damage is included
Balcony floor, railing, windows or facade damagedthe owner's buildings insurance
The rocket clearly came from a neighbourthe neighbour's personal liability insurance, or your contents insurance first
Your own rocket damages the balcony belowyour personal liability insurance

Why your balcony is covered

Contents insurance covers your belongings inside the home. Under the model conditions the home includes balconies, loggias and terraces directly attached to the building. Furniture, a barbecue and plants out there are protected against fire just like the sofa in your living room.

An awning that you put up yourself as a tenant also counts as contents. Anything that is part of the building, such as the floor, the railing and the facade, falls under the landlord's buildings insurance.

If the rocket came from a neighbour

Anyone who fires a rocket so that it lands on someone else's balcony is usually negligent and liable under § 823 BGB. Their personal liability insurance pays, but only the current value, meaning the price minus age and wear.

You may still claim from your own contents insurance first, which pays replacement cost. Once it pays, your claim against the neighbour passes to the insurer under § 86 VVG, and the insurer recovers the money itself. For you this is usually the faster and more complete route.

If it was your own rocket

A fire is still covered. The insurer will however check whether you acted with gross negligence, for example by lighting the rocket on the balcony itself. Under § 81 VVG it may then cut the payment in proportion to the degree of fault. In case of intent it pays nothing.

A policy that waives the gross negligence defence, ideally up to the full sum insured, protects you here. If your rocket damages other people's property, that is a matter for your personal liability insurance.

When you need no extra cover

There is no special New Year's Eve policy. If your contents insurance waives gross negligence and includes scorch damage, you are covered for the usual cases.

Bring flammable cushions and blankets indoors over Silvester and close balcony doors and windows. It costs nothing and prevents exactly this kind of damage.

Step by step

  1. Put out the fire or call the fire brigade on 112 and get everyone to safety.
  2. Photograph the damage, keep what is left of the rocket and note any witnesses.
  3. Report the damage to your contents insurer without delay.
  4. Tell your landlord or the property manager about damage to the building.
  5. If you know who fired the rocket, note their name and liability insurer.
  6. Do not throw damaged items away before your insurer agrees.

Checklist

  • Waiver of the gross negligence defence up to the sum insured
  • Scorch damage covered even without a fire
  • Sum insured that matches your living space
  • Personal liability insurance for damage your own rocket causes
  • Flammable items cleared from the balcony before Silvester

Common mistakes

  • Claiming only from the neighbour and accepting the lower current value
  • Treating a burn hole as a fire and counting on payment
  • Reporting damage to the balcony structure to your contents insurer instead of the landlord
  • Throwing burnt items away before the damage is documented

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

Is my balcony covered by contents insurance?

Yes.

Under the model conditions balconies,

loggias and directly adjoining terraces are part of the insured home,

so belongings there are covered against fire.

Does contents insurance pay for a burn hole from a rocket?

Only if your policy includes scorch damage without a prior fire,

and then up to the limit it states.

Who pays if the rocket came from a neighbour?

Their personal liability insurance, at current value.

You can claim from your own contents insurance first,

which pays replacement cost and recovers the money from the neighbour.

Will I be paid if I fired the rocket from my own balcony?

In principle yes, but the insurer may reduce the payment for gross negligence.

A policy that waives this defence prevents that.

Who pays for a sooty facade?

The owner's buildings insurance.

As a tenant you report the damage to your landlord.

When may I set off rockets in Germany?

Category 2 fireworks may be fired by adults from 18 only on 31 December and 1 January,

and not close to churches, hospitals, children's homes or care homes.

Sources

NAMMERT insurance broker

Request a quote: Contents insurance

We compare insurers and come back to you, in English.

Free; the insurer pays our fee.

1Who is it for?
2Which insurance?

Choose as many as you like. For each one, the details an insurer needs for a quote appear below.

Personal

Business

3Details

Contents insurance in Germany (Hausratversicherung)

Excluding cellar, attic and garage

For example valuable equipment, a safe, instruments, your planned length of stay

4Your current policy
5How can we reach you?

Free of charge and without obligation. A person will get back to you.

Related questions

Updated

Was this useful?