What insurance do IT employees working from home in Germany need?
In short
What insurance IT employees working from home in Germany need is short: first disability insurance (Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung), often under EUR 50 a month for young office staff. Add contents insurance (Hausratversicherung), which under German model terms also covers the company laptop in your flat, from about EUR 23 a year. Work accidents at home are covered by law, legal cover costs about EUR 250 a year.
The last value is a guide value from our quoting practice.
Your premium depends on age, health, place of residence and scope.
Worked example
Burglary at an IT employee's home office
The company laptop and her own monitor are stolen. The tariff follows the GDV model terms.
Own monitor, new value
EUR 400 via contents insurance
Company laptop, new value
EUR 1,800, as third-party property in the household also contents
Liability towards the employer
none if the flat was locked as usual
Contents premium, 80 square metres
about EUR 23 to 54 a year
Contents insurance replaces both at new value. Still agree with your employer whether their own insurance pays first, to avoid a dispute.
What really threatens IT employees working from home
For IT employees a desk is not a dangerous place, accidents are rare. The financial risk lies elsewhere: back problems, eyesight and above all mental strain can keep you out of your IT job for years.
Good news for IT: pure office work is rated cheaply for disability and accident cover. If you take out disability insurance young, you lock in a low premium for the whole term.
Accident cover at your desk at home
German law says it expressly: if you work from home as an IT employee, you are covered by statutory accident insurance to the same extent as at your employer's premises (section 8 (1) SGB VII). Covered is the work itself, not private activities in between.
Private accident insurance is therefore not a must for IT employees. It is mainly useful for your free time, for example cycling or sport, and costs about EUR 60 to 180 a year for office jobs. More on our page about accident cover when working from home.
Company laptop and your own equipment at home
Under the GDV model terms for contents insurance (VHB 2022), third-party property in your household also counts as contents, including the IT department's laptop. Work equipment counts if it is used exclusively for work. Cover only applies to named perils such as fire, burglary, tap water and storm, not to dropping it.
If the company laptop falls off the desk, the question is your liability towards your employer, not contents insurance. Your private liability policy (Privathaftpflicht) does not help either, because under the model terms it excludes risks from your job. Details are on our page about home offices in contents insurance.
Liability for mistakes in an IT job
A wrong command on the server or a dropped device: as an IT employee you are not liable towards your employer for slight negligence under German labour court rules, partly liable for medium negligence and usually fully for gross negligence. The employer has to prove your fault (section 619a BGB).
IT employees therefore do not need their own professional or financial loss liability insurance. You only need it once you freelance on the side; we have separate pages on self-employed trades and on liability for IT freelancers.
Well paid and privately insured
Many IT employees earn enough to switch to private health insurance (PKV). Then you lose statutory sickness benefit under section 44 SGB V, because it only exists in statutory health insurance. After six weeks of continued pay, only agreed daily sickness cover pays.
As an IT employee with private health insurance, check whether your daily sickness cover starts on day 43 and matches your net income.
Order of priority for IT employees
For IT employees working from home in Germany the order looks like this. The top rows protect against losses that threaten your livelihood.
Priority
Insurance
Typical premium
1
Disability insurance
young office staff from under EUR 30 to about EUR 50 a month
2
Private liability
small annual premium
3
Contents insurance
about EUR 23 to 54 a year for 80 square metres, depending on city
4
Private and employment legal cover
about EUR 250 a year
with PKV
Daily sickness cover from day 43
depends on daily rate and age
rarely needed
own professional liability, electronics cover for company devices
employer's job or limited liability
Step by step
Take out disability insurance as early as possible.
Check that your contents insurance includes third-party property and work equipment.
Ask your employer how company devices are insured and what applies if they are lost.
Add legal cover including employment law.
If privately insured, check your daily sickness cover.
Checklist
Disability insurance with a benefit of 60 to 80 percent of net pay
Contents insurance with third-party property and a sufficient sum insured
Written home office agreement with your employer
Legal cover including employment law
Daily sickness cover if privately insured
Common mistakes
Buying accident insurance for the desk but having no disability insurance
Expecting contents insurance to replace a dropped laptop
Taking out financial loss liability as an IT employee
Having private health insurance without daily sickness cover
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Am I covered by statutory accident insurance when working from home?
Yes, for the work itself to the same extent as at the employer's premises,
as section 8 (1) SGB VII states.
Does my contents insurance pay for the company laptop?
Under the GDV model terms yes, for burglary, fire, tap water or storm.
It does not pay if you drop it.
Am I liable if I drop the company laptop?
Not for slight negligence, usually fully for gross negligence.
Private liability does not pay for this.
Do I need cyber insurance as an IT employee?
Not for company devices, that is the employer's job.
For your private accounts private cyber cover can be an extra, but no priority.
How much is disability insurance for IT jobs in Germany?
For young office staff often from under EUR 30 to about EUR 50 a month,
at 30 with a EUR 2,000 benefit about EUR 50 to 90.
