What insurance do pilots and cabin crew in Germany need?
In short
What insurance pilots and cabin crew in Germany need: first disability insurance (Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung), and for pilots loss of licence insurance, which pays if your medical certificate is withdrawn, at 35 with a EUR 150,000 sum about EUR 750 to 2,250 a year. Be careful with accident insurance: German model terms exclude pilots and cabin crew as aircrew unless this is specially agreed.
The values for age 35 and 50 and for cabin crew are guide values from our quoting practice.
Your premium depends on age, health, sum and scope.
Worked example
Pilot, 38, medical withdrawn because of a heart rhythm disorder
She has loss of licence cover of EUR 150,000 and disability insurance with a EUR 3,000 benefit.
Loss of licence, temporary
2 percent of EUR 150,000, so EUR 3,000 a month from day 90
Loss of licence, permanent after 180 days
EUR 150,000 minus monthly payments already made
Disability insurance
EUR 3,000 a month if the wording treats loss of the medical as disability
Private accident insurance
nothing, because there was no accident
Loss of licence pays reliably and quickly, disability insurance only with the right wording. That is why both belong together.
The special risk in the cockpit and the cabin
Pilots may only fly as long as they hold a valid aeromedical certificate, the medical. If pilots lose it after illness or an accident, their flying career stops, even if they could otherwise work fully.
Cabin crew can also insure against losing their aeromedical certificate. For pilots and cabin crew alike, an illness that would hardly matter in an office can end a flying career.
Disability insurance and loss of licence
Disability insurance pays if pilots or cabin crew can no longer do their job to at least 50 percent. Whether losing the medical is enough for that depends on the policy wording, and for pilots it is often disputed. Ask to see the rule on unfitness to fly in writing before you sign.
Loss of licence insurance is tied directly to the withdrawal of the medical. It is usually taken out on top of disability insurance: it bridges the time until a new career, while disability insurance secures income until retirement. Details are on our page about loss of licence insurance.
Feature
Loss of licence (typical)
Temporary loss of the medical
2 percent of the sum a month, 12 or 24 months, from day 90
Permanent loss
lump sum from day 180, monthly payments already made are deducted
Mental disorder
often only 25 percent or only with extra cover
Maximum sum
usually capped at three annual salaries
From age 63
often accident cover only
Accident insurance: the gap on board
The GDV model terms for private accident insurance in Germany exclude accidents as the pilot of an aircraft and as any other crew member, naming cabin crew expressly as an example (AUB 2020, clause 5.1.4). For pilots and cabin crew this means a standard accident policy does not cover your work on board.
On duty, pilots and cabin crew are covered by the employer's statutory accident insurance (section 8 SGB VII). If you want extra private cover, you need an accident policy that expressly includes the aviation risk as crew.
What employer and law already cover
If pilots or cabin crew fall ill, the employer pays salary for six weeks, then health insurance pays sickness benefit (Krankengeld), at most 90 percent of net pay and capped at the contribution ceiling. With high pilot salaries the gap to net pay is therefore large.
There is no state pension for being unable to work in your own profession for people born from 1961 onwards. Check your employment and collective agreements: some airlines are themselves policyholders of loss of licence cover for their flight crew, in which case topping up is often enough.
Order of priority for pilots and cabin crew
For pilots and cabin crew in Germany the order looks like this. The top rows protect your livelihood.
Priority
Insurance
Pilots
Cabin crew
1
Disability insurance
yes, check the rule on unfitness to fly
yes
2
Loss of licence
yes, about EUR 750 to 2,250 a year at 35 for EUR 150,000
possible, check group policy
3
Private liability
yes, private risks only
yes
4
Legal cover including employment law, or a union
useful
useful
5
Accident insurance including aviation risk
only with express inclusion
only with express inclusion
What pilots and cabin crew rarely need
A standard accident policy without crew inclusion is almost worthless for pilots and cabin crew at work. Private pilots without income from their licence do not need loss of licence insurance, because they lose no salary.
For mistakes on duty, the German rules on employee liability also apply to pilots: no liability towards the employer for slight negligence, usually full liability for gross negligence. Norman Nammert arranges such cover as an insurance broker (Versicherungsmakler); the insurer pays the commission, so it costs you nothing.
Step by step
Check your employment and collective agreements for group loss of licence cover.
Take out disability insurance with a clear rule on unfitness to fly.
Add loss of licence or top up the group sum.
Check any existing accident policy for the aircrew exclusion.
Sort out legal cover or union help for employment disputes.
Checklist
Disability insurance with a rule on unfitness to fly
Loss of licence up to three annual salaries
Mental disorders clarified in the loss of licence cover
Accident insurance including cover as crew member
Employer's group policy known
Common mistakes
Relying on a standard accident policy that excludes crew members
Having only loss of licence and forgetting income until retirement
Not knowing the employer's group policy and paying twice
Not checking cover for mental illness
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does my private accident insurance cover me in the cockpit?
Not under the German model terms AUB 2020:
pilots and other crew members are excluded unless expressly agreed.
Do cabin crew need loss of licence insurance?
It is available for cabin crew too.
Disability insurance matters more; check whether your employer has a group policy.
Does loss of licence replace disability insurance?
No.
It pays for 24 months at most or a lump sum, disability insurance pays until retirement.
How much is loss of licence insurance?
As a guide value at 35 with EUR 150,000 about EUR 750 to 2,250 a year,
at 50 about EUR 1,500 to 3,500.
Am I covered for an accident on duty?
Yes, through your employer's statutory accident insurance.
