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What is a commuting accident in Germany?

In short

A commuting accident (Wegeunfall) is an accident on the direct way between home and work, school or nursery. German law treats it as an accident at work, so statutory accident insurance pays treatment, rehabilitation, injury benefit of 80 percent of gross pay and, from 20 percent reduced earning capacity, a pension. In 2025 there were 170,306 reportable commuting accidents.

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What is a commuting accident in Germany?

What it costs

What a commuting accident costs and pays, in figures from German law, official statistics and published tariff examples.

Example	Typical range
Your own contribution to statutory accident insurance	EUR 0, employers pay on average EUR 1.08 per EUR 100 of payroll (2025)
Injury benefit after continued pay	80 percent of gross pay, at most net pay, for up to 78 weeks
Pension at 20 percent reduced earning capacity, annual earnings EUR 45,000	around EUR 6,000 a year, about EUR 500 a month
Private accident insurance, office job, EUR 100,000 basic sum, 350 percent progression	about EUR 60 to 180 a year, also valid in free time

As of October 2026. The pension is calculated as two thirds of annual earnings times the degree of reduced earning capacity, without supplements. Private premiums come from publicly quoted tariff examples; yours depends on age, job and cover.

Worked example

Bike fall, once on the direct route, once after a stop

An employee earning EUR 45,000 gross a year cycles to work and breaks her wrist in a fall. She is off work for ten weeks.

Case 1: fall on the direct route	commuting accident, the Berufsgenossenschaft is responsible
Treatment and rehabilitation	in full, no co-payment
Weeks 1 to 6	continued pay from the employer
Weeks 7 to 10	injury benefit, 80 percent of gross pay, at most net
Lasting 10 percent reduced earning capacity	no pension, the threshold is 20 percent
Case 2: fall in the supermarket car park	private stop, not a commuting accident
Benefits in case 2	health insurance with co-payments, sickness benefit instead of injury benefit
With private accident insurance	pays in both cases under the limb table (Gliedertaxe) if a lasting disability remains

The direct route is well protected, a five-minute stop changes who pays. A lasting impairment below 20 percent brings no statutory money, but a private policy pays a lump sum.

Which journeys are covered

Covered is the direct journey from your home to your place of work and back. Direct does not have to mean shortest: a slightly longer route that is faster or safer counts, as long as it leads towards your destination and does not add much distance.

The law names some detours that are still covered: taking your child to nursery, school or a childminder because you work, picking up colleagues for a car pool, and travelling between your family home and a second flat near work if you stay there during the week.

Situation	Covered by statutory insurance?
Direct way to work, also on foot or by bike	yes
Detour to drop your child at nursery (Kita)	yes
Detour to pick up colleagues for a car pool	yes
Stop at a petrol station	no, even with an almost empty tank
Supermarket shopping on the way home	no, while shopping; afterwards yes again, if the break is under two hours
Fall on the stairs inside your building	no, the journey starts at the outer door
Leaving from a third place, such as your partner's flat	yes, if you spent at least two hours there
Driving with 1.1 per mille blood alcohol	usually no, if alcohol was the main cause

When cover stops

As soon as you leave the route for private reasons, cover is suspended, even in the supermarket car park. If you return to your route within two hours, you are covered again for the rest of it. If the private break lasts longer, the whole remaining journey counts as private.

Refuelling used to be disputed. Today the Federal Social Court (Bundessozialgericht) treats it as a private matter, even if you could not reach work without it.

Alcohol does not end cover automatically. But from 1.1 per mille behind the wheel and 1.6 per mille on a bike you count as absolutely unfit to drive, and the alcohol is then usually treated as the main cause. A simple traffic offence such as speeding does not remove cover.

What statutory accident insurance pays

Your employer's accident insurance fund (Berufsgenossenschaft or Unfallkasse) pays treatment and rehabilitation without co-payments, plus aids and, if needed, adaptations to your home or car. After your employer's six weeks of continued pay, you receive injury benefit (Verletztengeld): 80 percent of gross pay, capped at your net pay, for up to 78 weeks.

If your earning capacity is still reduced by at least 20 percent beyond the 26th week, you receive a pension (Verletztenrente). The full pension is two thirds of your annual earnings, a partial one the matching share. There is no compensation for pain and suffering from statutory insurance.

Where the limits are

Cover depends on the purpose of the journey, not on you. The same bike fall on a Saturday trip to the bakery is not a commuting accident. Below 20 percent reduced earning capacity there is no pension at all, even if a knee hurts for good.

If you are self-employed, you are usually not covered by statutory accident insurance, not even on the way to your own office. Some trades require it, and voluntary cover with the Berufsgenossenschaft is often possible.

When you do not need extra private cover

For the commute alone, a separate policy is not worth it. As an employee you are well protected there, with an ongoing pension rather than a one-off payment. Private accident insurance makes sense if you want to close the gap in your free time and at home, where most accidents happen.

Step by step

Tell the doctor straight away that it happened on the way to work.
Inform your employer the same day, even for a short absence.
Note place, time, witnesses and take photos, especially for detours for children or a car pool.
If the Berufsgenossenschaft refuses, file an objection (Widerspruch) within the deadline.
Check whether you have private accident insurance and report the accident there too.

Checklist

Accident reported as a commuting accident, not billed through health insurance
Employer informed, it reports absences of more than three days to the Berufsgenossenschaft
Reason for every detour can be shown, such as nursery or car pool
No private break of more than two hours
If self-employed, checked whether statutory cover exists at all
Private cover for free time and home reviewed

Common mistakes

Not telling the doctor it was a commuting accident, so everything goes through health insurance
Believing a fuel stop or shopping on the way home is covered
Reporting a fall on the stairs inside your building as a commuting accident
Expecting compensation for pain and suffering from statutory insurance

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

Is the way to work covered by bike or on foot?

Yes. The means of transport does not matter, only the purpose of the journey.

Is a detour via the nursery covered?

Yes, if you leave your child in someone else's care because of your work. The law names this detour explicitly.

Am I covered while refuelling on the way to work?

No. Refuelling counts as private, even if you would not otherwise reach work.

Where does the covered journey start?

At the outer door of your building. A fall on the stairs inside before that is usually not covered.

Does the Berufsgenossenschaft pay for my bike or car?

Usually not. Damage to vehicles is a matter for motor insurance or the other party.

What if I leave from my partner's flat instead of home?

The journey is covered if you stayed there for at least two hours.

Am I covered as a freelancer on the way to work?

Usually not, unless you have compulsory or voluntary cover with your Berufsgenossenschaft.

Sources

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