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What is the expert procedure in German buildings insurance?

In short

What is the expert procedure in German buildings insurance? It is the Sachverständigenverfahren, a way to settle a dispute about the amount of a loss without going to court. Each side appoints an expert, and an umpire decides where they differ. Under the model terms each side pays its own expert and both share the umpire; a building expert's report often costs EUR 1,000 to 2,500.

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What it costs

Expert fees from published guide values in Germany, 2026, plus the cost rule of the model terms.

Example	Typical range
Hourly rate of a building expert	about EUR 80 to 150 an hour
Full building report, also for insurance claims	about EUR 1,000 to 2,500
Umpire under VGB 2022 clause A 18.6	50 percent for you, 50 percent for the insurer
Expert cost add-on in single tariffs	up to EUR 20,000 for losses over EUR 25,000

Expert fees are freely agreed and depend on region, building and effort.

Get the hourly rate, extra costs and a cap in writing first.

Whether your policy refunds expert costs is in your terms.

Worked example

Escape of water in a detached house, dispute over EUR 14,000

The insurer offers EUR 38,000, your contractor's quote is EUR 52,000. You demand the expert procedure. The expert fees are assumed values within the published ranges.

Your expert	EUR 2,000
Half share of the umpire (total EUR 2,400)	EUR 1,200
Umpire's decision	EUR 46,000
More than the first offer	EUR 8,000

After your costs of EUR 3,200 you are about EUR 4,800 better off. With a gap of only EUR 2,000 the procedure would not have paid off.

When the procedure fits

Your insurer accepts the claim but wants to pay less than your contractor or surveyor has estimated. This dispute about the amount is exactly what the expert procedure is for. It is usually quicker and cheaper than a lawsuit, because building experts, not judges, work out the figures.

If the insurer refuses the claim altogether, for example because it thinks the damage is not covered, the procedure alone will not help. That question can only be included with the insurer's agreement; otherwise the insurance ombudsman (Versicherungsombudsmann) or a court remain.

The legal background in Germany

German law does not require the procedure itself. Section 84 VVG only says what applies if a policy provides for it: the experts' finding is not binding if it obviously and substantially differs from the real situation. A court then decides, as it does if the experts cannot or will not decide, or delay their finding.

How the procedure works is set out in your policy terms. The German Insurance Association (GDV) publishes non-binding model terms, for buildings the VGB 2022, where clause A 18 covers the expert procedure. Your insurer may deviate, so the wording of your own policy always counts.

How it runs under the model terms

You name an expert in text form, by letter or e-mail, and ask the insurer to name its own. It has two weeks from receipt. If it does not, you can have the local court (Amtsgericht) where the damage happened appoint one.

Before they start, both experts agree on a third person as umpire (Obmann). If they cannot, the local court appoints one on request. Where the two reports differ, the umpire decides the disputed points, but only within the range set by the two reports.

The experts record, among other things, the damaged parts with their insured value, the cost of repair or rebuilding, residual values, insured costs and loss of rent. The result binds both sides, and the insurer calculates the payout on that basis.

Step	Who	Deadline or rule
Demand the procedure	you	after the loss, in text form
Name the second expert	insurer	two weeks after the request, otherwise local court
Choose the umpire	both experts	before starting, otherwise local court on request
Send the reports	each expert	to both sides at the same time
Decide disputed points	umpire	only within the two reports

What the procedure costs

Under VGB 2022 clause A 18.6 each side pays its own expert, and both share the umpire's fee half and half, unless agreed otherwise. This applies whoever turns out to be right.

Under section 85 (2) VVG the insurer only has to refund your own expert if your policy obliges you to call one in or the insurer asked you to. Some tariffs do include an add-on for expert costs on large losses, for example from EUR 25,000 of damage. Check your documents before you hire anyone.

Limits and downsides

On small claims the expert fees quickly eat up the gain. If you and the insurer are only a few hundred euros apart, reaching an agreement or complaining to the insurance ombudsman is usually better.

The procedure does not free you from your duties after a loss. You still have to give information, provide receipts and keep the damage as small as possible. Regardless of the dispute, you can ask for an interim payment of the amount that is certainly due one month after reporting the claim.

Step by step

Check the insurer's settlement: is the dispute about the amount or about cover?
Find the clause on the expert procedure in your terms.
Check whether expert costs are covered.
Hire an independent expert with a cost cap.
Demand the procedure in text form, name your expert and set the two-week deadline.
Ask for an interim payment for the undisputed part.

Checklist

Dispute is about the amount, not whether anything is paid
Gap clearly larger than the expected expert fees
Expert with no ties to the insurer
Photos, invoices and quotes complete
Duties after the loss still met

Common mistakes

Expecting the procedure to overturn a full refusal of cover
Hiring an expert without a cost cap
Repairing so far that the damage can no longer be seen, without photos or agreement
Believing the insurer always pays your own expert

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

Can the insurer demand the expert procedure?

Under the VGB 2022 model terms the policyholder can demand it.

Both sides can also agree on it together.

Your policy may say something different.

Is the result final?

In principle, yes.

Only if it obviously and substantially differs from the real situation is it not binding under

section 84 VVG; a court then decides.

Who pays the umpire?

Under VGB 2022 clause A 18.6 you and the insurer each pay half of the umpire's costs,

unless something else was agreed.

Can the insurer name one of its own staff as expert?

The model terms only exclude certain people, such as your competitors or business partners.

An independent expert on your side balances this.

What if the insurer names no expert?

Two weeks after your request you can have one appointed by the local court where the damage

happened.

Do I have to wait for the end of the procedure to get money?

No.

One month after reporting the claim you can ask for an interim payment under VGB 2022 clause A 19

for the amount that is due at minimum.

Sources

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