Who pays if my child's glasses break at school in Germany?
In short
Who pays if my child's glasses break at school in Germany? If it happens in an accident in class, at break or on the way to school, the statutory accident fund (Unfallkasse) pays, because damaged glasses count as a health injury there. That also applies if a classmate caused the accident. If the glasses break without an accident, usually nobody pays; children's glasses often cost EUR 50 to 300.
What broken glasses can cost and what cover against it costs.
Example
Typical range
Simple children's glasses with lenses
about EUR 50 to 150
Children's glasses with thin or anti-reflective lenses
about EUR 150 to 300
School accident, replacement by the accident fund
EUR 0 for parents
Glasses insurance as a supplementary module
about EUR 5 to 15 a month, simple tariffs from about EUR 3
Benefit of glasses insurance
often EUR 100 to 400 every one to three years
Prices for children's glasses are guide values from quoting practice, October 2026.
Glasses insurance premiums come from published tariff information.
Norman Nammert obtains quotes for supplementary insurance as an insurance broker.
Worked example
Child, 11, glasses broken in PE
A ball hits the glasses during dodgeball, the child is unhurt.
Accident report
school reports the accident to the accident fund
New glasses at the optician
about EUR 120
Accident fund
covers the reasonable costs
For comparison: glasses trodden on at home
pay for the frame yourself, lenses possibly via the fund
After a school accident parents usually pay nothing. Without an accident they are often left with EUR 50 to 150.
Who pays for which kind of damage
What matters is how your child's glasses break: in an accident at school, through another child outside school, or simply by being dropped. Each case has a different payer.
The table gives an overview. Always report damage at school to the school office so that an accident report (Unfallanzeige) goes to the accident fund.
How the glasses broke
Who pays
What is paid
Ball hits the face in PE
accident fund
repair or new glasses
Collision with a classmate at break
accident fund
repair or new glasses
Bike fall on the direct way to school
accident fund
repair or new glasses
A friend steps on them while playing in the afternoon
his family's liability insurance, if he is 7 or older and at fault
current value of the glasses
Child sits on them at home
nobody, lenses possibly via health insurance
lenses on prescription, never the frame
Glasses stolen from the school bag
usually nobody
contents insurance does not pay simple theft
School accident: the accident fund pays for glasses too
Pupils are covered by statutory accident insurance during lessons, breaks, school events and on the direct way to and from school (section 2(1) no. 8 and section 8 SGB VII). Under section 8(3) SGB VII, damage to or loss of an aid already counts as a health injury. Your child does not have to be hurt for the accident fund to replace the glasses.
There must be an accident: a sudden external event such as a ball, a fall or a collision. This cover costs you as parents nothing.
If a classmate breaks the glasses
If it happens at school, the accident fund is responsible first in this case too. Between pupils, liability for school accidents is largely excluded under section 106 SGB VII, and statutory accident insurance steps in instead.
If the glasses break in free time, for example while playing in the afternoon, the other child is liable if it is at least 7, has the necessary understanding and acted with fault (section 828 BGB). Payment then comes from the other parents' family liability insurance, often only at current value. Under 7 a child is not liable; some tariffs pay anyway if they include damage caused by children below the age of liability.
What health insurance pays for children's glasses
Children and teenagers with statutory insurance up to 18 are entitled to visual aids under section 33(2) SGB V. The fund pays for the prescribed lenses, expressly not for the frame. Fixed maximum amounts (Festbeträge) for visual aids no longer exist since 1 March 2025; what the fund pays is agreed with opticians.
From age 14 the fund generally only pays for new lenses if eyesight has changed by at least 0.5 dioptres (section 33(4) SGB V). If the glasses broke without an accident, ask the fund before buying whether it will cover replacement lenses.
When nobody pays and what helps
If the glasses fall without an accident, your child sits on them at home or loses them, neither the accident fund nor liability insurance pays. Contents insurance does not replace simple breakage or simple theft either.
Many opticians offer breakage and loss cover at purchase, and supplementary health tariffs offer a fixed glasses budget. For inexpensive children's glasses this rarely pays off; with expensive lenses or a child who often loses glasses it may.
Step by step
Inform the school and ask for an accident report to the accident fund.
Keep the broken glasses and write down briefly when, where and how it happened.
Before buying, ask the accident fund which costs it covers.
If another child was at fault in free time, ask the parents for their liability insurance details.
Without an accident, ask your health fund whether it pays for replacement lenses.
If damage happens often, compare an optician's breakage cover by price and excess.
Checklist
Accident report by the school started
Date, place and course of events noted
Optician's cost estimate available
If damage happened outside school: other family's liability insurance requested
Prescription for new lenses if health insurance is to pay
Own glasses or breakage cover checked
Common mistakes
Not reporting the damage at school and paying for the glasses yourself
Going to the other parents' liability insurance although it was a school accident
Expecting contents insurance to replace broken or lost glasses
Taking out expensive glasses insurance for inexpensive children's glasses
Questions and answers
Frequently asked
Does the accident fund pay for glasses if my child is not hurt?
Yes.
Under section 8(3) SGB VII damage to an aid already counts as a health injury if it happens in an
accident at school or on the way to school.
Does the classmate's liability insurance have to pay?
In an accident at school the accident fund is responsible first.
In free time a child aged 7 or over is liable if at fault,
usually paid by the family liability insurance.
Does health insurance pay for new children's glasses?
For children up to 18 the prescribed lenses, never the frame.
From 14 generally only after a change of at least 0.5 dioptres.
Are glasses covered on the way to school?
On the direct way to school and back yes, in an accident.
Private detours are not covered.
Does contents insurance pay if the glasses are stolen?
Simple theft, for example from an open school bag, is not covered by contents insurance.
Is glasses insurance worth it for children?
Rarely.
It often costs EUR 5 to 15 a month and pays a limited budget.
An optician's breakage cover for expensive lenses is more likely to pay off.
