# Insurance for vehicle builders, coachbuilders and boatyards in Germany

> Trailer, special body, motorhome or sailing yacht: whatever you build will later move with people inside it. A fault on an axle, a brake or a hull fitting then becomes an accident, and if it is in the series, a recall. This page explains how vehicle builders and boatyards in Germany protect themselves, and why for boats we are more than a broker.

Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/business-insurance-vehicle-boat-building.php  
Updated: 2026-09-18

## Who pays if a customer's boat or vehicle is damaged in our hall?

General liability often covers other people's property that you work on or look after only in part, or not at all. Damage during work and damage to property in your care must be expressly included, with a sum of their own if values are high. For boats there is another point: many owners have hull insurance, which pays and then takes recourse against you. For boats we are an underwriting agency ourselves and know these cases from settling claims.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** Motor liability for every vehicle driven on public roads, including trade plates (rotes Kennzeichen) for transfers and test drives
- **Biggest risk:** Injuries and recalls caused by faults in safety critical parts
- **Basic cover from:** around €600 a year for the general liability of a small body building or boat building firm
- **Berufsgenossenschaft:** BG Holz und Metall (BGHM), the statutory accident insurer, also for boat building; compulsory once you have staff
- **Often forgotten:** Customers' vehicles and boats standing at your premises for conversion or winter storage
- **WZ 2025 / NACE:** 29.10 Herstellung von Kraftwagen und Kraftwagenmotoren, 29.20 Herstellung von Karosserien, Aufbauten und Anhängern, 29.31 Herstellung elektrischer und elektronischer Ausrüstungsgegenstände für Kraftwagen, 29.32 Herstellung von sonstigen Teilen und sonstigem Zubehör für Kraftwagen, 30.11 Bau von Schiffen und schwimmenden Vorrichtungen für zivile Zwecke, ohne Boots- und Yachtbau, 30.12 Boots- und Yachtbau, 30.13 Bau von Kriegsschiffen, 30.20 Schienenfahrzeugbau, 30.31 Luft- und Raumfahrzeugbau für zivile Zwecke, 30.32 Luft- und Raumfahrzeugbau für militärische Zwecke, 30.40 Herstellung von militärischen Kampffahrzeugen, 30.91 Herstellung von Krafträdern, 30.92 Herstellung von Fahrrädern sowie von Behindertenfahrzeugen, 30.99 Herstellung von sonstigen Beförderungsmitteln a. n. g., 33.17 Reparatur und Instandhaltung von sonstigen zivilen Beförderungsmitteln

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Faults in safety critical parts:** A badly welded tow hitch, a wrongly fitted brake line, a leaking seacock connection: faults like these end with people injured.
- **Recall across a series:** If a fault turns up on several vehicles, every keeper must be informed and the vehicles put right, often under the supervision of the Federal Motor Transport Authority (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt).
- **Fire in the hall:** Resins, paints, sanding dust and welding make body building and boat building a fire risk. Customers' vehicles and boats then burn too.
- **Test drives and transfers:** Accidents on trade plates, during delivery runs or on the first outing of a new boat.
- **Valuable property in your care:** Motorhomes, classic cars and yachts in conversion or winter storage are often worth more than your own hall.
- **Laminate and solvents:** Styrene, epoxy and paints strain the airways and skin. Occupational illness is a real issue in boat building.

**Risk radar** (Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.): Liability 5, Fire and water 4, Theft 3, Cyber 3, Downtime 4, Health 4

## The insurance you need

- **Business liability** (Essential): With product liability for vehicles, bodies and boats, plus damage to customers' property while you work on it or keep it. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Business contents** (Essential): Replaces the workshop, moulds, material and vehicles or hulls under construction after fire, storm and burglary. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-contents.php
- **Car insurance** (Essential): Required by law for your own vehicles and for trips on trade plates during test drives and transfers. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-car-insurance.php
- **Business interruption** (Strongly advised): Secures wages and profit when the season's orders cannot be finished after a fire in the hall. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-interruption.php
- **Machinery breakdown** (Strongly advised): For welding robots, paint booths, lifts, the travel lift and CNC mills for moulds. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-machinery-breakdown.php
- **Cargo insurance** (Depends on the business): For vehicles and boats on the low loader to the customer, the trade fair or the harbour. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cargo-insurance.php
- **D&O insurance** (Depends on the business): Protects managing directors when, after a recall, they are accused of breaching duties on quality and type approval. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-directors-and-officers.php

## What it costs: example prices

In vehicle and boat building, premiums depend on whether you build one offs or series, whether your products go on the road or on the water, and how many customers' vehicles and boats stand at your premises.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Business liability | Small body, trailer or boat building firm up to €500,000 turnover | around €500 to €1,800 a year |
| Business liability | Body manufacturer or boatyard with 30 staff, extended product liability and damage to property in your care | around €4,000 to €12,000 a year |
| Business contents | Workshop, moulds and projects under construction worth €1.5 million | around €2,000 to €5,000 a year |
| Car insurance | Trade plate for test drives and transfers | around €300 to €1,200 a year |
| Machinery breakdown | Paint booth, lifting gear and mill with a new value of €400,000 | around €1,500 to €3,500 a year |

For comparison: Liability and contents insurance for a small boat builder cost about as much a year as antifouling and craning for three sailing yachts.

_Guide figures excluding German insurance tax, as of September 2026, from published tariff examples for comparable manufacturing firms and our own quoting. Trade plate premiums depend heavily on claims history and region. Hull insurance for finished boats is not included. We obtain the exact quote for you._

- [betriebshaftpflicht-24.de: Betriebshaftpflicht für Maschinenbau-Unternehmen](https://www.betriebshaftpflicht-24.de/betriebshaftpflicht-angebote/maschinenbau-unternehmen-betriebshaftpflichtversicherung/)
- [berufshaftpflichtversicherung-experten.de: Betriebshaftpflicht Maschinenbau](https://berufshaftpflichtversicherung-experten.de/betriebshaftpflicht-maschinenbau/)
- [Versicherungen.org: Maschinenversicherung, Beitragsbeispiele](https://www.versicherungen.org/wiki/Maschinenversicherung,_Beitragsbeispiele)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Workshop** (Small coachbuilders, trailer makers and boat builders doing repairs and one offs): Business liability, Business contents, Car insurance. Together: around €1,200 to €3,500 a year
- **Manufactory** (Body manufacturers and boatyards with customers' property, winter storage and test drives): Business liability, Business contents, Car insurance, Business interruption, Machinery breakdown. Together: around €6,000 to €15,000 a year
- **Series** (Series manufacturers with a dealer network, trade fairs and a GmbH): Business liability, Business contents, Car insurance, Business interruption, Machinery breakdown, Cargo insurance, D&O insurance. Together: around €15,000 to €40,000 a year

## The worst day at the boatyard

Six losses that happen at vehicle and boat builders, put together on one day just before the season starts. Tap through and see who pays.

- 07:50: A strap on the travel lift snaps and a customer's boat drops a metre onto the cradle. Hull and keel are damaged. (€48,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 10:20: On a test drive with trade plates, an employee runs into the back of a small car. (€9,500, Paid by: Car insurance)
- 12:00: The axle bolts on 40 delivered trailers are too weak. Recall and repair. (€36,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 14:40: The paint booth extraction fails with a motor fault, and the booth is out for two weeks. (€11,000, Paid by: Machinery breakdown)
- 16:30: On the low loader to the boat show a support breaks and the display boat's hull is damaged. (€22,000, Paid by: Cargo insurance)
- 21:15: Resin ignites during laminating. The hall, the moulds and two hulls under construction burn. (€520,000, Paid by: Business contents)

**Damage so far:** €646,500

## Practical tips from your broker

- Include damage to customers' vehicles and boats during work and in your care, with a sum that matches the most valuable object in your hall.
- For boat building: clarify when the risk passes to the customer, and whether boats under construction are insured as your own goods or as customer property.
- Agree recall costs as a separate block if you build series; liability insurance does not pay for recalls.
- Check trade plates and transfer runs for who may drive and for trips abroad.
- Insure moulds and tooling at new value; a new hull mould often costs more than a whole boat.
- If you take boats into winter storage, custody, crane work and fire in the hall belong together in the policy.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **For boats we are an underwriting agency:** We underwrite and settle boat insurance ourselves. We know what hull damage costs, how a surveyor calculates and when a hull insurer takes recourse against the yard.
- **A broker for everything else:** We compare liability, workshop, motor and machinery cover across several insurers and put the wordings side by side.
- **Yard, vehicles and customers' boats together:** Gaps open up between the yard, transport and the owner's hull cover. We look after all sides and know where they meet.
- **A family business since 1989:** One fixed contact who knows both the yard and the water, and who speaks English. Free for you; the insurer pays our commission.

## FAQ

### Does a boatyard need special insurance?

Yes. Besides liability and contents, there is damage to customers' boats in your care, crane work, winter storage and boats under construction. Standard workshop policies often do not cover this.

### Do trade plates need insurance?

Yes. Trips on trade plates need motor liability, which usually runs under a separate policy for the plate.

### Who pays for a recall of trailers or bodies?

Only recall insurance. Product liability pays once someone has actually been harmed.

### What does insurance cost for a small boat builder?

Liability, contents and a trade plate usually cost small firms between €1,200 and €3,500 a year, depending on the value of customers' boats in the hall.

### Can you also insure our customers' boats?

Yes. For boats we are an underwriting agency. Your customers can insure their boat with us, and after a loss the yard and the insurer speak the same language.

### Which Berufsgenossenschaft is responsible?

For vehicle and boat building it is usually the BG Holz und Metall, the statutory accident insurer for wood and metal.

## Request quotes

We obtain quotes and come back with a comparison. Free of charge and without obligation: the insurer pays our commission. You can write in English. https://www.nammert.com/en/business-insurance-vehicle-boat-building.php#anfrage

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NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH, insurance broker licensed under section 34d(1) of the German Trade Regulation Act, broker register no. D-C08Q-TOSD4-37. For boat and yacht insurance we act as underwriting agency, not as broker.

NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH, Karl-Marx-Straße 4, 15711 Königs Wusterhausen, +49 3375 29 12 77, info@nammert.com. Wikidata: Q141141479.