# Insurance for commercial agents and sales agencies in Germany

> As a commercial agent you are a business on four wheels: the car is office and store room, the sample case is worth thousands of euros, and your income depends on your health and on the commission from a single manufacturer. Liability cover is cheap; the expensive gaps are elsewhere. This page shows exactly where, and what protection costs.

Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/business-insurance-sales-agent.php  
Updated: 2026-09-18

## Do I really need business liability insurance as a sales agent?

Yes. It costs little and covers what private liability insurance excludes: everything that happens in the course of your work. You knock over a display at a customer's premises, a sample injures someone or you lose the key to a showroom. Advice errors that only cost money are financial losses, however, and they have to be included expressly.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No insurance required by law for commercial agents under § 84 HGB (German Commercial Code); motor liability for the vehicle
- **Biggest risk:** Being out of action through illness or accident: no customer visits, no commission
- **Basic cover from:** about €80 a year for the public liability policy of a sole agent
- **Statutory accident insurer:** Usually the BGHW, the Berufsgenossenschaft for trade; as a self employed agent you are only covered if you sign up voluntarily
- **Often forgotten:** A sample collection in the car is covered neither by motor insurance nor by household contents insurance
- **WZ 2025 / NACE:** 46.11 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von landwirtschaftlichen Grundstoffen, lebenden Tieren, textilen Rohstoffen und Halbwaren, 46.12 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Brennstoffen, Erzen, Metallen und technischen Chemikalien, 46.13 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Holz, Baustoffen und Anstrichmitteln, 46.14 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Maschinen, technischem Bedarf, Wasser- und Luftfahrzeugen, 46.15 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Möbeln, Einrichtungs- und Haushaltsgegenständen, Eisen- und Metallwaren, 46.16 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Textilien, Bekleidung, Schuhen und Lederwaren, 46.17 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Nahrungsmitteln, Getränken und Tabakwaren, 46.18 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von sonstigen Waren, 46.19 Tätigkeiten der Großhandelsvermittlung von Waren ohne ausgeprägten Schwerpunkt

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Accident on the road:** 40,000 to 80,000 kilometres a year: your accident risk is higher than in almost any other job, and without a car there are no appointments.
- **Samples stolen from the car:** At a motorway services or outside the hotel the car is broken into, the collection is gone and the season starts next week.
- **Damage at the customer's:** Setting up a display, a shelf tips over; a sample device causes a short circuit in the shop.
- **Wrong information:** You promise a delivery date or a technical feature that turns out to be wrong, and the customer claims for the loss.
- **Ill without sick pay:** As a self employed agent you get no continued pay from an employer and usually no sickness benefit from your health insurer unless you arrange it.
- **Disputes over commission:** If the manufacturer terminates your contract, the fight is over the indemnity claim under § 89b HGB, often worth more than a year's income.

**Risk radar** (Compared with other trades, 1 low to 5 high.): Liability 2, Fire and water 2, Theft 3, Cyber 2, Downtime 4, Health 5

## The insurance you need

- **Business liability** (Essential): Covers injury and property damage during customer visits, at trade fairs and caused by samples, with lost keys and ideally with financial loss included. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Car insurance** (Essential): Motor liability is compulsory, and with your mileage and the value of the car, fully comprehensive cover almost always pays off. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-car-insurance.php
- **Occupational disability** (Essential): Your income depends on you alone; a disability income pension protects it if you can no longer travel for good. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-occupational-disability.php
- **Cargo insurance** (Strongly advised): Sample collection insurance replaces samples after theft from the car, an accident or at trade fairs. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cargo-insurance.php
- **Business legal expenses** (Strongly advised): For the dispute with the manufacturer over commission and the indemnity claim, the most expensive legal fight in this profession. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-legal-expenses.php
- **Accident insurance** (Strongly advised): Pays for lasting injuries, including in your free time, and fills the gap left by missing cover from the Berufsgenossenschaft. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-accident-insurance.php
- **Supplementary health** (Depends on the business): Daily sickness benefit bridges the first weeks in which no commission comes in. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-supplementary-health.php

## What it costs: example prices

Liability cover for a sales agent is cheap because the office risk is low. The car, income protection and samples cost more; there the premium depends on mileage, age, health and the value of the goods.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Business liability | Sole agent, €3 million for injury and property damage | about €80 to €200 a year |
| Business liability | With financial loss up to €250,000, for example for technical advice | about €200 to €450 a year |
| Cargo insurance | Sample collection up to €20,000, theft from the car included | about €150 to €400 a year |
| Business legal expenses | Contract and employment law for sole traders | about €250 to €600 a year |
| Occupational disability | Age 40, €2,000 monthly pension until 67, field sales | about €1,200 to €2,200 a year |

For comparison: Public liability costs about as much a year as two tanks of fuel for your company car.

_Guide prices as of September 2026, based on published tariff examples and on our own quoting practice. Disability income premiums depend heavily on age and health; we obtain the exact quote for you._

- [betriebshaftpflicht24.de: Betriebshaftpflicht Handelsvertreter](https://www.betriebshaftpflicht24.de/betriebshaftpflicht-handelsvertreter.html)
- [versipedia: Betriebshaftpflicht Kosten nach Branchen](https://versipedia.de/blog/betriebshaftpflichtversicherung-kosten-sinnvoll)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Starter** (sole agent with own car and small samples): Business liability, Car insurance. Together: about €700 to €1,500 a year
- **On the road** (agent with a valuable collection and trade fair appearances): Business liability, Car insurance, Cargo insurance, Business legal expenses. Together: about €1,200 to €2,500 a year
- **All round** (sales agency with staff, or an agent who wants to protect income in full): Business liability, Car insurance, Cargo insurance, Business legal expenses, Occupational disability, Accident insurance. Together: about €2,800 to €5,500 a year

## The worst day on the road

Six things that really happen to sales agents, all on a single Tuesday. Click through the day and see who pays.

- 07:10: A rear end collision in rush hour; your own car has to go to the garage. (€6,500, Paid by: Car insurance)
- 10:05: At a customer's shop the display stand tips over and smashes a glass cabinet. (€1,800, Paid by: Business liability)
- 12:40: Lunch break at the services: window smashed, the sample collection is gone. (€14,000, Paid by: Cargo insurance)
- 14:30: The master key to a customer's showroom is lost and the locking system has to be replaced. (€4,800, Paid by: Business liability)
- 16:15: The manufacturer terminates your contract and disputes the indemnity claim. Your lawyer expects two court instances. (€12,000, Paid by: Business legal expenses)
- 18:50: You fall on the hotel stairs and break your ankle. Six weeks without customer visits. (€5,000, Paid by: Accident insurance)

**Damage so far:** €44,100

## Practical tips from your broker

- Have financial loss included in public liability if you give customers technical advice or promise delivery dates.
- Insure the sample collection separately and check whether theft from the locked car is covered at night too.
- Choose legal expenses cover with contract law for the self employed: otherwise the dispute over the indemnity claim is not covered.
- Sign up voluntarily with the Berufsgenossenschaft or take out private accident insurance, because as a self employed agent you are not covered automatically.
- Check that your disability income policy reflects field sales: people who drive and carry a lot are rated differently from office workers.
- Have cover for lost keys to customer premises written in explicitly, with at least €50,000.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **We think about your commission:** As a broker we compare several insurers and start with what threatens your income, not with what is easiest to sell.
- **We know claims handling from the inside:** In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves. When evidence is needed after a theft from the car, we know what the insurer wants to see.
- **Car, business and private cover with us:** Company car, sample case, income protection and your private cover sit with one contact who is reachable even while you are on the road.
- **Family run since 1989:** Free of charge for you, as the insurer pays our commission. You talk to people, not to a queue.

## FAQ

### What insurance does a sales agent in Germany need?

Public liability and motor insurance are the foundation. Often more important is protecting your own income with disability income cover and daily sickness benefit. If you carry samples, you need sample collection insurance.

### Are samples in the car covered by motor insurance?

No. Partial comprehensive cover protects the car itself, not the goods inside it. That is what sample collection or transit insurance is for.

### How much does public liability cost for a sales agent?

For a sole agent about €80 to €200 a year. With financial loss included, about €200 to €450.

### Am I covered by the Berufsgenossenschaft?

Not automatically as a self employed agent. You can insure yourself voluntarily or take out private accident insurance. Employees of an agency, by contrast, are covered by law.

### Will legal expenses insurance pay in a dispute over the indemnity claim?

Only business legal expenses cover that includes contract law for the self employed. Many basic tariffs exclude exactly this dispute, so it pays to read the terms.

### Do I need the same policies as an insurance agent?

No. Insurance intermediaries with their own licence need compulsory professional indemnity cover under § 34d GewO (German Trade Regulation Act). This page is for commercial agents who sell goods or services.

## 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-sales-agent.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.