# Insurance for sawmills, planing mills and the timber industry in Germany

> Shavings, wood dust and dry stacks make a sawmill one of the most fire prone businesses there is. At the same time frame saws, band saws and drying kilns run under heavy load, and without them the log yard fills up. This page explains how to protect the mill, the timber and your income in Germany, and what it costs.

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

## Why is it so hard for sawmills to get fire insurance?

Because insurers expect frequent and large fires at sawmills. Many require spark extinguishing systems in the extraction, separate fire compartments and distance between the stacks and the mill before they will quote at all. If you document these points in advance, you get more quotes and better premiums. As a broker we approach the insurers that still write timber businesses.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No statutory insurance for the business; motor liability for lorries and for wheel loaders that need registration
- **Biggest risk:** Fire and dust explosion in the hall, the extraction system and the drying kiln
- **Basic cover from:** around €600 a year for the general liability of a small contract sawing business
- **Berufsgenossenschaft:** BG Holz und Metall (BGHM), the statutory accident insurer for wood and metal, compulsory once you have staff
- **Often forgotten:** Timber stocks kept outdoors on the log yard and the sawn timber yard
- **WZ 2025 / NACE:** 16.11 Säge- und Hobelwerke, 16.12 Bearbeitung und Veredlung von Holz

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Sparks in the extraction:** A foreign body in a log strikes sparks, and the embers travel into the shavings silo. Such fires often start hours after closing time.
- **Dust explosion:** Fine wood dust in filters and silos can explode and destroy whole parts of a building.
- **The drying kiln overheats:** If the controls fail, the timber in the kiln burns or cracks; in the worst case the kiln itself catches fire.
- **Frame saw and band saw:** A metal fragment in a log destroys the blade and the guides. Large units have long delivery times.
- **Storms and timber prices:** After windthrow there is plenty of timber, but also toppled stacks and damaged roofs on your own yard.
- **Serious accidents:** Kickback at the saw, rolling logs, forklifts on the yard: the timber industry has many serious workplace accidents.

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

## The insurance you need

- **Business contents** (Essential): Replaces saw lines, drying kilns and timber stocks after fire and explosion, with express inclusion of the outdoor yards. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-contents.php
- **Business liability** (Essential): Covers damage to neighbours from fire, dust and noise, and product liability for construction timber and wood based panels. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Business interruption** (Essential): After a fire, rebuilding a saw line often takes more than a year; without business interruption cover few mills survive that. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-interruption.php
- **Machinery breakdown** (Strongly advised): For frame saws, band saws, planers, boilers and drying kilns that fail through foreign bodies or operator error. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-machinery-breakdown.php
- **Commercial buildings** (Strongly advised): Halls and roofs are particularly exposed to fire, storm and snow load. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-commercial-buildings.php
- **Fleet insurance** (Depends on the business): For log lorries, wheel loaders and forklifts, where they are registered or use public roads. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-fleet-insurance.php
- **Group accident insurance** (Depends on the business): Pays on top of the statutory accident insurer for permanent injuries to hands and legs. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-group-accident.php

## What it costs: example prices

In the timber industry, fire insurance makes up most of the premium. It depends on fire protection, construction, distances and the amount of timber on the yard.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Business liability | Small contract sawing business with two staff | around €500 to €1,200 a year |
| Business liability | Sawmill with 30 staff and a planing mill | around €2,500 to €6,000 a year |
| Business contents | Saw line, drying kilns and stock worth €2 million | around €6,000 to €16,000 a year |
| Business interruption | Business interruption with a 24 month indemnity period | around €2,500 to €7,000 a year |
| Machinery breakdown | Frame saw, band saw and planer with a new value of €900,000 | around €3,000 to €8,000 a year |

For comparison: For a medium sized sawmill, basic cover of liability, fire and business interruption costs roughly as much a year as 60 to 100 cubic metres of sawn spruce.

_Guide figures excluding German insurance tax, as of September 2026. Hardly any tariffs are published for sawmills because each business is priced after a site survey. The ranges come from our own quoting and comparable businesses. We obtain the exact quote for you._

- [Finanzchef24: Versicherungen für Handwerker](https://www.finanzchef24.de/versicherung/handwerk)
- [transparent-beraten.de: Betriebsunterbrechungsversicherung](https://www.transparent-beraten.de/betriebsunterbrechungsversicherung/)
- [Versicherungen.org: Maschinenversicherung, Beitragsbeispiele](https://www.versicherungen.org/wiki/Maschinenversicherung,_Beitragsbeispiele)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Contract sawing** (Small sawmills and contract sawyers with a mobile or fixed frame saw): Business liability, Business contents. Together: around €1,500 to €4,000 a year
- **Sawmill** (Businesses with a saw line, drying kiln and timber yard): Business liability, Business contents, Business interruption, Machinery breakdown. Together: around €12,000 to €30,000 a year
- **Timber works** (Sawmill with planing mill, own halls and fleet): Business liability, Business contents, Business interruption, Machinery breakdown, Commercial buildings, Fleet insurance, Group accident insurance. Together: around €25,000 to €60,000 a year

## The worst day at the sawmill

Six losses of the kind sawmills see, put together on one dry August day. Tap through and see who pays.

- 06:30: An old shell fragment in an oak log destroys the blade and wheels of the log band saw. (€21,000, Paid by: Machinery breakdown)
- 09:15: Dust from the extraction plant settles on cars in the neighbouring car park and damages the paintwork. (€7,800, Paid by: Business liability)
- 12:40: The drying kiln controls fail. 80 cubic metres of larch crack and are only good for firewood. (€26,000, Paid by: Machinery breakdown)
- 15:10: Roof battens you supplied were wrongly graded and break on a building site. A roofer falls. (€65,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 23:50: Embers from the extraction set the shavings silo and the hall alight. (€1,400,000, Paid by: Business contents)
- 23:55: It will be 14 months before the new saw line is running. Customers and wages have to be kept. (€900,000, Paid by: Business interruption)

**Damage so far:** €2,419,800

## Practical tips from your broker

- Invest in spark detection and extinguishing in the extraction system; many insurers will not write cover without it, or only with a high excess.
- Insure logs and sawn timber on the outdoor yard expressly with a sum of their own and check that storm is included.
- Choose an indemnity period of at least 24 months for business interruption; rebuilding a saw line takes a long time.
- Allow enough for clearance and demolition costs; after a sawmill fire, disposal alone runs to six figures.
- Check product liability for construction timber and structural solid timber, especially if you strength grade.
- Declare solar panels on the hall roofs; they change the fire assessment and need their own cover.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **We know the insurers that still write timber:** The market for sawmills is small. As a broker we approach several insurers directly and prepare your fire protection documents so that quotes actually come through.
- **We settle claims ourselves:** In boat insurance we are an underwriting agency and settle claims ourselves. That helps when values and downtime are negotiated after a major fire.
- **Mill, forest and fleet:** Many sawmills also own woodland or run contracting work. We bring it all together with one contact, in English if you wish.
- **A family business since 1989:** Timber firms have often been in family hands for generations; we have been since 1989. Our work costs you nothing; the insurer pays our commission.

## FAQ

### What does fire insurance cost for a sawmill?

That depends heavily on fire protection and values. For a medium sized mill with €2 million of contents, €6,000 to €16,000 a year is a realistic range.

### Is timber on the yard covered?

Only if the policy says so expressly. Outdoor stocks are often insured with their own sum and their own conditions for storm and fire.

### Does machinery insurance cover foreign bodies in a log?

Yes, damage from foreign bodies is a typical machinery insurance case. Wearing parts such as saw blades, however, are often only replaced as consequential damage.

### Why is business interruption cover so important?

After a major fire, customers quickly move to other mills. Business interruption cover keeps paying wages and fixed costs so you can hold on to staff and customers.

### Are we liable for dust at the neighbour's?

Yes, if the dust damages property or limits are exceeded. General liability pays, although gradual emissions may be excluded.

### Who pays after an accident at the saw?

The BG Holz und Metall, the statutory accident insurer, pays for treatment, rehabilitation and a pension. Group accident insurance can add a lump sum.

## 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-sawmill.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.