# Insurance for painters, decorators and interior finishers in Germany

> Painters work in other people's homes, between furniture, parquet floors and cars parked next to the scaffold. The typical claims are rarely spectacular but frequent: paint mist on the neighbour's car, solvent on an oak floor, a lost master key. This page shows what you need and what it costs.

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

## Will liability insurance pay if I damage the customer's floor or furniture while painting?

Yes, if your policy includes damage to the objects you work on or near. That covers exactly the things you treat or work close to, such as parquet, window frames or covered furniture. Without this extension, insurers turn such claims down. A badly painted wall itself is remedial work and not insured.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No statutory insurance duty; property managers and public clients almost always ask for public liability cover, though
- **Biggest risk:** Damage to customers' and third parties' property from paint, solvents and work in occupied homes
- **Basic cover from:** about €150 a year for the public liability of a one-person business with €50,000 turnover
- **Statutory accident insurer:** BG BAU, the Berufsgenossenschaft for the construction industry; membership is compulsory from your first employee
- **Often forgotten:** Lost keys: one lost master key can quickly mean a new locking system for the entire building

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Paint mist and splashes:** When spraying or rolling a facade, the wind carries paint onto neighbours' cars, windows and awnings. Cleaning costs several hundred euros per car.
- **Floors and furniture:** A knocked-over paint bucket, solvent on parquet, scratches in natural stone: in occupied homes, damage to things near your work is everyday business.
- **Lost keys:** For jobs in rented buildings you are often given master keys. If one goes missing, the property manager has to replace the locking system.
- **Ladders and scaffolds:** Falls from ladders and mobile scaffolds are the most common cause of accidents in the painting trade.
- **Solvents and fire:** Soaked rags can ignite by themselves, and paints and thinners in the store increase the fire risk.
- **Mould and damp:** If a wall is painted too early or insulated wrongly, mould develops. Disputes about the cause quickly end up in court.

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

## The insurance you need

- **Business liability** (Essential): Pays for damage to customers' property, cars and neighbours, including damage to the objects you work on and lost keys. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Cargo insurance** (Strongly advised): Covers spray equipment, sanders and materials in the van and on site against theft. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cargo-insurance.php
- **Business contents** (Strongly advised): Replaces the store, paints, wallpaper and tools after fire or burglary; with a paint store, fire is the main risk. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-contents.php
- **Occupational disability** (Strongly advised): Shoulders, knees and airways: painters become unable to work more often than many people think, and income protection covers that. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-occupational-disability.php
- **Business legal expenses** (Depends on the business): Business legal expenses cover helps in disputes over sign-offs, variations and mould allegations with clients and property managers. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-legal-expenses.php
- **Group accident insurance** (Depends on the business): Pays employees after falls on top of the Berufsgenossenschaft, including accidents in their free time. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-group-accident.php
- **Company pension (bAV)** (Depends on the business): A company pension is a good way to keep skilled painters in a trade that struggles to find young people. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-company-pension.php

## What it costs: example prices

Public liability for painters is among the cheaper covers in the building trades. It gets more expensive with employees, facade work with your own scaffold, spray technology and external wall insulation.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Business liability | €50,000 turnover, €3 million for bodily injury, €1,000 excess | about €150 to €250 a year |
| Business liability | €50,000 turnover, €5 million for injury and property damage | about €200 to €350 a year |
| Business liability | Business with three to six painters and facade work | about €500 to €1,400 a year |
| Cargo insurance | Tools in transit for three vehicles, up to €10,000 per claim | about €150 to €300 a year |
| Business contents | Store with paints, tools and machines worth €30,000 | about €120 to €300 a year |

For comparison: Liability and tools cover for a painting business without employees costs about as much per year as repainting a child's bedroom.

_Guide prices excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026. Sole trader and tools in transit figures come from published tariff examples; businesses with employees and contents are guide values from our quoting practice. We obtain the exact quote for you._

- [Finanzchef24: Versicherungen für Maler](https://www.finanzchef24.de/versicherung/maler)
- [handwerk.com: Werkzeug absichern unterwegs und auf der Baustelle](https://www.handwerk.com/tipps-werkverkehrsversicherung-fuer-handwerker)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Start** (painter without employees, interior work): Business liability, Cargo insurance. Together: about €300 to €600 a year
- **Painting business** (two to eight employees, interior and exterior): Business liability, Cargo insurance, Business contents, Business legal expenses. Together: about €900 to €2,200 a year
- **All round** (business with facades, external wall insulation and staff retention): Business liability, Cargo insurance, Business contents, Business legal expenses, Group accident insurance, Company pension (bAV). Together: about €2,000 to €4,000 a year excluding the company pension

## The worst day for a painting business

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

- 07:50: An apprentice loses the property manager's master key. The locking system for 24 flats has to be replaced. (€6,500, Paid by: Business liability)
- 10:15: While spraying the facade, the wind carries paint mist onto six parked cars. (€4,800, Paid by: Business liability)
- 12:30: A bucket of thinner tips over onto oiled oak parquet. The floor has to be sanded and treated again. (€3,600, Paid by: Business liability)
- 14:10: Two airless sprayers and a long-reach drywall sander are stolen from the van. (€7,900, Paid by: Cargo insurance)
- 16:30: A customer claims damages for mould behind the new wallpaper and instructs a lawyer. (€2,800, Paid by: Business legal expenses)
- 21:40: Oil-soaked rags in the store ignite by themselves. Paints, wallpaper and scaffold material burn. (€27,000, Paid by: Business contents)

**Damage so far:** €52,600

## Practical tips from your broker

- Damage to the objects you work on or near must be expressly included, otherwise the policy will not pay for floors, windows and furniture.
- Include lost keys with at least €50,000 if you work in rented buildings or offices with locking systems.
- Name external wall insulation systems, floor coatings and vehicle painting if you offer them; they are not always covered.
- Choose €5 million combined cover; the step up from €3 million usually costs only a few euros a month.
- Store solvents and oily rags in metal containers; insurers ask about it and reduce payments for gross negligence.
- Check the cover for paint mist on third parties' vehicles; some tariffs set low limits for it.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **Focus on working damage:** For painters, a single clause decides most claims. We compare the tariffs of several insurers on exactly this point.
- **We know how claims are settled:** In boat insurance we settle paint and surface damage ourselves. We know the difference between remedial work and an insured loss from practice.
- **One file for everything:** Business, vehicles, your painters' pensions and your personal cover sit with one contact person.
- **Independent and free of charge:** As a broker since 1989 we are not tied to any insurer. The insurer pays our remuneration, not you.

## FAQ

### Do I need liability insurance as a painter in Germany?

Not by law, but in practice yes. Property managers, developers and public clients ask for proof, and damage to customers' property is part of everyday work.

### How much does liability insurance cost for painters?

Published examples for a business with €50,000 turnover range from about €150 to €250 a year. With employees and facade work it is usually €500 to €1,400.

### Does the insurer pay for paint on the neighbour's car?

Yes, that is a classic liability claim. Make sure damage from paint mist is not excluded or capped, and document how you covered things up.

### Is losing a customer's key covered?

Only if lost keys are included in the policy. With locking systems in rented buildings, a single key can trigger a five-figure replacement.

### Do I need separate insurance for my scaffold?

Damage the scaffold causes to others is covered by public liability. Theft of or damage to the scaffold itself is protected by contents or tools in transit cover that extends beyond your premises.

### Are my employees insured if they fall from a ladder?

At work, BG BAU pays as the statutory accident insurer. Group accident insurance adds a lump sum and also protects them in their free time.

## 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-painter-decorator.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.