# Insurance for physiotherapy, occupational therapy and massage practices in Germany

> In physiotherapy you work with your hands on the body, often with people after surgery, with osteoporosis or in pain. A wrong move in manual therapy, a burn from a fango pack or a fall from a training machine can get expensive. Add home visits, equipment worth as much as a car and the question of what happens if you are out of action yourself. This page shows what you need and what it costs.

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

## Do I need professional liability insurance to be approved by the health insurers?

It is not required by law for physiotherapists, and whether the health insurers' approval body asks for proof varies. It is essential all the same: if you treat a patient after a hip operation and they fall from a training machine, you are personally liable. Hospitals, care homes and landlords ask for proof anyway.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No insurance required by law, but hospitals, care homes, landlords and partners almost always ask for proof of professional liability
- **Biggest risk:** Patients injured during treatment or training
- **Basic cover from:** about €70 a year for the professional liability policy of a single handed practice
- **Statutory accident insurer:** BGW, the Berufsgenossenschaft for health and welfare services; unlike doctors, self employed therapists are normally insured there compulsorily themselves
- **Often forgotten:** Home visits and treatment in care homes must be in the policy, including lost keys
- **WZ 2025 / NACE:** 86.95 Erbringung von physiotherapeutischen Dienstleistungen

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Treatment injury:** Manual therapy on the cervical spine, mobilisation after surgery, stretching with osteoporosis: injuries caused by treatment are the typical liability claim.
- **Heat, cold, current:** Fango, hot air, ice and electrotherapy can burn the skin, especially in people with impaired sensation.
- **Falls in training:** Treadmill, cable pull and balance training with older patients: a fall quickly ends in a fracture.
- **Home visits:** On home visits you work in other people's flats and care homes, with other people's keys and other people's care beds.
- **Equipment and furnishings:** Treatment couches, training equipment, ultrasound and shockwave devices easily cost €50,000 and more.
- **Your own body:** Back, shoulders, thumbs: anyone who works with their hands for hours every day will be out of action at some point, often for good.

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

## The insurance you need

- **Professional indemnity** (Essential): Pays when patients are injured by treatment, equipment or training, including home visits and treatment in care homes. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-professional-indemnity.php
- **Occupational disability** (Essential): Your body is your tool; state benefits come nowhere near enough if you can no longer work in your profession. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-occupational-disability.php
- **Business contents** (Strongly advised): Replaces couches, training equipment and furnishings after fire, burst pipes, storm and burglary. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-contents.php
- **Business interruption** (Strongly advised): As practice downtime cover it keeps paying rent and salaries if the practice is idle after damage or because you are ill. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-interruption.php
- **Electronic equipment** (Depends on the business): Covers shockwave, ultrasound, electrotherapy and practice IT even after operating errors and power surges. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-electronic-equipment.php
- **Business legal expenses** (Depends on the business): For disputes with health insurers over billing and deductions, or with your landlord or staff. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-legal-expenses.php
- **Company pension (bAV)** (Depends on the business): Therapists are scarce; a company pension helps you keep them. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-company-pension.php

## What it costs: example prices

Professional liability is cheap for physiotherapists. What counts is the number of therapists, turnover, home visits, equipment based training and whether you offer additional methods such as osteopathy or work as a Heilpraktiker.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Professional indemnity | Single handed practice, around €50,000 turnover, €3 million cover | about €70 to €150 a year |
| Professional indemnity | Practice with five therapists, home visits and equipment training | about €200 to €500 a year |
| Business contents | Practice contents up to €75,000, together with the liability policy | about €100 to €250 a year on top |
| Business interruption | Practice downtime with a €200 daily rate, including illness | about €300 to €800 a year |
| Occupational disability | Age 35, €1,500 monthly pension until 67 | about €900 to €1,600 a year |

For comparison: Professional liability and practice contents cost about as much a year as ten physiotherapy sessions at the statutory health insurance rate.

_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._

- [Finanzchef24: Berufshaftpflicht für Physiotherapeuten](https://www.finanzchef24.de/versicherung/physiotherapeut)
- [transparent-beraten.de: Berufshaftpflicht für Physiotherapeuten](https://www.transparent-beraten.de/berufshaftpflichtversicherung/berufsgruppen/physiotherapeuten/)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Starter** (self employed therapist without own premises, home visits or work in someone else's practice): Professional indemnity, Occupational disability. Together: about €1,000 to €1,800 a year
- **Practice** (own practice with treatment rooms, equipment and staff): Professional indemnity, Business contents, Business interruption, Occupational disability. Together: about €1,500 to €3,000 a year
- **All round** (large practice with training area, shockwave and several locations): Professional indemnity, Business contents, Business interruption, Electronic equipment, Business legal expenses, Occupational disability, Company pension (bAV). Together: about €3,000 to €6,500 a year

## The worst day in the physio practice

Six things that really happen in physiotherapy and occupational therapy practices, all on a single Tuesday. Click through the day and see who pays.

- 08:00: A patient with osteoporosis breaks a rib during mobilisation. (€7,500, Paid by: Professional indemnity)
- 09:45: A fango pack was too hot, and a patient with diabetes has a burn on the back. (€5,000, Paid by: Professional indemnity)
- 11:30: On a home visit the care home's master key is lost, and the locking system is replaced. (€12,000, Paid by: Professional indemnity)
- 14:10: The shockwave device falls off its trolley and the handpiece breaks. (€4,800, Paid by: Electronic equipment)
- 16:30: Water from the flat above floods two treatment rooms; couches and floor are soaked. (€18,000, Paid by: Business contents)
- 17:50: The practice runs half closed for a week, appointments are lost and salaries keep running. (€9,000, Paid by: Business interruption)

**Damage so far:** €56,300

## Practical tips from your broker

- Have home visits, treatment in care homes and hospitals, and lost keys with at least €50,000 included expressly.
- Name every method in the policy: manual therapy, lymphatic drainage, equipment training, osteopathy, dry needling and classes.
- Choose at least €3 million for injury claims; €5 million often costs hardly more.
- Insure couches and training equipment at new value, and remember leased equipment.
- Check that practice downtime cover includes your own illness: for therapists that is more likely than a fire.
- Take out disability income cover early, while your back and shoulders still have a clean medical record.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **We know your methods:** As a broker we compare several insurers and make sure every method you offer is in the policy, not just standard physiotherapy.
- **We know claims handling:** In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves. We know which records the insurer wants to see after a treatment injury.
- **Practice and private cover together:** Professional liability, practice, the car for home visits and your disability income cover sit with one contact.
- **Family business since 1989:** Advice is free for you, as the insurer pays our commission. You speak to people who know your policy.

## FAQ

### Is professional liability compulsory for physiotherapists in Germany?

Not by law. In practice, yes: hospitals, care homes, landlords and many partners require it, and a single treatment injury can threaten your livelihood.

### How much does professional liability cost for physiotherapists?

For a single handed practice about €70 to €150 a year; for practices with several therapists, home visits and equipment training about €200 to €500.

### Are employed therapists covered through the practice?

Yes, when working for the practice. Anyone treating freelance on the side, for example at a sports club or with their own patients, needs their own professional liability.

### Am I covered on home visits?

Only if home visits are in the policy. Also look for lost keys and damage to other people's property, such as a care bed.

### Am I insured with the BGW as a self employed therapist?

Self employed people in health professions such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy are normally insured with the BGW by law and pay a contribution for it. Doctors, dentists, psychotherapists and Heilpraktiker are exempt.

### Do I need disability income insurance?

If you live from your work, yes. The state reduced earning capacity pension is low and does not look at your profession. For therapists doing physical work, private cover is particularly important.

## 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-physiotherapy.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.