# Insurance for riding stables, livery yards and riding schools in Germany

> A horse weighs 600 kilos and can be spooked by a plastic bag. That is where the most expensive claims on a yard come from: a livery horse loose on a country road, a fall during a lesson, a fire in the hay store. This page shows which policies protect you and what they cost.

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

## Who pays if a livery horse is injured in our paddock?

That depends on whether you did something wrong. If the fence was in poor repair or the horse was fed incorrectly, you are liable under the livery contract as the person in charge of the animal, and your public liability pays, but only if damage to livery horses is expressly included. Without that extension you are left with the equine hospital bill. If the horse hurts itself playing about and nobody is at fault, the owner carries the cost.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No insurance is required by law. Anyone running a riding business or taking in livery horses commercially does need a permit under § 11 of the German Animal Welfare Act (Tierschutzgesetz)
- **Biggest risk:** Horses that break out, kick or throw pupils, plus fire in hay and straw
- **Basic cover from:** about 110 euros a year for public liability for a small livery yard without lessons
- **Statutory accident insurer:** SVLFG, the agricultural Berufsgenossenschaft, if you keep horses on your own farmland; commercial riding schools without farming usually belong to the VBG
- **Often forgotten:** Damage to the livery horses themselves: they have another owner, and the yard is liable as the person looking after them
- **WZ 2025 / NACE:** 01.62 Erbringung von landwirtschaftlichen Dienstleistungen für die Tierhaltung, 93.19 Erbringung von Dienstleistungen des Sports a. n. g.

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Loose on the road:** A gate left open or a snapped tape on the electric fence, and the horse is standing on the B road at night. Collisions with cars are among the most expensive claims a yard faces, often with people injured.
- **Falls during lessons:** School horses spook, beginners fall off. The rider's health insurer reclaims treatment costs from the yard if the horse, the lesson or the arena was not up to standard.
- **Other people's horses in your care:** Livery horses are often worth five figures. Colic after the wrong feed, an injury on the fence or in the stable: you are then liable as the keeper in charge.
- **Hay, straw and wiring:** Damp hay can ignite by itself, and old wiring in stables overheats. A barn fire hits buildings, stores and in the worst case the horses.
- **Tack room theft:** Saddles, bridles and rugs are easy to sell. A break-in at the tack room quickly costs five figures, and the kit often belongs to your liveries.
- **Kicks and bites:** If you lead, groom and lunge horses every day, sooner or later you get hit. A kick to the knee or head can keep the owner or an instructor off work for months.

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

## The insurance you need

- **Business liability** (Essential): Covers damage caused by school horses and your own horses, riding lessons and, if included, damage to livery horses in your care. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Commercial buildings** (Strongly advised): Stables, indoor arena and barn are the biggest asset on the yard and hard to rebuild after a fire without insurance. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-commercial-buildings.php
- **Business contents** (Strongly advised): Replaces saddles, feed stores, solarium, horse walker and tools after fire, storm and burglary. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-contents.php
- **Accident insurance** (Strongly advised): Pays a lump sum if a kick leaves you with a permanent impairment, also when you ride in your free time. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-accident-insurance.php
- **Machinery breakdown** (Depends on the business): For the yard loader, tractor and arena leveller, which are in use every day for mucking out and grading. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-machinery-breakdown.php
- **Business interruption** (Depends on the business): Pays running costs and lost livery income while the stables stand empty after a fire. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-interruption.php
- **Pet health insurance** (Depends on the business): Surgery cover for school horses absorbs colic operations, which can easily cost 8,000 euros. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-pet-health-insurance.php
- **Business legal expenses** (Depends on the business): For disputes with liveries over unpaid stable rent, with tenants of your land or with staff. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-legal-expenses.php

## What it costs: example prices

On a yard, the main factors are the land area, the number of horses and whether you give lessons. A pure livery yard is considerably cheaper to insure than a riding school with school horses and hacks.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Business liability | Livery yard up to 5 hectares, own horses, no lessons | about 110 to 250 euros a year |
| Business liability | Riding school with school horses and liveries, about 100,000 euros turnover | about 400 to 900 euros a year |
| Commercial buildings | Stables and indoor arena with a rebuild value of 600,000 euros | about 900 to 2,200 euros a year |
| Business contents | Tack room, feed and equipment worth 40,000 euros | about 150 to 400 euros a year |
| Accident insurance | Riding instructor or owner, 200,000 euros base sum with progression | about 250 to 600 euros a year |

For comparison: Public liability and contents cover for a small livery yard cost about as much per year as one to two months' stable rent for a single livery horse.

_Guide figures excluding German insurance premium tax, as of September 2026. The liability examples come from publicly quoted tariffs; buildings, contents and accident are guide figures from our own quoting experience. Your premium depends on land, number of horses and insurer._

- [IPZV Versicherungen: Betriebshaftpflicht Reitschule und Reitstall](https://www.ipzv-versicherungen.de/betriebshaftpflicht)
- [berufshaftpflichtversicherung-experten.de: Betriebshaftpflicht Reitstall](https://berufshaftpflichtversicherung-experten.de/betriebshaftpflicht-reitstall/)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Livery** (livery yard with a few liveries and no lessons): Business liability, Business contents. Together: about 300 to 650 euros a year
- **Riding school** (yard with school horses, an indoor arena and lessons): Business liability, Commercial buildings, Business contents, Accident insurance. Together: about 1,700 to 4,000 euros a year
- **All round** (equestrian centre with its own buildings, machinery and staff): Business liability, Commercial buildings, Business contents, Accident insurance, Machinery breakdown, Business interruption, Pet health insurance. Together: about 3,500 to 7,000 euros a year

## The worst day on the yard

Six things that really happen at riding stables, all on one single Saturday. Tap through the day and see who pays.

- 06:30: A livery horse pushes open the damaged paddock gate and gets onto the main road. A car hits it and the driver is injured. (€24,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 09:15: In the beginners' lesson a school horse bucks. The pupil breaks her collarbone and her health insurer reclaims the costs. (€11,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 11:40: A livery horse tears its leg open on a loose wire in its stable. Equine hospital, six weeks of box rest. (€6,500, Paid by: Business liability)
- 14:20: While loading, a kick catches the owner on the knee. Surgery and a lasting impairment. (€30,000, Paid by: Accident insurance)
- 18:00: The tack room has been broken into. Fourteen saddles and the liveries' bridles are gone. (€23,000, Paid by: Business contents)
- 22:50: Fire in the hay store. The horses get out, but the barn and all stores are lost. (€190,000, Paid by: Commercial buildings)

**Damage so far:** €284,500

## Practical tips from your broker

- Have damage to livery horses expressly included and check the limit per horse. 5,000 euros is not enough for a sport horse.
- Choose at least 5 million euros cover: an accident with a horse on the road can mean several people injured.
- Name every activity in the policy: lessons, hacks, vaulting, schooling horses for clients and transporting horses for customers.
- Insure stables and arena at index linked rebuild value and check that hay and straw are listed as stores in the contents policy.
- Agree in the livery contract who insures the tack. Liveries' saddles are often covered by your policy only up to a small amount.
- Have the stable wiring and lightning protection inspected regularly and keep records, otherwise a fire can lead to a dispute with the insurer.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **We read the care and custody clause:** Whether livery horses, rented grazing or part loans are covered is in the small print. As a broker we compare exactly these clauses across several insurers.
- **Claims practice from our own handling:** In boat insurance we settle claims ourselves. We know which evidence an insurer wants to see after a stable fire or a paddock accident, and we help you through it.
- **Yard and farm from one source:** Business, farm buildings, tractor, your own horse and your private cover all come together with us, with one person to talk to.
- **A family business since 1989:** We know what it means when the business supports the family. Our advice costs you nothing; the insurer pays our commission.

## FAQ

### Is insurance compulsory for a riding stable in Germany?

There is no compulsory insurance by law. However, German law makes the keeper of a school horse liable even without fault, so public liability cover is practically indispensable.

### Does my public liability also cover livery horses?

For damage a livery horse causes, the owner's own horse liability policy is the first to pay. For damage to a livery horse that you are to blame for, you need the livery extension in your own public liability policy.

### Does every livery owner need horse liability insurance?

Not by law, but you should require it in the livery contract and ask to see proof. Otherwise every claim caused by someone else's horse ends up with you.

### What does insurance for a riding school cost?

Public liability starts at just over 100 euros for small yards; with lessons it is usually between 400 and 900 euros a year. Buildings and contents come on top, depending on their value.

### Are riding pupils covered by the statutory accident insurer?

No. Paying pupils are customers and do not have statutory accident cover through a Berufsgenossenschaft. If they are hurt through a mistake by the yard, your public liability pays; otherwise their own health insurance does.

### What about part loans on school horses?

Part loan riders should be named expressly in the policy. Some insurers include them at no extra cost, others charge a supplement per horse.

## 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-riding-stable.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.