# Insurance for housing companies and housing cooperatives in Germany

> Hundreds of flats, many building years and an escape of water claim every week: for housing companies and housing cooperatives in Germany, buildings insurance drives running costs and therefore rents. Add public safety duties, flooding and the liability of management and supervisory boards. This page explains what matters and what it costs.

Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/business-insurance-housing-company-and-housing-cooperative.php  
Updated: 2026-10-14

## Why does our buildings premium rise every year although we renovate?

Because buildings insurers look mainly at claims history, especially escape of water. Back up your renovations with figures: replaced risers, leak detection and the claims ratio of recent years. With that we obtain quotes and negotiate deductibles that take frequent small claims out of the policy.

## At a glance

- **Compulsory:** No statutory insurance duty for housing companies; lenders regularly require buildings insurance
- **Cooperatives:** Must belong to an auditing association, section 54 of the German Cooperatives Act
- **Biggest risk:** Escape of water and fire across the portfolio, plus heavy rain and a claims history that pushes premiums up
- **Basic cover from:** about €2 to €4 per square metre of living space a year for combined buildings insurance, a guide figure from our quoting work
- **Often forgotten:** Personal liability of the management and supervisory board of a cooperative

## What goes wrong in this trade

- **Escape of water:** Old risers, frost and corrosion: water damage is the everyday claim in residential portfolios.
- **Fire in a block of flats:** A fire can make a whole stairwell uninhabitable; tenants need hotels and rents stop.
- **Heavy rain and backflow:** Flooded cellars and underground car parks are not covered without natural hazard cover.
- **Public safety duties:** Ice on the path, loose facade parts, broken playground equipment: injured people claim damages.
- **Board liability:** Management and supervisory board members of a cooperative are jointly liable to it for breaches of duty.

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

## The insurance you need

- **Buildings insurance** (Essential): Combined buildings cover for fire, escape of water, storm and hail with loss of rent, usually as a framework contract for the whole portfolio. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-buildings-insurance.php
- **Business liability** (Essential): Property owners' liability for public safety duties, plus liability from management and building work. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-business-liability.php
- **Natural hazard cover** (Strongly advised): Adds heavy rain, backflow and flooding. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-natural-hazards.php
- **D&O insurance** (Strongly advised): Protects management and supervisory board members against personal claims. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-directors-and-officers.php
- **Cyber insurance** (Strongly advised): For attacks on tenant portals, accounting and service charge systems. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cyber-insurance.php
- **Solar panel insurance** (Depends on the business): For rooftop and tenant electricity systems against breakdown and loss of yield. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-solar-panel-insurance.php

## What it costs: example prices

Buildings insurance is the biggest item. It depends on floor space, building year, construction, location and above all claims history.

| Insurance | Example | Typical range |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Buildings insurance | Cooperative with 300 flats, 20,000 square metres, average claims history | about €40,000 to €80,000 a year |
| Natural hazard cover | Surcharge for the same portfolio outside flood zones | about 10 to 25 percent of the buildings premium |
| Business liability | Property owners' liability for 300 flats, €10 million limit | about €1,500 to €4,000 a year |
| D&O insurance | Management and supervisory board of a cooperative, €2 million | about €1,500 to €4,000 a year |

For comparison: One euro more buildings premium per square metre means €20,000 a year on 20,000 square metres.

_Guide figures from our own quoting work, excluding German insurance premium tax, October 2026. Buildings premiums vary strongly with claims history._

- [Cooperatives Act, section 54](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/geng/__54.html)
- [Cooperatives Act, section 34](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/geng/__34.html)
- [Cooperatives Act, section 41](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/geng/__41.html)
- [Operating Costs Ordinance, section 2](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/betrkv/__2.html)

## Our suggestions: three packages

- **Small portfolio** (Cooperative or company with up to 100 flats): Buildings insurance, Business liability, Natural hazard cover. Together: about €15,000 to €35,000 a year
- **Medium portfolio** (100 to 1,000 flats with in house management): Buildings insurance, Business liability, Natural hazard cover, D&O insurance, Cyber insurance. Together: individual, depends strongly on claims history
- **With solar** (Portfolio with rooftop systems and tenant electricity): Buildings insurance, Business liability, Solar panel insurance. Together: individual

## The worst day at a housing company

Five things housing companies really go through, all on one January day. Click through and see who pays.

- 06:15: Frost bursts a riser and floods four flats. (€45,000, Paid by: Buildings insurance)
- 07:30: A tenant slips on the ungritted path to the bins. (€12,000, Paid by: Business liability)
- 11:00: Ransomware stops the service charge accounts. (€60,000, Paid by: Cyber insurance)
- 15:40: The cooperative claims damages from the board over a loss making land purchase. (€150,000, Paid by: D&O insurance)
- 19:20: Heavy rain floods an underground car park. (€80,000, Paid by: Natural hazard cover)

**Damage so far:** €347,000

## Practical tips from your broker

- Show insurers your renovations and claims statistics; that is the strongest argument for better terms.
- Agree an escape of water deductible that takes frequent small claims out of the policy.
- Check natural hazard cover for the whole portfolio, not only buildings near water.
- Make sure D&O covers both the management and the supervisory board.
- Keep sums insured up to date to avoid underinsurance.

## Why NAMMERT for your business

- **We work with your figures:** We prepare claims history and renovations so insurers can use them in their quotes.
- **Broker, not insurer:** Norman Nammert acts as an insurance broker and obtains quotes from several insurers. The insurer pays our commission.
- **In English, under German law:** For international owners and boards we explain German policies in plain English.

## FAQ

### Is buildings insurance compulsory for housing companies?

Not by law. Lenders regularly require it, and without it the company bears every fire and water claim itself.

### Does the board of a cooperative need D&O?

Board members are jointly liable to the cooperative for breaches of duty under sections 34 and 41 of the Cooperatives Act. D&O protects their private assets.

### Can insurance costs be passed on to tenants?

Property and liability insurance for the building are operating costs under section 2 no. 13 of the Operating Costs Ordinance and can be passed on if the tenancy agreement provides for it.

### What does buildings insurance cost for a portfolio?

Roughly €2 to €4 per square metre a year, depending on age and claims history. These are guide figures from our quoting work.

### Must a cooperative belong to an auditing association?

Yes, under section 54 of the Cooperatives Act.

## Request quotes

We obtain quotes and come back with a comparison, free of charge. You can write in English. https://www.nammert.com/en/business-insurance-housing-company-and-housing-cooperative.php#anfrage

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Your broker: Norman Nammert, trading as NAMMERT. Insurance broker licensed under section 34d(1) of the German Trade Regulation Act. Broker register no. D-C08Q-TOSD4-37. NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH is a separate company. It does not arrange your contract.

NAMMERT Assekuradeur GmbH, Karl-Marx-Straße 4, 15711 Königs Wusterhausen, +49 3375 29 12 77, info@nammert.com. Wikidata: Q141141479.