# Cleaning company insurance in Germany: keys, surfaces and machines > A cleaning business works every day in other people's buildings, on their floors, glass and equipment, often holding their keys. German standard liability wordings exclude exactly these risks or cap them at small amounts. If you run or are starting a cleaning company in Germany, the questions that matter are the extensions for damage to the property being cleaned and for lost keys. Quelle/Source: https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cleaning-company-insurance.php Updated: 2026-11-14 ## Is liability insurance compulsory for cleaning companies in Germany? No. Building cleaning is a craft trade that does not require a master craftsman qualification (Annex B1 of the German Crafts Code), and registering the business does not require proof of insurance. In practice you will hardly win contracts without it: property managers, commercial clients and public tenders ask for a certificate, often with a minimum sum for lost keys. Liability under German law has no upper limit, so one lost master key can be a serious blow to a small firm. ## At a glance - **Compulsory?:** No, but clients and tenders ask for proof of cover - **Key extensions:** damage to property being cleaned, lost keys, rented premises - **Typical limit:** EUR 3 to 10 million combined, keys often only as a sub-limit - **Workplace injuries:** statutory accident insurance through the BG BAU - **Property cover:** cleaning machines, kit in vans and at client sites, storage ## Damage to the surface you are cleaning Most claims against cleaning firms arise at the client's premises: an acidic cleaner etches a stone floor, a scrubber dryer scrapes a glass door, a scraper blade scratches coated glass. Because the cleaner was working on that very surface, German policies treat this as damage to property being worked on (Tätigkeitsschaden). The standard terms of a Betriebshaftpflicht exclude it. Trade policies for cleaning firms add it back, usually with a sub-limit and an excess. Check whether both fixtures, such as floors and walls, and movable items, such as carpets and furniture, are included, and whether damage caused by cleaning agents is named. Water seeping under a door during mopping, or data lost because a server was switched off, is not covered by every wording either. ## Lost keys and access cards Offices are often cleaned outside working hours, so your teams hold keys, fobs or access cards. If a key to a master key system is lost, the owner may replace the whole system, and in office buildings or hospitals that quickly runs into five or six figures. Liability cover only pays if key loss is included, and many policies set a sub-limit far below the main limit. Look for three things: whether electronic access media are covered, whether emergency locks and temporary security are paid for, and what the policy says about key custody. Some wordings require a key register or forbid labelling keys with the client's address. Breaching such conditions can reduce a claim. ## Staff, machines and employee theft Workplace injuries are covered by the BG BAU, the statutory accident insurer every cleaning employer in Germany must join. If the business caused an accident through gross negligence, the BG BAU can recover its costs from the employer, so the liability policy should cover that recourse. Part-time staff and mini-jobbers count as insured employees. Your own machines are not covered by liability insurance at all. Contents insurance protects them in your storage room, machinery breakdown cover protects against operator error, and theft from a locked van needs its own extension. If a cleaner steals from a client, that is intentional and not a liability claim; commercial crime or fidelity insurance (Vertrauensschadenversicherung) can cover it. ## What is covered - Injury and property damage to clients, visitors and passers-by - Damage to floors, glass and fittings being cleaned, if included - Lost third party keys and access cards, up to the agreed sub-limit - Damage to rented storage and office premises - Recourse claims from the BG BAU after grossly negligent accidents - Cleaning machines against breakdown through machinery cover - Theft of equipment from a locked vehicle, if included ## What is not covered - Intentional acts, including theft by your own staff - Re-cleaning or poor cleaning work as such - Wear and tear of your own machines - Asbestos and hazardous material removal, excluded in many wordings - Registered vehicles, which need motor insurance - Activities not listed in the business description, such as winter gritting ## Who needs it - Contract cleaners for offices, practices and residential buildings - Window and facade cleaners, including work from platforms or ropes - Firms doing post-construction, industrial and specialist cleaning - Foreign cleaning companies setting up a German branch or GmbH ## Who does not need it - Domestic helpers employed directly by a private household rather than self-employed ## What it costs Premiums depend mainly on payroll or turnover, on the activities you carry out and on the extensions you choose. Office cleaning alone costs far less than facade work with high-pressure equipment or glass cleaning at height. **What drives the premium:** - Activities in the business description - Payroll, turnover or headcount - Sub-limits for damage to cleaned property and lost keys - Excess per claim - Value of machines and equipment - Claims history _We do not publish sample premiums, because payroll and activities vary too much between cleaning firms. Your premium is fixed in the quote we obtain for you._ ## The policy levels on the market - **Standard liability:** Business liability with around EUR 3 million and no or small cover for cleaned surfaces and keys. Too thin for a firm working in client buildings. - **Cleaning trade policy:** Typically EUR 5 million combined, damage to cleaned property, keys and access cards with their own sub-limit, rented premises and work machines. The usual choice for small and mid-sized firms. - **Package with property cover:** Trade liability with a high key limit, plus contents, machinery breakdown, business interruption and optional fidelity cover. For firms with vans, expensive machines and large clients. ## How to recognise a good policy | Criterion | Minimum standard | Strong policy | Why it matters | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Limit of indemnity | EUR 3 million combined | EUR 5 to 10 million combined | In hospitals or large office blocks even property damage gets expensive fast. | | Damage to cleaned property | fixtures only, small sub-limit | fixtures and movable items, cleaning agents named | Etched stone and scratched glass are the most common claims in the trade. | | Lost keys | third party keys with a fixed sub-limit | high limit, access cards, emergency locks and security included | Replacing a master key system costs many times a small limit. | | Excess | fixed excess per claim | low or no excess for surface and key claims | Small claims are frequent, a high excess eats the cover. | | Windows, facades and pressure washing | window cleaning named | facades, roofs, pressure washing, platforms and rope access | Some insurers exclude these or charge extra. | | Machines away from base | equipment at your premises | breakdown and theft from vehicles and client sites | The kit is rarely where contents insurance applies. | ## Insurers on the German market Many German commercial insurers offer cover for cleaning firms, as a dedicated trade policy or as a module in a business package. The list describes the German market; it says nothing about which insurers we work with. - **Allianz**: commercial lines with modules for trades and services - **AXA**: commercial lines through agents and brokers - **HDI**: part of the Talanx group, small business and trades - **R+V**: insurer of the German cooperative banks - **VHV**: focus on construction and trades, mainly through brokers - **SIGNAL IDUNA**: long-standing ties to the German crafts sector - **Haftpflichtkasse**: liability specialist, sold through brokers - **Markel**: specialty insurer in Munich, brokers only 127 insurers supervised by BaFin, the German regulator, are licensed for this class of insurance. (Allgemeine Haftpflicht). Source: BaFin company database, 2026-09-18; EU insurers without a German office excluded. ## Typical claims and who pays - **Stone cleaner etches a marble lobby** (roughly €5,000 to €30,000): The floor was the property being cleaned. Standard terms exclude it, trade policies cover it up to the sub-limit. - **Hospital master key goes missing** (often five to six figures): Small key limits do not pay for a large locking system. Only a high key limit covers the full replacement. - **Visitor slips on a freshly mopped floor** (a few thousand euros, more with lasting injury): Without a warning sign the business is liable. Bodily injury is the core of every liability policy. - **Mop water reaches the server room** (roughly €10,000 to €50,000): Water damage is usually covered, data loss and downtime at the client not in every wording. - **Pressure washer stolen from the van** (roughly €2,000 to €8,000): Liability never covers your own kit. Theft from a locked vehicle needs a property extension. - **Client demands a free re-clean** (a few hundred euros per visit): Redoing your own work is performing the contract, not a liability claim. No policy pays for it. ## Myth or truth - „Cleaning companies in Germany must have liability insurance by law." ✘ False, there is no legal obligation. Commercial clients almost always ask for a certificate anyway. - „Damage to the floor you are cleaning is covered by any business liability policy." ✘ False, German standard terms exclude property being worked on. It has to be added as an extension. - „A lost key can cost more than an injury claim." ✔ True in some cases. Replacing a large master key system can exceed the cost of a minor accident. - „In Germany, injuries to your own cleaners are paid by a statutory insurer." ✔ True, the BG BAU pays. After gross negligence by the employer it can claim its costs back. - „Liability insurance pays if one of my cleaners steals from a client." ✘ False, theft is intentional. Only fidelity insurance with third party cover pays. ## Common mistakes - Insuring office cleaning only while also doing windows or facades - Not raising the key limit when a large client comes on board - Assuming access cards count as keys without checking the wording - Leaving equipment in the van without theft cover for vehicles - Using subcontractors without asking for their certificate ## FAQ ### Does liability insurance pay if a cleaning agent damages a floor? Only if damage to property being worked on is included. The floor is what you were cleaning, and the standard German terms exclude that. Trade policies add it back, usually with a sub-limit and an excess. ### How high should the key limit be? High enough for the most expensive locking system among your clients. Flats need less than hospitals or office towers. Many clients write a minimum into the contract, and your policy should meet it. ### Are mini-jobbers and part-time cleaners insured? Yes, all employees are insured while working for the business, whatever their contract. Agency workers should be named explicitly. Workplace injuries go to the BG BAU. ### What if a cleaner steals from a client? Liability insurance does not pay, because theft is intentional. Fidelity insurance that includes third party losses can cover it; without it, the business is liable itself. ### Is my scrubber dryer covered by liability insurance? Only for damage it causes to others. Damage to the machine itself needs machinery breakdown cover. ### Does my policy from home cover jobs in Germany? Not automatically. Many foreign policies limit their territory or are not accepted by German clients. A German policy with a German certificate avoids discussions in tenders. ### Do I need a master craftsman certificate to run a cleaning firm in Germany? No, building cleaning is a craft trade without that requirement. You register with the local chamber of crafts (Handwerkskammer). For insurance, what counts is what you actually do. ### Why use a broker? Because the differences lie in sub-limits and exclusions that brochures rarely show. We compare cover for cleaned property, key limits and policy conditions against your sites and stand by you when a claim comes in. ## Legal basis and sources - [Insurance Contract Act (VVG, German)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/vvg_2008/) - [BaFin company database (licensed insurers)](https://portal.mvp.bafin.de/database/InstInfo/) ## Request quotes We obtain quotes and come back with a comparison, free of charge. You can write in English. https://www.nammert.com/en/insurance-broker-cleaning-company-insurance.php#anfrage --- 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.