Liability Insurance

The German Civil Code makes you liable for all damage you cause - with all your assets. As there is generally no upper limit on the amount and duration of payments, the financial claims can threaten your existence in the worst-case scenario.

In principle, liability insurance makes sense for every household. People who benefit from liability insurance are people

• who take part in road traffic (as pedestrians, cyclists or skaters);
• who have underage children;
• who live in a property (as a tenant or owner);
• who play sports;
• who have to clear snow from the sidewalk in winter;
• who spend their vacation abroad.

You can extend your insurance cover beyond these everyday risks and are thus insured against special, e.g. work-related risks.

For special occupational groups or other special cases that require separate cover, please contact one of our MLP consultants.

For married couples and civil partnerships, one insurance contract per household is sufficient. This is known as the partner tariff. In a family insurance plan, coverage extends not only to both partners but also encompasses any damage caused by their children. As a rule, children are insured under a family tariff at least until they complete their first vocational training.

Important note: Children under the age of seven are considered to be incapable of acting in tort and are therefore not liable for their actions. Personal liability insurance therefore only covers claims for damages if you have breached your duty of supervision. However, it is possible to include children and persons who are incapable of committing an offense in the liability insurance.

Personal injury: If you injure another person, for example in road traffic, personal liability insurance covers the damage caused. This does not include damage that you cause as the driver of a motor vehicle. Motor vehicle insurance is responsible for this.

Property damage: Broken windows, fallen vases - if objects are damaged (property damage) or completely destroyed through your fault, personal liability insurance will apply. However, this does not apply to rented or borrowed items and must not have been caused intentionally.

Financial losses: Claims for compensation can arise even if neither persons nor objects were damaged - for example in the case of lost profits.

Ideally, your personal liability insurance should also cover you against the loss of keys (private or professional) - or the costs that a new locking system would entail. This clause may need to be included in your personal liability insurance.

As a rule, liability insurance does not become more expensive because you have reported a claim. Contribution increases are based on the volume of claims that insurers have to settle. However, if you approach your liability insurer with a large number of claims within a relatively short period of time, they may be able to cancel your policy.