Other Insurance

Of the policies you take out yourself, only Krankenversicherung (health insurance) with Pflegeversicherung (long-term care insurance) and, if you own a car, Kfz-Haftpflicht (motor liability) are mandatory in Germany. Everything else is voluntary. Privathaftpflicht (personal liability) is not required by law, but it is the most important of the voluntary ones. Hausrat, Rechtsschutz, Auslandskrankenversicherung and Risikoleben are not for everyone: it depends on your possessions, dependents, mortgage and travel.

Hausratversicherung — Contents Insurance

Hausratversicherung (home contents insurance) covers your household belongings against fire, burglary, water damage and vandalism [1].

Relevant When	Less Relevant When
Property value over €10,000	Property under €5,000
Own residence	Rental with minimal furnishings
Expensive electronics, furniture, jewelry	Basic furniture and electronics

In the Stiftung Warentest comparison (2026), good cover for a model household with belongings worth €80,000 costs from €61 a year, while expensive tariffs charge up to seven times as much for comparable protection [2]. Price also depends on area and deductible. Stiftung Warentest only counts tariffs as suitable if they pay in full for grobe Fahrlässigkeit (gross negligence), for example a fire started by an unattended candle.

Rechtsschutzversicherung — Legal Protection

Rechtsschutzversicherung (legal protection insurance) covers expenses for lawyers, court costs, and expert opinions in disputes [3].

Typical coverage areas:

• Employment disputes — Arbeitsrecht (disputes with employer)
• Rental — Mietrecht (disputes with landlord)
• Traffic — Verkehrsrecht (traffic disputes)
• Contracts — Vertragsrecht (contract disputes)

Waiting Period

Contract includes Wartezeit (waiting period) — typically 3 months from signing. Cannot insure when dispute already started [4].

Cost depends on coverage scope and deductible (Selbstbeteiligung). Typical range: €150–300 per year (2025) [5].

Auslandskrankenversicherung — Travel Health Insurance

Auslandskrankenversicherung (foreign travel health insurance) covers medical expenses abroad and medical repatriation [6].

For trips to the EU, the EEA, Switzerland and the UK, the EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) works. It gets you treatment in the local state system on local terms, chronic conditions included, but it does not pay for transport home, private clinics or local co-payments [7]. Auslandskrankenversicherung fills these gaps.

Outside these countries, the GKV (statutory health insurance) does not pay for treatment. The exception is a few countries with a social security agreement, such as Turkey, Serbia and Tunisia, and even there only within the local system [6]. The law does not require Auslandskrankenversicherung, but without it you pay for treatment and transport home yourself.

An annual policy for all trips rated "sehr gut" by Stiftung Warentest costs from €8 a year per person and about €30 for a family (2026) [8].

Risikolebensversicherung — Term Life Insurance

Risikolebensversicherung (term life insurance) pays an agreed amount to the person named in the contract (Bezugsberechtigter, beneficiary) if the insured dies during the contract period [9].

Relevant When	Less Relevant When
Have mortgage	No dependents
Have children or non-working spouse	No debts
Single breadwinner in family	Both partners work and financially independent

Cost depends on age, health, coverage amount, and contract term. Typical example: €100–300 per year for €200,000 coverage for healthy 35-year-old non-smoker over 20 years (2025) [10].

Insurance with Questionable Cost/Benefit Ratio

These insurance types have high cost relative to covered risks or duplicate existing coverage [11].

Insurance	Problem
Handyversicherung (phone)	Cost €5–10/month (2025) with €50–100 deductible. Over 2 years, premiums add up to €120–240, plus the deductible for each claim
Glasversicherung (glass, ceramic)	Covers broken stovetops, glass tables. Claims are rare, deductible high
Insassenunfallversicherung (passenger accident)	Duplicates Kfz-Haftpflicht, which already covers passenger harm
Reisegepäckversicherung (luggage)	Often already covered by premium credit cards or Hausratversicherung
Sterbegeldversicherung (funeral)	Returns below inflation; liquid savings of €5,000–10,000 cover the same need without the negative real return

Priorities

The order follows the severity of the risk: first what the law requires, then losses that could ruin you, last convenience.

Priority	Insurance	When
Mandatory by law	Krankenversicherung and Pflegeversicherung, Kfz-Haftpflicht	Always; Kfz-Haftpflicht if you own a car
First of the voluntary ones	Privathaftpflicht	Almost always: you pay for damage to other people with no upper limit
Important	Berufsunfähigkeitsversicherung	When your income depends on your ability to work
Situational	Hausrat, Rechtsschutz, Risikoleben	Depends on property, dependents, debts
For travel	Auslandskrankenversicherung	Especially outside the EU

FAQ

This is not legal or financial advice.

Is Privathaftpflicht mandatory in Germany?

No, the law does not require it. But you are liable for damage to other people with all your assets and without an upper limit: someone else's car or an injured passer-by can cost hundreds of thousands of euros. That is why Privathaftpflicht is the most important of the voluntary insurances. Only specific liabilities are mandatory: Kfz-Haftpflicht for car owners [12] and, in some federal states, Hundehaftpflicht (dog owner's liability).

Do I need Hausratversicherung if I rent?

Hausrat covers only your own belongings: furniture, electronics, clothes. The building and the landlord's fitted kitchen are covered by the landlord's Wohngebäudeversicherung (buildings insurance). Damage you cause to the rented flat, such as a flooded floor, is paid by your Privathaftpflicht if the tariff includes Mietsachschäden (damage to rented property). Hausrat pays the cost of a new item (Neuwert), not the depreciated value. If the sum insured is below the value of your belongings, the payout is cut proportionally, unless the tariff includes Unterversicherungsverzicht (waiver of that cut).

How do I cancel insurance I don't need?

An annual contract renews automatically. You can cancel it in writing or by e-mail (Textform) at the end of the insurance year; the contract sets the notice period, usually 3 months. A contract longer than 3 years can be cancelled at the end of the third year, also with 3 months' notice [12]. There are two special cancellation rights: within one month of a letter raising the premium without extending cover, and after a claim, for Hausrat within one month of settlement [12]. Before cancelling insurance that required a health check, such as Risikoleben, keep in mind that a new contract means a new health questionnaire.

Sources

1. Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV), "Hausratversicherung: Schutz für Hab und Gut", https://www.gdv.de/de/themen/news/hausratversicherung-schutz-fuer-hab-und-gut-24056 (accessed: January 2025)

2. Stiftung Warentest, "Hausratversicherungen im Vergleich" (from €61 a year for belongings worth €80,000; full payout for grobe Fahrlässigkeit as a condition), https://www.test.de/Hausratversicherung-Vergleich-5069958-0/ (2026)

3. Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV), "Rechtsschutzversicherung", https://www.gdv.de/de/themen/versicherungen/rechtsschutzversicherung-4212 (accessed: January 2025)

4. Bund der Versicherten e.V., "Rechtsschutzversicherung: Wartezeiten beachten", https://www.bundderversicherten.de/Verbrauchertipps/Rechtsschutzversicherung (accessed: January 2025)

5. Verbraucherzentrale, "Rechtsschutzversicherung: Wann sie sich lohnt", https://www.verbraucherzentrale.de/wissen/geld-versicherungen/weitere-versicherungen/rechtsschutzversicherung-wann-sie-sich-lohnt-10935 (accessed: January 2025)

6. Bundesministerium für Gesundheit, "Krankenversicherungsschutz im Ausland", https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/krankenversicherungsschutz-ausland (accessed: January 2025)

7. Europäische Kommission, "Europäische Krankenversicherungskarte (EHIC)", https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=563&langId=de (accessed: January 2025)

8. Stiftung Warentest, "Auslandskrankenversicherung: Der große Vergleich" (from €8 a year per person, about €30 for a family), https://www.test.de/Auslandskrankenversicherung-der-grosse-Vergleich-4848150-0/ (2026)

9. Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV), "Risikolebensversicherung", https://www.gdv.de/de/themen/versicherungen/lebensversicherung/risikolebensversicherung-4210 (accessed: January 2025)

10. Stiftung Warentest, "Risikolebensversicherung: Günstige Policen für junge Familien", https://www.test.de/Risikolebensversicherung-im-Test-4804711-0/ (accessed: January 2025)

11. Verbraucherzentrale, "Diese Versicherungen können Sie sich sparen", https://www.verbraucherzentrale.de/wissen/geld-versicherungen/weitere-versicherungen/diese-versicherungen-koennen-sie-sich-sparen-10607 (accessed: January 2025)

12. Versicherungsvertragsgesetz (VVG) § 11 (renewal and cancellation, contracts longer than 3 years), § 40 (cancellation after a premium increase), § 92 (cancellation after a claim); Pflichtversicherungsgesetz § 1 (mandatory Kfz-Haftpflicht), https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/vvg_2008/ , https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/pflvg/__1.html (2026)