What are your contents actually worth — and what does your policy say?
- The recommended sum: €650 per square metre of living space
- Underinsured means a proportional cut on every single claim
- Only 41 percent of contents policies cover heavy rain and flooding
45 minutes · free · no obligation · in English
What does household contents insurance cover?
It replaces everything movable in your home — furniture, clothing, electronics, crockery, bicycles, valuables — when destroyed, damaged or stolen through fire, escaping water, storm from force 8, hail, burglary or vandalism. It pays the replacement value: what it costs to buy the item new today, not what the used item would fetch.
The sum insured decides how much you actually get. The German Insurance Association recommends €650 per square metre of living space. Use that flat rate and you generally receive the waiver of underinsurance — the insurer then does not check, when you claim, whether the sum was calculated correctly.
Fall below it and you risk a proportional cut, and that applies to every single claim, not just a total loss. Two things are also missing from many policies and have to be added explicitly: cover for natural hazards (heavy rain, flooding, backflow) and bicycle theft.
Is your sum insured high enough?
Set your living space above and the sum stated in your policy below. If the second figure is lower than the first, you will see on the right what that means when you claim.
Move the slider to the figure stated in your policy.
Recommended sum insured
58,500 €
90 m² × 650 €/m²
That works.
At this level the waiver of underinsurance usually applies: in the event of a claim the insurer does not check whether the sum was calculated correctly, and does not reduce the payout.
Underinsured — and it costs you on every claim.
The reduction does not only hit a total loss. It applies proportionally: you receive only 100 % of every single claim.
Example: on a claim of 20,000 € → 20,000 €
Recommendation of €650 per m² of living space: German Insurance Association (GDV). Individual insurers calculate with €650 to €750 per m². The shortfall calculation is a simplified example; your policy terms govern.
Do you know what figure is in your policy?
Most people do not — the policy was taken out once and never looked at again. Meanwhile the contents grow with every move and every child. Let us check it together.
Book your free clarity callWhat really matters when you make a claim?
With contents insurance the trouble rarely lies in the premium. It lies in what is not written in the policy.
Natural hazards are not automatically included
Only 41 percent of contents policies in Germany cover heavy rain, flooding and backflow.
Natural hazards are not automatically included
Only 41 percent of contents policies in Germany cover heavy rain, flooding and backflow.
Standard cover includes fire, escaping water, storm and hail, and burglary. Natural hazards are not included: flooding, heavy rain, backflow, landslide, snow pressure.
Why this matters more every year
According to the German Insurance Association, at the end of 2024 only 41 percent of contents policies in Germany included natural-hazard cover — 11.7 million households. Heavy rain does not only hit people who live by a river: it can strike anywhere the drainage system cannot take the volume of water.
Backflow is the underestimated case
When water is pushed back out of the sewer system through the pipes into the building, that is not an escaping-water claim in the sense of the policy — it is a natural-hazard claim. That distinction decides whether the basement is paid for.
Source: GDV, data service for the natural hazards report, end of 2024.
Bicycles need their own inclusion
Without the bicycle theft clause, the bike is only covered if it is stolen from inside your locked home.
Bicycles need their own inclusion
Without the bicycle theft clause, the bike is only covered if it is stolen from inside your locked home.
Under standard cover a bicycle counts as contents — but only inside the home. Stolen outside the supermarket or from a shared bike cellar, the policy pays nothing without an add-on.
What to check
- Night-time clause: some tariffs pay at night only if the bike was in a locked room. For families with a cargo bike that is effectively an exclusion.
- Compensation limit: often a percentage of the sum insured. For an electric cargo bike at €5,000 that quickly falls short.
- Lock requirements: some terms demand a lock above a specified quality class.
Gross negligence
The candle, the tilted window, the pan left on the hob — without the clause the insurer may reduce the payout.
Gross negligence
The candle, the tilted window, the pan left on the hob — without the clause the insurer may reduce the payout.
Cause a loss through gross negligence and, without the relevant clause, you must expect a reduction. What counts as “grossly negligent” is a matter of interpretation — and in case of doubt the other side argues.
Typical cases: the burning candle left briefly unattended; the ground-floor window tilted open during a burglary; the hob left on when leaving the flat. All realistic in a household with children. Good tariffs waive the objection up to the full sum insured.
What contents insurance does not replace
The building itself, the car, and anything permanently installed.
What contents insurance does not replace
The building itself, the car, and anything permanently installed.
The line runs between movable and permanently attached. A rug is contents; glued-down flooring is building. A fitted kitchen is the classic borderline case and is treated differently in the two policies.
Not covered, among others
- The building itself — that is what buildings insurance is for
- Registered vehicles
- Damage you cause to other people’s property — that is personal liability
- Wear and tear
For tenants this is the key distinction: you need contents and liability cover, but not buildings insurance — the owner takes that out.
Common questions about household contents insurance
How high should the sum insured be?
As a rule of thumb, €650 per square metre of living space — the recommendation of the German Insurance Association. At 90 m² that is €58,500. Use that flat rate and you generally receive the waiver of underinsurance. With unusually valuable furnishings a higher sum can make sense.
What happens if I am underinsured?
The insurer reduces the payout proportionally — on every claim, not just a total loss. If your sum is only half what it should be, you receive only half of a €20,000 water damage claim too. It is the most expensive and at the same time most avoidable mistake in this line of cover.
Do I need contents insurance as a tenant in Germany?
It is not compulsory. The question is whether you could replace a complete set of furnishings out of your own pocket — after a flat fire or a major water leak. For most families the answer is no, and then it makes sense.
Are my children’s belongings covered?
Yes, everything belonging to the household. For children studying away from home there is what is called external cover: their belongings in student accommodation are covered under your policy for a limited period. How long and up to what amount is in the terms — worth clarifying before they move out, not after.
Is bicycle theft automatically included?
No. Without a separate inclusion the policy only pays if the bike was stolen from inside your locked home. If you park outside regularly or own an expensive cargo bike, add the component and check the night-time clause and the compensation limit.
How much does contents insurance cost?
The premium depends on living space, location, sum insured and the components you choose. The range is wide, and the cheapest tariff is rarely the right one — the differences sit in natural-hazard cover, bicycles and gross negligence. What makes sense for you is something we work through in the call.
Context
This page is general information and does not replace advice tailored to your situation. What a specific tariff actually covers is set out in its terms and conditions — the differences between two offers carrying the same name are considerable. Figures and rates quoted are market values as of the stated date and are not a commitment.
ETF4Kids is a licensed insurance broker under § 34d of the German Trade Regulation Act, supervised by the Chamber of Commerce (IHK) Region Stuttgart. As a broker we are legally obliged to advise in our clients’ interest. We are neither legal nor tax advisers; where a question belongs there, we say so.
One look at your policy, 45 minutes
Sum insured, natural hazards, bicycles, gross negligence — four points we go through together. Free and independent; we have no products of our own.
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