Personal liability insurance

This article or paragraph presents the situation in Germany . Help us to describe the situation in other countries.

The personal liability insurance is a form of liability insurance and secures the private policyholders and his family , including any domestic workers (the latter as far as for the budget act) against claims of third parties under the agreed sums insured . Since the liability of private individuals in particular is not limited under German law, the importance of private liability insurance and the adjustment of your insurance sums for the insured person is obvious. The private liability insurance is, in contrast to theMotor vehicle liability insurance , not compulsory , but voluntary insurance .

Basics

The protective purpose of private liability insurance is derived from Section 823 (1) of the German Civil Code ( BGB) , since everyone is legally obliged to fully cover any damage caused, i.e. H. with no upper limit on the amount. The prerequisite is that the damage was caused by negligence (including gross negligence). Furthermore, it is a prerequisite that the claims have arisen in the private sector, i.e. are not attributable to a professional activity or an association (activity for or as an organ of the association) or any other (honorary) official risk. For this purpose, a separate association or voluntary liability insurance (e.g. the judicial authorities for voluntary supervisors and guardians) may apply. Part-time activities (e.g. paid day care for other people's children) must also be specifically insured if these activities are to generate sustainable profit.

The personal liability insurance covers the typical risks of everyday life. Liability for house and apartment ownership is also insured to a limited extent (including liability for rental and construction work), as well as liability for sports (exception: hunting and certain competitions) and animal husbandry (exception: keeping dogs, horses, cattle Animals, draft and riding animals; wild animals; an animal owner's liability insurance must be taken out).

Damage to the rented apartment is theoretically excluded from insurance cover due to the AHB (General Insurance Conditions for Liability Insurance ; model conditions of the GDV). The GDV has already canceled this exclusion via the model condition structure IX (private liability) - living spaces rented for private use are covered by the protection of private liability insurance, provided it does not concern:

• Glass damage
• Damage caused by wear and tear as well as excessive use
• Mold damage
• and damage to electrical and heating installations or components of the hot water preparation

acts.

The use of motor vehicles, which must be covered by motor vehicle liability insurance, is not the subject of personal liability insurance . Exceptions apply if the vehicle is used away from public roads (regardless of the maximum speed), vehicles with a maximum speed of 6 km / h or construction and work machines are operated up to 20 km / h. If non-insured liability risks arise, they are (with the exception of motor vehicle insurance) initially covered by insurance cover with a lower sum insured ( provision insurance ), but must be communicated to the insurer upon annual request and then included.

Insurance against personal injury and property damage are offered on the market with different amounts of cover. Sometimes they are offered as a flat rate for personal injury and property damage, and sometimes isolated for personal injury or property damage. Other financial losses that are not due to personal injury or property damage are generally not covered. However, they can be included by special agreement. However, financial losses are usually covered by financial loss liability insurance and only play a subordinate role in personal liability insurance.

Relevant insurance conditions, according to which the insurance cover is based, are the largely uniform General Liability Insurance Conditions (AHB) of the individual insurers, deviating special conditions and descriptions of the insured risk (e.g. BBR, RBH, etc.), which are enclosed with the insurance policy . The latter partly differ between the individual insurers.

Additional covers

The following risks can also be insured against an additional fee or as a package:

Default coverage

The bad debt insurance or default cover covers the own claims of the policyholder and the co-insured persons, which one against a third party z. B. because of a lack of private liability insurance has insolvent causer.

However, benefits from default coverage can only be obtained if there is a legally binding legal title to the claim. Furthermore, the claim must usually exceed a contractually agreed amount. At the same time, however, maximum limits for compensation are also common.

Cover for children incapable of tort

According to Section 828 (1) of the German Civil Code (BGB), children up to the age of 7 are not personally liable; there are restrictions in the case of accidents with a motor vehicle, a railroad or a suspension railway for children between the ages of 7 and 10 (paragraph 2) for all children up to the age of 18 (Paragraph 3) limitations of liability according to their ability to see things. Regardless of this, the parents can be held liable for the actions of their children in the event of a breach of their duty of supervision , as they themselves then acted wrongly. Even if the injured party had no right to compensation, the “moral obligation” towards the injured party, such as B. the neighbors. By including additional insurance, the "plea of ​​inability to commit a crime" can be excluded up to the age of 7, and with some insurers up to the age of 10. The insurer then only checks whether the damage is covered under the policy. It should be noted, however, that the sums insured for this are usually very limited (5,000 to 30,000 euros).

Children who are permanently incapable of tort, e.g. B. with intellectual disabilities or u. Some with care needs must be covered by a special clause in the contract so that they remain insured beyond the age of majority.

Rental property damage

Damage to rented property is usually also insured in the private liability insurance, albeit mostly limited to the amount (100,000 to 1,000,000 euros).

It should be noted that the additional policy is only liable for one-time damage. Gradual damage is usually excluded. Also, no glass damage in the permanently inhabited rental property is insured because a separate contract (glass insurance) can be concluded for this. However, this only applies to broken glass; not damage from scratches, as these are not covered by the glass insurance. Glass damage in hotels or other foreign locations is, however, refundable. Damage to electrical installations is usually also excluded.

Courtesy damage

If a person inflicts damage on another person while providing unpaid assistance (damage caused by courtesy ), there is no legal claim against the injuring party in the event of slight negligence . Damage to move is an example of this. This type of damage can be insured as an additional benefit (up to the specified damage limit) in addition to normal private liability insurance.

Key damage

The loss of third-party private, professional or voluntary keys is only insured if the provider offers this addition. The amount of the reimbursement is usually limited.

Volunteering

The volunteering is not a private activity. This means that damage from such an activity is only insured if the provider expressly includes it in the insurance cover. In addition, some associations insure their members as part of their voluntary work.

Public or sovereign honorary positions ( mayor , voluntary fire brigade , lay judges , works councils , etc.) are not covered by private liability insurance, although they are usually insured by the employer or provider.

Drone protection

Insurance has been mandatory for unmanned aircraft since 2005; this is regulated by the Aviation Act (LuftVG), Section 43 (2 ). It doesn't matter whether the drone is used privately or commercially. However, the additional cover only applies to drones for private use. In addition, the compulsory insurance applies to every drone, regardless of its weight. With a private liability insurance, the drone may weigh a maximum of 5 kg.