Houses should be better insured against natural hazards

Protection against natural damage Government wants better insurance for houses As of: October 21, 2026 • 1:48 p.m

Floods, heavy rain, earthquakes: Houses are not generally insured against damage following such natural disasters. The federal government now wants to change that - and is presenting an initial paper with key points.

The federal government is planning better insurance protection for residential buildings. According to Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil and Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig, all residential buildings should be at least partially insured against the consequences of floods or landslides. The two ministries presented key points for a corresponding draft law. The paper is also available to the dpa news agency. The Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger first reported.

The paper stipulates that newly taken out insurance policies for residential buildings will in future also cover other natural hazards - such as floods or earthquakes - as standard. According to the key points, owners would have to pay a maximum of 20,000 euros in the event of damage. According to the project, existing insurance for buildings should be able to be expanded.

“Experts expect that extreme weather will cause major damage to houses even more frequently due to climate change. We therefore need comprehensive insurance coverage for natural hazard damage,” Hubig told the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. At the same time, protection for owners and tenants must remain affordable, said the minister.

To date, there is no insurance against so-called natural damage to buildings or household contents caused by certain natural hazards such as floods, heavy rain or earthquakes. Instead, you have to take advantage of an additional insurance component, the so-called elementary insurance.

“It is right to ensure that more buildings are insured against natural hazards,” said Jörg Asmussen, managing director of the General Association of the German Insurance Industry (GDV). However, compulsory insurance does not prevent a single loss. "So that natural protection remains affordable in 20 years, we need binding prevention and state reinsurance for extreme natural disasters, as expressly provided for in the coalition agreement."

The insurance industry recorded two billion euros in damage from the recent flood. more

Although 98 percent of all residential buildings in Germany are insured against fire, storms or hail, only 59 percent are also insured against events such as floods or landslides, which are likely to occur more frequently than before due to man-made climate change. According to the insurance association GDV, on average they cause damage of around two billion euros per year in Germany.

This topic in the program: tagesschau.de | Natural disasters: better insurance coverage planned | Oct 21, 2026 | 12:35 p.m.The News Radio | News | Oct 21, 2026 | 12:53 p.m