DThe Federal Ministry for the Environment, which is responsible for consumer protection, is responsible for mandatory insurance for natural hazards. “Compulsory insurance could definitely help to improve protection against natural hazards,” said State Secretary Christiane Rohleder of the “Rheinische Post” on the anniversary of the flood disaster in western Germany.
But the devil is in the detail. “For compulsory insurance to really help, the deductible shouldn’t be too high,” said Rohleder. It is important that in view of the increasing number of extreme weather events, more buildings are insured against natural hazards.
Most recently, the Conference of Justice Ministers stated in a statement on June 1 that such compulsory insurance was not constitutionally excluded. Nevertheless, the justice ministers of the federal states had not explicitly spoken out in favor of their introduction.
Insurers are against it
The insurance industry, on the other hand, rejects compulsory insurance for natural hazards. “Compulsory insurance is not the right consequence of the Ahr Valley disaster. It does not prevent a single loss and unloads all the consequences of natural disasters on the insurers,” said the general manager of the German Insurance Association (GDV), Jörg Asmussen, the “Rheinische Post”.
Natural hazards that building insurance does not cover as standard and that can occur in Germany include, for example, floods, heavy rain, backwater, snow pressure, avalanches, earthquakes or landslides.
