Contract Check: Why "Old" Rarely Means "Good" in Insurance

Do you have contracts that have been lying untouched in your folder for 10 years? Beware: In the insurance world, standstill often means a step backward. Modern tariffs today offer significantly more performance for often less money.

The Market Doesn't Sleep

Insurance constantly evolves. What was "top standard" ten years ago is often considered deficient today. A classic example is the inclusion of gross negligence. In old household or residential building contracts, this was often excluded, today it is standard. Private liability insurance has also improved massively.

Three Reasons for a Regular Check

1. Better Conditions: New tariffs cover risks that didn't even exist before (e.g., cyber attacks, e-bike theft, or drone liability).
2. Cheaper Premiums: Competition pushes prices down. Often you can get premium protection today for the price of an old basic tariff.
3. Adjustment to Your Life: Have you renovated? Are children out of the house? An old contract often no longer fits your current life reality.

The Danger of Underinsurance

Particularly with residential building or household insurance, old contracts carry the risk of underinsurance. The prices for craftsmen and materials have risen massively. Those who do not adjust their contract will only receive a fraction of the damage replaced in an emergency.

Loyalty Rarely Pays Off in Insurance

Insurers rarely reward loyal customers in old tariffs. On the contrary: new customers often receive the better conditions. Use my market overview to bring your contracts up to today's standard.

How to Spot an Outdated Property Policy

• Gross negligence: Does the insurer cut the payout if, say, you left the stove on? Modern tariffs waive this entirely or up to a high amount.
• Underinsurance waiver: In contents insurance it stops the insurer from reducing your claim because your sum insured is too low. It usually only applies if the sum was calculated per square meter.
• Sliding replacement value: In buildings insurance (gleitender Neuwert) it makes the sum insured rise automatically with construction prices. Without it, a sum from 15 years ago won't be enough today.
• New risks: Cyber damage, drones, e-bikes or damage to borrowed items are often not mentioned at all in old terms.

When You Can Cancel Old Policies

• At expiry: Most property policies run for one year and renew automatically. Notice is usually three months before the end of the insurance year. Contracts with a term of more than three years can be cancelled at the end of the third year (§ 11 (4) VVG).
• After a claim: In property and liability insurance, both sides can cancel after a claim, within one month after the claim has been settled (§§ 92, 111 VVG).
• After a premium increase: If the premium goes up without any change in cover, you can cancel within one month of being notified (§ 40 VVG).

The most important rule: only cancel the old policy once the new insurer has accepted your application. Otherwise you risk a gap in which you are not insured at all.

Where You Shouldn't Switch Too Quickly

With personal insurance, switching is not automatic. For a new disability or term life policy you answer the health questions again, based on your age and diagnoses today. In German private health insurance you only take part of your ageing reserves with you when you change insurer, and for contracts from before 2009 usually nothing at all. Old life and pension policies often have a high guaranteed interest rate, and contracts from before 2005 can even pay out tax-free.

A check still makes sense here: often the existing policy can be adjusted, for example through a guaranteed increase option or a tariff change within the same insurer under § 204 VVG.

How the Check Works With Me

With a broker mandate (Maklervollmacht) I request your contract details directly from your insurers, so you don't have to dig through folders. You can transfer existing policies into my care, and premium and terms stay the same. After that you see all your policies in the simplr app and get my assessment of which policy can stay, which should be adjusted and where switching brings real savings or real cover.