insured event

noun · Versicherungsfall

The insured event is the Versicherungsfall, the occurrence the contract attaches cover to and the pivot of the whole relationship: duties of notification and cooperation arise with it, the causation test of § 28 Abs. 3 VVG is measured against it, and cover for an event before the first premium is paid can fail under the Einlösungsklausel.

Which translation, when

Versicherungsfallthe trigger: the contract defines which occurrence brings the cover into play, and the definition varies by branch, damage to the insured object, the death of the insured person, the claim raised by a third party in liability insurance, so a translation must keep the contractual definition rather than a generic one; from its occurrence run the duties the insurer imposes for the settlement of the claim.

Obliegenheiten nach Eintrittthe duties that follow: after the insured event the policyholder typically owes notification of the insured event, § 30 VVG, and information, § 31 VVG, alongside the cooperation the contract requires, and § 28 Abs. 4 VVG makes full or partial release of the insurer for breach of such a duty of information or clarification conditional on a separate communication in text form; the causation rule of Abs. 3 saves the cover where the breach was causal neither for the occurrence or ascertainment of the insured event nor for the extent of the liability, fraud excepted.

Einlösungsklauselthe gap at the start: an insured event occurring before the first or single premium has been paid can leave the insurer free from liability where the policyholder is responsible for the non-payment, the rule practitioners call the Einlösungsklausel, and even then only where the insurer pointed out that consequence by a separate communication in text form or by a conspicuous notice in the policy document, § 37 Abs. 2 Satz 2 VVG; the premium timetable itself belongs to the policyholder entry, and what happens to the injured party’s claim after payment to the subrogation entry.

Why

Insured event translates as Versicherungsfall, and the German word is a technical hinge rather than a description. What counts as the Versicherungsfall is defined by the contract and differs sharply between branches: damage to or destruction of the insured object in property insurance, the death or the disability of the insured person in life and accident cover, and in liability insurance the event that leads to a third party raising a claim, which is why liability wordings distinguish so carefully between occurrence and claims-made triggers. A translation should therefore carry the contractual definition through and not substitute a generic phrase, because the trigger decides which policy year, and sometimes which insurer, has to answer. From the occurrence of the insured event a second layer starts: the duties the policyholder owes for the settlement, notification of the insured event, § 30 VVG, information, § 31 VVG, and the cooperation the contract requires. These are Obliegenheiten in the technical sense, and § 28 VVG governs what their breach costs, with two protections that matter in practice. Under Abs. 4 the insurer’s full or partial release for breach of a duty of information or clarification existing after the insured event requires that he pointed out this consequence by a separate communication in text form; and under Abs. 3 the insurer must pay nonetheless where the breach was causal neither for the occurrence or the ascertainment of the insured event nor for the ascertainment or extent of his liability, unless the policyholder acted fraudulently. One further trap sits at the beginning of the contract: where the insured event happens before the single or first premium has been paid and the policyholder is responsible for the delay, the insurer can be free from liability, the effect practitioners call the Einlösungsklausel, and here too the release depends on a warning, § 37 Abs. 2 Satz 2 VVG requiring a separate communication in text form or a conspicuous notice in the policy document. The premium schedule itself is held by the policyholder entry, the duty at the application stage by the duty of disclosure entry.

Typical mistakes

What counts as the Versicherungsfall follows from the contractual definition and differs by branch, so replacing it with a generic phrase can move the claim into another policy year.
Release of the insurer for breach of a duty of information after the event requires a separate warning in text form, § 28 Abs. 4 VVG, so an automatic loss of cover is overstated.
Where the breach was causal for neither the event nor the extent of liability the insurer still pays, § 28 Abs. 3 VVG, fraud aside, so a translation should not present the sanction as unconditional.

What matters

Handling a German claim notification: the text should use Versicherungsfall with the definition the policy gives it, treat notification and cooperation as Obliegenheiten, and note whether the insurer gave the warning § 28 Abs. 4 VVG requires.

Authority

§ 28 VVG
§ 30 VVG
§ 37 VVG

What the machine misses

A machine version of insured event produces versichertes Ereignis or Schadensfall, and the technical term is the Versicherungsfall, defined by the contract and serving as the reference point for the duties after the event and for the causation test of § 28 Abs. 3 VVG; the loose rendering also blurs the line to the Schaden, which is the loss and not the trigger.

See what the machine does with this clause →

Examples

the insured event	der Versicherungsfall
on the occurrence of the insured event	bei Eintritt des Versicherungsfalls
to notify the insurer without undue delay	den Versicherer unverzüglich anzeigen
the insurer is released from liability	der Versicherer ist leistungsfrei

More notes on these sections

duty of disclosure vorvertragliche Anzeigepflicht