Do I need term life insurance in Germany?

Risikolebensversicherung (term life insurance) pays out a defined sum if you die during the contract period. It is pure risk coverage with no investment component built in — which is exactly what makes it cheap.

The decision itself is essentially binary: would your death create a financial gap that someone else would seriously struggle to fill? For couples without children, the answer often hinges on a shared mortgage or a meaningful income difference. For families with children, term life is almost always justified for the main earner — and often for both partners, even when one earns less or nothing, because the practical loss in childcare and household work has a real financial cost.

For sizing, a useful starting point is something like the outstanding mortgage balance plus around five years of net income — enough to keep the household stable while your partner and children adjust. The right term length usually runs until the kids are independent, or the mortgage is largely paid off, whichever comes later.

Premiums depend on age at entry, smoking status, health and the term you choose. As with BU, the cheapest moment to apply is when you are young and healthy. And as with BU, honest answers to the health questions are essential — they're what makes the policy actually pay out when it's needed.

Pricing varies surprisingly between insurers for the same risk profile, so an independent comparison usually pays for itself in the first year.