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TERMS AND CONDITIONS

LEUE & NILL GmbH + Co. KG, Hohenzollernstr. 2-6, 44135 Dortmund

§ 1 Contracting Parties

The contracting parties as well as the scope of the broker mandate are specified in the insurance broker agreement underlying the contractual relationship.

§ 2 Status of the insurance broker

  1. The insurance broker is an independent business person and undertakes the brokering or conclusion of insurance contracts on behalf of the client, without being commissioned to do so by an insurer or an insurance agent (§ 59 para. 3 VVG).
  2. The insurance broker is an independent insurance intermediary who is legally and economically on the side of their principal, whose interests they must represent in accordance with instructions. Declarations that they forward to the insurers on behalf of their principal are attributed to the principal.
  3. The insurance broker has no direct or indirect holding in one or more insurance companies. They act exclusively in the interest of the client according to their proper discretion with the diligence of a prudent businessman.
  4. The insurance broker declares that he has the required official approvals. In fulfillment of the information obligations incumbent upon him in this regard pursuant to Section 11 of the Insurance Broker Ordinance (VersVermV), the client will receive separate customer information.
  5. The insurance broker activity exclusively comprises the mediation of private-law insurance contract relationships. Consulting or support regarding statutory social security insurance is not covered by the insurance broker activity.

§ 3 Engagement of the Insurance Broker

  1. The insurance broker is commissioned by their client with handling the brokerage of specific insurance matters. This commission extends to the future brokerage activity of the insurance broker.
  2. Any extensions of the insurance broker's activities must be expressly agreed upon in written amendments to the insurance broker agreement. Oral collateral agreements are invalid. The insurance broker is free to decide whether to accept the assignment. An inquiry for advice from the client does not yet oblige the insurance broker to take action. An obligation to take action only arises after the insurance broker agreement has been signed by both parties or through the transmission of insurance offers.
  3. An advisory obligation exists only for brokerage orders accepted in writing in accordance with the recorded advisory protocol, unless explicitly agreed otherwise in writing.
  4. The insurance broker is given a reasonable amount of time to prepare the placement of an insurance contract relationship and to obtain various offers from insurers. If the client requires immediate coverage of a risk, they must agree in writing with the insurance broker that the broker will take action immediately.
  5. The insurance broker cannot guarantee that an insurer will grant provisional cover. The client has been advised that they only have insurance coverage after written confirmation by an insurer as of the specified date.

§ 4 Scope of Activities

Based on this contract, the insurance broker provides the client with all services that are conventionally provided by an insurance broker to their client. There is no entitlement to a specific scope of advice. The assignment is carried out in accordance with the principles of proper professional practice and appropriate discretion. When processing the brokerage request, only the facts described by the client can be taken as a basis.

§ 5 Duties (and Obligations) to Cooperate of the Client
  1. The insurance broker can only perceive their position as the client's representative in insurance matters if they are comprehensively informed. The client is therefore obligated to cooperate, in particular to provide complete and truthful information without delay, insofar as this is necessary for the proper execution of the mandate. In particular, the client must provide the insurance broker unprompted with all documents and information necessary for the execution of the mandate, completely, correctly, and in an organized manner, in a timely enough fashion that the processing insurance broker has an adequate amount of processing time available. The client must inform the insurance broker in writing and without delay of all events and circumstances that could be significant for the execution of the mandate.
  2. Both the client and the insurer are obligated to provide the insurance broker with the contract-related correspondence conducted between them or, if applicable, to conduct it exclusively through the broker. The client cannot rely on being informed by the insurer through the insurance broker. The client is personally obligated to make the contract-related correspondence from the insurer available to the insurance broker. The insurance broker shall not be liable for damages resulting from the non-observance of the correspondence obligation because the insurance broker did not gain knowledge of it.
  3. If there are any changes in the risk circumstances or the facts communicated, the client is obligated to notify the insurance broker of this immediately and in writing. If the client fails to do so, any claim under the insurance contract may not exist.
  4. If the insurance broker forwards generated documents, in particular insurance policies and terms and conditions or premium invoices, to the client for their information, the client is obligated to check them for factual correctness and completeness without any special request and to notify the insurance broker immediately of any errors or inaccuracies.
  5. The client agrees to pass on work results of the insurance broker only with the latter's written consent, unless the consent to pass them on to a specific third party arises from the content of the order itself. For insurance analyses and individually created coverage concepts, the insurance broker claims copyright protection in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act.
  6. The obligations arising from the insurance contracts, such as the payment of premiums and compliance with duties, etc., must be fulfilled by the client.

§ 6 Failure to Cooperate

  1. If the client fails to provide cooperation incumbent upon them pursuant to Section 5 or for other reasons, or if they are in default of acceptance of the service offered by the insurance broker, the insurance broker is entitled to set a reasonable deadline and simultaneously declare that they refuse to continue the contract after the expiry of the deadline. Upon unsuccessful expiry of the deadline, the insurance broker may terminate the brokerage agreement with immediate effect without notice.
  2. The insurance broker is not liable for damages attributable to missing or incomplete information from the client. The aforementioned termination provision remains unaffected hereby.
  3. The address provided at the time the order was placed shall be deemed the place of delivery for all correspondence with the client. If the client fails to notify of a change of address in writing without undue delay, this rule shall remain in effect, with the consequence that the receipt of declarations of intent is legally deemed to have occurred.
  4. If a deadline or legal claim of the client can only be preserved by submitting a declaration, the client agrees that this declaration may also be submitted by the insurance broker without explicit consent, based on the presumed consent of the client, provided the insurance broker has the necessary information.

§ 7 Duties of the insurance broker

Under this agreement, the insurance broker shall assume the following duties:

  1. Determining the client's wishes and needs.
  2. The selection of suitable insurers and insurance products that correspond to the client's stated demands and needs.
  3. Advice based on professional criteria within the framework of appropriate discretion as to which insurance contract is suitable to meet the client's needs.
  4. The documentation of the client's demands and needs and the advice given by the insurance broker, as well as the explicit instructions of the client. The documentation is prepared taking into account a reasonable proportion between the advisory effort and the premium to be paid by the client, and to the extent that there is reason to do so based on the difficulty/complexity of assessing the offered insurance or with regard to the person of the client and their situation.
  5. The monitoring and ongoing management of the insurance policies and, in coordination with the client, the adjustment of the insurance cover to changing risk and market conditions. In this regard, the insurance broker is under no obligation to independently and continuously obtain information regarding the client's risk situation. Something else applies only in cases where such an independent obligation to obtain information arises for the insurance broker on the basis of the information received from the client or on the basis of information obtained by the insurance broker regarding the client from other sources.
  6. The review and forwarding of documents relating to the brokered insurance contract relationship.
  7. Assistance to the client in the event of a claim vis-à-vis the insurer.
  8. The independent replacement of insurance coverage, if it is necessary to grant or maintain the desired insurance coverage and the client's instructions cannot be obtained in time.
  9. As part of performing the duties of the insurance broker, the broker shall provide information regarding the brokered contractual relationship at any time upon request by the client. The insurance broker shall only provide advice and recommendations upon the client's written request. Oral information is non-binding and always requires written confirmation by the insurance broker.
  10. The insurance broker handles the payment transactions.

§ 8 Services of the Insurance Broker

  1. Based on a sufficient number of insurance contracts and insurers offered on the market, the insurance broker selects offers for the client. Based on professional criteria, the insurance broker provides a recommendation as to which insurance contract is suitable to meet the client's needs.
  2. The insurance broker has made a selection of the eligible insurers at their reasonable discretion, unless the client has given separate explicit instructions. The insurance broker only considers those insurers who are willing to cooperate with them and to pay them a customary brokerage fee for their activities. Direct insurers or coverage concepts not freely accessible on the insurance market are not considered by the insurance broker. If the client nevertheless expressly requests such intermediation, a separate remuneration must be agreed upon in each case.
  3. The insurance broker strives to arrange an insurer suitable to the client's needs and informs the client about the status of these efforts. The client is aware that insurance coverage does not come into effect upon the conclusion of this contract, but only when a legally binding insurance contract has been successfully arranged and the premium has been paid.

§ 9 Duties of the insurance broker

  1. Taking into account a reasonable ratio between the effort required for advisory services and the premium to be paid by the client, and insofar as there is reason to do so based on the difficulty of assessing the insurance offered or the person of the client and their situation, the insurance broker shall ask the client about their wishes and needs, advise them, and state the reasons for any advice given regarding a specific insurance policy. Taking into account the complexity of the insurance contract offered, the broker shall transmit this information in text form in a clear and comprehensible manner prior to the conclusion of the contract.
  2. Advice and information may be provided orally if the client so requests or if and to the extent that the insurer grants provisional cover. In these cases, the information must be made available to the client in text form without undue delay after the conclusion of the contract, unless the client has declared a corresponding waiver in writing.
  3. The insurance broker informed the client about their own status as well as the complaint and arbitration procedure at the ombudsman.
  4. The insurance broker undertakes to inform the insurers in accordance with the instructions of their principal.

§ 10 Term of Contract

The insurance broker agreement is concluded for an indefinite period. It begins with the legally binding signature by the insurance broker and the client. The contract can be terminated in writing by either party with a notice period of 3 months at the end of a calendar year. This period is necessary to ensure proper processing. Other statutory termination options remain unaffected hereby. 

Section 11 Remuneration

Apart from the obligation to pay the insurance premium to the insurance company, the client incurs no further costs for the brokerage activities of the insurance broker. By customary law, the remuneration for the brokerage and advisory services of the insurance broker is borne by the insurance company. Insofar as a deviating arrangement is to be made, this requires a separate written agreement.

§ 12 Liability

  1. The liability of the insurance broker for cases of slight negligence in the breach of their contractual obligations is limited to a maximum amount of € 5 million per claim. The insurance broker has made provision for liability up to this amount by taking out professional indemnity insurance.
  2. Claims for damages arising from the insurance broker contract due to a culpably committed breach of duty become time-barred in 3 years. The limitation period begins at the time when the client has obtained knowledge of the damage and the identity of the person liable to pay damages, or would have had to obtain such knowledge without gross negligence. The claims for damages become time-barred at the latest 3 years after the termination of the insurance broker contract.
  3. The limitations of liability stipulated in § 12 item 1 shall not apply insofar as the liability of the insurance broker is based on injury to life, body, or health, on cardinal obligations, or on guarantees given in writing, or is based on fraudulent intent. The limitation of liability as to amount shall not apply if the insurance broker is proven to have committed a knowing breach of duty or grossly negligent conduct.
  4. In the event of incomplete, untimely, or untruthful information provided by the client, the insurance broker shall not be liable for any disadvantages or damages incurred by the client.
  5. The insurance broker is not liable for the accuracy of IT calculations, product information, or the insurers' policy terms and conditions.
  6. The insurance broker is not liable for financial losses resulting from the slightly negligent breach of ancillary obligations.

§ 13 Assignment

  1. All rights or claims of the client against the insurance broker arising from this contractual relationship are non-transferable, non-assignable, and cannot be encumbered.
  2. The client's set-off against a claim by the insurance broker is inadmissible, provided that the client's claims are not undisputed or have not been legally established.

§ 14 Retention of Records

  1. The insurance broker must keep the client documents and consultation records for a period of 5 years after the termination of the assignment. However, this obligation expires even before the end of this period if the insurance broker has requested the client in writing to take receipt of the documents and the client has not complied with this request within 6 weeks of receipt.
  2. For the purposes of this regulation, client documents include all documents that the insurance broker has obtained from the client or for the client on the occasion of their professional activity. This does not apply to correspondence between the insurance broker and their client, to documents that the client has already received in the original or a copy, or to working papers prepared for internal purposes.
  3. Upon the client's request, the insurance broker must return the documents provided to them within a reasonable period. The insurance broker may make and retain copies or photocopies of documents that they return to the client.
  4. The insurance broker may refuse to surrender work results and documents until any existing claims for payment have been satisfied.

§ 15 Power of Attorney

The representation powers of the insurance broker vis-à-vis the insurance company arise from the insurance brokerage mandate issued by the principal.

§ 16 Data Protection

  1. To fulfill the controller's information obligations towards the data subject, the client receives a separate information and consent form for data processing upon conclusion of the contract. The contractor can continuously inform themselves about the responsibilities and rights of the data subject at Privacy Policy.
  2. The essential legal basis for the processing of the client's data is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b) GDPR: The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract... (brokerage agreement, service agreement). If the data is used for a purpose other than the one for which it was collected, a separate agreement with the client is required.
  3. As part of the mandate, the client consents to the insurers contacted by the insurance broker transmitting data resulting from the application documents or the execution of the contract (e.g., premiums, insurance claims, contract modifications) to the extent necessary to reinsurers for the assessment of the risk and the processing of reinsurance, as well as for the assessment of the risk and claims to other insurers and to their association. This consent applies independently of whether a contract is concluded, and also applies to corresponding checks for insurance contracts applied for elsewhere and for future applications.
  4. Furthermore, the client consents to these insurers maintaining general contract, billing, and claims data in shared data collections and forwarding this data to the insurance broker, insofar as this is necessary for the proper administration of their insurance matters.
  5. Health data may only be transmitted to life and health insurers and reinsurers. It may only be passed on to other insurance brokers to the extent that this is necessary for the formulation of the contract.

§ 17 Final Provisions

  1. Amendments or additions to this contract must be in writing. The requirement for the written form can only be waived by written agreement.
  2. If any provision of this Agreement should be or become invalid, or if there should prove to be a gap in the provisions, this shall not affect the validity of the contract as a whole. Rather, the invalid provision or the gap shall be filled by a supplementary provision that comes closest to the intended purpose.
  3. Place of jurisdiction is the registered office of the insurance broker, subject to German law.

As of: 09.2019

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