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Whether you sort out clothes, teach German or organize furniture pieces – thousands of people lend a hand to ease the arrival for refugees. When helpfulness is put into action, it often gets out of sight, who helps if something happens to the helpers themselves. Depending on whether you are acting regularly and organised or strictly private, different accident insurances apply.
Requirements for the statutory coverage
As with other voluntary works – e.g. voluntary fire brigade – "refugee workers" automatically and for free enjoy the protection of the statutory accident insurance. Requirement for this is, that they´re organized about municipalities or welfare organisations. This means: Assignments and places of action are set by them, the responsible persons assign the tasks, take on division and coordination and they absorb the costs – and most important: The responsibility.
Mostly also lists are created, in which helpers can register. So if it comes to the worst it spares investigations whether someone worked or not.
Scope of services
If the helper gets injured while his assignment, but also on his way there and back between the place of action and place of residence, the accident insurance steps in. Costs for care and rehab are absorbed. If the ability to work is reduced by at least 20% as a result of an incident, the injured person gets a monthly injury benefit from the statutory accident insurance.
Liability for damages of a third party
Who harms another person in his position as a refugee worker, generally has not to pay claims for damages. The sponsoring organization or their liability insurance, usually the one of towns and municipalities, is liable.
In addition, the voluntary work of a managerial position or the so-called responsible work (verantwortliche Tätigkeit) in an organization or an association can be injured by the liability insurance of the association (Vereinshaftpflichtversicherung).
Protection during private engagement
Besides all the services from the statutory accident insurance, the private insurances (accident or disability insurance) also step in if necessary. In addition to that, most of the federal states concluded private accident and liability-collective insurance contracts, which secure refugee workers in case of an only private engagement without connection to an institution.
In case of doubt, you have to prove that your engagement was voluntarily – which is why you register, for example, in the list of a provider or an organization.
If this ain´t possible, you should ensure that some persons know about your voluntary work.
Also important: Only the way back and forth to the place of action is insured! A trip to a supermarket or to a cafe is not insured.
