The no-claims class (Schadenfreiheitsklasse, SF-Klasse for short) shows how long you have driven without causing an accident. It helps set your premium for third-party liability (Kfz-Haftpflicht) and fully comprehensive cover (Vollkasko) (1). If you want to cancel at the end of the year, your notice must reach the insurer by 30 November (2). So it helps to know what happens to your SF-Klasse when you switch.
Your SF-Klasse moves with you
As a rule, you take your no-claims discount to the new insurer. You do not have to do anything: the new insurer requests your claims history electronically from your previous insurer (1). Liability and fully comprehensive cover are treated separately (1).
What to watch out for
- Ask your previous insurer to confirm in writing which SF-Klasse or claims history it will report, especially after an accident (2). The Verbraucherzentrale reports cases where a worse class was reported than the one shown on the premium bill (2).
- Discount protection (Rabattschutz) only applies with your current insurer. After a switch, the new insurer usually takes the accident into account and places you in a lower class (2).
- After an accident you caused, you are moved down the following year. What counts is the number of claims, not their size (1). Partial cover (Teilkasko) claims such as broken glass, storm or theft do not lead to a downgrade (1).
- If you pay the insurer back the cost of a claim yourself, you keep your class. After settling the claim, the insurer must tell you the costs (1).
If your car was not insured for a while
If the break lasts less than six months, your discount keeps improving. If it lasts more than six months, it stays the same. If it lasts more than twelve months, claim-free years are deducted step by step, and after more than seven years the discount is lost completely (1).
How large the discount is in each class is set by each insurer in its terms (1). So when comparing, look at the classification as well, not just the price.
Read more: Guide: car insurance – compare and switch. We do not give advice and do not recommend any particular insurer. You make the decision yourself.
Sources (checked on 15 October 2026)
- Die Versicherer (GDV) – Was ist der Schadenfreiheitsrabatt? (31.01.2024)
- Verbraucherzentrale – Kfz-Versicherung überprüfen und mehrere hundert Euro sparen (as of 08.10.2025)