Do I have to pay for an accident expert report myself?
Where liability is clear, you don't have to pay for an expert report after an accident yourself — it counts as necessary damages and is reimbursed by the other driver's insurer.
After an accident, an expert is meant to assess the damage to the vehicle — and many people’s first question is: will I be left paying for that myself? The answer depends on how liability is apportioned, but in most cases where fault is clear, the position is: you do not have to pay for the report out of your own pocket.
How I can help you
- Assessing whether a full expert report or a simple repair estimate is sufficient in your case
- Arranging the instruction of an expert without you having to pay upfront
- Recovering the expert’s fees from the other driver’s insurer
- Checking the report for completeness and plausibility
When the expert report is reimbursed
Under § 249(2) BGB, where damages are owed for damage to property, you can claim the amount of money required for restoration instead of the restoration itself. An expert report forms part of this necessary cost of restoration, provided the apportionment of liability is not only marginally in your favour — in that case, you don’t have to advance the cost yourself; the other driver’s insurer bears it. You’ll find details of your further claims following an accident on the Traffic Accidents page.
The position is different for so-called minor damage (Bagatellschäden) — smaller, clearly assessable damage. Here, a simple repair estimate from a garage is often sufficient; a full expert report is then not necessarily required, and an insurer could reject it as excessive.
So before you instruct an expert yourself or settle an invoice, let me quickly check which approach is right in your case — that way you avoid unnecessary disputes with the insurer over reimbursement.
This article provides general information and is no substitute for legal advice in an individual case. Last updated: 2026-06-23.
Christian Czirnich, Rechtsanwalt (attorney at law), Kirchseeon near Munich
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