A fatal accident at your German site.
A fatal workplace accident is first of all a human tragedy. For the company, a criminal investigation begins the same day, usually against supervisors, site management and managing directors. For foreign-owned companies, language, distance and unclear responsibilities make the first days even harder. We defend companies and their managers from the first hour.
Available now · +49 69 24746870What happens after the accident.
Police and usually the public prosecutor attend on the day. The site is secured, machines or equipment are often seized, an expert is appointed, colleagues are questioned and an autopsy is frequently ordered. In parallel, the occupational safety authority and the statutory accident insurer (Berufsgenossenschaft) investigate. The accident must be reported to the insurer within three days (section 193 Social Code VII).
- Do not alter the site before the authorities and experts have seen it.
- No spontaneous statements by managers about safety organisation without a defence lawyer.
- Secure all documents: risk assessments, instructions, training records, maintenance logs, delegation of duties.
- Protect employees who are questioned as witnesses with their own counsel where they could incriminate themselves.
Not the company, but individuals.
German criminal law does not punish companies. Prosecutors look for the individuals who owed a duty to prevent the accident: the employer's management and those to whom health and safety duties were delegated, such as plant managers, site managers and foremen. Delegation must be made to reliable and competent persons, ideally in writing. Management remains responsible for selection, resources and supervision.
In foreign-owned groups, the key questions are often who formally runs the German entity, who actually decides, and whether safety instructions were given in a language the workers understood. We reconstruct the organisation early and coordinate communication with the parent company so that it does not endanger the people under investigation in Germany. We work in German and English, and in Chinese through our China Desk.
German version: Arbeitsunfälle und Strafrecht · 中文: 德国工伤事故
Workplace accidents in brief.
Who is prosecuted after a fatal workplace accident in Germany?
German criminal law does not punish companies. Prosecutors investigate individuals, usually the supervisor responsible for the area where the accident happened and the managing directors, typically for negligent homicide (section 222 Criminal Code). The company itself can face an administrative fine if supervisory duties were breached (sections 30 and 130 Administrative Offences Act).
Does this apply if the parent company or management is abroad?
Yes. An accident in Germany is subject to German criminal law. In practice, the focus is on the people responsible on site: branch, plant or site management and supervisors. In international groups it is often unclear who was formally and actually responsible for health and safety, and this must be clarified early.
Should managers speak to the police?
Not without a defence lawyer. Anyone who may be a suspect has the right to remain silent. Factual information needed for rescue and securing the site should of course be given, but statements about the organisation of health and safety should wait until the defence has reviewed the situation.
What penalty applies?
Negligent homicide carries a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine. Many workplace accident cases end with a discontinuation against conditions or a penal order, particularly where the defence works early and carefully.
Who pays for the defence?
Many companies have corporate criminal legal expenses insurance that covers the defence of managing directors and employees in negligence cases. We check the cover at the outset and coordinate with the insurer.
This page provides general information and does not replace advice on an individual case.
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A serious or fatal accident has happened at your German site? Call the partner directly, also outside office hours.
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