The formal part here is handled by the employer, which is convenient right up to the moment they do not do it. Your role is to check that a report was filed and that the events are described as they happened.
The accident report: your employer’s duty
The formal report to the accident insurer is filed by the employer, not by you. Making sure it has been filed is nevertheless in your interest.
✓ Verified: 01/08/2026
WHAT TO DO
AUTHORITY
Berufsgenossenschaft (gesetzliche Unfallversicherung)
Public bodyWhich BG covers you depends on your industry — look it up via the DGUV portal.
› Details and tips
👨🏻💻
Max recommends:
My employer filed the report but wrote that I tripped in the corridor. In the warehouse where it actually happened the lighting had been broken for a week — I had to add that separately.
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Lea recommends:
Request the copy immediately and read it carefully. Correcting a phrase at the start is far easier than arguing against it six months later.
Useful Tools
- DGUV — Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung social
Portal of the statutory accident insurance: which trade association covers your sector and how to report an accident.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Who has to report the accident? ▾
The duty falls on the employer: they report to their accident insurance institution where incapacity lasts more than three days. Employees are not obliged to report but should keep an eye on whether it happened.
What if my employer does not report it? ▾
Contact the insurance institution directly. A missing report costs you no rights: the institution must investigate any case that comes to its knowledge, including through the accredited doctor’s report.
Can I see what was written? ▾
Yes, employees are entitled to a copy of the report. Checking the wording is worthwhile: an inaccurate description of events later affects whether the case is recognised.
What if the link to work is not obvious? ▾
The institution then investigates and requests records and statements. Your job is to record the sequence, the witnesses and your symptoms as early as possible — the link gets harder to prove with time.