Is moving insurance mandatory in Portugal?

Insurance covering your goods is not something the law forces every mover to hold, which is exactly why it varies so much between companies. Ask for the policy rather than assuming it exists.

Does my home insurance cover the move?

Sometimes, partially, and usually only if you tell the insurer in advance. It is worth one phone call before the move rather than one after.

Are my own boxes covered?

Usually not, and that is standard across the industry rather than a loophole. If a box arrives undamaged, nobody can show what state its contents were in when it was sealed.

The excess — the first part of any claim you pay yourself. A 250 € franquia means small damage is effectively uninsured, so it is worth knowing the number before you need it.

How quickly do I have to report damage?

Tell us the same day if you can, and within 48 hours at the latest. Most policies set a window, and missing it is the most common reason an otherwise valid claim fails.

Do you carry goods-in-transit cover?

Yes, on every move, and the policy details go out with the written quote rather than only on request.

Moving insurance in Portugal: what it covers, what it does not

Calma Movers · 2026-08-17

Almost every moving company in Portugal will tell you it is insured. Very few will tell you which policy they mean, and the two common ones cover completely different things. One of them may not cover your furniture at all.

We sell insured moves, so read this knowing we have an interest in you caring about the subject. The mechanics below are checkable against any quote you receive, including ours — that is rather the point of writing them down.

On this pageTwo policies with similar names and different jobs The numbers that matter on the policy What is almost always excluded How a claim actually works What insurance costs a company, and why cheap quotes skip it Questions to ask before you book

Two policies with similar names and different jobs

When a company says it is insured, it usually means one of these. They are not interchangeable.

	Public liability	Goods in transit
Portuguese name	Responsabilidade civil	Mercadorias transportadas
Covers damage to your furniture	No	Yes
Covers damage to the building	Yes	No
Covers injury to a third party	Yes	No
Covers the crew's own injuries	No — that is acidentes de trabalho	No
Commonly held by small movers	Sometimes	Less often

If a sofa goes through a stairwell window, public liability deals with the window and goods-in-transit deals with the sofa. A company holding only the first is genuinely insured, and genuinely not insured for the thing you probably care about.

So the useful question is not «are you insured». It is «which policy covers my belongings, and what is the limit per move».

The numbers that matter on the policy

Three of them, and any company should be able to answer without checking.

The limit per move. A policy capped at 5,000 € is fine for a studio and thin for a family home with decent furniture.
The excess — franquia in Portuguese. The first slice of any claim that you pay. An excess of 250 € means a scratched table is effectively uninsured.
The per-item limit, where one exists. Some policies cap any single object well below the overall limit, which matters if you own one expensive thing rather than many ordinary ones.

Ask for these in writing along with the quote. A company that genuinely holds the cover will send them without fuss, because the insurer has already given them the figures on paper.

What is almost always excluded

These exclusions are standard across the market rather than a sign of a bad policy. They are worth knowing before you assume everything is protected.

Boxes you packed yourself. If the crew did not pack it and the box arrives intact, damage inside is usually not covered — there is no way to prove it was intact when it went in.
Cash, jewellery, documents and data. Carry those yourself, in a bag that never leaves your hand.
Pre-existing damage. Which is exactly why photographs before loading matter to you as much as to the company.
Items that were already faulty or fragile beyond normal — a wardrobe held together by hope, a table with a cracked leg.
Plants and perishables, almost universally.
Mechanical failure of appliances that were not damaged externally. A washing machine that stops working with no visible impact is a hard claim anywhere.

How a claim actually works

The process is unglamorous and it depends almost entirely on evidence gathered before anything went wrong.

Photograph the damage where it stands, before moving it further.
Tell the company the same day, or within 48 hours at the latest. Most policies have a notification window and missing it is the most common reason a valid claim fails.
Put it in writing — WhatsApp counts, and it is timestamped, which helps.
Expect to be asked for proof of value: a receipt, a listing, a photo of the item intact. Without it you are negotiating from memory.
If the company will not engage, the invoice becomes the document that lets you escalate. Without an invoice there is no documented contract, and that is where informal moves stop being cheap.

This is the practical reason the paperwork matters, and it has nothing to do with tax morality. No invoice, no contract, no claim.

What insurance costs a company, and why cheap quotes skip it

Goods-in-transit cover for a single van is not enormous, but it is a fixed annual cost that has to be spread across the year's jobs, alongside vehicle insurance, the crew's accident cover and the accountant.

A crew charging 25 € an hour for two people is charging 12.50 € per person per hour before the van, the fuel, the materials and the tax. That price is achievable. It is not achievable at the same time as goods-in-transit cover, properly employed staff and an invoice.

Our guide to moving prices in Lisbon works the same comparison through with actual numbers. Which is not an argument that they are cheating anyone. It is an argument that the cheap quote is a different product, and for a small move with nothing fragile it may be the right one. Just know which product you bought.

Questions to ask before you book

Short list, and the answers tell you more than the price does.

Which policy covers my belongings in transit — what is it called?
What is the limit per move, and the excess?
Is there a per-item cap?
What is excluded? Are boxes I packed myself covered?
Do you photograph items and both properties before and after?
How long do I have to report damage?
Will I get an invoice?
Are the people who arrive employed by you, or subcontracted?

In short

«We are insured» is ambiguous. Public liability covers the building; goods-in-transit covers your furniture. Ask which one.
Get the limit per move and the excess in writing, with the quote.
Boxes you packed yourself are usually excluded, and so are cash, jewellery and documents.
Photographs before and after are what turn a dispute into a claim.
No invoice means no documented contract, which means no realistic claim.

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Moving insurance in Portugal: what it covers and what it does not