Occupational safety online: what online providers and flat fees include
Online providers sell occupational safety online: the specialist, sometimes the physician too, as a monthly or annual flat fee, mostly with an entry price and digital appointments. That can work for offices with up to 20 employees. Above that, fixed required hours apply, which a low monthly price rarely covers. So always ask how many hours and on-site visits the fee includes.
This page is part of the overview of occupational safety providers. The figures come from the 2026 market study of 1,037 providers; we do not name providers.
How this provider type works
Contracts are signed online, mostly without a call. The most common model is a flat fee per month or year; there are also packages, platform subscriptions with an hourly rate and offers that sell only the appointment with a certificate and bill every visit by time. Brokerage portals are usually free for businesses; the referred specialist sets the price.
Much happens digitally. That is allowed for up to one third of support, and only after the specialist has seen the business during an inspection. Up to 20 employees there are no fixed annual hours; above that, the required hours alone cost around 1,263 € a year for 25 employees at market prices.
What a low monthly price includes
One online provider charges just under 30 € a month for the written appointment of the specialist with a certificate, and just under 40 € a month extra for the physician. Every visit is billed by time spent.
Another sells small businesses with up to 10 employees an annual licence for around 130 € with an appointment certificate and an e-book; advice is billed per quarter hour, around 130 € per hour. For comparison: for an office with 25 employees the required hours alone cost around 1,263 € a year at market prices.
Strengths and limits for offices
Strengths
- Prices are mostly published on the website.
- Signing, appointment and certificate are mostly done online, without a call.
- Up to 20 employees a flat fee can cover the scope.
- At the VBG up to one third of support may be digital once the business is known from an inspection.
Limits
- Above 20 employees the required hours rarely fit into a price of a few euros a month.
- Individual providers sell only the appointment with a certificate; every visit costs extra.
- According to the VBG, purely digital support is not permitted.
- Most providers say nothing about physician, travel or a record of hours.
Compared with Safety Club
At Safety Club the appointment always comes with support. An occupational safety specialist comes to your premises for the inspection, the physician is part of the same contract, and travel, risk assessment, safety briefings and committee are included. What a low monthly price only reaches through extras is there from the start.
| Point | This provider type | Safety Club |
|---|---|---|
| Offer | Appointment, packages or platform. The specialist partly works mainly digitally, the physician is partly only referred. | Occupational safety specialist on site and physician in one contract. Risk assessment, inspections, briefings, hazardous substances register, operating instructions and committee support. |
| Physician | Partly included, partly only referred. | Included. Same contract. |
| Price | Mostly public, mostly as an entry price without the hours included. | Predictable annual costs for the legal scope. Range shown upfront in the quote calculator. |
| Billing | Monthly or annual flat fee. On-site visits, risk assessment and briefings partly at extra cost. | Fixed annual costs for the agreed scope. Travel, set-up and annual report are included. |
| Travel | Rarely included. Partly covered within a radius, per kilometre beyond. | Included. |
| Risk assessment | Mostly included, partly as a template to fill in yourself. | Included. Including mental stress. |
| Safety briefings | Mostly included, as e-learning. | Included. Digital, with records. |
| Way of working | Mainly digital. On-site visits optional or at extra cost. | Inspection and risk assessment on site, everything else digital. Measures, deadlines, briefings and coordination run through the customer portal, with a report after each visit. |
| Your effort | Medium. Book extras one by one, partly fill in templates yourself. | Low. One initial call, one contract, one contact. Because we work very digitally, folders, paper and extra coordination meetings fall away. |
| Records | Partly in a customer portal. | All records in the customer portal. Complete, current, shareable. |
| Start | Signed online, mostly without a call. | At most five working days from first contact to signature. On-site support starts within ten working days. |
There are too few hourly rates for a separate median for online providers. Compared with the median of all providers, Safety Club is 45 per cent lower for 25 employees and 41 per cent lower for 50 employees (market study, comparison). The page on the external occupational safety specialist describes the scope.
What does support cost for your office?
Your own quote in two minutes: the quote calculator shows the range for your company size and location, including specialist, physician and travel.
What the law requires
Under section 6 DGUV Regulation 2, support is provided in person as a rule. Digital support is only possible once the company's conditions are known from an inspection; the VBG allows at most one third, and the digital share belongs in the report.
The appointment certificate only proves the appointment. What is required is performance of the tasks, proof on request and a report on the services. Up to 20 employees small-business support applies (Annex 1), above 20 standard support with fixed service times (Annex 2).
Five questions for the contract
- How many service hours per year are included, split by specialist and physician, and is there a record of hours?
- How much of it is digital, and is an initial on-site inspection promised?
- Is the physician appointed and paid, or only referred?
- Is the monthly fee only the appointment with a certificate, and what do visits, risk assessment, briefings and travel cost?
- Minimum term, automatic renewal, notice period, price adjustment, set-up or cancellation fees?
More on providers
| Page | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Software without a specialist | Organises risk assessments, briefings and deadlines. Does not replace an appointment. |
| Freelance specialists | One fixed person in the region. Physician and cover come from third parties. |
| Regional service firms | Several specialists at one to a few sites. The largest provider type in the market. |
| Nationwide large providers | Many sites, specialist and physician mostly from one source. Prices rarely public. |
| Pricing models | Hourly rate, flat fee, per-head price, packages: how each model works and what to check. |
| Market study 2026 | Prices from more than 1,000 providers, converted to the same required hours. |
Frequently asked questions
What does occupational safety cost a small office per year?
Up to 20 employees there are no fixed annual hours; a flat fee of a few hundred euros a year may cover the scope, with occasions usually charged extra. Above 20 employees fixed service times apply. For 25 employees, support including physician and travel costs around 1,545 € to 1,800 € a year on the market.
Is an occupational safety specialist for 19 to 49 euros a month sound?
It depends on size and content. Up to 20 employees a small flat fee may be enough. Above 20 employees, 228 to 588 euros a year do not cover the required hours; the price then usually includes only the appointment, and visits are charged extra.
May support be provided entirely online?
No. Support must as a rule be provided on site. The VBG allows at most one third digital, and only once the business is known from an inspection. It expressly calls purely digital offers inadmissible.
Is an appointment certificate sufficient proof?
No. The certificate only proves the appointment. What is required is performance of the tasks, proof on request and a report on the services provided. Anyone buying only the certificate must commission the inspection, risk assessment and required hours separately.
Is the physician included in online flat fees?
Not always. Individual providers list the physician as included, others only refer one, many say nothing. Both roles are mandatory, each with at least 20 per cent of basic support.
How much support takes place on site with online providers?
It varies widely: from the appointment alone without any visit to packages with an inspection. At the VBG at most one third may be digital, and only after an inspection. Ask for the number and length of on-site visits in writing.
How much effort is an online flat fee for us?
More than expected: filling in the risk assessment template yourself, rolling out briefings, booking extras one by one and organising the physician separately if they are only referred.
How do I compare online offers?
Not by the entry price, but by the hours included per discipline, on-site visits, the physician and the prices of extras. Add everything up for a year.
Is Safety Club more expensive than an online flat fee?
The monthly amount of an online flat fee is mostly lower but usually covers only the appointment or a few hours. For the same legal scope including physician and travel, for 25 employees, Safety Club is 45 per cent below the median of all providers. Up to 20 employees a flat fee can be cheaper if occasions are rare.
Sources
- Safety Club market study 2026
- Occupational Safety Act (ASiG), sections 1 to 7
- Section 19 ASiG: external services
- DGUV Regulation 2, VBG version
- VBG: the new DGUV Regulation 2 (German)
- VBG guidance: using occupational safety and medical support (German)
- DGUV Regulation 2, Annex 2: standard support for more than 20 employees
Talk to us.
