Rebuild value · guarantee against underinsurance · Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code
Compare buildings insurance (opstalverzekering)
Buildings insurance covers the home itself. Everything turns on one figure, the rebuild value, and on whether you have a guarantee against underinsurance to go with it. That guarantee is not something you get automatically.
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A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
Buildings insurance pays for damage to your home caused by fire, storm, water, burglary and impact. Everything permanently fixed to the house is insured: foundations, walls, roof, kitchen, bathroom fittings and central heating system.
The sum insured is the rebuild value: what it costs to rebuild a comparable property to current building standards, excluding the land. That is not the same as the WOZ value (the Dutch property valuation), and not the same as the sale price. For an older or unusual property the rebuild value is often higher than what the house would fetch.
Insurers establish the rebuild value using a rebuild value calculator or a address scan. If you fill it in correctly, you receive a guarantee against underinsurance: the insurer then pays the actual amount of the loss, even if the sum insured turns out to be too low. That guarantee is not automatic &mdash. Your policy schedule states whether you have it at the moment.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
Most chosen
Extended cover
The named perils: fire, storm, water, burglary, vandalism and impact.
Fire, smoke and lightning strike
Storm from force 7 upwards
Water damage and leakage
Burglary damage
Widest form of cover
Comprehensive
All sudden and unforeseen damage from outside, unless expressly excluded.
Unnamed causes included
Your own mishap while doing DIY
Less discussion when you claim
For unusual properties
Valuation under Article 7:960 DCC
A valuer fixes the rebuild value. The insurer then cannot rely on underinsurance for six years.
Six years of protection
Needed for a villa, a listed building or a thatched roof
Check for the supplementary provision
What is covered
Situation
Extended
Comprehensive
Fire and storm damage
Yes
Yes
Water damage from a burst pipe
Yes
Yes
Burglary damage to doors and frames
Yes
Yes
A tin of paint over the new floor
No
Yes
Drilling through a water pipe while doing DIY
No
Yes
Subsidence, pile rot and deferred maintenance
No
No
This overview is general in nature and is not personal advice. What is actually covered, including exclusions, limits and the excess, is set out in the policy conditions and the insurance card (verzekeringskaart) of the insurer; you receive both before you take out cover. Taking out cover without advice? Then read what execution only means for you.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
A valuation is not simply a valuation
A standard valuation report often does not meet the insurer's requirements. What does meet them is a valuation with a supplementary provision on the rebuild value, as referred to in Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code. Within its term — usually six years &mdash. The insurer cannot rely on underinsurance and the amount to be paid out is fixed. For more expensive homes a rebuild value calculator or address scan is no longer usable in any case, and a valuation report is required.
Underinsurance creeps up on you, and it becomes expensive
The sum insured stands still while building costs rise and you extend the house. In a case before the Rechtbank Gelderland (the district court of Gelderland), an insurance intermediary was held liable for failing to spot that the rebuild value of a VvE (Dutch owners' association) property exceeded the sum insured, when by the middle of 2022 that could have been clear to a professional. He was ordered to compensate the uninsured loss. So have the amount reviewed periodically.
Pure financial loss is not covered
The buildings policy covers physical damage to the home. Financial loss without that physical damage falls outside it. Kifid (the financial services complaints institute) rejected a claim from someone seeking the cost of a cancelled concrete delivery: the policy conditions covered only physical damage to the home, and what was claimed was pure financial loss.
An extension, a dormer window, letting out rooms or a long period of vacancy changes the risk and therefore the cover. When it comes to it this is the most common reason for a payout being reduced or refused. Reporting it costs one phone call. Not reporting it costs you the loss.
What does your premium depend on?
Rebuild value: the main basis for calculation
Construction type and roof covering: brick, timber or thatch
Year of construction and state of maintenance
Postcode area: burglary and flood risk
Type of cover chosen: extended or comprehensive
Excess and extensions chosen
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your wishes.
We compareseveral insurers, on premium as well as conditions.
You receive a proposalWith an explanation of the differences and the exclusions.
We arrange the switchIncluding cancellation, so there is no gap in cover.
Customers rate our service on four aspects: personal service, service delivery, availability and the outcome. The reviews are collected and published by NH1816 and come from customers who have actually taken out a policy with Finass Advies B.V. or reported a claim.
The value of a comparable property, newly built to the building standards, rules and laws now in force. The land does not count, because it is not lost in a claim. That is why the rebuild value can differ considerably from the WOZ value or the sale price.
Do I have a guarantee against underinsurance?
Only if it is stated on your policy schedule. You usually obtain that guarantee by filling in the insurer's rebuild value calculator correctly, through an address scan, or with a valuation report that meets the requirements. Without that guarantee, you carry the risk of too low a sum insured yourself.
When do I need a valuation instead of a value calculator?
For more expensive homes the rebuild value calculator or address scan no longer works, and for unusual properties such as a listed building or a house with a thatched roof the insurer often sets the value itself or requires a report. Make sure the report contains the supplementary provision on the rebuild value; otherwise it does not meet the requirements.
Is foundation damage covered?
Usually not. Subsidence, drought and pile rot are seen as gradual processes rather than as a sudden event. Only where the foundation damage results from a covered cause, for example a burst pipe washing away the soil, can there be cover.
What is the difference from home contents insurance?
Buildings insurance covers the building and everything fixed to it. Home contents insurance covers your possessions. Rule of thumb: if it comes with you when you move, it is contents.
Does comprehensive cover really cover everything?
No. Comprehensive cover covers sudden and unforeseen damage from outside, but the exclusions remain in place: wear and tear, deferred maintenance, construction defects, vermin, subsidence and intent are never covered.
Finass Verzekert is a trading name of Finass Advies B.V. We advise on and arrange non-life insurance on the basis of an objective analysis of several insurers, and receive commission for this from the insurer, which is included in the premium. You pay no separate advice fee. Before you take out cover, we establish your wishes and needs.
You will find our licence, KvK and Kifid details and our complaints procedure at the foot of every page.
