Spacious layout · overcab and low-profile · height damage
Insuring a Bürstner
Burstner builds tall and roomy, and the result is that damage on this make is often above eye level: exactly the kind of damage that third-party, fire and theft does not pay for.
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A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
With a Burstner, height is the decisive factor. The spacious layout sits in the body, and with air conditioning, a roof box, a satellite dish or solar panels on top of it, the actual height is greater than the specification sheet states. Car parks, petrol station canopies, barriers and overhanging branches are the places where it goes wrong.
That damage is your own fault. Third-party, fire and theft covers fire, storm, hail, theft and glass breakage, but not what you cause yourself. If you drive the roof or a roof light into something, you need comprehensive cover; otherwise you bear the cost yourself. On a body made of sandwich panels that repair is laborious, because a damaged roof panel can rarely be repaired locally.
Everything mounted on or to the body is not part of the list price and has to be declared separately. If you fail to do so, the insurer will pay after roof damage for the panel of the camper van but not for the solar panels, the dish or the roof box that were on it. See also the motorhome insurance.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
The basics
Vehicle
Third-party liability is compulsory. Also, third-party, fire and theft or comprehensive cover.
Collision and theft
Fire, storm and hail
Often a replacement-value-as-new arrangement
Declare separately
Contents and accessories
Everything you take with you and fit to it.
Awning and bicycle carrier
Crockery and bedding
Solar panels and TV
On the road
Assistance
Breakdown and repatriation of the motorhome and its occupants.
Breakdown assistance abroad
Replacement accommodation
Return transport of the motorhome
What is covered
Situation
Third-party liability
Third-party, fire and theft
Comprehensive
Collision with another vehicle
Yes
Yes
Yes
Theft of the motorhome
No
Yes
Yes
Hail damage during storage
No
Yes
Yes
Damage you cause yourself on the campsite
No
No
Yes
Contents and accessories
No
Sometimes
Sometimes
Frost damage from not draining down
No
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.
Measure the actual height, including everything on top
The height in the brochure rarely matches the height on the road. Air conditioning, roof light, satellite dish, solar panels and a roof box add to it. Measure the camper van again after every installation and put the result on a sticker in the driver's line of sight. It costs nothing and prevents the damage that occurs most often with this type of body and that, under third-party, fire and theft, remains entirely at your expense.
Roof damage falls outside third-party, fire and theft cover
A collision with a car park, a barrier or an overhanging branch is damage you cause yourself. Third-party, fire and theft does not have that category: it covers fire, storm, hail, theft and glass breakage. Only comprehensive cover pays for damage you cause yourself, less the excess. Anyone who drives a tall body and still chooses third-party, fire and theft is excluding the most common cause of damage on this make.
Declare roof-mounted equipment separately
Solar panels, a satellite installation, a roof box and a bicycle rack are accessories. They are not part of the list price and are only paid for if they have been declared with their own amount. Report them when they are fitted, not only when you claim. Keep the purchase invoices: after roof damage you have to show what was on the roof and what it was worth, and without evidence the payment is limited to the vehicle itself.
Watch the rear overhang swing
On a long body the rear section projects well behind the rear axle. When you turn in, that section swings the other way, past bollards, walls and parked cars. This side and corner damage is more common on roomy models than front-end damage and also counts as your own fault. Practise the turning circle before you set off and use a second person when reversing on a tight campsite.
The contents sum is almost always set too low
Add up what is really in it: crockery, pans, bedding, clothing, bicycles on the carrier, a TV and the awning. In a well-equipped motorhome that adds up to several thousand euros. You insure that separately; the vehicle's own-damage cover does nothing with it.
Frost damage is your own responsibility
Draining the water or keeping a minimum temperature is a condition on almost every policy. Burst pipes and a boiler ruined by frost are not sudden damage from outside but the result of an omission, and are not paid for.
What does your premium depend on?
Length and height of the body. Together they affect the likelihood of height and manoeuvring damage.
Type of construction. An overcab or a low-profile model leads to a different damage pattern.
Type of cover chosen. Third-party, fire and theft or comprehensive cover. Only comprehensive covers your own fault.
Declared accessories on the roof and rear. Solar panels, dish, roof box and bicycle rack count separately.
Covered or open storage. A covered place limits hail and storm damage to the roof.
Excess where you are at fault. Some policies apply a different amount for this.
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.
Only under comprehensive cover. Damage against a car park, a canopy or a branch is something you cause yourself, and third-party, fire and theft does not have that category: it covers fire, storm, hail, theft and glass breakage. If you drive a tall body and still choose third-party, fire and theft, you are excluding the most common cause of damage on this make from payment.
What happens if I have not declared solar panels?
Then they are not insured. Roof-mounted accessories fall outside the list price and are only paid for once they are on the policy with their own amount. After roof damage the insurer will in that case pay for the panel of the camper van, but not for the installation mounted on it. So report added equipment immediately after it is fitted.
Why is roof repair on a camper van so laborious?
The body consists of sandwich panels with an insulating core. A dent or crack can rarely be repaired locally, because the panel has to be replaced over a large area and all penetrations, bonded seams and seals have to be made watertight again. As a result the labour element of such a repair runs high compared with the cost of materials.
What should I watch out for when reversing?
The rear overhang swing. On a long body the rear section projects well behind the rear axle and moves the other way when you turn in. Side and corner damage against bollards, walls and parked cars happens easily as a result. That is your own fault and therefore only covered under comprehensive cover; have someone guide you on a tight campsite.
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.
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